Identify Bulk Domain Abuse and Burner Infrastructure

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Threat actors often register domains in bulk using shared registrars, emails, or patterns to support short-lived campaigns.

Scenario

You observe suspicious activity involving newly registered domains with privacy-protected Whois but shared infrastructure signals (e.g., same nameservers or registrar).

Investigation Steps

  1. Start with a Seed Indicator:        

    • Use a known abusive registrar or email domain (e.g., from threat intel).

  2. Query WHOIS Search:        

    • Navigate to WHOIS Data > WHOIS Search.

    • Add conditions:                

      • Registrar contains "abusive-registrar-example.com"

      • created > "recent-date"

      • email contains "@disposable-provider.com"

    • Search and export results for clustering.

  3. Validate with WHOIS History:        

    • Select suspicious domains from the results.

    • Check WHOIS History for rapid changes (e.g., frequent registrant/email updates indicating burner use).

    • Look for nameserver reputation scores signaling abuse.

Outcome

Discover clusters of recently registered domains sharing abuse indicators, allowing proactive blocking and campaign disruption.

Benefits: Detect bulk registration patterns early, even with privacy services, to prevent phishing, malware distribution, or C2 setup.