Findings Compiled into Company’s First-Ever Biannual DDoS, DNS Analysis Reports
HERNDON, VA – August 27, 2024: Vercara, a leading provider of cloud-based services that secure the online experience, announced today that it has launched the first editions of two biannual reports: The Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) Analysis, and The Domain Name System (DNS) Traffic and Analysis. The report data was sourced from Vercara’s UltraDDos Protect and UltraDNS solutions, drawing on the company’s expansive network capacity and billions of daily queries to uncover several notable trends from the first half of 2024.
Key findings from the reports include:
- Hacktivist-led DDoS is on the Rise: From January to June, Vercara’s UltraDDoS Protect saw a 186% increase in DDoS attacks compared to the same period in 2023. This rise was largely driven by hacktivism—a type of attack intended to spread an ideology—sparked by regional conflicts between Russia and Ukraine, and ongoing tensions in the Middle East.
- 2024 is the Year of the Carpet Bomb: Over 75% of all Vercara-detected DDoS attacks were carpet bomb attacks, or hard-to-mitigate attacks that spread malicious traffic across many IP addresses at once. June recorded the company’s single largest carpet bomb attack, consisting of over 8,200 waves and lasting over three hours. Attackers may find this tactic particularly attractive because it can be easier to impact the intended target by attacking adjacent infrastructure, evade traditional defenses, and cause greater damage via attacks on multiple endpoints.
- What’s Old is New Again: The once popular DNS Amplification attack saw a 4,446% resurgence, with over 26% of attacks utilizing this vector. This type of DDoS attack exploits the DNS protocol and seeks to consume as much network and routing resources as possible to interfere with legitimate internet traffic. As the number of internet-connected devices grows and as internet speeds increase, the potential for these attacks to disrupt traffic is also magnified.
- Financial Services is a Primary Target: The surge in attacks against the financial services sector that began in 2023 has continued into 2024 with steady month-over-month increases. It was the second most targeted industry (29%) after Communication Service Providers (38%) and is increasingly being seen as an attractive target to tarnish institutions’ reputation amid rising geopolitical tensions.
“DDoS attacks are more common than IT and security teams might realize, and our new report data reinforces that notion,” said Richard Wallace, Cyber Security Threat Analyst at Vercara. “The sharp rise in attacks means organizations must remain vigilant to prevent and respond to threats, especially as attackers increasingly use DDoS in conjunction with other methods. At a minimum, organizations must enforce regular testing of response procedures to ensure teams are familiar with protocol and know how to act should an incident arise.”
During a DDoS attack, the overwhelming amount of traffic can crash networks and servers, leading to extended periods of downtime that negatively impact business operations and revenue. Vercara offers white-glove service and dedicated scrubbing to provide organizations with around-the-clock protection from threats. In fact, The Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) Analysis found that more than 34,000 hours of downtime were prevented by Vercara.
“The prolific use of DDoS attacks in 2024 has also extended to DNS interference. Our DNS Traffic and Analysis data found an increase in DDoS attacks against Vercara’s UltraDNS platform, showcasing how bad actors are trying to keep legitimate users from accessing the vital DNS records needed to properly navigate the internet. This reinforces how critical it is for organizations to couple DNS management with protective DDoS solutions to ensure seamless and secure management of their digital infrastructure,” continued Wallace.
Vercara’s DDoS mitigation service, UltraDDoS Protect, provides high-performance, flexible, and automated protection across 15 Points of Presence (PoPs) and >15Tbps of DDoS mitigation capacity to enable customer availability and performance during the largest and most complex DDoS attacks. The company’s managed DNS services, including UltraDNS, offer a variety of traffic management and steering options, enabling customers to manage and maintain a reliable global resolution for their digital properties, backed by two fully redundant networks for seamless delivery. The DDoS Analysis and the DNS Traffic and Analysis reports summarize usage trends and attacks received and mitigated by UltraDDoS Protect and UltraDNS for the first half of 2024.
In addition to the newly launched biannual DDoS and DNS analysis reports, which will publish mid-year and end-of-year, Vercara releases monthly DDoS, DNS, and WAF reports. To view these reports and more, please visit: https://vercara.com/resources/reports.
About Vercara
Vercara is a purpose-built, global, cloud-based security platform that provides layers of protection to safeguard businesses’ online presence, no matter where attacks originate or where they are aimed. Delivering the industry’s highest-performing solutions and supported by unparalleled 24/7 human expertise and hands-on guidance, top global brands depend on Vercara to protect their networks and applications against threats and downtime. Vercara’s suite of cloud-based services is secure, reliable, and available, delivering peace of mind and ensuring that businesses and their customers experience exceptional interactions all day, every day. Pressure-tested in the world’s most tightly regulated and high-traffic verticals, Vercara’s mission-critical security portfolio provides best-in-class DNS and application and network security (including DDoS and WAF) services to its Global 5000 customers and beyond. For more information, visit vercara.com.
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PAN Communications for Vercara