Government-targeted DDoS attacks surge over 1,800% in 2021

 

Online presence creates an additional attack surface that can be used in coordinated attacks, such as Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks.

 

According to data presented by the Atlas VPN team based on Radware’s 2021-2022 report, the volume of DDoS attacks per customer aimed at the government sector soared by a whopping 1,881% in 2021 compared to 2020’s figures. Meanwhile, the actual attack events decreased by 70%, suggesting fewer but more severe DDoS attacks aimed at the sector.

 

Says Ruta Cizinauskaite, a cybersecurity researcher and writer at Atlas VPN, shares her thoughts on government-targeted DDoS attacks:

 

“DDoS attacks are often used as one of the tools in cyber-warfare with a goal to disrupt the governments by rendering their online resources unavailable. DDoS attacks are also used by hacktivists as part of political protests.” 

 

DDoS attacks, however, were not limited to the government sector last year. The volume of DDoS attacks per customer aimed at the retail industry skyrocketed by 6,288%. Next up was the healthcare sector. It experienced a 260% growth in DDoS attack volume per customer.

 

The research and education sector occupies fourth place on the list with a 62% rise in DDoS attack volume in 2021, followed by online commerce and gaming with 41%. Meanwhile, the technology sector saw a 36% increase in DDoS attack volume per customer last year.

 

While the volume of DDoS attacks grew across most industries last year, finance and telecom sectors experienced a decrease. DDoS attack volume plummeted by 34% and 58%, respectively, across the aforementioned industries.

 

Overall, the average attack volume per customer rose by 26%.

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