Amazon Web Services just rolled out resource-level DDoS protection for Application Load Balancers (ALB) — and it's a game changer if you're running apps behind ALB!
🎯 What’s the Problem?
Imagine your application is hosted behind an ALB (Application Load Balancer), and one day it gets flooded by a DDoS attack — thousands of fake requests trying to take your service down.
Previously, you had to rely on external tools like AWS Shield or use WAF for general protection, but there was no direct integration at the ALB resource level for DDoS mitigation.
✅ What’s New?
AWS now integrates WAF DDoS protection directly into ALB.
This new capability works as an on-host agent on ALBs that:
- ⏱️ Detects and blocks DDoS attacks in seconds
- 📛 Uses IP reputation rule groups (known malicious IPs)
- 🧠 Inspects X-Forwarded-For headers to detect the real source of proxy traffic
- 🚦 Lets you choose between always-on or only-when-needed protection
🧪 Simple Example: E-commerce Website
Let’s say you're running an online store using ALB + EC2. One day, a DDoS attack floods your app with garbage traffic.
With this new feature:
- Known bot traffic is blocked before it hits your EC2 instances
- Proxy abuse is rate-limited using smart analysis of XFF headers
- Your real customers keep shopping — no downtime!
🔧 How to Use It?
- Go to AWS WAF Console
- Create or select a Web ACL
- Associate it with your ALB
- Enable Resource-level DDoS Protection
- Choose:
- 🟢 Always On
- 🟡 On only during high load
Enable standard DDoS protection on an existing webACL
To enable Anti-DDoS protection in the AWS WAF console
- Sign in to the AWS Management Console and open the AWS WAF console at https://console.aws.amazon.com/wafv2/homev2.
- Choose Web ACLs in the navigation pane, and then open any web ACL that is associated with an Application Load Balancer.
- Choose Associated AWS resources.
- Under Resource level DDoS protection, choose Edit.
- Select one of the following protection modes:
- Active under DDoS (recommended) - Protection engages only during high load conditions
- Always on - Always-on protection against known malicious sources
Choose Save changes.
📌 Benefits at a Glance
| Feature | Benefit |
|---|---|
| 🔗 Integrated with ALB | Faster response to threats |
| 🚫 Blocks known bad IPs | Immediate protection |
| 🧠 Smart IP detection | Real source detection (via XFF) |
| ⚙️ Flexible settings | Configure per app need |
| 📈 No impact on real users | Keeps good traffic flowing |
💬 Final Thoughts
This new AWS WAF feature brings enterprise-grade protection right to your load balancer. It’s great for anyone using ALB and looking for automated, low-latency, DDoS defense — without needing extra tools or services.
Let me know if you're already using it or planning to! 👇
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