Google offers their own DNS service

With the continuing problem of trying to make the web faster, Google has decided to deploy their own free DNS service.

Google is continually trying to improve the Web, although this can logically be translated into what is good for the Web is good for Google. They have now announced that they will be launching their own DNS service which can be freely accessed : Google Public DNS.

The DNS protocol (Domain Name System) is an essential element to the Internet’s infrastructure which allows users to input a domain name into the browser, with this then being translated into an IP address. Each time a user visits a Web site, a DNS lookup will be performed. A search is rather complicated, and the lookup’s are performed each time a page is requested. According to Google, a user performs a few hundred DNS lookup’s each day, with their opinion being that the browsing is too slow.

Generally it is the Internet Service Providers who take care of the DNS service for subscribers, with the servers managed by the ICANN handling all .com extensions in the world. With Google Public DNS, Google wants to take things into their own hands and out of the responsibility of ISP’s.

With prefetching, Google Public DNS will be able to quickly answer numerous DNS requests: "before the end of life (TTL) of a recording, we are constantly refreshing asynchronously and independently the users requests for a large of popular domains".

Quick as well as secure with the implementation of a protection method against DNS poisoning attacks, Google Public DNS won't be able to offer protection against malware though. The Google service will provide no kind of filtering or blocking service. No redirection will be seen either in the event that that you incorrectly enter an address which doesn’t conform to DNS standards.

By getting just that little more implicated into Web browsing, Google will be sending other players into cold sweats, with the risk of Big Brother appearing to be ever more present, although they have informed us that only strictly required information will be kept. Temporary logs which contain IP addresses will be deleted after 24 to 48 hours, while the logs kept for longer (for security reasons and to help improve the service) will be anonymous. In any event, Google assures users that there is no correlation with their other services (Web searches, advertising).

Google isn’t the only company to offer such a service with the well known OpenDNS service having been online for a good while already. Completely free, OpenDNS redirects users in the event that you incorrectly enter an address, with advertising being seen.

For the time being, Google Public DNS is still in the experimental phase. This can be tested by entering either of the following DNS settings into your browsers address bar: 8.8.8.8 or 8.8.4.4.

To try and speed up the Web, Google last month presented their SPDY project.

More information about Google Public DNS