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1. MUST: Lock down the host configuration (hardening).
   
1. MUST: Uninstall/disable services and software packages that are not required for offering DNS service on the system.
   
2. MUST: Only run DNS software on the systems that will be offering DNS service (i.e.: do not co-locate with web server / mail server, etc.).
   
3. MUST: Enable all relevant logging channels and levels for the DNS subsystem, including suitable retention policies. Send logs to a central location for archiving, inspection and auditing.
   
4. MUST: Configure the DNS service itself to only respond to queries originating from known subnets. This is to avoid probing and leaking of internal DNS information in case of misconfiguration of routing/perimeter security (ACLs).
   
5. MAY: Query logging for audit purposes/incident analysis (local laws and regulations permitting).
2. MUST: Limit user permissions and application access to system resources. File permissions and ownership restrictions must be set so that users and services not directly associated with management of the DNS subsystem have no read or write access to DNS service configuration, data files and database subsystems.
   1. MUST: System and service configuration files must be versioned, enabling detection of corruption/unauthorized changes, and making it possible to roll back changes.
   2. MAY: Consider using AppArmor or another capabilities-based security mechanism to restrict which files and resources the DNS subsystem is allowed to access on the host OS.
   3. MAY: Consider placing the DNS service and associated support services in a containerized environment.
3. MUST: Filter access to management services.
   
1. MUST: Restrict access to management IP addresses and services (e.g: SSH, web-based configuration tools).
   
2. MUST: Close everything except DNS by default.
4. MUST: Secure access to the system console using cryptographic keys, protected with a passphrase (e.g. SSH keys) or using suitable two-factor authentication (OTP generator or token-based).

DNS security and privacy

1. MUST: Enable DNSSEC validation.
   
2. MUST: Enable QNAME minimization to minimize leakage of domain names.

3. SHOULD: Enable DoT (DNS-over-TLS), or DoH (DNS-over-HTTPS). Deploying either is the easiest way to protect against eavesdropping and manipulation of DNS queries and man-in-the-middle attacks by encrypting DNS queries between stub and recursive resolvers, or between a forwarding and recursive resolver.

   In the context of private networks, it is recommended that DoT or DoH be enabled between the resolver on the local network(s), and an external, trusted DoT/DoH enabled forwarding resolver. This ensures that DNS queries being forwarded from local clients are encrypted between the local resolver, and the external forwarder. While DoT and DoH may reduce the visibility that local administrators have into the queries being forwarded by the local recursive resolver to an upstream DoT/DoH service, it will still be possible to monitor queries between clients and the local DNS resolver, either using passive DNS analysis or query logging.

   Finally, DoT and DoH do not guarantee end-to-end privacy, only protection from third party eavesdropping between hops that use DoT/DoH: the resolver that queries are being forwarded to should also use DoT/DoH when performing resolution.

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