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Last updated on: August 2, 2024
As global dependence on the internet increases, the digital landscape is becoming even more fraught with challenges, and one of the most insidious threats to emerge is lookalike domains. These fake sites are created to mimic established brands, using a similar domain name to trick victims. These scams have proliferated, leading to significant losses in revenue and damage to consumer trust.
In 2023 alone, the frequency of these attacks increased by 50% stemming from links to fake websites where victims input their information. This highlights the critical need for robust cyber defense mechanisms. This article explores the nature of lookalike domain attacks, their mechanics, the latest tactics employed by cybercriminals, and effective strategies to protect your brand from these deceptive assaults.
A lookalike domain is a type of cyber threat where fraudsters register domain names closely resembling those of established companies. The intent is to deceive internet users into believing they are visiting a legitimate website. This technique involves subtle alterations in the domain name, such as minor spelling changes or different domain extensions, which can easily go unnoticed. In the first half of 2023, brands were targeted by an average of 39.4 lookalike domains each month, with a general trend upward. The primary purpose of these domains is to conduct fraudulent activities like phishing, data theft, or malware distribution. This rising trend underscores the critical importance of recognizing and understanding lookalike domains for businesses, as they are essential in safeguarding brand integrity and protecting customers from potential cyber threats.
Domain names are used by internet users to discover companies, services, professionals, and personal websites. By registering domain names that appear to be linked to other domains or companies, cybercriminals profit from users’ errors, taking advantage of the internet’s crucial role in domain name registrations. Cybersquatting is a term for this practice.
To carry out domain-based attacks, attackers employ a variety of techniques, including phishing, social engineering, and malware. There are several ways criminals try to evade lookalike domain detection, from mimicking legal websites to depending on subtle differences that fool the untrained eye.
It’s one of the most prevalent methods used by criminals to impersonate your website. In many cases, this is done by choosing an alternate top-level domain, or TLD, or by adding additional TLDs to a domain name. To make people believe they are dealing with a respectable business, attackers with lookalike domains often employ these techniques. This makes it easier to carry out phishing or malicious assaults successfully. If a site looks to be authentic, an assault employing a generic, disposable domain will be more successful.
The logo and brand name of your company will frequently appear on malicious domains in an attempt to fool visitors into thinking they are visiting a legitimate site. Unwitting victims may be persuaded to give personal or financial information or purchase counterfeit items from these similar domains because of the familiarity and confidence that these sites establish.
Combosquatting involves appending additional words or phrases to a well-known domain name. This creates a new domain that seems related to the original brand but is under the control of attackers. For example, a fraudulent website might use a domain like apple-support.com to impersonate a legitimate service from Apple.
Attackers are constantly on the lookout for new ways to defraud unwary internet users who are unlikely to realize that their traffic is being faked. In addition to typosquatting and homoglyphs, there are many other possibilities.
Using frequent URL misspellings that users are either likely to make on their own or aren’t aware of is known as “typosquatting.” Typo-lookalike domain attacks are common when a company has no registered domains that are near its real domain name. In addition to trademark infringement, attackers may use legal images or other intellectual property to make malicious websites appear to be legitimate.
Adding a letter to the organization’s name, such as the ‘i’ in the picture below, is an example of this practice:
Similar Top-Level Domain (TLD) exploitation is a tactic in lookalike domain attacks where cybercriminals register a domain using the same second-level domain (SLD) as a target brand but with a different TLD. For example, if the original website is example.com, attackers might register example.net, example.org, or example.biz. This approach relies on the user’s familiarity with the SLD of a well-known brand while overlooking the change in TLD, which could be as subtle as switching from a .com to a .net. The effectiveness of this tactic stems from the ease with which users might remember a brand’s name (the SLD) but not pay close attention to the TLD, making it a significant threat in the cybersecurity landscape.
In subdomain deception, cybercriminals create a URL where the legitimate domain appears as a subdomain of an attacker-controlled domain. For instance, if the authentic site is example.com, the attacker might use a URL like example.com.maliciousdomain.com. At a glance, the URL gives the impression that it leads to a subdomain of example.com, leveraging the trust associated with the genuine domain. However, the actual domain being accessed is maliciousdomain.com, with example.com merely being a subdomain in this structure. This tactic is particularly deceptive because it exploits the common use of subdomains by legitimate businesses for various functions, such as support.example.com or shop.example.com.
Users, accustomed to seeing such legitimate subdomains, might not immediately recognize the trick, making it an effective method for phishing or distributing malware. The key to this deception lies in the visual presentation of the URL, where the familiar name of a trusted brand is prominently placed to mask the nefarious intent of the actual domain in use.
In IDN Homograph Attacks, attackers register domain names using characters from different scripts, such as Cyrillic or Greek, that visually resemble Latin script characters. For instance, a Cyrillic ‘a’ might be used in place of the Latin ‘a’, creating a domain name that appears identical to a well-known domain in Latin script. To an unsuspecting user, the deceptive domain looks exactly like the legitimate one, such as аpple.com (with a Cyrillic ‘а’) appearing as apple.com. This type of attack exploits the user’s familiarity with the visual appearance of a domain name, leveraging the fact that many characters in various scripts look alike but are technically different. The result is a URL that is visually indistinguishable from a trusted domain, making it an effective tool for phishing and other malicious activities. The challenge in countering these attacks lies in their subtlety and the reliance on the user’s inability to discern the slight differences in the script, underscoring the need for vigilance in verifying the authenticity of web addresses.
Cybercriminals are using SEO strategies to boost the visibility of their lookalike domains. SEO poisoning is the name for the tactic these fraudsters use to manipulate search engine algorithms to rank their malicious sites higher in search results. This not only increases the likelihood of attracting unsuspecting visitors but also lends a feeling of legitimacy to the fake domains. Techniques involved include keyword stuffing with popular brand names, creating backlinks from other deceptive sites, and exploiting trending topics to drive traffic. The danger here is that users will trust the high search engine ranking as an indication of legitimacy, and may unknowingly engage with these sites.
The use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to populate lookalike domains with convincing content represents a significant escalation in how sophisticated cyber attacks have become. Advanced AI technologies can generate high-quality, relevant articles, fake user reviews, and other types of content that imitate legitimate websites. This content improves the site’s SEO and also helps to deceive visitors into believing they are interacting with a genuine brand. AI’s can even update content dynamically based on trending keywords or current events, making these sites particularly convincing. For companies, the challenge is now twofold: not only must they detect and shut down these domains, but they must also compete with the possibility of their customers encountering and interacting with highly believable counterfeit versions of their websites.
There is a structure among the majority of domain threats that appear to be identical. As you can see below, each stage of the creation process is laid out:
When an attacker is looking for a domain name to spoof, they first check to see if the registrar has any open variants and then register a similar domain name.
Afterward, they set up an A or MX record for email delivery, depending on the situation.
Phishing sites are generally secured using free SSL certificates obtained by threat actors. A variety of methods will be used to disseminate the URL of the fake site.
Scammers use an email server to create a BEC or ransomware assault, then create and send emails to their intended victims.
Domain names and the websites they host are critical to an organization’s online reputation and brand. They are often the first point of contact between your organization and a prospective client, business partner, or employee. Cybercriminals are fully aware of this and are attempting to exploit the present situation by launching similar domain name attacks.
As a result of malevolent, impersonating websites hurting the brand’s reputation, customers may wish to buy elsewhere. Both the client and retailer lose money as a consequence, which hurts both sides.
Many companies keep tabs on domains relevant to their brand to make sure it is being portrayed correctly. Larger companies with a large number of subsidiary brands may find this approach much more challenging. It’s easy for businesses to become overwhelmed by the volume of notifications because of the pervasive nature of similar domain name attacks. To safeguard their brand, products, trademarks, and other intellectual property, businesses must keep a watch out for websites that may be imitating or pirating such items.
Active monitoring of domains that may infringe on a company’s trademark is the only way to ensure it is protected.
An established and continuous strategy for data gathering, curation, and mitigation may help companies effectively monitor and detect risky lookalike domains. Adopting a multi-pronged strategy is considered excellent practice. Here are several strategies to defend your brand:
Partnering with a domain takedown provider can save you time and be more effective in responding to lookalike domain attacks. Red Points specializes in protecting brands from similar domain attacks with its Domain Takedown Services. It helps identify and detect lookalike domains that exploit your brand. Here are three steps Red Points takes in response to similar domain name attacks.
Our comprehensive monitoring tools are able to detect and alert you of any new domain registrations that could potentially harm your brand. You can input potential domain names or similar names that fraudsters may use to imitate your brand. This proactive surveillance helps quickly identify threats before they escalate.
Once a risky domain is identified, Red Points can automate the enforcement process. This includes sending takedown notices and liaising with domain registrars to deactivate fraudulent domains efficiently. We can follow through with the full process and even help you take legal action against offenders. Or, if you’d prefer to handle the issue yourself, we can support you as you take the next steps.
Your brand can maintain ongoing protection with Red Points’ advisory services, which help identify gaps in your domain strategy and suggest improvements based on existing data to ensure that you always stay one step ahead of cybercriminals.
For Keen, the adoption of a domain takedown strategy was crucial in safeguarding their clients from deceptive practices and fraud, while also preserving their corporate reputation.
It is possible for lookalike domains to permanently damage an otherwise healthy organization. To guard against domain abuse, security teams need to be both proactive and comprehensive in their efforts.
Following the steps outlined in this strategy should help security teams better understand domain risks, how to gather and evaluate domain intelligence, and techniques to employ to reduce threats caused by lookalike domain attacks on their networks.
See how you can detect and enforce domains that exploit your brand with Red Points.
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