Glossary

7 min read

A Resource-record

Entry in a zone file. Assigns an IPv4 address to a host name.

AA resource record

Entry in a zone file. Assigns an IPv6 address to a host name.

Anycast

A routing technology on the Internet that reduces latency and improves availability.

To achieve this, the same IP address is made available at several locations worldwide. User requests for a service or website are routed to the nearest server that makes them available.

Authcode

Another term for AuthInfo

What is the AuthInfo?

Password for a domain transfer. It is generated for the transfer of a specific domain and is exclusively valid for this domain. Required to transfer some TLDs.

What is AXFR?

AXFR (Authoritative Zone Transfer) is a comprehensive transfer of all data within a DNS zone from a primary DNS server to a secondary DNS server. This process is usually initiated when a new secondary DNS server is set up or when updates have been made to the data on the primary DNS server..

BackupMX

BackupMX ensures that the email communication of a company or organization is maintained even if the primary mail server fails and that no emails are lost

BackupMX acts as a secondary mail server. It accepts emails when the primary mail server of a domain owner is unavailable, e.g. in the event of a failure or overload. As soon as the primary mail server is available again, the BackupMX server forwards the emails to the primary server,

Brokerage service

A service that facilitates the purchase and sale of Internet domains and web addresses.

What is DKIM?

DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail) is a security mechanism that helps prevent spam emails and phishing attacks by verifying the authenticity and integrity of the email.

When an email server sends an email, it adds a DKIM signature, which is created based on the content of the email and a secret key. The recipient server checks the DKIM signature. If the check is successful, it confirms that the email actually originates from the specified sender and has not been modified during transmission.

What is DMARC?

DMARC is a security protocol that helps verify the authenticity of emails and prevent spam emails and phishing attacks.

DMARC combines two existing technologies, SPF (Sender Policy Framework) and DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail), to verify that an email actually originates from an authorized server of the sender. Emails that do not comply with DMARC rules can be rejected by the recipient server or moved to the spam folder. DMARC also offers reporting features to inform domain owners of potential security issues.

What is DNSSEC?

DNSSEC (Domain Name System Security Extensions) is an extension of the domain name system. The task of DNSSEC is to ensure that the user receives data from the website that they have entered in their browser and not from another one. This could be the case, for example, if an attacker uses cache poisoning to change the data on the internet provider’s name server in order to redirect the user’s request to another website. DNSSEC therefore ensures the authenticity of the data on the one hand. However, it also guarantees the completeness and integrity of the returned data. Technically, this is done by signing DNS entries on the name servers.

The KSK (Key Signing Key, also DNSKEY) is the key used to sign the ZSK (Zone Signing Key). The KSK is transmitted from the registrar to the registry. The KSK enables the respective higher-level instance to guarantee the authenticity of the data when it is transferred from the TLD root server to the provider name server and handed over to the next lower instance (= chain of trust).

What are name servers?

Name servers (also known as DNS servers) are an important part of the domain infrastructure. They are needed to connect a domain to an IP address. Secondary name servers serve as backups and take over the functions of the primary server if it fails or is overloaded. Tasks performed by name servers include:

Translating domains into IP addresses
Name servers translate the domain into an IP address that can be understood by computers and networks.
Connecting domains to web servers
Name servers connect the domain to the web server on which the website is hosted.
Email traffic
Name servers are required to route emails to the correct address.
Security
Name servers help ensure the security of the domain by ensuring that only authorized requests are made to the domain.

What is NodeSecure?

NodeSecure is an Anycast name server service. The 46 NodeSecure name servers are distributed worldwide and guarantee extremely high availability with short access times. In addition, NodeSecure offers the option of signing zones with DNSSEC at no extra cost. The costs for NodeSecure see price list.

MailProxy

A service that acts as an intermediary between the Internet and the actual mail server to filter, scan, and route emails. A mail proxy server can block spam emails, viruses, and other threats before they reach the actual mail server, thereby protecting the security and integrity of email communications.

PTR (Pointer Record)

A PTR (Pointer) record in the DNS is used for reverse lookup – it maps an IP address to a domain name. This is the opposite of an A or AAAA record, which maps a domain name to an IP address.

PTR records are mainly used to verify email servers. Mail servers often check if the sender’s IP address resolves to a valid domain name. If a proper PTR record is missing, the email is more likely to be classified as spam.

What is a resource record?

A resource record (RR) is a data set in the Domain Name System (DNS) that contains information about a specific resource (e.g. a host, an IP address, a mail server).

Resource records are used by DNS servers to answer queries and find the corresponding resources.

What is SOA?

A SOA (Start of Authority) record is the most important administrative entry in a DNS zone file. It establishes the authority for a specific domain and is always the first record in that file. Its primary function is to ensure that a domain’s DNS information is consistent and up-to-date across all nameservers. It acts as the communication protocol between the primary (master) and secondary (slave) nameservers.

What is SPF ?

SPF (Sender Policy Framework) is a security mechanism that helps prevent spam emails and phishing attacks by verifying that an email actually originates from an authorized server belonging to the sender. SPF rules are created by domain owners to define which servers are allowed to send emails on behalf of their domain. When an email server receives an email, it checks the SPF rules to determine whether the email originated from an authorized server or not. If the email did not originate from an authorized server, it can be identified as spam or a scam attempt and blocked. →See also SPF

What is Whois Privacy Service?

Whois Privacy Service protects the personal data of a domain owner from the public by replacing this data in the Whois database with a proxy address. The Whois database contains information about the owner of an Internet domain, such as name, address, and contact information. The Whois Privacy Service keeps this data private and does not make it publicly available in order to ensure privacy and prevent spam and unwanted contacts.

What is Whois Privacy Plus Service?

Whois Privacy Plus offers, in addition to the features of Whois Privacy, an individual email address for each domain, which is displayed in WHOIS instead of the service provider’s email address. Emails sent to the individual email address are forwarded by the service provider to the registrant’s email address. This email address enables anonymous direct communication between the domain owner and the enquirer. All responses from the registrant to enquirers are also anonymized.

ZSK

A ZSK (Zone Signing Key) is a cryptographic key used to ensure the authenticity and integrity of DNS (Domain Name System) data in a specific zone.

The ZSK is used to sign the DNS data in a zone by creating a digital fingerprint (hash) that is appended to the DNS data. This fingerprint can then be verified by other systems to ensure that the DNS data has not been tampered with.

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