Hey there! DDoS attacks have become an immense threat to websites and networks over the past decade. As an experienced cybersecurity writer, I want to provide an in-depth look at the latest DDoS attack statistics, trends and protection advice heading into 2023. I‘ll share need-to-know stats as well as tips to help secure your organization. Let‘s dive in!
DDoS Attacks Skyrocketing 300%+
Recent reports reveal that DDoS attacks are accelerating rapidly:
- DDoS assaults increased 300% in the first quarter of 2024 compared to last year, according to cyber threat researchers at Aarnet.
- Experts forecast over 300% growth in DDoS attacks in 2024 compared to 2022.
This explosion in DDoS attacks is being driven by the growing scale and sophistication of attacker tools and infrastructure:
- Attackers can now rent DDoS-for-hire "booter/stresser" services to easily pummel targets without needing technical expertise.
- Unsecured botnets with millions of compromised IoT devices empower massive DDoS campaigns.
- Amplification techniques like DNS and NTP reflection enable attacks exceeding 1 Tbps in size.
Organizations must urgently re-evaluate their DDoS defenses in the face of skyrocketing threats.
DDoS attack frequency increasing 300%+
DDoS Attack Size and Costs
Two key metrics demonstrate the growing scale and impact of DDoS attacks:
- Average DDoS size is projected to hit 100 Gbps in 2024, up from just 9.15 Gbps in 2021 (Cloudflare)
- DDoS attacks cost victim organizations $20,000 to $40,000 per hour on average (Cox BLUE)
For small and mid-size businesses, a single DDoS attack can easily cause over $100,000 in damages. Considering that attacks are lasting 2-3 days on average, costs quickly spiral.
DDoS Protection Tips and Best Practices
While DDoS threats are on the rise, there are steps you can take to safeguard your organization:
- Harness DDoS mitigation services that scrub attack traffic on your behalf. Key options include DNS redirection, upstream scrubbing, and cloud-based services.
- Implement a web application firewall to block application layer DDoS attacks. Rules can halt common DDoS vectors like recursive GET floods.
- Maintain relationships with multiple internet service providers so you can spread inbound traffic across links. This prevents any single ISP link from being overwhelmed.
- Actively monitor traffic to your network perimeter, watching for early warning signs of a DDoS attack ramping up like spikes in ICMP/UDP/TCP floods.
- Conduct DDoS simulations internally to validate defenses and staff response capabilities when faced with real volumetric or protocol-based attacks.
Global DDoS Attack Trends and Patterns
To understand where the top sources of and targets for DDoS attacks are, let‘s examine global traffic patterns:
- In Q1 2023, Israel saw the most HTTP DDoS attack traffic directed at its sites according to Cloudflare. Ongoing regional tensions may be fueling the attacks.
- However, when looking at total volume regardless of type, China originates the most DDoS attack traffic worldwide.
- The gaming and gambling industry attracts particularly high DDoS activity across Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.
- Multi-vector DDoS attacks combining multiple methods now account for over 75% of assaults.
Check out the map below for more insights into global DDoS trends:
Leading DDoS attack sources and targets globally
The Ongoing Fight Against DDoS
As these statistics show, DDoS represents an urgent and evolving threat. Both large and small organizations are at risk. By understanding the latest attack trends and implementing key safeguards, you can empower your company to detect and survive these network assaults. Reach out if you need any advice! Stay safe out there.
