DDoS attacks can have a major impact on organizations if they are not careful. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) are warning businesses to take steps to mitigate the impact of these types of attacks.
DDoS attacks may not be expensive to execute, but they can cause enough damage to make network defenders invest time in learning more about them. The advisory from CISA and the FBI covers what you need to know about these types of attacks, which essentially overload networks, protocols, and applications.
DDoS attacks begin when a hacker uses a network of compromised devices to flood a target with junk traffic. In the past, various protocols such as Network Time Protocol and Memcached have been abused by attackers to make DDoS attacks more powerful.
CISA noted that a significant source of DDoS problems comes from the use of default passwords and the lack of security features in IoT. Such devices, such as home routers, lack some form of user interface that would inform users when security patches or updates are available. Last month, the White House proposed an IoT security labeling system that would go into effect sometime in 2023. In addition, the EU is planning its own CE-type marking system for all future IoT devices.
CISA emphasizes that DDoS attacks don't necessarily mean data will be lost or stolen, but they could compromise the third pillar of cybersecurity: availability. And once availability is compromised, hackers gain the opportunity to attack the confidentiality and integrity that systems rely on to protect their availability.
Although business organizations can contract DDoS protection from internet infrastructure companies, there are other security measures they should also take.
The CISA guidance is intended only for FCEB agencies and not for private industry. Google, Akamai and Cloudflare contributed to the advisory, which was published with the US government's Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center (MS-ISAC).
DDoS attacks are becoming more common as the internet becomes more and more essential to our daily lives. While there is no surefire way to prevent these attacks, there are steps you can take to protect your website or online service from becoming a target. By using a CDN, configuring your server for rate throttling, using security protocols like SSL/TLS, and implementing firewalls and intrusion detection/prevention systems, you can help make your website or online service more resilient to DDoS attacks.
Information source: zdnet.com
