Distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks have become an increasingly problematic digital threat over the last decade. However, 2020 has been a particularly bad year for these events, with research finding that the number of DDoS attacks increased significantly in the second quarter of the year.
Specifically, the Kaspersky study found that attacks were up 30 percent when compared to the first quarter of 2020 – and a whopping 217 percent compared to 2019’s second quarter.
Why the Rise in DDoS Attacks?
The 2020 second-quarter rise in DDoS attacks is a deviation from “the norm,” as spikes in these events are historically more likely to occur during the first quarter of the year. This is because the first quarter is usually peak season for businesses, making them prime targets for hackers.
Of course, 2020 has been a very different year in many ways. With more businesses shifting their operations online in response to the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic during the second quarter, these organizations also became larger targets for cybercriminals. Combine this with the fact that more employees are also working from home on their own devices, and it becomes easier to see why the number of DDoS attacks has been on the rise.
How You Can Protect Your Site
If you’re worried about your website becoming the victim of a DDoS attack, your concerns are (unfortunately) justified. The good news is that there are several steps you can take to minimize your risk and reduce your site’s chances of succumbing to one of these attacks.
Perhaps the best thing you can do is to make sure you have a secure server. Shared servers are more likely to be compromised by a DDoS attack because they simply don’t have the resources to keep up with the sudden influx of “traffic” that they generate. With this in mind, setting your site up on a dedicated server can make all the difference.
On top of that, many dedicated server hosting companies, like ReliableSite, also offer DDoS protection. This can provide you with a defense against attacks ranging from relatively small (about 10 Gigabits per second) to large (hundreds of Gigabits per second).
Finally, it’s crucial to know the signs of a DDoS attack and how to respond to one. If your website is suddenly loading slowly or if your server has unexplained downtime, reach out to your web host right away to have the matter investigated.
Switch to Dedicated Hosting to Improve Your Security
Hopefully, the number and severity of DDoS attacks will dwindle as the year wears on, but only time will tell. For now, the best thing you can do is to make sure you’re taking the proper COVID-19 cybersecurity precautions to protect your site. This means making the switch to a dedicated server if you haven’t done so already.
Looking for a great dedicated hosting plan with free standard DDoS protection built-in? ReliableSite is here to help! Contact us today to find out more about our hosting plans and the many security features we have in place for your protection.