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AT&T ‘accidentally’ blocks Cloudflare’s privacy-focused domain name service
AT&T Inc. is blaming an accident for a firmware update that blocked Cloudflare Inc.’s privacy-focused DNS service.
The block, first reported by users on the DSL Reports user forum, saw AT&T users who had applied a “security” patch issued for AT&T’s Arris BGW210-700 gateway unable to access https://1.1.1.1, the address used by Cloudflare’s DNS service.
That service, launched April 1, promises to deliver users a quicker and more private internet experience, uses https://1.1.1.1 as a DNS resolver, a middle point that connects a website to an internet protocol address. The service bypasses DNS services used by internet service providers, meaning that the ISP in question can’t track what websites a user is visiting, record that data and, as is common practice, sell that data to third parties. Essentially, it cripples a revenue stream for internet providers such as AT&T.
Chief Executive Officer Matthew Prince said on Twitter May 2 that he thought it had been an intentional decision.
Once upon a time @ATTcares used to promise they’d enable the future, so disappointing they now appear to be actively locking down the past and breaking Internet standards in the process. https://t.co/LPPDDtXETs
— Matthew Prince (@eastdakota) May 2, 2018
Whether it was intentional or not, AT&T responded to the accusation, saying in a statement reported by Ars Technica that the blocking was an accident.
“With the recent launch of Cloudflare’s 1.1.1.1 DNS service, we have discovered an unintentional gateway IP address conflict with 1 of their 4 usable IPs and are working to resolve the issue,” AT&T said. It went on to add that customers should be able to access Cloudflare DNS using the alternate 1.0.0.1 address but did not say when a patch for the original 1.1.1.1 block would be available.
The blocking comes at a time when the argument over net neutrality continues to rage, with AT&T one of several companies actively lobbying against the idea. In addition to 22 states suing to force the U.S. Federal Communications Commission to bring back Obama-era rules, a some states are also implementing their own state-based net neutrality laws as well.
Image: Cloudflare
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