Category: Cybersecurity

User trust at the heart of the latest CSA Summit in Cologne

From 22 to 24 April, Cologne hosted the Certified Senders Alliance Summit on the theme of “Trust fuels the future”. The event marked the 20th anniversary of the initiative.

Corporate communications have changed dramatically over the last 20 years with the rise of social networks. For example, Instagram now has more than 2 billion monthly users, YouTube more than 2.5 billion and Facebook more than 3 billion. These platforms were all launched between 2004 and 2010. While they have become an integral part of companies’ communications plans for addressing their users, the use of email is still very high, as there are still so many uses for email: sending email campaigns, newsletters, invoices or for example order confirmations. According to Statista, the overall volume of emails increased by 4.3% in 2023 compared with the previous year, with almost 347.3 billion emails sent worldwide every day. Another fact: on average, a person receives around 121 emails a day. These figures underline that email is not about to disappear.

Gartner nevertheless points out that concerns about email security are growing, with few companies escaping security incidents, with increasingly sophisticated phishing attacks using malicious links or attachments, for example, and data losses often linked to careless behaviour or human error. With this in mind, every year CSA brings together experts from the email ecosystem to discuss best practices and solutions for improving email quality and trust. The event is organised around a series of workshops, sessions, conferences and masterclasses.

Nameshield, which sponsored the event, pointed out that there can be no email security without secure domain names, which are critical business assets, and without a robust, high-performance DNS infrastructure. Email security therefore depends on the choice of your domain name provider and the cyber-security solutions it is able to offer its customers. These include the DMARC protocol, which protects users against fraudulent messages. Customised brand extensions also known as dot brands are another way of building brand confidence in the run-up to the next round of new generic extensions scheduled for April 2026.

Contact your Nameshield consultant for more information on all our solutions.

Nameshield at the CSA Summit in Cologne – From April 22 to 24, 2024

Celebrate the 20th anniversary with us and be part of the discussion about the future of commercial emails.

For 20 years, the CSA (Certified Senders Alliance) has been committed to strengthening trust in email as a communication channel. Building bridges between email senders and email providers has been the central goal of the CSA from the very beginning – this year’s anniversary summit will examine the success factors of the future under the motto ‘Trust Fuels the Future’.

Nameshield is a Gold Sponsor of the event – our team would be delighted to meet you there. Gain market-leading expertise with CSA’s insights and evolving best practices. We are particularly looking forward to the discussion around the implementation of DMARC, which is becoming a new standard.

Join an international network of brands, agencies, email service providers and mailbox vendors for a dynamic exchange of information in the well-connected email ecosystem! The CSA Email Summit is not just an event, it’s your path to realising your full potential in the ever-evolving landscape of commercial email.

The CSA Email Summit is supported by various industry associations and provides a solid platform for conversations that offer valuable insights into the future of email marketing. Learn from industry experts in workshops, sessions, short talks and masterclasses to enhance your expertise.

Please contact the Nameshield team for more information and to make an appointment at the Summit!

DNSSEC: Nameshield adopts ECDSA

DNSSEC is the protocol that guarantees the integrity of DNS resolution by establishing a chain of trust all the way back to the root. Data security is ensured by a mechanism of cryptographic keys that sign DNS zone records. Historically, DNS operators have used RSA keys (RSASHA256 algorithm), renowned for their robustness.

As an alternative to this asymmetric cryptographic algorithm, there are elliptic curve algorithms. In the case of DNSSEC, the “ECDSA Curve P-256 with SHA-256” algorithm (RFC 6605 and 8624) offers a higher level of security with smaller key sizes.

The ECDSA algorithm is increasingly being implemented by major players in the domain names industry, such as Verisign and AFNIC, and aims to become the standard.

This has several advantages over our current implementation:

  • Smaller signatures and smaller zone files (approx. -33%);
  • Faster zone transfer and reload;
  • Improved signing performance;
  • Potentially faster DNS requests (less reliance on IP fragmentation);
  • Reduced amplification factor of DDoS attacks based on DNS.

For all these reasons, Nameshield has chosen to use this algorithm by default to secure its own domain names and those of its customers.

Image credit : Nameshield with storyset.com

Phishing, slamming and other fraudulent e-mails: Stay alert during the end-of-year holidays!

Phishing, slamming and other fraudulent e-mails: Stay alert during the end-of-year holidays!

The end-of-year holidays often announce the upsurge of fraudulent mass e-mails campaigns. Indeed, cybercriminals take advantage of this period, when vigilance can be particularly low, to launch phishing e-mails.

What are phishing and slamming?

Phishing is used by cybercriminals to obtain personal information in order to commit an identity theft.

In the world of phishing, slamming is a well-known variant that consists in encouraging domain names holders to renew their annuity with another registrar, by arguing the emergency and criticality of the concerned name’s loss. Concretely, this is an e-mail pushing its recipient to contract an unsolicited service and to proceed to the payment of this latter without delay.

Thus, the slamming may take the form of a fraudulent renewal invoice, usually associated with intimidating terms like “Expiration notice”. Under the pressure of such e-mail, generally well built, it happens that the recipient then proceeds to the payment and finds himself debited with an important amount for the so-called renewal.

In the same way, the slamming e-mail may also indicate that a “customer” of the sender, posing as a fake registrar, intends to register domain names identical or similar to your brand. Then the fraudster proposes to register them for you in order to protect you from these troublesome registrations, of course, in exchange for an urgent payment.

Another kind of attack, the suspicious e-mail attachment!

Be careful of fraudulent e-mails with infectious attachments: a single entry point is enough to destroy a network!

The aim of a trap and thus malicious attachment is to pose as a legitimate file (PDF, Word document, JPG image…), while hosting and hiding a malicious code: this is what we generally call Trojans.

Some simple rules to protect against them

  • Always stay alert when someone asks you your personal data;
  • Do not ever open an attachment from an unknown sender, or from one who is not entirely trustworthy;
  • Check the links by hovering the cursor over them (without clicking) to ensure that they link to trustworthy websites;
  • Never reply under the pressure of this kind of solicitation and of course do not proceed to any payment;
  • If there is any doubt, do not reply to the e-mail and contact the sender through another method who will confirm whether it really is a fraud attempt or not.

To remind you of this more often, you can find a wallpaper to download on the Nameshield website:

Download the wallpaper

Image credits : Nameshield with storyset.com

New e-mails authentication requirements from Google and Yahoo

New e-mails authentication requirements from Google and Yahoo - DMARC

Google and Yahoo recently announced significant changes to their e-mails authentication requirements. The aim of these adjustments is to strengthen the security of online communications, a major issue in the current context of cybercrime.

The two giants are emphasizing the adoption of advanced authentication protocols, in particular DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting, and Conformance). DMARC relies on the existing SPF and DKIM standards, providing a robust method for verifying e-mails’ authenticity and reducing the risk of identity theft and phishing.

To implement these new requirements, Google and Yahoo will adjust their algorithms to give priority to e-mails from domains that have correctly implemented DMARC. The aim of this measure is to improve the deliverability of authenticated e-mails, reinforcing users’ trust in the security of their e-mail inboxes.

The new guidelines will apply from February 1, 2024 to all senders who send more than 5,000 emails per day. They underline Google and Yahoo’s commitment to fight against online threats, in particular phishing, a common method used by cybercriminals to deceive users and gain access to their sensitive information. By adopting stricter e-mails authentication requirements, these companies are strengthening users’ protection against malicious attacks.

It is now essential for domains holders and players in the digital world to comply with these new guidelines, in order to contribute to the creation of a safer and more secure Internet for all.

Nameshield’s experts are at your disposal to assist you in deploying this protocol.

Meet Nameshield on the it-sa from 10th to 12th October 2023 in Nuremberg, Germany

Meet Nameshield from 10th to 12th October in Nuremberg at a new edition of the it-sa, the absolutely must-attend meeting of the IT security sector!

As the “Home of IT Security“, it-sa stands for both a comprehensive range of information and networking and knowledge exchange on the topics of data protection and IT security.

The three-day programme includes talks, workshops, discussion panels, one-to-one meetings and opportunities for networking…

Meet us on site: Hall 7, Stand 7-214, in cooperation with eco, the Association of the Internet Industry.

Exchange with our team and discover our global solutions that satisfy the requirements of your DNS security. Discover our product for a high-availability of your strategic domains: “DNS Bastion“.

For more information, visit the event website: https://www.itsa365.de/

Nameshield’s DNS Premium labelled France Cybersecurity

The digital transformation of companies creates an increasing dependence on networks.

Websites, emails, VPN, applications… these company key services must remain accessible. An interruption would be dramatic.

DNS is the access point to all these services. It translates domain names into IP addresses and routes traffic to these services. It is increasingly exposed to attacks, yet remains poorly secured due to a lack of knowledge. With the increase in threats, maintaining its DNS infrastructure is becoming more and more complex.

Securing strategic domain names by hosting them on highly secure DNS offering permanent availability, to avoid any interruption to company key services, has become a necessity.

Nameshield, certified ISO 27001 on all its registrar activities, protects companies’ critical digital services against cyber threats, and proposes a DNS Premium solution that ensures high availability of online services.

Nameshield’s DNS Premium has been labelled France Cybersecurity since 2018. This label is a guarantee for users that Nameshield’s products and services present a level of quality in cybersecurity verified by an independent jury.

“Cybersecurity is at the heart of Nameshield’s DNA, through its CERT and ISO 27001 certification. In a sector dominated by American players, this label is the perfect way to highlight our sovereign solutions such as DNS Premium“, Christophe Gérard, Nameshield’s Products Director.

Find out more about our DNS Premium solution

Phishing, slamming and other fraudulent e-mails: stay alert during the summer holidays!

Phishing, slamming and other fraudulent e-mails: stay alert during the summer holidays!

Every year, the summer holidays announce the upsurge of fraudulent e-mails mass campaigns. Indeed, cybercriminals try to profit from these periods when the vigilance is sometimes lowering, to launch phishing e-mails.

What are phishing and slamming?

Phishing is used by cybercriminals to obtain personal information in order to commit an identity theft.

In the world of phishing, slamming is a well-known variant that consists in encouraging domain names owners to renew their annuity with another registrar, by arguing the emergency and criticality of the concerned name’s loss. Concretely, this is an e-mail pushing its recipient to contract an unsolicited service and to proceed to the payment of this latter without delay.

Thus, the slamming can take the form of a fraudulent renewal bill, generally associated with intimidating terms like “Expiration notice”. Under the pressure of such e-mail, in general well built, it happens that the recipient then proceeds to the payment and is debited of an important amount for the so-called renewal.

In the same way, the slamming e-mail indicates that a “customer” of the sender posing as a fake registrar, wants to register domain names identical or similar to your brand. Then the fraudster proposes to register them for you in order to protect you from these troublesome registrations, of course, in exchange for an urgent payment.

Another kind of attack, the suspicious e-mail attachment!

Be careful of fraudulent e-mails with infectious attachments: a single entry point is enough to destroy a network!

The aim of a trap and thus malicious attachment is to pose as a legitimate file (PDF, Word document, JPG image…), while hosting and hiding a malicious code: this is what we generally call Trojans.

Some simple rules to protect against them

  • Always stay alert when someone asks you your personal data;
  • Do not ever open an attachment from an unknown sender, or from one who is not entirely trustworthy;
  • Check the links by hovering the cursor over them (without clicking) to ensure that they link to trustworthy websites;
  • Never reply under the pressure of this kind of solicitation and of course do not proceed to any payment;
  • If there is any doubt, do not reply to the e-mail and contact the sender through another method who will confirm whether it really is a fraud attempt or not.

Find on the Nameshield’s website a wallpaper to download to help you think about it more often.

Download the wallpaper

Nameshield is exhibitor at the Rethink! IT Security on 22-24 March 2023 in Berlin!

Phishing attacks are becoming more and more frequent and aggressive – learn from us how you can prevent your company’s email addresses from becoming the starting point of such attacks.

On 22.03. at the ICEBREAKER we will discuss the following topic: Domain names and DMARC – Current trends and challenges in IT security.

The Rethink! IT Security is the leading IT security summit for CISOs and IT security decision makers from the German-speaking region.

Learn about current challenges, technologies, trends and best practices in the field of IT and cybersecurity!

https://www.rethink-it-security.de/

As our customer we have a limited number of free tickets. Please contact us at salesgermany@nameshield.net.

We look forward to welcoming you at our stand and have prepared a little surprise for you there to help calm your nerves in case of an incident.

Nameshield renews its ISO 27001 certification on all its registrar activity

Nameshield renews its ISO 27001 certification

First French registrar certified ISO 27001 since 2017, for its activities of domain names portfolio, DNS and TLS/SSL certificates management, Nameshield is proud to announce the renewal of its ISO 27001 certification in February 2023.

What is the ISO 27001 certification?

ISO 27001 is an international standard that describes the requirements for the implementation of an Information Security Management System, intended to select the security measures to be implemented in order to ensure the protection of a company’s sensitive assets on a defined perimeter. In Nameshield’s case, this covers the entire registrar activity.

At a higher level, the ISO 27001 standard requires that the managers of the company are involved in the cyber defense. In parallel, a steering committee follows the implementation of the new measures respecting the standard.

Why the ISO 27001 certification?

To be ISO 27001 certified is to guarantee to our clients and partners that the security of information systems is fully integrated in each of the services offered by Nameshield, that we are committed to a process of continuous improvement, requiring specific resources that we have chosen to deploy.

The ISO 27001 certification also confirms the competence of Nameshield’s employees and their expertise in protecting critical information.

What this ISO 27001 certification guarantees

The ISO 27001 certification, delivered by LRQA, the World Leader of the certification of value added Management systems, ensures:

  • The involvement of all Nameshield’s employees in the continuous improvement of our security arrangements;
  • An answer to our security goals and those of our clients through an annual analysis of the risks and their processing, according to the Ebios method;
  • The deployment of more secure products and services, with higher added values, that better meet our clients’ expectations;   
  • Our mobilization in case of incidents and our ability to always do better by analyzing the processing of each alert;
  • The continuity of our activities, whatever the threats, by ensuring our remote activities (backup site, telecommuting, redundant servers…).

The renewal of this ISO 27001 certification confirms Nameshield’s determination to offer the best services to its clients under conditions of optimal security.