DDoS – Distributed Denial of Service is a type of cyberattack where multiple systems, often distributed across the internet, are used to flood a target system (such as a website or server) with an overwhelming amount of traffic, causing it to become slow, unresponsive, or completely unavailable to legitimate users.
Here’s a simple breakdown:
- Traffic Overload: In a DDoS attack, the attacker uses many compromised devices (often part of a botnet) to send massive amounts of traffic or requests to a target, overloading its resources and disrupting its normal operation.
- Distributed Nature: The attack is "distributed," meaning that the traffic comes from multiple sources, making it harder to stop because it's not coming from a single location. This spread-out approach makes it challenging to block the malicious traffic without affecting legitimate users.
- Impact on Availability: The primary goal of a DDoS attack is to disrupt the availability of a service, rendering websites, online applications, or networks unusable. In some cases, the goal is to cause financial loss, damage reputation, or distract from other types of attacks.
Why Protect Against DDoS? DDoS attacks can lead to service downtime, financial losses, and damage to an organisation’s reputation. Organisations need to have systems in place to detect and mitigate DDoS attacks to keep their online services available and functioning smoothly.
Think of a DDoS attack like a massive crowd trying to enter a store, blocking the entrance and preventing real customers from getting inside. The store (or website) is overwhelmed, and no one can access the products or services until the crowd is cleared.
