Remember when the biggest threat to an organization’s cybersecurity was someone writing their password on a sticky note?
Ah, those were the days.
Now, with AI in the picture, things have changed.
Today’s threats are much more complex and advanced. AI can share information with external servers. Employees can accidentally reveal company secrets to ChatGPT. And AI helps malware receive instructions from command-and-control servers halfway around the world.
As scary as all this sounds, there is some good news. DNS filters can shut down these AI-related threats faster than you can say, “ChatGPT.”
The shadow AI epidemic
Let’s be real: In today’s organizations, AI is everywhere.
Marketing uses it for SEO. Sales for prospecting. Engineering and product teams use it for code reviews.
But nobody thinks to tell IT about their shiny new AI assistant. Before you know it, there are a dozen different AI tools running wild, each one a potential security threat.
The problem lies in the fact that AI needs to connect to a server to work its magic.
Sometimes those servers are legit. Other times … not so much.
Unless you have DNS filters in place, you’re basically letting your company’s AI have unsupervised conversations with complete strangers
3 ways DNS filters stop AI from talking to the wrong people
1. DNS filters prevent AI from connecting to mystery servers
That innocent-looking AI marketing uses for SEO? (You know, the one they didn’t tell you about?) It might be sharing data with servers in high-risk countries.
Even approved AI tools can go rogue. That tool engineering uses for code reviews (the one they DID tell you about) could be routing data through compromised servers without anyone knowing.
Without DNS filters, you have no idea where AI tools send and receive their data.
How DNS filtering helps: DNS filters give you visibility and control over which AI services can connect. They block unauthorized platforms and suspicious servers, ensuring your AI tools only talk to approved destinations.
2. DNS filters block AI tools from leaking company secrets
Fun fact: 38% of employees say they share sensitive work info with AI tools without permission.
And that’s just the ones who admit it.
The real number? Probably higher.
It starts innocently enough. Someone asks ChatGPT to ‘help polish this presentation’ — not realizing they just shared next quarter’s product roadmap.
Or they paste proprietary code into an AI tool to debug an issue. Or they run a sales proposal through a grammar check to look for typos.
But every time they use an unauthorized platform, they’re potentially leaking top company secrets to whoever’s on the other end.
How DNS filters help: DNS filters stop people from connecting to unauthorized tools in the first place. If employees can’t connect, they can’t accidentally leak their quarterly financials and other confidential information.
3. DNS filters cut off malware’s AI-powered lifeline
Traditional antivirus looks for known patterns. But AI-generated malware changes itself constantly, making it nearly invisible to old-school security tools.
This new breed of malware analyzes your security defenses in real-time and creates new variants faster than even the savviest tech team can respond.
How DNS filtering helps: Even shapeshifting malware needs to phone home for instructions. DNS filters block those command-and-control connections, essentially cutting the puppet strings.
Why traditional security misses AI threats
Your firewall? It’s looking for known bad actors.
Your antivirus? Checking for malware signatures.
But AI threats are different. They’re dynamic, adaptive, and often hide in plain sight as legitimate-looking services.
DNS filters work differently. They check every connection attempt against real-time threat intelligence.
New phishing domain created five minutes ago? Blocked.
Suspicious AI service based in a high-risk location? Blocked
Making DNS filtering work for AI security
Ready to get serious about AI security? Here’s your game plan:
Start with visibility. Use DNS filters to find out which AI services your organization uses. You might discover some surprises.
Create an approved AI list. Decide which tools are okay. Block everything else at the DNS level.
Monitor for weird behavior. Watch for unusual patterns — like AI tools suddenly trying to connect to new servers or sending massive amounts of data.
Keep your policies human-friendly. Don’t just block everything. Give your team approved AI tools that actually help them work better (and more securely).
The bottom line on AI and DNS filters
AI isn’t going away. If anything, it’s becoming more embedded in how we work.
But that doesn’t mean you have to accept the security risks that come with it.
DNS filtering gives you a practical way to embrace AI’s benefits while keeping the threats at bay.
It’s not about stopping progress — it’s about making sure that progress doesn’t come with a side of data breach.
Think of DNS filters as the responsible adult in the room, making sure your AI tools play nice and only talk to the right people.
Our experts are ready to discuss all things cybersecurity: From PAM to password management to DNS filtering. If you have questions, just give us a call at (813) 578-8200.