What is DDoS?
A DDoS attack (Distributed Denial of Service) is a cyberattack in which multiple computer systems (usually hacked or bots) are used to flood a server, network or website with an enormous amount of traffic. This overloads the service and makes it inaccessible to legitimate users. DDoS attacks can cause serious disruptions and are often used to cause damage or enable extortion.
DDoS attacks work by combining thousands to millions of devices, such as computers, servers, or IoT devices, that are infected with malware and are part of a botnet. These devices send massive requests to a target, such as a website or server, exhausting the capacity of the infrastructure. This causes the service to slow down or become completely inaccessible to ordinary users. Because the attack comes from many different sources, it is difficult to filter the traffic and stop the attack.
The impact of a DDoS attack can vary depending on its scale and target. For businesses, it can lead to loss of revenue, damage to reputation, and customer dissatisfaction. Some attacks are aimed at temporarily shutting down a service, while others are carried out as part of a larger cyberattack, such as extortion or a diversionary tactic for a break-in.
What does Level27?
Our own network can take a beating. We work exclusively with the largest tier-1 networks and have connections of at least 10GbE with each of them. Today, Level27 is connected to Level3, Arelion, Cogent and NTT. To keep data traffic local, we are also connected to BNIX and BelgiumIX. These are hubs where operators can communicate directly with each other without the intervention of another party. If one of our customers is attacked, we can use a few simple rules to ensure that, for example, the web service remains online, while all other ports upstream are blocked.
For longer-lasting or higher-capacity attacks, we can use NaWas, the National Washing Facility against DDoS attacks. NaWas offers providers such as Level27 unique protection against DDoS attacks. These types of attacks are a growing problem for digital infrastructure. Participants work together to keep the costs of DDoS mitigation low and to maintain high availability and knowledge on this subject.
Are you frequently attacked? Cloudflare!
If you frequently experience attacks, we can proactively protect your application with Cloudflare. Cloudflare acts as an extra layer between the attacker and your website. They have even greater capacity and specialise in repelling DDOS attacks specifically targeting web applications.
Cloudflare offers robust protection against DDoS attacks and other online threats. With their global network, they can detect and block malicious traffic before it reaches a customer's servers. This keeps the website fast and secure, even during an attack. For businesses, this is essential to minimise downtime and maintain customer satisfaction.
In addition, Cloudflare offers performance improvements such as caching and CDN (Content Delivery Network) services, which enable websites to load faster for visitors worldwide. This results in a better user experience and higher conversion rates, which is important for businesses that depend on their online presence.
