2026 Security Report Highlights Growth in AI-Driven Threats

DNSFilter has released its 2026 Annual Security Report, outlining trends in malicious domains and other online threats. The findings underscore a growing reality: escalating threat volumes are no longer abstract cybersecurity metrics—they are daily risks affecting individual users and organizations alike.

DNSFilter reports that it processes more than 200 billion DNS queries per day and blocks approximately 7% of that traffic, representing hundreds of millions of threats daily. Each blocked request may help prevent phishing attempts or malware execution.

Key findings include:

• Increased threat exposure for users: Threat activity on the DNSFilter network rose 30% between October 2024 and September 2025. During that period, the average internet user encountered an estimated 66 threats per day, compared to 29 previously.

• Growth in AI-related traffic: The network processed more than 6 billion AI-related queries between October 2024 and September 2025. Generative AI traffic increased month over month, with September 2025 showing a 102.13% rise.

• Shift in attacker tactics: The report notes a decline in malicious or impersonation domains using general generative AI terms, which decreased 92% from April 2024 to April 2025. However, malicious domains incorporating the keyword “openai” increased during that period.

• Continued reliance on newly created domains: Newly registered domains accounted for more than 65% of unique threat domains, suggesting ongoing use of short-lived and frequently rotated infrastructure to evade detection and takedown efforts.

Source: DNSFilter

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