# Hetzner DNS privacy rating

Free authoritative DNS hosting from the German provider Hetzner, managed in the Hetzner Console and through the Hetzner Cloud API.

## Summary

Hetzner DNS scores 43 out of 100 (grade D) on the DNS hosting criteria. It meets 4 of 11 criteria: no ads or data sales, TLS configuration, API access and two-factor login. It partly meets no trackers or telemetry and independent audit. It does not meet open source, transparency report, tells users about requests, security headers and DNSSEC. It is based in Germany: Fourteen Eyes member; EU member (GDPR). Automated tests: SSL Labs grade A and Mozilla HTTP Observatory grade D.

- Website: https://www.hetzner.com/dns/
- Jurisdiction: Germany. Fourteen Eyes member. EU member (GDPR).
- Home page trackers: none found
- Category: [DNS hosting](https://privacyratings.com/dns-hosting/)
- Also rated: [Hetzner](https://privacyratings.com/server-hosting/hetzner/) (Server hosting)
- Grade: D (43/100)

## Criteria

| Criterion | Answer | Note | Evidence |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Open source | No | Closed source. |  |
| No trackers or telemetry | Partial | No third-party trackers, but website analytics use Matomo with cookies after consent. | https://www.hetzner.com/legal/privacy-policy/ |
| No ads or data sales | Yes | Funded by Hetzner's paid hosting. DNS management is free and carries no ads. | https://www.hetzner.com/dns/ |
| Independent audit | Partial | Only a one-page summary of the BSI C5 Type 2 audit and an ISO 27001 certificate are public. | https://files.hetzner.com/docs/BSI-C52020Typ2_Testat_2026_EN.pdf |
| Transparency report | No | No transparency report or government request policy is published. |  |
| Tells users about requests | No | No published policy on notifying users about data requests. |  |
| TLS configuration | Yes | Grade A | https://www.ssllabs.com/ssltest/analyze.html?d=console.hetzner.com&hideResults=on |
| Security headers | No | Grade D (30/100+) | https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/observatory/analyze?host=console.hetzner.com |
| Modern web standards | Not tested yet | Not tested yet. |  |
| DNSSEC | No | The product FAQ states Hetzner Console does not support DNSSEC. | https://www.hetzner.com/dns/ |
| API access | Yes | Zones and records are managed through the free Hetzner Cloud API. | https://docs.hetzner.cloud/reference/cloud |
| Two-factor login | Yes | Two-factor login is supported, including YubiKey security keys. | https://docs.hetzner.com/general/security-and-identify/two-factor-authentication/ |

Source: https://privacyratings.com/dns-hosting/hetzner-dns/
Edit: https://github.com/privacyratings/privacyratings.com/edit/main/ratings/dns-hosting/hetzner-dns.md