DDoS attacks are becoming more prolific, Netscout warns

Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks are on the rise, becoming more prolific and more powerful, a report by security and application network performance company Netscout, warns. 

The report discovered that, in the first half of 2021, there were 5.4mn DDoS attacks, an 11% rise on the same period last year. Hardik Modi, Netscout area vice president of engineering, threat, and mitigation products, told ZDNet that the tooling behind DDoS attacks “has matured over the years.”

Multi-vector DDoS attacks used to exploit vulnerabilities and gain access to a target’s network 

An example of this is cybercriminals launching multi-vector DDoS attacks and amplifying them through using multiple avenues as a way to direct traffic towards the person they are targeting. As a result, even if one avenue is blocked or shut down altogether, several others will carry on entering the target’s network. The majority of these attacks are specifically and maliciously tailored by cybercrimninals to exploits vulnerabilities in their targets. 

Due to the Coronavirus pandemic causing a shift to online working and increased reliance on the digital world, DDoS attacks have become more effective significantly impacting people’s lives both socially and for work purposes. 

Despite this protecting yourself from DDoS attacks is still possible with the right practices and training. Practices include setting specific network access policies and regular testing of DDoS defenses to ensure your business is prepared should the worst happen. Staff training on cybersecurity is also another good way to ensure your organisation is ready in the event of a cyber threat or attack. 

What exactly is a DDoS attack?

A DDoS attack is a type of cyberattack that allows attackers to flood the network or servers of the victim with a wave of internet traffic to the point the infrastructure cannot cope with the number of access requests. This either slows down services or taking them fully offline, stopping users from accessing the service.

DDoS attacks have the capability to bring services offline for periods of time ranging from just a few seconds to weeks in the most disruptive scenarios.