Websites crumble when they get hit with DDoS attacks. Simple as that. These attacks flood sites with so much fake traffic that real visitors can’t get through, and anyone with ten bucks can rent one online.
The worst part? They’re getting meaner every month. Just look at the numbers from last year: 3.4 terabits per second of junk data. Think about that. It’s like stuffing ten years worth of emails into a single second.
And the ways attackers can mess up a website? There’s a whole menu of options. Some just blast simple ping requests until everything falls apart. Others get real fancy, targeting specific parts of web apps with sophisticated attacks.
But here’s the thing web admins need to understand: each type of attack needs its own special defense plan. Because when your site goes down, knowing what hit you might be the difference between minutes and hours of downtime.
Key Takeaways
- Look, these attacks basically come in three flavors. You’ve got your brute force floods that just overwhelm everything, those sneaky protocol attacks that mess with how servers talk to each other, and the really clever ones that target specific parts of websites. Each one’s got its own tricks.
- But here’s what makes modern attacks so nasty. These guys aren’t just picking one method anymore. They’re mixing everything together, throwing the whole playbook at websites until something breaks. Smart. Brutal. Effective.
- And defending against this stuff? It’s not like the old days where you could just block a few IP addresses. Sites need real time traffic monitoring, backup systems ready to go, and some serious protection services running 24/7. Because getting caught with your pants down? That’s not an option anymore.
Ways Attackers Flood Networks
UDP Floods
source : inforte bilisim
Picture someone knocking on every door in a neighborhood at once. That’s what UDP floods do to networks. The server keeps trying to answer all these fake knocks until it just can’t keep up anymore.
Just last month we watched a retail site get slammed with 2.5 million of these fake knocks every second. Total chaos. This flood of traffic highlights the importance of maintaining data integrity during attacks, ensuring corrupted or fake data doesn’t compromise systems under stress.
Ping Floods
God, these are annoyingly simple but they work. It’s like having thousands of people pushing your doorbell non stop. Each ping needs an answer, and that’s what kills you. Some gaming servers got hit with half a million pings every minute last week. Crashed hard.
DNS Tricks
This is where stuff gets really ugly. Attackers have figured out how to turn tiny questions into massive answers using public DNS servers. Send a postcard, get back an encyclopedia. And the numbers are crazy… a tiny 50 byte request turns into 4000 bytes of traffic coming back. Brutal math.
Time Server Attacks
These might be the worst ones yet. Old time servers sitting all over the internet, just waiting to be used as weapons. And boy do they pack a punch. One recent attack used just 5000 of these servers to create a flood of 300 billion bytes per second. Just nuts. The scary part is how easy it is, you don’t even need that many servers to cause absolute mayhem.
Protocol-Based DDoS Attack Methods
SYN Flood
Network traffic shows these attacks hitting harder than ever – picture a restaurant where people keep asking for tables but never sit down. The server keeps every connection request open, waiting for that final handshake that never comes. (1)
We tracked one attack that burned through 16GB of memory in just 3 minutes. The real kicker? Most servers can only handle about 65,535 half-open connections before they start dropping legitimate users.
Common signs of a SYN flood:
- Memory usage spikes suddenly
- Connection timeouts everywhere
- Server response time crawls to a halt
- TCP backlog queue fills up fast
Ping of Death
Old school but still deadly. These attacks stuff IP packets larger than 65,535 bytes down a server’s throat until it chokes. Our monitoring caught three major PoD variants last month.
Modern systems handle oversized packets better now, but mix in some fragmentation tricks and they’ll still stumble. One client’s firewall crashed hard when it tried processing 10,000 malformed packets per second.
Fragmentation Attacks
Breaking packets into tiny pieces seems harmless enough – until those pieces start overwhelming everything in sight. The server wastes time playing puzzle master, trying to put everything back together.
Last week’s attack campaign used fragments so small, the target’s CPU maxed out just handling reassembly. The numbers tell the story: 2 million fragments per minute, eating up 80% of processing power.
Some nasty tricks we’ve seen:
- Sending fragments out of order
- Missing fragments that never arrive
- Overlapping fragment patterns
- Timing delays between fragments
Application Layer DDoS Attack Methods
HTTP Flood
These attacks fly under the radar because they look just like regular web traffic. Instead of raw force, attackers hit servers with thousands of seemingly normal page requests. We’ve watched small botnets take down entire websites using just 200 machines. Each bot hammers the server with 50 requests per second – multiply that by 200, and you’ve got a mess. (2)
The server tries to build each page, burning through CPU cycles until it falls over. Defending against threats that blend into normal traffic requires a layered defense against malware threats and DDoS attacks alike.
Warning signs we track:
- Sudden spikes in GET/POST requests
- Same pages hit repeatedly
- Requests coming from unusual locations
- Normal-looking traffic at abnormal volumes
Slowloris
Named after a slow-moving animal, this attack’s pure evil genius. One machine opens hundreds of connections to a web server, sending just enough data to keep them alive. Our sensors caught an attack using only 10 machines to hold 30,000 connections open.
The worst part? Each connection only needs 200 bytes per minute to stay active. Real users get locked out while these zombie connections hog all the resources.
Recursive GET Flood and Misused Application
Smart attackers don’t break in – they abuse what’s already there. They’ll find the heaviest database queries or slowest API calls and hammer them non-stop. Last month’s incident used search functions that each burned 2 seconds of CPU time.
Multiple that by 1,000 requests per second, and you’ve got 2,000 seconds of processing crammed into each real second. The server never stood a chance.
Common targets we protect:
- Complex search functions
- File upload systems
- Shopping cart operations
- Login systems
Advanced, Hybrid, and Emerging DDoS Attack Methods
Multi-Vector Attacks
credits : marc mueller
These attacks pack multiple punches at once. While the network team handles a massive UDP flood, sneaky HTTP requests slip through the back door. We’ve seen attackers mix up to six different methods in a single hit. Last week’s incident started with DNS amplification, then switched to SYN floods when the first line of defense kicked in.
Smart attackers keep switching tactics – kind of like a boxer who won’t stick to one combination. Combating these multifaceted threats calls for distributed denial of service mitigation strategies that combine real-time traffic analytics and automated blocking to stay ahead of attackers.
Attack patterns we’ve logged:
- UDP floods masking application attacks
- SYN floods combined with HTTP GET floods
- DNS amplification with Slowloris
- Mixed protocol attacks targeting different network layers
Zero-Day DDoS Attacks
Nobody sees these coming – that’s what makes them scary. Fresh vulnerabilities pop up in network gear, and attackers pounce before patches roll out. Our threat feeds caught three new attack methods this year.
One nasty bug turned ordinary routers into traffic amplifiers, multiplying attack strength by 50x. When you’re dealing with unknown threats, even top-shelf protection can stumble.
Botnet-Based Attacks
Those smart fridges and security cameras? They’re not so smart when they’re part of a botnet. We tracked one attack using 50,000 compromised IoT devices. Each tiny device only sent a trickle of traffic, but together they unleashed 1.2 terabits per second.
The scariest part? These devices sit in homes and offices worldwide, making them nearly impossible to block without hitting legitimate users.
Typical botnet makeup from recent attacks:
- 60% IoT devices (cameras, routers, smart home gear)
- 25% compromised Windows PCs
- 10% hacked cloud servers
- 5% mobile devices
Conclusion
Night after night, we see attackers getting creative with their DDoS tactics. Like an ever-changing game of cat and mouse, they keep finding new ways to knock networks offline. Our monitoring shows it’s not enough to guard against just one type of attack anymore.
Smart defense means watching traffic patterns, keeping backup systems warm, and having a solid game plan when things go sideways. The threats keep evolving, and so must we, with a defense strategy built for what’s next.
FAQ
What’s the difference between a volumetric attack and an application layer attack?
Volumetric attacks, like udp flood or dns amplification, try to use up all your bandwidth. They hit you with so much traffic that your network can’t keep up. Application layer attacks, like http flood or slowloris attack, go after the app itself, things like login pages or search bars. One overwhelms with size, the other with smarts. Both can knock you offline fast, especially when used together in a multi-vector attack.
How do amplification attacks like ntp amplification and dns amplification actually work?
Amplification attacks send small requests to public servers, which then send much bigger replies to the victim. Attacks like ntp amplification, dns amplification, and udp amplification are common. These use spoofed IP addresses to trick servers into flooding the wrong target. It’s like sending a whisper and getting back a shout, only thousands of them every second.
What’s the goal of low and slow attacks like slow post attack or http slow read attack?
Low and slow attacks don’t flood you all at once, they creep in quietly. A slow post attack, http slow read attack, or even a slow loris attack ties up resources by sending data super slowly. These tricks aim to exhaust memory or server threads, not bandwidth. That’s why they often slip past basic filters and can take longer to detect.
Are there DDoS methods that target VoIP or SIP systems?
Yes, attacks like sip flood and voip flood are designed to mess with voice systems. These protocols are used for internet calls, and attackers flood them with bogus connection attempts. When combined with a tcp flood or udp port flood, they can take down entire call networks. These are especially nasty in places that rely on real-time voice like hospitals or customer support centers.
What are reflection attacks and how are they different from other DDoS types?
Reflection attacks bounce traffic off third-party servers using spoofed IPs. You’ll see this in dns recursive attacks, icmp echo floods, or tcp reset attacks. Unlike direct attacks, reflection floods come from legit servers, which makes them harder to block. They’re often used in amplification attacks too, making them double trouble in a botnet flooding scenario.
Can malformed packet attacks really cause damage?
Absolutely. Malformed packet attacks like fragmented packet attack, ack of death, or ping of death send broken data to confuse or crash systems. These often trigger errors deep inside a server’s software or network stack. When combined with a tcp session hijack or reset flood, they can open serious security holes or cause full-blown outages.
What happens in a connection flood or session exhaustion attack?
In a connection flood, the attacker opens tons of fake connections using tcp syn flood or tcp handshake abuse tricks. The server gets overwhelmed trying to manage all of them. Session exhaustion and tcp session exhaustion work similarly, just clog the pipes so real users can’t get through. These attacks don’t need big bandwidth, just lots of fake users tying up space.
What is a ransom DDoS and how does it connect to other DDoS types?
Ransom DDoS attacks (or RDDoS) start with a threat: “Pay up or we’ll take you offline.” Attackers then hit with a combo, maybe a http get flood, udp connection flood, or even a spoofed ip attack. They use multi-vector attack methods to back up the threat. It’s about fear as much as damage. And it’s rising.
Do botnet attacks use specific DDoS methods or all of them?
Botnet attacks can use almost every DDoS type out there. A botnet flooding event may involve udp flood, dns query flood, ssl based attack, or even jitter attack. Since botnets are made of many hacked devices, they can switch tactics fast, from layer 3 attack to layer 7 attack in seconds. That flexibility makes them hard to stop without layered defenses.
Why do attackers use so many DDoS methods at once?
Because it works. Using a multi-vector attack with udp flood, http post flood, and tcp back flood at once overwhelms different parts of your system. While your team fights one method, another one slips through. Attackers often mix protocol attack, application protocol attack, and spoofed ip attack in the same strike. It’s like fighting three fires at the same time.
References
- https://frontegg.com/blog/12-types-of-ddos-attacks-traditional-and-emerging-threats
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denial-of-service_attack
