DDoS attacks triple year-on-year in Q2 2020: Kaspersky

The number of DDoS attacks in the second quarter of 2020 increased three-fold in comparison to Q2 2019, a new report by Kaspersky shows.

Experts at the cybersecurity firm believe the rise in malicious activity can be attributed to the impact of Covid-19, as companies and individuals stayed put, and online, due to the pandemic disrupting travel plans.

The number of attacks Kaspersky DDoS Protection detected and blocked in Q2 2020 was 217 per cent higher than in the same period of 2019, the report revealed. Also, the number of attacks in Q2 2020 slightly increased in comparison to the first quarter of this year.

Typically, the number of DDoS attacks varies depending on the season. The beginning of the year usually sees a higher amount of DDoS attacks as it is a peak season for business, and in late spring and summer, the number of attacks begins to decrease. For example, the number of attacks in Q2 2019 fell by 39 per cent compared to figures for Q1 2019, and in 2018 the difference between the two quarters was 34 per cent.

Also, the average number of attacks registered daily in the second quarter increased by almost 30 per cent compared to what happened in Q1. The biggest number of attacks per day was almost 300 in Q2 (registered on April 9), while in Q1 2020 the record was 242 attacks.

“This year, people have not been able to enjoy a normal holiday season as many regions have kept COVID-19 lockdown measures in place. This has left more people than usual still depending on online resources for both personal and work-related activities, making this summer a busy period for online businesses and information resources. As a result, we saw unprecedented activity in the DDoS market. And so far, there is no reason to predict a decline,” comments Alexey Kiselev, business development manager on the Kaspersky DDoS Protection Team.

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