Spark DNS Issues - Amazing - Broadband Service Alert

Forums › Spark New Zealand (including Skinny and BigPipe) › Spark DNS Issues - Amazing - Broadband Service Alert

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meow
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#1123402 6-Sep-2014 22:26

PaulBags: One thing I'm confused about: if it's their DNS server's under attack then why, once you got a name to resolve, did it* lag out almost instantly again? Shouldn't it be using local cache at that point, therefore no more issues on that address? Now maybe facebook change their IP every 2 seconds, but I doubt it.

*(this morning, before I switched dns servers)

Some routers don't cache DNS, others do. For example my router has about 20mb of cache for DNS.

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dcole13

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#1123403 6-Sep-2014 22:27

einsteinsboi:
dcole13: On Spark's Facebook post about it (here) the comments are ridiculous. How hard is it to change your DNS settings? Honestly. They supplied instructions and still, nope.

Ooh look Twitter!

"HOLY **** FIX YOUR ******* **** SPARK USELESS ***** ITS BEEN OVER 24 HOURS HOLY **** C**** FIX YOUR **** ******* CREW"

Someone has COD withdraw syndrome.

I think for some people the thought of going to their computers and changing anything is super scary. I know because I have several very intelligent friends who suddenly seem to regress when I ask them to open a command line or go into their computer settings to change something simple. It's just a very different mystifying world for some people, so even instructions that look simple and benign to us completely terrify them.

Yeah, I guess so. But when people are asking for compensation, it's out of their control really. Plus, do you really need internet? It's just really annoying (and really funny) when people get really cut up about it and let out their anger on social media.

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berman002

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#1123404 6-Sep-2014 22:29

dcole13: On Spark's Facebook post about it (here) the comments are ridiculous. How hard is it to change your DNS settings? Honestly. They supplied instructions and still, nope.

Ooh look Twitter!

"HOLY **** FIX YOUR ******* **** SPARK USELESS ***** ITS BEEN OVER 24 HOURS HOLY **** C**** FIX YOUR **** ******* CREW"

Someone has COD withdraw syndrome.

you are right but you can't expect a 50-70 years old peoples know how to do a DNS changes, and some people are just computer/tech dumper. so.......instruction would not be very helpful for them either. lol.

code15

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#1123405 6-Sep-2014 22:34

Why is this only affecting spark?

Edit (badly worded): why is this malware only affecting spark's DNS and not other ISPs?

dcole13

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#1123406 6-Sep-2014 22:36

code15: Why is this only affecting spark?

Spark owns the DNS servers for Spark customers. They are the only people that can use them. Every isp has there own, and Sparks are having problems currently, what's why switching to Google dns fixes it.

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code15

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#1123411 6-Sep-2014 22:38

dcole13:
code15: Why is this only affecting spark?

Spark owns the DNS servers for Spark customers. They are the only people that can use them. Every isp has there own, and Sparks are having problems currently, what's why switching to Google dns fixes it.

Yeah sorry, I meant why aren't other ISPs having their DNS's hammered? Or is the malware specifically targeted at sparks, regardless of ISP

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michaelmurfy

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#1123412 6-Sep-2014 22:40

dcole13:
code15: Why is this only affecting spark?

Spark owns the DNS servers for Spark customers. They are the only people that can use them. Every isp has there own, and Sparks are having problems currently, what's why switching to Google dns fixes it.

Spark are also the biggest? ISP in NZ with the highest number of high speed connections like myself on 100mbit UFB.

If a network device on my network was infected then it has potential to send 50mbit of traffic to Sparks DNS servers to try to relay onto the site it is targeting. I don't think Sparks DNS passes on the request (citation needed) but the traffic going into the DNS is potentially enough with enough customers to bring it to a bit of a meltdown.

dcole13

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#1123414 6-Sep-2014 22:41

code15:
dcole13:
code15: Why is this only affecting spark?

Spark owns the DNS servers for Spark customers. They are the only people that can use them. Every isp has there own, and Sparks are having problems currently, what's why switching to Google dns fixes it.

Yeah sorry, I meant why aren't other ISPs having their DNS's hammered? Or is the malware specifically targeted at sparks, regardless of ISP

I don't know, spark is the biggest isp in nz so maybe that's why.

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PaulBags

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#1123418 6-Sep-2014 22:46

michaelmurfy:
PaulBags: One thing I'm confused about: if it's their DNS server's under attack then why, once you got a name to resolve, did it* lag out almost instantly again? Shouldn't it be using local cache at that point, therefore no more issues on that address? Now maybe facebook change their IP every 2 seconds, but I doubt it.

*(this morning, before I switched dns servers)

Some routers don't cache DNS, others do. For example my router has about 20mb of cache for DNS.

Hmm, what about devices themselves? Windows? Android?

jeffnz

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#1123420 6-Sep-2014 22:47

gjen:
michaelmurfy:
Tel69:
AKLWestie: I found it quite amuzing that when I go to spark.co.nz, there was a big banner telling people about the DNS servers issue.

I clicked on the banner, it look me to: http://helpbusiness.spark.co.nz/app/answers/detail/a_id/3701/ which shows you how to change DNS server on your PC. However, that page still shows the default Spark DNS servers to use.

If you are having problems with the DNS servers, why tell people to manually updating their PCs to said servers? Should spark tell people to manually change their DNS servers to Google DNS?

I know they ask people to use Google DNS on their Facebook page. However, not everyone use Facebook.

I still view it as amusing they are putting instructions on the internet for people who cannot get internet.
(I know, I know, friends etc.... who still do have access can relay and they HAD to put something up, still the irony is not wasted on me)

Not really, people have Smartphones these days.
but it is effecting that network too .. mr not so-smart !!

no need for the insults, funnily enough my phone isn't affected and I used that to sort DNS settings

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Kirdog

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#1123429 6-Sep-2014 23:45

Very slow and laggy ingress play on Spark mobile data today and yesterday evening. :(

Just out of Curiosity: Why Voda customers are not affected by that? ( http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11320100 < some very strange excuse detected here, as my opinion)

Also someone mentioned that its "paid attack", it can be/why not...

Sorry about my English guys :>

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quickymart

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#1123430 6-Sep-2014 23:46

All those people requesting compensation should be reminded of the terms "best effort service". Spark may credit a day's worth of internet charges (I've seen it happen before) but they are under no obligation to do so.

eXDee

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#1123431 6-Sep-2014 23:46

michaelmurfy:
dcole13:
code15: Why is this only affecting spark?

Spark owns the DNS servers for Spark customers. They are the only people that can use them. Every isp has there own, and Sparks are having problems currently, what's why switching to Google dns fixes it.

Spark are also the biggest? ISP in NZ with the highest number of high speed connections like myself on 100mbit UFB.

If a network device on my network was infected then it has potential to send 50mbit of traffic to Sparks DNS servers to try to relay onto the site it is targeting. I don't think Sparks DNS passes on the request (citation needed) but the traffic going into the DNS is potentially enough with enough customers to bring it to a bit of a meltdown.

Its sensible enough logic though to ask this question why vodafone for example isn't being affected, who has the second largest number of customers by volume and also on a mix of high connection speeds especially on their cable network.
Or a smaller ISP for example, one assumes that the network capability largely scales to the customer base. So I would have expected at least one other ISP to fall over or at least get issues if it was a standard botnet being called upon to perform DNS amplification.

It is interesting that its only spark who has had major issues.

michaelmurfy

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#1123436 7-Sep-2014 00:00

eXDee:
michaelmurfy:
dcole13:
code15: Why is this only affecting spark?

Spark owns the DNS servers for Spark customers. They are the only people that can use them. Every isp has there own, and Sparks are having problems currently, what's why switching to Google dns fixes it.

Spark are also the biggest? ISP in NZ with the highest number of high speed connections like myself on 100mbit UFB.

If a network device on my network was infected then it has potential to send 50mbit of traffic to Sparks DNS servers to try to relay onto the site it is targeting. I don't think Sparks DNS passes on the request (citation needed) but the traffic going into the DNS is potentially enough with enough customers to bring it to a bit of a meltdown.

Its sensible enough logic though to ask this question why vodafone for example isn't being affected, who has the second largest number of customers by volume and also on a mix of high connection speeds especially on their cable network.
Or a smaller ISP for example, one assumes that the network capability largely scales to the customer base. So I would have expected at least one other ISP to fall over or at least get issues if it was a standard botnet being called upon to perform DNS amplification.

It is interesting that its only spark who has had major issues.

More derps on their network according to their Facebook tonight ;) VF's cable customers have a max upload of 10mbit.

pohutukawa

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#1123477 7-Sep-2014 07:57

dcole13:
code15:
dcole13:
code15: Why is this only affecting spark?

Spark owns the DNS servers for Spark customers. They are the only people that can use them. Every isp has there own, and Sparks are having problems currently, what's why switching to Google dns fixes it.

Yeah sorry, I meant why aren't other ISPs having their DNS's hammered? Or is the malware specifically targeted at sparks, regardless of ISP

I don't know, spark is the biggest isp in nz so maybe that's why.

The answer to all of this is that if Spark are NZ's largest ISP then they are also making the most money and should be providing for occurrences like this.

In fact, given its size, one could argue that Spark are at an advantage over other ISPs because they get to spread their mitigation investment over their massive client-base.

But reality is so very different.

The corporate psyche dictates the opposite: they get to spend as little as possible over as large a client-base as possible. So when they see a massive client-base, all they see is free money, and when disaster strikes, they say "well, we are huge, so when we have these issues they are quite huge problems, and we have the best of the best working 24/7 on it".

What they mean is that they don't have the best and are flapping around trying to figure out what went wrong and when they manage to do that, they will think about trying to fix it.

No?

Xtra email? Yahoo. Slow-moving train-wreck.

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