There has been a 129 percent increase in DDoS attacks from the previous year, according to Akamai Technologies’ Second Quarter 2016 State of the Internet / Security Report.Twelve attacks observed during Q2 exceeded 100 Gbps and two that reached 300 Gbps targeted the media and entertainment industry.
The largest DDoS observed to date at 363 Gbps occurred on June 20, 2016 against a European media customer. At the same time, the median attack size fell by 36% to 3.85 Gbps.
Interestingly, while attack sizes are decreasing, Akamai Technologies continue to see an uptick in the number of attacks as launch tools grow increasingly pervasive and easy to use and monetize.
In addition, detected automation tools and scraping campaigns represented 63 percent of all bot traffic, a 10 percent increase from last quarter. These bots scrape specific websites or industry segments and do not identify their intentions and origin.
During one 24-hour period in Q2, bots accounted for 43 percent of all web traffic across the Akamai Intelligent Platform.
Web application attacks increased by 14 percent; while SQL Injection and Local File Inclusion (LFI) continue growth as most common attack vectors
“While attack sizes are decreasing, we continue to see an uptick in the number of attacks as launch tools grow increasingly pervasive and easy to use and monetize,” said Martin McKeay, Editor-in-Chief, State of the Internet / Security Report. “This commoditization renders businesses vulnerable to a higher frequency of attacks they can’t defend against on their own. As we look toward Cybersecurity Awareness Month in October, it is important for organizations to understand what they are up against, specifically as adversaries increasingly threaten DDoS attacks for ransom.”