Context

• Ministry of Electronics & IT is planning to launch public domain name system (DNS) server for India to provide faster and more secure browsing experience to internet users in the country.
• This will ensure that the citizens' data is stored locally and also protect them from malware or phishing attacks.

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• India’s Public DNS, as an inherent feature, would ensure fast access, enhanced availability, secure access, maintain data privacy and data localization within India and will be one of the key components to ensure Internet Resilience.
• The new DNS will be placed across the country to minimise outage and would be available round the clock. Users can simply use it by typing the IP number into the Internet browser.
• The Centre has also launched a new email platform for all government employees including those in states and Union Territories.
• The rollout of the public DNS is expected to be completed in the next four to six months. The NIC is currently using the public DNS within the government network.
• The government has said users will be free to shift to the India public DNS.

What is Domain Name Systems (DNS) and how it works?

• It is the phonebook of the Internet. Humans access information online through domain names, like nytimes.com or espn.com.
• Web browsers interact through Internet Protocol (IP) addresses. DNS translates domain names to IP addresses so browsers can load Internet resources.
• Each device connected to the Internet has a unique IP address which other machines use to find the device. DNS servers eliminate the need for humans to memorize IP addresses such as 192.168.1.1 (in IPv4)
• The process of DNS resolution involves converting a hostname (such as www.example.com) into a computer-friendly IP address (such as 192.168.1.1).
• An IP address is given to each device on the Internet, and that address is necessary to find the appropriate Internet device - like a street address is used to find a particular home.
• When a user wants to load a webpage, a translation must occur between what a user types into their web browser (example.com) and the machine-friendly address necessary to locate the example.com webpage.