What does a DNS resolver do and do I need one?

Privacy Questions
1

Hi, I searched this topic in the forum and read the dns resolvers section of the PG site, but I still dont quite understand what it does.

I was wondering if I need one when I’m already using a VPN?

Thanks in advance!

2

Your VPN provider would either host their own DNS Resolver or “outsource” that to an already existing provider. DNS Resolving basically translates “google.com” to “8.8.8.8” (or Google’s IP Address). Whoever resolves your DNS queries knows what website you are trying to access making them one more entity in the loop on your browsing activities. This is why is is important to use privacy-respecting DNS providers such as Quad9, NextDNS, and those listed on the PG site. For more information, I was able to find What is a DNS Resolver & How to Set it Up | NInjaOne on a quick search.

Hope this clarifies it a bit.

- Haris

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3

Thanks for explaining and providing a source! I’m using Proton VPN and so I’m wondering if I still need to use DNS resolver on top. I trust as proton as a company but I’m not sure if they host their own resolver or not. My guess is the former.

I’ll have a thorough read at that article later.

4

If you are on a browser where you did not apply any DNS settings, you can use https://www.dnsleaktest.com/ to see what shows up. I have also found success with the shell script from GitHub - macvk/dnsleaktest: An open source script tests VPN connection for DNS Leak.. Those would tell you what shows up as your provider.

5

You don’t have to worry changing the DNS with Proton VPN, you’ll use their DNS.

1 Like
6

Got it. Thanks everyone! Wish I could make multiple answers as solutions :slight_smile:

7

I’d encourage you to still mark a solution so that others searching the forum in the future can see that this question has been answered. :slightly_smiling_face:

1 Like