Neustar has released a new report on DDOS attacks and their impact on businesses. The report reveals that DDoS attacks are more unpredictable and destructive than ever, with significant costs for affected businesses. The report’s figures show that over the past year, the number of DDoS attacks has doubled, with 40% of them resulting in financial losses of at least $1 million per day.
Experts point out that DDOS attacks are increasingly being used by cybercriminals as a means of distraction. This means that attackers are launching DDOS attacks to keep a company's IT staff busy in order to introduce malware designed to steal data into business systems.
49% of companies surveyed that experienced at least one DDOS attack during 2013 reported that the criminals had installed malware on their systems. Additionally, 55% of businesses reported that they also fell victim to theft, as attackers were able to steal customer data or intellectual property assets.
The research also shows that 90% of targeted companies have experienced repeated hacking attacks. In terms of the number of attacks, large attacks have almost tripled, and the number of cyberattacks between 1 and 5 Gbps has increased by 150%.
