DNS spoofing
cyberattack in which corrupt DNS data is introduced into the DNS resolver's cache, causing the name server to return an incorrect result record, e.g. an IP address, diverting traffic to the attacker
DNS spoofing, also referred to as DNS cache poisoning, is a form of computer security hacking in which corrupt Domain Name System data is introduced into the DNS resolver's cache, causing the name server to return an incorrect result record, e.g. an IP address. This results in traffic being diverted to any computer that the attacker chooses. Put simply, a hacker makes the device think it is connecting to the chosen website, when in reality, it is redirected to a different website by altering the IP address associated with the domain name in the DNS server.
Overview of the Domain Name System
A Domain Name System server translates a human-readable domain name (such as example.com) into a numerical IP address that is used to route communications between nodes. Normally if the server does not know a requested translation it will ask another server, and the process continues recursively. To increase performance, a server will typically remember (cache) these translations for a certain amount of time. This means if it receives another request for the same translation, it can reply without needing to ask any other servers, until that cache expires.
When a DNS server has received a false translation and caches it for performance optimization, it is considered poisoned, and it supplies the false data to clients. If a DNS server is poisoned, it may return an incorrect IP address, diverting traffic to another computer (often an attacker's).
The public source identifies “DNS spoofing” as cyberattack in which corrupt DNS data is introduced into the DNS resolver's cache, causing the name server to return an incorrect result record, e.g. an IP address, diverting traffic to the attacker. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around spoofing, cyberattack and corrupt.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “DNS spoofing”, the useful work is to connect “cyberattack in which corrupt DNS data is introduced into the DNS resolver's cache, causing the name server to return an incorrect result record, e.g. an IP address, diverting traffic to the attacker” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Feb 21, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q3700500. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference.
The absence of detail may reflect summary conventions rather than a lack of surviving documentation. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
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This entry incorporates text from “DNS spoofing” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.