T0869.001: DNS
Adversaries may communicate using the Domain Name System (DNS) application layer protocol to avoid detection/network filtering by blending in with existing traffic. Commands to the remote system, and often the results of those commands, will be embedded within the protocol traffic between the client and server. The DNS protocol serves an administrative function in computer networking and thus may be very common in environments. DNS traffic may also be allowed even before network authentication is completed. DNS packets contain many fields and headers in which data can be concealed. Often known as DNS tunneling, adversaries may abuse DNS to communicate with systems under their control within a victim network while also mimicking normal, expected traffic.[1][2]
DNS beaconing may be used to send commands to remote systems via DNS queries. A DNS beacon is created by tunneling DNS traffic (i.e. Protocol Tunneling). The commands may be embedded into different DNS records, for example, TXT or A records.[3] DNS beacons may be difficult to detect because the beacons infrequently communicate with infected devices.[4] Infrequent communication conceals the malicious DNS traffic with normal DNS traffic.
Adversaries may also use DNS over TLS (DoT) or HTTPS (DoH) for resolving C2 servers. This encrypts the DNS requests and allows the malware to lookup C2 servers without being detected by security systems (e.g., DNS filtering based on indicators of compromise).
Security context for executives and security teams
T0869.001: DNS describes Adversaries may communicate using the Domain Name System (DNS) application layer protocol to avoid detection/network filtering by blending in with existing traffic. Commands to the remote system, and often the results of those commands, will be embedded within the protocol traffic between the client and server. The DNS protocol serves an administrative function in computer networking and thus may be very common in environments. DNS traffic may also be allowed even before network authentication is completed. DNS pac...
Executive priority
T0869.001: DNS is an official MITRE ATT&CK technique. Glexia treats it as defensive behavior context for prioritizing monitoring, control validation, and response planning without using the object by itself as an attribution claim.
Technical view
Security teams should validate T0869.001: DNS by reviewing the official ATT&CK relationships, mapped tactics (command-and-control), supported platforms (the platforms named in the official object), and available local telemetry before making detection or mitigation decisions.
Likely telemetry
- Official ATT&CK relationships and object metadata
Detection direction
- Validate whether T0869.001: DNS appears in your detection coverage and tabletop scenarios.
- Use the object to align executive risk language with SOC, incident response, and detection engineering work.
- Do not treat ATT&CK relationship context as attribution without corroborating evidence.
Mitigation priorities
- Map the object to existing controls and identify missing telemetry or response ownership.
- Prioritize mitigations that reduce exposure on the listed platforms and tactics.
- Review adjacent ATT&CK relationships before changing policy, detections, or reporting language.
Additional notes and limits
Baseline Glexia take generated from the official MITRE ATT&CK STIX object, source hash, tactics, platforms, and detection fields. It is safe to replace with a richer model-generated take for the same source hash later.
This baseline take is source-grounded and schema-validated, but it does not include environment-specific telemetry, incident evidence, or threat-intelligence corroboration.
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
DNS
Adversaries may communicate using the Domain Name System (DNS) application layer protocol to avoid detection/network filtering by blending in with existing traffic. Commands to the remote system, and often the results of those commands, will be embedded within the protocol traffic between the client and server. The DNS protocol serves an administrative function in computer networking and thus may be very common in environments. DNS traffic may also be allowed even before network authentication is completed. DNS packets contain many fields and headers in which data can be concealed. Often known as DNS tunneling, adversaries may abuse DNS to communicate with systems under their control within a victim network while also mimicking normal, expected traffic.[1][2]
DNS beaconing may be used to send commands to remote systems via DNS queries. A DNS beacon is created by tunneling DNS traffic (i.e. Protocol Tunneling). The commands may be embedded into different DNS records, for example, TXT or A records.[3] DNS beacons may be difficult to detect because the beacons infrequently communicate with infected devices.[4] Infrequent communication conceals the malicious DNS traffic with normal DNS traffic.
Adversaries may also use DNS over TLS (DoT) or HTTPS (DoH) for resolving C2 servers. This encrypts the DNS requests and allows the malware to lookup C2 servers without being detected by security systems (e.g., DNS filtering based on indicators of compromise).
How security teams should use this page
Treat this object as behavior context, not an attribution claim. Validate the related groups, software, data sources, and mitigations against official ATT&CK relationships and your own telemetry before making control-coverage decisions.
Related techniques
This mirrors the MITRE pattern of making group, software, campaign, and technique relationships scannable. Relationship notes come from mirrored ATT&CK relationship text when available.
| Domain | ID | Name | Relationship / procedure |
|---|---|---|---|
| ICS | T0869 | Standard Application Layer Protocol | This object subtechnique of Standard Application Layer Protocol. |
Groups, software, and campaigns
S9046: IOControl
IOControl is a malware that targeted Linux ARM-based IoT/OT devices including Hikvision IP cameras, D-Link firewalls and routers, Unitronics PLCs and HMIs, Orpak and Gasboy fuel management systems, and Baicells LTE controllers across the United States and Israel. The malware has been attributed to CyberAv3ngers which is suspected to be affiliated with the Iranian Government Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).[1][2][3]
All related ATT&CK context
Mitigation direction
Object version and sync metadata
The fields below describe the current mirrored snapshot. When Glexia retains multiple ATT&CK source imports, you can open the table to compare the same object across releases (hashes and MITRE timestamps). For MITRE’s own release notes and roadmap, see ATT&CK resources — Updates.
Imported snapshots across ATT&CK releases(1)
| Release | Bundle imported | Object version | Modified | Status | Raw hash |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20.0 | 1.0 | Current bundle | d9b3cc15319c… |
Mirrored ATT&CK source object
The raw object is retained through the mirrored ATT&CK source bundle and object hash. The raw endpoint returns the exact object from the mirrored bundle when available.
External references and citations
MITRE external references are preserved separately from Glexia analysis so citations remain traceable to their original source records.
- [1]PAN DNS Tunneling
Palo Alto Networks. (n.d.). What Is DNS Tunneling?. Retrieved March 15, 2020.
Open source URL - [2]Medium DnsTunneling
Galobardes, R. (2018, October 30). Learn how easy is to bypass firewalls using DNS tunneling (and also how to block it). Retrieved March 15, 2020.
Open source URL - [3]OilRig Uses Updated BONDUPDATER to Target Middle Eastern Government
Kyle Wilhoit, Robert Falcone. (2018, September 12). OilRig Uses Updated BONDUPDATER to Target Middle Eastern Government. Retrieved July 21, 2025.
Open source URL - [4]DNS Beacons
Vercara. (n.d.). Retrieved July 21, 2025.
Open source URL - [5]mitre-attackT0869.001Open source URL
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