DDoS 2024 Attacks Target Europe and the Middle East

During the first six months of 2024, DDoS Threat Intelligence Report from NETSCOUT Systems Inc., stated the denial-of-service attacks surged.

Application-layer attacks, volumetric attacks rose by 30%, and Europe and the Middle East were under attack. Events take on even greater meaning when framed in context with the current global geopolitical environment, with active conflicts in these regions.

The newest vector of these attacks is brought about by hacktivist groups, such as the pro-Russian NoName057, in an effort to disrupt the activities of critical infrastructures of banking, government, and utilities.

Multisector DDoS attacks are up by 55% in frequency and intensity over the last four years against already vulnerable industries because of existing socio-political tensions.

“Adversaries are leveraging more resilient, take-down-resistant networks, which makes detection and mitigation increasingly challenging,” said Richard Hummel, Director of Threat Intelligence at NETSCOUT.

Why the Middle East and Europe?

It is no accident that the hotbeds for these NETSCOUT Systems Inc, cyberattacks have been Europe and the Middle East. Ongoing wars and political upheaval in both areas give way to just the kind of environment these hacktivist groups seek to exploit.

Many such groups are ideologically driven, targeting nations they oppose politically. The connectedness of geopolitical turmoil and the growth in cyberattacks, especially in regions already strained by warfare, simply cannot be ignored.

The war between Ukraine and Russia and tensions in the Middle East have only heightened these cyber efforts. While countries have engaged in more traditional forms of warfare, the front lines of the digital world are also heating up. DDoS attacks have become a significant weapon in disrupting key civilian services, making such conflicts as much about cyber dominance as military might.

Growing Sophistication in Attacks

This report shows the increasing sophistication of the attacks, whereby the adversaries take advantage of more advanced technologies and tactics. The decentralization of the nodes of botnet control, with the arrival of Zergeca and DDoSia botnets, has further exacerbated detection and mitigation. As a matter of fact, this level of sophistication will enable cybercriminals to target multiple victims at any given time, often overwhelming even those networks that are well-protected.

Even newly established networks are becoming easy prey for these attacks. In NETSCOUT Systems Inc research, it was determined that 75% of new networks became involved in DDoS activities within just 42 days from the date of their launch. Most of these infrastructures are without protection and become a part of huge DDoS campaigns involuntarily.

With growing geopolitical tension, the likelihood of increased frequency and severity from cyberattacks is very high, thereby forcing organizations and governments to be vigilant in this increasingly complicated digital battle zone. Dynamic development of DDoS technologies and methods allows making cybersecurity proactive in particular for war-torn parts of the world. The greater and more complex these attacks are, the greater the damage to infrastructure, business, and civilians

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