DDoS Attack 101: Definition, Techniques, Risks & Prevention

A distributed-denial-of-service (or DDoS) attack involves a network of computers all connecting with your server at the same time. They overwhelm the system, and eventually, it goes down. Even legitimate traffic can't capture the attention of a server overwhelmed with a flood of requests. 

DDoS problems aren't new. Companies have dealt with them for years. In 2013, for example, a coordinated attack took down all the servers in China, and the outage lasted for about four hours. 

But experts say the technique is on the rise. For example, there were about 50 percent more DDoS attacks in the third quarter of 2020 than the year prior. 

It's not always easy to spot a DDoS attack in progress. And once hackers launch it, cleaning up the damage is difficult. But investing in prevention could lower your risk of becoming a hacker's dream target.