DNSFilter is a cybersecurity company focused on protective DNS, content filtering, and DNS-layer threat prevention. Its cloud-delivered platform helps organizations stop phishing, malware, botnets, and unwanted web content before a connection is established, giving IT and security teams a lightweight control point that does not depend on hardware appliances or complex network redesigns.
DNSFilter combines AI-driven domain analysis, policy enforcement, application-aware controls, roaming protection, and reporting into a single service. The company positions its platform for distributed environments where users, devices, and sites operate both on and off the corporate network. Its offering is built to support organizations that want faster deployment, simpler administration, and stronger visibility across network activity and emerging risk.
Offerings, Capabilities, and Integrations
DNSFilter delivers DNS-layer security and content control across networks, branch locations, guest Wi-Fi, and roaming devices. Core capabilities include real-time threat blocking, category-based web filtering, application-aware policy enforcement, behavioral visibility, and centralized reporting. The platform is designed for both network-wide deployments and user-level protection, allowing teams to apply policies consistently without relying on full-tunnel VPN architectures.
The company also emphasizes interoperability with existing IT and security stacks. DNSFilter supports directory-based policy assignment, single sign-on, API-driven automation, SIEM-oriented data export, and workflow integrations for MSP operations. Its ecosystem includes support for Microsoft Active Directory and Azure Active Directory, OIDC-based identity providers such as Google Workspace, exports to Amazon S3 and Splunk-compatible pipelines, and integrations with PSA and automation platforms used by managed service providers.
Products and Services
- DNSFilter: Cloud-delivered protective DNS and content filtering platform that blocks phishing, malware, newly registered threats, and unwanted categories across networks and devices.
- Guardian Firewall: Privacy and security app that combines encrypted traffic tunneling, DNS leak protection, tracker blocking, and DNSFilter threat blocking for personal devices.
- CyberSight: User behavior analytics capability that adds full URL visibility, application usage insight, and chronological activity timelines to help security and IT teams investigate incidents, surface shadow IT, and understand user behavior.
- Malicious Domain Protection: Machine learning-based domain risk scoring that identifies and blocks suspicious or zero-day domains in real time, often before traditional threat feeds catch them.
- Roaming Clients: Lightweight endpoint agents for Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, and Chrome environments that enforce DNSFilter policies when users are off-network.
- AppAware: Application blocking and reporting capability that maps apps to their related domains so administrators can view and block application usage with a single policy action.
- Insights Reporting: Reporting dashboard with overview metrics, user and device reports, scheduled reporting, and drill-down visibility into DNS activity and trends.
- Anycast Network: Global dual Anycast DNS infrastructure that underpins low-latency resolution, route optimization, and service resilience across distributed deployments.
- Universal Lists: Global allow and block lists that apply across filtering policies, simplifying domain control for administrators and MSPs.
- Data Export: Log export capability that sends DNS query data to destinations such as Amazon S3 and Splunk-compatible workflows for downstream analytics and SIEM use.
- API Access: Open API and webhook support for bulk changes, automation, workflow integration, and custom operational use cases.
- PSA Integrations: Direct integrations for MSP workflows across platforms including ConnectWise Manage, Datto Autotask, Halo, SyncroMSP, Kaseya BMS, and Pulseway PSA.
Target Customers
DNSFilter serves IT, security, and compliance teams that need fast-to-deploy DNS-layer protection without adding hardware. Its customer base spans small and midsize businesses, larger enterprises, and distributed organizations with hybrid workforces, multiple sites, guest networks, and unmanaged devices.
The company has a particularly strong fit with managed service providers, which it supports through multi-tenant administration, PSA integrations, and partner-specific capabilities. DNSFilter also targets education, healthcare, government, finance, manufacturing, hospitality, retail, nonprofits, and public Wi-Fi environments where content controls, threat blocking, policy consistency, and audit-friendly visibility are operational priorities.
Cloud Integrations and Marketplace
- Microsoft Azure: DNSFilter supports integration with Azure Active Directory for identity and policy workflows, and its deployment documentation includes Azure-based relay and cloud VM scenarios.
- Amazon Web Services: DNSFilter supports Amazon S3 for data export and documents support for AWS cloud VM and WorkSpaces-style endpoint scenarios.
- Google Workspace: DNSFilter supports Google Workspace as an OIDC-based single sign-on provider for dashboard authentication and organization access management.
Key People
- Ken Carnesi: Chief Executive Officer & Co-Founder
- TK Keanini: Chief Technology Officer
- Mike Okoth: Chief Financial Officer
- Rich Scott: Chief Revenue Officer
- Brett Cheloff: Chief Product Officer
- Lauren Romer: Chief Legal Officer
- Mandy Cole: Chief People Officer
- Aliese Alter: Chief of Staff
- Karl Hutter: Corporate & Business Development Executive
Key Facts
- Headquarters: Washington, District of Columbia, United States
- Employees: Approximately 175
- Annual Revenue: $30M-$40M
- Parent Company: None
- Subsidiaries: Zorus, Inc.
- Publicly Listed: Private
