In the rapidly evolving landscape of cybersecurity threats, Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks pose a significant challenge for platforms entering the Chinese market. DDoS attacks aim to overwhelm a target network with excessive requests, rendering it unable to serve legitimate Chinese users. Given their immense destructive potential, early identification of DDoS attack signs is crucial, directly impacting user experience, data security, and market reputation.
This article will first list key indicators that can help determine if your network is experiencing a DDoS attack, followed by a detailed explanation of different types of DDoS attacks, aiming to provide practical guidance for cross-border platforms to mitigate risks.
Common Signs of a DDoS Attack
If your cross-border platform or service exhibits the following signs, it is highly likely that it's under a DDoS attack:
- Abnormally Slow Network Performance: Accessing your website, using your app, or platform services becomes unusually slow without a clear reason. This could indicate that your network is being flooded with a large volume of traffic.
- Specific Website or Service Unavailability: A particular website or online service of yours suddenly becomes inaccessible. While occasional service interruptions might be due to maintenance, if a normally functioning platform remains inaccessible for an extended period, it might be under attack.
- Internet Connection Interruption: In severe cases, a DDoS attack can lead to a complete disruption of your internet service. If your platform cannot connect to any websites or online services, and the problem persists after ruling out your own equipment malfunctions, your network might be under a DDoS attack.
- Unexplained Traffic Spikes: Traffic monitoring tools show a sudden, unexplainable surge in incoming network traffic. This abnormal traffic often originates from multiple, different sources, which is a typical characteristic of a distributed denial-of-service attack.
Common Types of DDoS Attacks
DDoS attacks target different layers of the network stack, aiming to deplete server or network resources and block normal access. Understanding these types helps in more precise identification and defense.
1. Application Layer Attacks (Layer 7 Attacks)
These attacks target application-layer protocols like HTTP, HTTPS, and DNS by sending a large number of seemingly legitimate but malicious requests to exhaust server resources, preventing them from responding to legitimate users.
- HTTP Flood: Sends a massive number of HTTP requests to exhaust web server resources.
- Slowloris: Keeps numerous HTTP connections open for extended periods, depleting server connection resources.
- DNS Query Flood: Sends a large volume of DNS query requests, exhausting DNS server resources.
2. Protocol Layer Attacks (Layer 3/4 Attacks)
These attacks target network protocols such as TCP, UDP, and ICMP, aiming to exhaust network device resources, preventing them from processing legitimate traffic.
- SYN Flood: Sends a large number of TCP SYN requests, exhausting the server's connection table.
- UDP Flood: Sends a large volume of UDP packets, exhausting network bandwidth and server resources.
- ICMP Flood: Sends a large number of ICMP Echo requests (pings), exhausting network bandwidth and server resources.
3. Volumetric Attacks
These attacks aim to consume service bandwidth by sending a massive amount of data packets, preventing legitimate traffic from passing through.
- DNS Amplification: Exploits open DNS resolvers to amplify small requests into large responses, exhausting the target's bandwidth.
- NTP Amplification: Exploits open NTP servers to amplify small requests into large responses, exhausting the target's bandwidth.
- SSDP Amplification: Exploits open SSDP devices to amplify small requests into large responses, exhausting the target's bandwidth.
4. Resource Exhaustion Attacks
These attacks exhaust a server's computational resources (such as CPU, memory, disk I/O), rendering it unable to process legitimate requests.
- HTTP GET/POST Flood: Sends a large number of HTTP GET or POST requests, exhausting server CPU and memory resources.
- XML Bomb: Sends specially crafted XML data that causes the server to exhaust memory during parsing.
- Hash Collision: Sends specially crafted requests that cause the server to generate numerous hash collisions when processing hash tables, exhausting CPU resources.
5. Connection Exhaustion Attacks
These attacks exhaust a server's concurrent connection resources, preventing it from establishing new connections and thereby affecting normal user access.
- Slowloris: Keeps a large number of HTTP connections open, exhausting server connection resources (overlaps with Application Layer Attacks).
- TCP Connection Flood: Sends a large number of TCP connection requests, exhausting the server's connection table.
- SYN Flood: Sends a large number of TCP SYN requests, exhausting the server's connection table (overlaps with Protocol Layer Attacks).
Conclusion
To enhance the attack's effectiveness, attackers often combine these different attack methods, causing a comprehensive impact. These effects are often very noticeable. You can determine if a DDoS attack has occurred from subjective experience, abnormal traffic, slow or failed access responses, and abnormally high machine load.
Identifying the signs of a DDoS attack is the first step in defense. As cyber threats continue to evolve, staying informed and well-prepared is crucial. By understanding these attack indicators and mastering response methods, you can protect your cross-border platform from significant damage and ensure its resilience against future threats. Contact us to get the earliest prevention system and the most comprehensive protection：Contact EdgeOne
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