Google - 8.8.8.8 with its backup on
8.8.4.4
Easy to remember for IPv4 on 8.8.8.8 with its backup on
8.8.4.4, users will expect and get high availability a lot of filtering
and security such as DNSSEC as standard. Since Google’s business is
advertising, it’s very much a one size fits all model with no
configuration to speak of. The standard-setter for public DNS, Google is
one of the fastest too. Google collects data on users as it does from
all its services although in the case of DNS it should be impersonal. If
you can put up with that, this is definitely the one to beat.
Now part of the Cisco empire, the primary is 208.67.220.220
with a backup on 208.67.222.222. Home users can simply adjust their DNS
to point at one of the above but OpenDNS also offers the service
wrapped up in three further tiers of service, Family Shield, Home, and
VIP Home, the latter having a subscription fee of $19.95 (£14) per
annum. These come with varying levels of filtering and security,
including parental control, anti-phishing protection and, on the
subscription tier, web whitelisting.
Norton ConnectSafe - 199.85.126.10 (backup
199.85.127.10)
Available in its basic form on 199.85.126.10 (backup
199.85.127.10) with other servers specified to filter content such as
porn, file sharing, abortion, mature content. Also offered as Norton ConnectSafe for Business.
Comodo Secure DNS - 8.26.56.26 and 8.20.247.20.
Rather like Google in that there is no configuration – using
the service is simply a matter of switching to the services primary and
backup servers on 8.26.56.26 and 8.20.247.20.
DNS.Watch - 84.200.69.80 and 84.200.70.40
Available on 84.200.69.80 and 84.200.70.40, DNS.Watch is almost unique in offering an alternative DNS service
without the website logging found on most others. We quote: “We're not
interested in shady deals with your data. You own it. We're not a big
corporation and don't have to participate in shady deals. We're not
running any ad network or anything else where your DNS queries could be
of interest for us.”
VeriSign Public DNS - 64.6.64.6 and 64.6.65.6
Not to be outdone, VeriSign recently started offering public servers
on 64.6.64.6 and 64.6.65.6. Interestingly, the company made a big point
is saying it would not collect data on users of the service, a sign
that privacy is starting to become something companies believe they can
market themselves on. What VeriSign gets from this setup is intelligence
on the sorts of malicious sites real users attempt to visit.
It is important to remember that there is probably no single
DNS service that will do the job for everyone. The one that delivers
the best performance for one company or individual might not do so for
someone else. This is why it is important to run some tests.
