NIOS RPZ feed recommendations to use after the feed revamp release in December 2024.
To download the video, click NIOS_RPZ_Feed_Migration.mp4.
As part of Infoblox’s mission to improve the quality and value of the BloxOne Threat Defense product line, we are simplifying threat feeds for easy and correct security policy action.
We are also upgrading our security feed structure to simplify the policy action on those feeds, to enable the right security posture. Beyond high quality feeds, it's equally important to have the right policy action in place for those detection to block and protect users. With new structure, feed names reflect the severity of the indicators it carries, per threat and confidence score of the indicator. So it's easy and intuitive to apply the right action for those feeds. General Availability: End of April, 2024. Earlier when a malicious domain’s TTL expires, the domain was added to the corresponding Extended feeds, extending their lifetime. We updated that logic to verify the validity of the domain, on expiry.
This guide aims to facilitate the transition from the soon-to-be deprecated BloxOne Threat Defense feeds approaching end of service to their updated versions which are to be integrated into NIOS Response Policy Zones (RPZ). Infoblox recommends that NIOS users currently relying on the soon-to-be-deprecated feeds switch to the new feeds as they become available in April 2024 to ensure continued comprehensive threat protection.
Best Practices
Infoblox recommends the following as best practices for customers currently using the feeds to be deprecated.
Remove all to-be-deprecated feeds from NIOS RPZ prior to their EOS date in December 2024. Replace the deprecated feeds with the recommendations as provided by Infoblox. When the to-be-deprecated feeds reach EOS, NIOS will no longer be able to sync them from the Cloud Services Portal, leading to an error state.
When replacing feeds with the recommendations below, consider policy settings, eg., logging vs blocking, of currently used feeds and replicate them for the replacements.
RPZ Feeds Scheduled for Deprecation in December 2024
The following feeds are approaching end of service and are being deprecated. In their place, Infoblox offers a set of new RPZ feeds designed to replace the deprecated feeds.
Deprecated RPZ Feeds | Deprecated RPZ Feed Name | Description |
|---|---|---|
Base Hostnames | base.rpz.infoblox.local | Enables protection against known hostnames that are dangerous as destinations, such as APT, Bot, Compromised Host/Domains, Exploit Kits, Malicious Name Servers, and Sinkholes. |
AntiMalware | antimalware.rpz.infoblox.local | Enables protection against known malicious hostname threats that can take action on or control of your system, such as Malware Command & Control, Malware Download, and active Phishing sites. |
Ransomware | ransomware.rpz.infoblox.local | Enables protection against ransomware taking over your system. Ransomware will encrypt files on your system and require you to pay in order to get them decrypted. This feed prevents ransomware to contact the servers which it needs to encrypt your files. |
Malware DGA Hostnames | malware-dga.rpz.infoblox.local | Domain generation algorithm (DGA) are algorithms seen in various families of malware that are used to periodically generate a large number of domain names that can be used as rendezvous points with their command and control servers. Examples include Ramnit, Conficker, and Banjori. |
Antimalware IP | antimalware-ip.rpz.infoblox.local | Enables protection against known malicious or compromised IP addresses. These are known to host threats that can take action on or control of your system, such as Malware Command & Control, Malware Download, and active Phishing sites. |
Suspicious | sanctions-med.rpz.infoblox.local | The Suspicious Domains feed enables protection against hostnames that have not been directly linked to malicious behavior but behave in a manner that suggests malicious behavior may be imminent. |
Suspicious Lookalike | suspicious-lookalikes.rpz.infoblox.local | The Suspicious Lookalikes feed includes domains that appear to impersonate other trusted domains, but have demonstrated enough abnormal behavior to warrant concern. |
Suspicious NOED | suspicious-noed.rpz.infoblox.local | The Suspicious Emergent Domains feed include high risk, new domains. These domains have only recently become active, and share one or more characteristics with other known malicious domains to warrant concern. |
Newly Observed Emergent Domains | noed.rpz.infoblox.local | The NOED feed includes recently created and newly active domain names. These are not necessarily suspicious but some organizations may wish to log traffic going to these domains as there is a low likelihood that these domains would be visited normally. |
With the deprecation of the old RPZ feeds and the release of the new RPZ feeds, infoblox will also be deprecating the extended feeds listed below. In the case of these feeds, they have lately been carrying zero indicators.
Extended Base & anti-malware Hostnames
Extended Ransomware
Extended AntiMalware IPs
We also don’t see much value having a separate feed for Spam IPs. IPs can be reassigned and result in false positives. Those confirmed IPs that are part of malicious infrastructure are already part of Critical IP feeds that we monitor and update. This spambot IP feed had 0 indicators for a while now, that we can effectively deprecate this feed
Spambot IPs DNSBL
New NIOS RPZ Feeds Availability (April 2024)
The following NIOS RPZ feeds are available based on your subscription level.
Feed Availability | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Feed Name | Essentials | Business On-Prem | Advanced |
Infoblox Base | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
Infoblox Base IP | NA | ✔ | ✔ |
Infoblox High Risk | NA | NA | ✔ |
Infoblox Medium Risk | NA | NA | ✔ |
Infoblox Low Risk | NA | NA | ✔ |
Infoblox Informational | NA | ✔ | ✔ |
For information for adding the new feeds and sizing requirements to your appliance, see Sizing Guidelines for Trinzic Appliances.
Feed Name | RPZ Feed Name | Description |
Infoblox Base | infoblox-base.rpz.infoblox.local | Infoblox Base feed enables protection against known malicious or compromised domains. This includes known Malware, Ransomware, APTs, exploit kits, malicious Name Servers, sinkholes etc. We recommend blocking them for all users. |
Infoblox Base IP | infoblox-base-ip.rpz.infoblox.local | Infoblox Base IP feed enables protection against known malicious or compromised IP addresses. These IPs are known infrastructure to host threats that can act on or control a system by way of C&C malware downloads and active phishing sites. We recommend blocking them for all users |
Infoblox High Risk | infoblox-high-risk.rpz.infoblox.local | Infoblox High Risk feed includes domains that are not confirmed yet but are highly suspicious. It's very likely to be used in a malicious act at some point. These domains though unconfirmed carry high threat and high confidence, so we recommend blocking them for most users. It includes Suspicious domains, Suspicious Lookalikes and Suspicous NOED (Newly Observed Emergent Domains) with high combined score of threat and confidence levels. |
Infoblox Medium Risk | infoblox-medium-risk.rpz.infoblox.local | Infoblox Medium Risk feed includes domains that are not confirmed yet but still pose medium risk. They are suspicious domains with lower combined score of Threat and Confidence level than High Risk feed but higher than Low Risk feed. It's still could likely be used in a malicious act, so we recommend blocking them for most users. It includes Suspicious domains, Suspicious Lookalikes and Suspicious NOED (Newly Observed Emergent Domains) with medium combined score of threat and confidence levels. |
Infoblox Low Risk | infoblox-low-risk.rpz.infoblox.local | Infoblox Low Risk feed includes domains that are not confirmed yet but are still suspicious. It's possible it can be used in a malicious act. These domains carry a lower combined score of threat and confidence levels. Its recommended to monitor with Allow-WithLog option for most users and have it in block mode for sensitive environments. It includes Suspicious domains, Suspicious Lookalikes and Suspicious NOED (Newly Observed Emergent Domains) with lower combined score of threat and low levels |
Infoblox Informational | infoblox-informational.rpz.infoblox.local | Infoblox Informational: Infoblox Informational feed includes domains with low threat and confidence levels. These are for informational use per policy and sensitivity of the environment. This feed carries Newly Observed Emergent Domains (NOED). It's recommended to monitor with Allow-WithLog option for most users and have it in block mode for sensitive environments (as new domains are not mission critical for the most part and best to enable them when they are established for a longer time). |
Recommended Replacement Feed Mapping for NIOS (based on subscription level)
The following are the recommended NIOS feed replacements based on subscription level. For BloxOne Threat Defense Advanced, special attention must be placed on your appliance capacity when selecting replacement feeds.
BloxOne Threat Defense Essentials
BloxOne Threat Defense Essentials RPZ Feed Mapping(old to new feeds) | ||
|---|---|---|
Old Feeds | to | New Feed |
Base Hostnames | => | Infoblox Base |
BloxOne Business On-Prem
BloxOne Business On-Prem and Business Cloud subscriptions contain all feeds included with the BloxOne Essentials subscription plus the following RPZ feeds:
BloxOne Threat Defense Business On-Prem and Business Cloud RPZ Feed Mapping(old to new feeds) | ||
|---|---|---|
Old Feeds | to | New Feeds |
Infoblox Antimalware IP | => | Infoblox Base IP |
Newly Observed Emergent Domains (NOED) | => | Infoblox Informational |
BloxOne Business On-Prem contains all feeds included with BloxOne Essentials subscription in addition to the feeds listed above. | ||
BloxOne Threat Defense Advanced
Warning
For NIOS customers possessing a BloxOne Threat Defense Advanced subscription, attention must be placed on your appliance capacity when selecting your RPZ feeds.
The BloxOne Threat Defense Advanced subscription contains all feeds included with BloxOne Essentials and BloxOne Business tier subscriptions plus the following RPZ feeds:
BloxOne Threat Defense Advanced RPZ Feed Mapping(old to new feeds) | ||
|---|---|---|
Old Feeds | to | New Feeds |
Suspicious | => | Infoblox High Risk |
The BloxOne Threat Defense Advanced subscription contains all feeds included with BloxOne Essentials and BloxOne Business tier subscriptions in addtion to the feeds listed above. Do note that for NIOS subscribers of a BloxOne Threat Defense Advanced subscription, attention must be placed on your appliance capacity when selecting your RPZ feeds. | ||