#TECH: DDOS attacks tripled

KASPERSKY, in its Q2 2020 DDoS attacks report, has revealed that the number of distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks in the second quarter of 2020 increased three-fold in comparison to Q2, 2019.

The figure is almost the same as the number of DDoS attacks in Q1, 2020. Kaspersky experts believe the rise in malicious activity can be attributed to the impact of Covid-19, as both cybercriminals and their targets have had to reconsider their summer plans.

DDoS attack is a malicious attempt to disrupt normal traffic of a targeted server, service or network by overwhelming the target or its surrounding infrastructure with a flood of Internet traffic.

According to Kaspersky, the pandemic, and subsequent social distancing restrictions, have significantly changed people’s lives.

In particular, many people feel concerned about travelling or are simply unable to do so. So, many are either spending their days off in “staycation” mode or have cancelled their scheduled holidays.

And this change in vacation plans has had unexpected consequences – including an increased number of DDoS attacks.

The number of attacks Kaspersky DDoS Protection detected and blocked in Q2, 2020 is 217 percent higher than in the same period of 2019.

Also, the number of attacks in Q2, 2020 slightly increased in comparison to the first quarter of this year.

These results contradict the annual trends that Kaspersky researchers usually find.

Normally, the number of DDoS attacks varies depending on the season. The beginning of the year usually sees a higher amount of DDoS, as it is a peak season for business, and in late spring and summer the number of attacks begin to decrease.

Source: NST