What is a DDoS Attack?
A Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack is a malicious attempt to disrupt the normal traffic of a targeted server, service or network by overwhelming it with a flood of internet traffic. This type of attack leverages multiple compromised computer systems as sources of attack traffic. In the context of cybersecurity and identity and access management (IAM), DDoS attacks pose significant threats by potentially disabling critical services, hindering access to systems and creating vulnerabilities for further exploitation.
How DDoS Attacks Work
DDoS attacks are typically carried out using botnets, which are networks of compromised computers (bots) controlled by the attacker. These bots are often infected through malware and can be located globally. The attacker directs the botnet to send an overwhelming amount of traffic to the target. This traffic can take various forms, such as HTTP requests, pings or junk data, all designed to exhaust the target's resources. The excessive traffic overloads the target's bandwidth, CPU, memory or other critical resources, causing the service to slow down significantly or become completely unavailable to legitimate users.
Implications of DDoS Attacks in Cybersecurity and IAM
The primary impact of a DDoS attack is the disruption of service availability. This can affect web applications, email servers, and any online service, preventing legitimate users from accessing the service. While the primary goal of a DDoS attack is to disrupt service, it can also be used as a diversionary tactic. While the security team is focused on mitigating the DDoS attack, attackers may exploit other vulnerabilities to breach the system and gain unauthorised access to sensitive data.
Prolonged service outages can lead to significant financial losses, especially for businesses that rely heavily on online operations. Additionally, frequent or severe DDoS attacks can damage an organisation's reputation, eroding customer trust.
DDoS attacks can target IAM systems directly, disrupting authentication services and making it difficult for users to log in or access resources. This can lead to a breakdown in security protocols and loss of control over access management.
Defence Mechanisms Against DDoS Attacks
Traffic Filtering and Rate Limiting
Implementing traffic filtering can help identify and block malicious traffic before it reaches the target network. Rate limiting controls the amount of incoming traffic, preventing overload by restricting the number of requests from a single source.
DDoS Protection Services
Specialised DDoS mitigation services and content delivery networks (CDNs) can absorb and dissipate large volumes of traffic. These services use global networks of servers to distribute the attack traffic, reducing the burden on the target system.
Redundancy and Load Balancing
Distributing resources across multiple servers and using load balancing can help maintain service availability during an attack. If one server becomes overwhelmed, traffic can be redirected to other servers.
Scalable Infrastructure
Utilising cloud-based services with scalable infrastructure allows for the dynamic allocation of additional resources to handle traffic surges, providing resilience against DDoS attacks.
Monitoring and Incident Response
Continuous monitoring of network traffic can help detect abnormal patterns indicative of a DDoS attack. A robust incident response plan ensures that the organisation can quickly and effectively respond to and mitigate the impact of an attack.
