DDoS attacks continue to be an ever-growing threat, and recent quarterly statistics have demonstrated a shocking increase in these attacks. Alarmingly, it is known that only a small number of such attacks are even reported and thus counted in these reports.
DDoS attacks have also evolved in complexity, with a growing number of threat vectors, increasing intensity, shifts in frequency, rising numbers of attackers and a change in the industries targeted.
The Figures
1. In the first half of 2020, there was a 151% increase in the number of DDoS attacks compared to the same period of the previous year, with 91.06% of the attacks in the third quarter of last year carrying on for as long as four hours.
2. Experts predict that there will be as many as 15.4 million recorded DDoS attacks within another two years.
3. According to Amazon, the biggest DDoS attack on record was mitigated by them last year, with the attack reaching a peak traffic volume of 2.3 Tbps.
4. According to Neustar, attack intensity in the first six months of 2020 increased by 81%.
Attack Types
There are a number of different kinds of DDoS attacks. The most common form in the third quarter of 2020 was SYN flooding, the same as the previous quarter, accounting for 94.6% of all attacks. In second place, but a long way behind, were ICMP attacks at just 3.4%, TCP attacks were in third at 1.4%, and less than 0.1% of all attacks were the work of HTTP flooding.
The Cost of Attacks
According to a 2019 Bulletproof report, small businesses subjected to DDoS attacks could face costs of up to $120,000, while for larger companies, the cost could be as high as $2m. The worldwide damage inflicted by cybercrime this year is expected to end up totaling $6tn. Moreover, projections indicate that the number of attacks every year will only keep growing, and DDoS attacks continue to expand alongside ransomware and malware.
"Projections indicate that the number of attacks every year will only keep growing"
The Commonality and Severity of DDoS Attacks Mean Protection is Vital
In the third quarter of 2020, DDoS attacks averaged 106 per day. These figures are only going to get worse, which is why it is more important than ever for businesses to ensure they have the best protection in place against them.
According to statistics, there are 16 DDoS attacks taking place every minute, and the frequency of such attacks increased by 25% in the first month of the COVID-19 lockdown.
A DDoS attack can completely shut down a website, thus seriously affecting a business. It can also result in hackers gaining access to company databases and stealing customer data for their own benefit. Other attackers use their successful infiltration of such databases to blackmail businesses into paying a ransom, a crime referred to as cyber-extortion.
In addition to financial costs, there can be other adverse effects of DDoS attacks on businesses. For example, customer service is vital for any company, and poor website performance because of such an attack can give a customer a negative impression and result in them moving their business to a competitor.
A single attack can destroy a business’s reputation built over many years in a moment. When customers lose trust in a business, it is difficult, if not impossible to regain, and can cost the organization time, effort and a lot of money.
Additionally, rebuilding, repairing and buying new equipment because of a successful DDoS attack website can be financially devastating. The reality is that DDoS attacks are becoming easier to carry out. If applications have easily identifiable vulnerabilities, it does not even require much computing power on the part of hackers to launch a targeted attack, which is why it is so vital for businesses to have DDoS attack protection in place that can identify and patch vulnerabilities before the hackers find them.
It is essential for any business to employ comprehensive, intelligent, and managed DDoS attack protection services to protect their digital assets. AppTrana from Indusface is one of the top DDoS mitigation services available today, offering permanent unmetered protection against multiple layers of DDoS attacks.
Conclusion
Small and large businesses alike need careful plans to make sure their network is protected from DDoS attacks. Taking expert help from managed services like Indusface is the best way to proactively deal with attacks and keep businesses and customers alike protected.
