As the 2024 European Parliament election commences in the Netherlands, Cloudflare observes a series of Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks targeting Dutch political websites. These attacks coincide with heightened anticipation for the election, marking the first without UK participation post-Brexit. Notably, HackNeT, a pro-Russian hacker group, claims responsibility for the cyber assaults on political party websites in the Netherlands.
On June 5 and 6, 2024, Cloudflare systems detected and mitigated DDoS attacks on at least three politically-related Dutch websites, with significant activity aimed at two of them. The attacks reached unprecedented levels, with one website facing 115 million requests per hour during the peak assault on June 5. Furthermore, Cloudflare’s report underscores the geopolitical implications of cyber warfare, illustrating how real-world conflicts and geopolitical changes can spark a surge in online attacks.
Geopolitical events, such as elections and disputes, often translate into increased cyber aggression, as seen with the surge in DDoS attacks following Sweden’s acceptance into the NATO alliance. Similarly, Cloudflare’s data highlights the correlation between real-world conflicts and cyber assaults, as evidenced by the escalation of attacks during the Israel-Hamas war in October 2023. Amidst these challenges, Cloudflare provides recommendations for optimizing defenses against DDoS attacks and encourages vigilance during times of heightened geopolitical tension.
