What occurs during DNS cache poisoning?

During DNS cache poisoning, data is added to a DNS resolver's cache in a manner that appears to come from an authoritative DNS server, but is actually malicious. This can lead users to incorrect IP addresses, which may direct them to malicious websites instead of the intended ones. Attackers exploit the way DNS resolves domain names into IP addresses, taking advantage of vulnerabilities in the DNS system to insert fraudulent information.

The nature of DNS is such that resolvers cache responses to improve efficiency and reduce the load on authoritative servers. When attackers successfully inject this false data, it can remain in the cache for an extended period until it expires, affecting all users that rely on that resolver for domain name resolution. This highlights the importance of securing DNS infrastructure and implementing measures such as DNSSEC to prevent such attacks from being successful.