The EU challenges Google and Cloudflare with its own DNS resolver who can filter dangerous traffic
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- The EU revealed its own DNS resolver and promised to be more privacy-compliant and cyber spring
- The DNS4EU comes as an alternative to large American services and contains built -in filters to block dangerous traffic
- Although it remains voluntary for all EU citizens, some privacy experts warn of potential issues on content filtering and privacy
The European Union has officially unveiled its own DNS resolver, which promises to strengthen privacy and safety for EU citizens, government organizations and telecom providers in the block.
The DNS4EU wants to be an alternative to large public -based audience DNS -Services (such as Google and Cloudflare) to stimulate EU digital autonomy by reducing European dependence on foreign infrastructure.
However, this is not only a DNS developed by the EU. The DNS4EU is supplied with built -in filters against malignant domains, such as those hosting malware” phishingOr other cyber security threats. The house user version also contains the possibility to block advertisements and/or adult content.
Although its use remains voluntary, some privacy experts warn of potential issues related to content filtering and privacy.
What is the DNS4EU?
As the EU committee wrote The official website: “The goal of DNS4EU is to guarantee the digital sovereignty of the EU by offering a private, safe and independent European DNS resolver.”
Shortly before the domain name system, a DNS -Resolver acts as the internet telephone book, where user requests are translated into vesting series – IP -addresses – To connect them with the right websites.
Every time you connect to the internet, it is your internet provider (ISP) who chooses the DNS to destroy your traffic. Nevertheless, an organization or end users can choose to change services to improve connecting speeds, improve security and privacy, or to better control the content geolocation (similar to what the Best VPN Doing).
First Unveiled in October 2022The project has been developed under the supervision of the EU CyberSecurity Agency Enisa and is currently managed by a Pan-European Consortium led by Czech CyberSecurity company Whalebone, including experts from 10 EU countries.
This week DNS4EU Public Service was launched for testing stakeholder group. Thank you to everyone involved. We are currently collecting feedback to support final adjustments. 🗓️ Official public launch that will come next week. Stay informed. #Dns4eu #cybersecurity #dns pic.twitter.com/g0uaqiutdcJune 6, 2025
The DNS4EU, whose EU ensures that “no one is forced” has been developed to meet the needs of different users.
The Version of home users is a public and free DNS resolver that comes with the option to add filters to ads, malware, content for adults or all these, or none. There is also a special version for Government entities And Telecom -Providers They operate within the European Union.
As mentioned earlier, the DNS4EU is supplied with a built -in filter to block dangerous traffic in addition to the possibility of offering regional threat information. This means that a malicious threat that has been discovered in one country can be blocked at the same time in different regions and countries, so that its spread is stopped.
“DNS4EU Threat Intelligence is reinforced by computer emergency aid teams (Cercs) and other institutions everywhere in the EU, which provide information about EU-specific threats, as well as the data on cyber attacks collected through the Telco partners,” the EU explains.
What do the experts say?
The possibility of filtering unwanted content has since founded to filter the concern among experts.
For example, Speaking with TorrentFreak in 2022A former MEP for the German Pirate Party, Patrick Breyer, pointed out how “a DSA scheme run by the government comes with the risk of online censorship.”
In conversation with TechRadar at the time of writing, Breyer welcomes the decision to leave traffic filter options as optional. “However, it is still to be seen how the operator will respond to requirements for filtering. The use of a service sponsored by the government can be a risk because of the wishes of law enforcement and intelligence services,” he said.
The senior director of the European government and regulatory matters at the Internet Society, David Frautschy Heredia, also warns of potential risks with regard to filtering content, with the argument that “guarantees must be developed to prevent abuse.”
Heredia also fears that applying geographical boundaries to the global infrastructure in the long term can bring more harm than good.
He said to Techradar: “This normalizes the approach and could inspire other actors all over the world to introduce their own DNS resolvers, which may be obliged to use. Other countries, including Mauritius and Kazakhstan, have previously tried to impose the compulsory use of national DNS -Resolvers, with the capability of.”
In addition to these potential issues, Breyer also noted that the DNS4EU none No-log policy. This is a guarantee that a record of user activities will never be stored.
According to the DNS4EU policy Published on 1 June 2025, the service collects a limited number of DNS -Query data and IP addresses. The latter are the most anonymized directly on the DNS resolver.
Still, “the log registration of all requests – even if they are usually anonymous – entails risks,” Breyer told us.
On the side, the EU never promises to share information that an individual could identify. It also rejects all concerns about censorship, promises that the EU has no access to the configuration and data of users.
“DNS4EU is not a way in the direction of censorship, but actually for data protection and better internet protection and sovereignty for Europeans,” reads the official website.
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