EXPERT OPINION
Everything you need to know about mitigating escalating DDoS cyberattacks in Africa
Bryan Hamman , Regional Director Africa , NETSCOUT , discusses some of the critical facts about DDoS attacks and why , for African organisations of all sizes and across every sector , it is so important to learn how to choose the right approach and solution for adaptive DDoS protection .
Bryan Hamman , Regional Director Africa , NETSCOUT s cyberattacks – in
A particular those of the Distributed- Denial-of-Services ( DDoS ) variety – continue to rise at an unprecedented rate across Africa . It is no longer a question of ‘ if ’ your organisation will be targeted , but rather ‘ when ’. In fact , as recently as July and August this year , businesses across African countries such as Kenya , Nigeria and South Africa have all suffered the dire consequences of these incidents .
What is a DDoS attack ?
A DDoS attack is an attempt to exhaust the resources available to an organisation ’ s network , systems , applications , content or services by bombarding it with fake traffic , meaning that genuine users are then unable to gain access . This type of attack is incredibly damaging to any business dependent on the Internet to be able to function and , as we ’ ve seen in recent weeks across Africa , can affect organisations across every sector – from government to financial services , the media , telecommunications providers and more .
A business ’ inability to withstand an attack and effectively and rapidly recover can be detrimental in multiple ways , with aftereffects including loss of revenue due to service downtime , compliance failures , negative impacts on brand reputation and public perception , as well as increased costs .
DDoS attacks are taking place continuously all over the globe and so-called ‘ bad actors ’ are relentlessly improving their attack methods . This means that the ability of an organisation to maintain its availability and resilience in the face of an attack has become more important than ever before . A vital part of this is understanding the facts , risks and latest trends around them .
Four must-know facts about DDoS attacks
Fact one : Your cybersecurity solution might not cover all types of cyberattacks
Businesses may well have viruses and malware attacks covered but , as a type of attack that aims to overwhelm networks or servers with fake traffic , they must ask the question : ‘ Do we have the right defences in place for something more sophisticated , like DDoS , that may not be classed as a ‘ typical ’ cyberattack ?’ www . intelligentciso . com
41