A recent report reveals that DDoS attacks have surged by 56% between 2023 and 2024, indicating a sharp rise in both the frequency and scale of cyberattacks. The findings highlight that these attacks, now measured in terabits per second, have become significantly more intense, with businesses across various sectors facing unprecedented threats. The gaming industry remains the most targeted sector, making up 34% of attacks, while the financial services sector has also seen a substantial increase in attacks, growing from 12% to 26% in just one year. Additionally, the report notes a 17% increase in DDoS activity compared to the first half of 2024, with the largest recorded attack peaking at 2Tbps.
The data also shows a shifting focus among attackers, with the technology sector experiencing a notable rise in attacks. The industry has seen its share of DDoS attacks increase from 7% to 19% over the last year. This shift is attributed to the disruption potential of targeting tech services, which can impact numerous organizations at once. Furthermore, the sector’s vast computational power makes it an attractive target for malicious actors who can exploit these resources to amplify their attacks.
Despite a 31% decline in attacks against the gaming industry compared to the first half of 2024, the sector remains highly vulnerable to DDoS threats.
This drop may be due to improvements in gaming companies’ defenses, which have made them more resilient to DDoS attacks. However, attackers are increasingly shifting their focus to sectors with high-value targets, such as financial services, which saw a 117% rise in attacks. The increase in attacks against the financial sector is driven by the critical nature of online services and the sector’s vulnerability to ransom-based threats.
Gcore’s report also emphasizes the geographic distribution of DDoS attacks, with the Netherlands, the U.S., and Brazil emerging as significant sources of malicious activity. The rise of Southeast Asia as a hotspot for application-layer attacks is also noted, particularly with Indonesia’s growing involvement in these types of attacks. The report highlights a shift toward shorter but more potent DDoS attacks, which are harder to detect and disrupt services before defenses can be activated. These burst attacks often serve as smokescreens for other cyberattacks, such as ransomware deployment, adding another layer of complexity to the ongoing cybersecurity challenge.
