What Is a DDoS Attack?

Distributed-denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks are sophisticated attacks designed to flood the network with superfluous traffic. A DDoS attack results in either degraded network performance or an outright service outage of critical infrastructure. 

How long does a DDoS attack last?

The length of a DDoS attack varies. Attacks like the Ping of Death can be short. The Slowloris attack takes longer to develop. According to a Radware report, 33 percent of DDoS attacks last an hour; 60 percent last less than a full day; and 15 percent last as long as a month.


Why would someone carry out a DDoS attack?

There are many motives for DDoS attacks, ranging from disruption of services to espionage and cyber warfare. Some common motives include:

  • Make a political statement (hacktivism)
  • Disrupt communications and essential services
  • Gain a competitive advantage
  • Achieve financial gain through extortion, theft, etc.
  • Inflict brand/reputational damage
  • Steal or destroy confidential information or intellectual property
  • Launch a ransomware attack
  • Wage cyber warfare

Which industries are being targeted and why?

While DDoS attacks are a threat to all businesses and all industries, DDoS attacks most often target the following:

  • Online gaming and gambling: To win a competitive advantage or financial gain.
  • Service providers: To commit data theft, eavesdrop, disrupt essential services, or inflict reputational damage.
  • Cloud services (AWS, Azure, etc.): To commit data theft, eavesdrop, disrupt essential services, or inflict reputational damage.
  • Governments: To steal intellectual property, disrupt operations, eavesdrop, commit espionage, or gain a competitive advantage.
  • Financial services: To achieve financial gain, inflict reputational damage, access confidential data, or cause disruption.
  • Online retailers:  To disrupt operations, gain a competitive advantage, inflict reputational damage, or steal intellectual property.

Five Steps to Protecting Your Organization from a DDoS Attack

Protecting your business

Defending against DDoS attacks is a crucial part of securing your network. You must deploy a complete and holistic IT approach that uses components capable of seamlessly working together in an integrated platform.