Envision this scenario: It’s the holiday season, and you’re eager to capitalize on the massive sale at your favorite online store. You’ve been inundated with promotional emails all month, and you’ve bookmarked several must-have items. The prices for one day only are irresistibly low. You open your browser, navigate to the store, and…
You’re met with a blank page. The service is unavailable. You refresh, close and reopen the browser, clear your cache, restart your modem. Rinse and repeat. Still nothing. The site is down.
You call the site’s customer service center and are placed in a queue. After a 20-minute wait, it’s clear something is amiss. The queue for a customer service representative is unusually long. What’s happening?
A quick check on social media reveals a flurry of irate posts about the Black Friday sale at this retailer. You’re not the only one experiencing this issue. When you finally connect with a store employee, they inform you that the site is down due to a Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack. They can’t provide an estimate for when the site will be back up.
The site could be down for hours, or even days. Dejected, you start searching other retail sites for the items you want. They’re not as discounted, but they’re available. As you make your first purchase, you angrily vow never to visit the other online retailer again.
The Rising Tide of DDoS Attacks
If this scenario sounds exasperating for a customer, consider the perspective of the owner of a retail site under the same circumstances. A DDoS attack, which occurs when an attacker floods a server or network with internet traffic to prevent users from accessing connected online services, can inflict significant damage in terms of both earnings and reputation.
Retail sites are not the only targets; DDoS attacks can be directed at any enterprise operating online, including corporations, financial institutions, NGOs, gaming networks, ISPs, and even governments. Regrettably, these attacks are on the rise.
In the past year, cybercriminals launched over 9 million DDoS attacks, with approximately 4.4 million occurring in the second half of 2021. Simply put, no business can afford to be without protection against such attacks. They are a crucial part of any cybersecurity conversation.
Shielding Your Networks
Businesses can defend against DDoS attacks by investing in a service that can serve as a shield against any attempt to overload their network with traffic. One such service, Liquid’s recently launched DDoS Secure, mitigates attacks by scrubbing traffic and blocking known attackers or hostile traffic. Additionally, this service can provide clients with insights into attempted disruptions by reporting on any attacks.
Services like these offer businesses a vital layer of protection. They ensure that work is not interrupted by DDoS attacks, prevent revenue loss, and safeguard the reputation of their clients. Moreover, they enhance businesses’ potential for growth through tenders and partnerships by granting them DDoS compliance – more opportunities become available once an enterprise can demonstrate that its network and daily operations are secured against attacks of this nature.
With DDoS attacks continually on the rise, it’s beneficial to have greater visibility of potential attacks, be able to automatically mitigate threats, and secure your business’s reputation, compliance, and bottom line. DDoS protection is essential for businesses operating in our increasingly interconnected world.
