11 Feb DoS and DDoS Attacks Are Different: Here’s How

The Difference Between DoS and DDoS Attacks

Understanding cybersecurity threats involves knowing what kinds there are. You’ve likely heard the term “DDoS” used then. But what about DoS? Aren’t they the same? The answer is no, and knowing the distinction can save your IT team time with the correct response. 

DDoS and DoS mean “denial of service” respectively. 

• Denial of Service Attack – Conducted by a single attacker. Targets a system/network and overloads it with traffic and activity to render the system unusable. 
• Direct Denial of Service Attack – Conducted by multiple attackers with the same goal, rendering a network unusable. The attacks are larger in scale given the multiple participating machines. 

Normally, DoS attacks use two methods: network attacks and application attacks. Software attacks target applications and put additional strain on them until they are no longer usable. 

Network attacks target servers and attempts to flood them with traffic and malicious ping requests.

The frequency of DDoS style attacks has only risen due to lax cybersecurity standards, the implementation of botnets, and the rise of smart machines (the Internet of Things). It’s now easier for attackers to send malicious requests on a larger scale with so many nodes available. Tools and software applications for conducting DDoS attacks are also common, requiring minimal understanding to launch them. That means your business or organization is likely to encounter some form of DDoS style attack in its lifetime.

Defending Networks

Proper defense requires a stern firewall policy and active network monitoring. Today, hybrid and regular firewalls provide numerous options to prevent single DoS attacks from causing too much trouble. It’s also easier to identify a single point of increase in malicious requests.

It’s also important to lessen the use of IoT based devices. If your company has multiple points of entry, you increase the risk of suffering a DDoS attack.

If you need additional assistance or information, consider contacting Bytagig for expert IT-based advice and support.