Feature – The ways to fight back against rising DDoS attacks

By Tema Hassan, Senior Product Manager at Zayo Europe.

One of the most prevalent cyber threats, DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service) attacks target an organisation’s online presence by flooding its internet service with traffic, preventing user access. These attacks can entirely disrupt a business’ connectivity and often serve as a smokescreen for more malicious incursions, such as ransomware.

You only have to look at the data to see the scale of the issue. Zayo Europe’s findings indicate a notable increase in the intensity of DDoS attacks and their impact on businesses from the second half of 2023 to the first half of 2024.

On average, a DDoS attack lasted 45 minutes, representing an 18% increase from this time last year. This results in a staggering cost of £4,600 per minute for unprotected organisations, translating to an average of £207,000 per attack. This data alone highlights the severe financial implications of these attacks.

Why are DDoS attacks on the rise?

DDoS attacks are intensifying for several reasons, one of which, AI, is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, criminals are using AI to make their attacks more sophisticated and bypass traditional defence mechanisms. On the other hand, mitigation platforms can leverage AI to efficiently detect and counter emerging threats. Since DDoS attacks remain a profitable tactic for cybercriminals, businesses can expect these attacks to continue as a harsh reality.

Political tensions also appear to be fuelling the increase in DDoS attacks. Government actors and activists frequently use these attacks to make statements or signal intentions. For instance, Imperva’s 2024 DDoS report found notable surges in DDoS attacks in Ukraine (519%), Israel (118%), and China (84%).

How can businesses protect themselves?

While it’s not possible to prevent criminals from targeting businesses with DDoS attacks, the duration of an attack can be minimised to the point where it is nearly imperceptible. This is done via an automated redirect of traffic to a system known as a ‘DDoS scrubber’ that ensures that only legitimate traffic passes through.

No matter how long or how severe the attack is, a business that takes this zero-tolerance approach will be properly defended. The attack could last for hours – much like those experienced by governments – but the automated DDoS protection will frustrate the attackers as their efforts will have limited impact. So data centre professionals should certainly be suggesting to clients that they invest in increasing their security.

A robust network infrastructure is also critical for data centres and their clients to effectively counter DDoS attacks. As traffic increases due to 5G, AI, and other technological advancements, threat detection becomes even more important. Organisations need to rely on agile, modern networks as the backbone for connectivity and security. Data centres must adopt these modern, flexible networks and move away from legacy and outdated technologies that create vulnerabilities. Without a flexible, up-to-date infrastructure, effective security becomes impossible.

Don’t wait until it’s too late

As the data indicates, cyber crime is on the rise and shows no sign of slowing down any time soon. While certain sectors – such as manufacturing, telecommunications, and government entities – are more at risk, DDoS attacks can affect any digital business.

Any organisation that holds sensitive data could become a target, even if the company is early in its digital journey. Waiting to find out if you’ll be targeted is akin to leaving the key in your front door at night. Businesses must be proactive and take the necessary steps to protect the organisation, the employees and clients. Otherwise, they risk discovering first-hand just how devastating DDoS attacks can be.

For more from Zayo Europe, click here.

The post Feature – The ways to fight back against rising DDoS attacks appeared first on Data Centre & Network News.

By Tema Hassan, Senior Product Manager at Zayo Europe.

One of the most prevalent cyber threats, DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service) attacks target an organisation’s online presence by flooding its internet service with traffic, preventing user access. These attacks can entirely disrupt a business’ connectivity and often serve as a smokescreen for more malicious incursions, such as ransomware.

You only have to look at the data to see the scale of the issue. Zayo Europe’s findings indicate a notable increase in the intensity of DDoS attacks and their impact on businesses from the second half of 2023 to the first half of 2024.

On average, a DDoS attack lasted 45 minutes, representing an 18% increase from this time last year. This results in a staggering cost of £4,600 per minute for unprotected organisations, translating to an average of £207,000 per attack. This data alone highlights the severe financial implications of these attacks.

Why are DDoS attacks on the rise?

DDoS attacks are intensifying for several reasons, one of which, AI, is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, criminals are using AI to make their attacks more sophisticated and bypass traditional defence mechanisms. On the other hand, mitigation platforms can leverage AI to efficiently detect and counter emerging threats. Since DDoS attacks remain a profitable tactic for cybercriminals, businesses can expect these attacks to continue as a harsh reality.

Political tensions also appear to be fuelling the increase in DDoS attacks. Government actors and activists frequently use these attacks to make statements or signal intentions. For instance, Imperva’s 2024 DDoS report found notable surges in DDoS attacks in Ukraine (519%), Israel (118%), and China (84%).

How can businesses protect themselves?

While it’s not possible to prevent criminals from targeting businesses with DDoS attacks, the duration of an attack can be minimised to the point where it is nearly imperceptible. This is done via an automated redirect of traffic to a system known as a ‘DDoS scrubber’ that ensures that only legitimate traffic passes through.

No matter how long or how severe the attack is, a business that takes this zero-tolerance approach will be properly defended. The attack could last for hours – much like those experienced by governments – but the automated DDoS protection will frustrate the attackers as their efforts will have limited impact. So data centre professionals should certainly be suggesting to clients that they invest in increasing their security.

A robust network infrastructure is also critical for data centres and their clients to effectively counter DDoS attacks. As traffic increases due to 5G, AI, and other technological advancements, threat detection becomes even more important. Organisations need to rely on agile, modern networks as the backbone for connectivity and security. Data centres must adopt these modern, flexible networks and move away from legacy and outdated technologies that create vulnerabilities. Without a flexible, up-to-date infrastructure, effective security becomes impossible.

Don’t wait until it’s too late

As the data indicates, cyber crime is on the rise and shows no sign of slowing down any time soon. While certain sectors – such as manufacturing, telecommunications, and government entities – are more at risk, DDoS attacks can affect any digital business.

Any organisation that holds sensitive data could become a target, even if the company is early in its digital journey. Waiting to find out if you’ll be targeted is akin to leaving the key in your front door at night. Businesses must be proactive and take the necessary steps to protect the organisation, the employees and clients. Otherwise, they risk discovering first-hand just how devastating DDoS attacks can be.

For more from Zayo Europe, click here.

The post Feature – The ways to fight back against rising DDoS attacks appeared first on Data Centre & Network News.