Continent 8 has published its Q4 2023 DDoS report, shedding light on the number and nature of attacks suffered by its customers. The cloud and security services specialist reported a total of 187 DDoS attacks, representing a significant increase from the 1,106 attacks in Q2 and the 359 in Q3.
According to Continent 8, Q4 was the second-lowest quarter in terms of attacks. The intensity of attacks peaked in October when the operator recorded 84 incidents. For reference, the company recorded 44 incidents in November and 59 in December.
The services company added that a total of 27 customers were attacked in Q4 and that Malta was the most targeted location. On average, clients experienced 7 attacks. However, the most affected single customer had to deal with a whopping 49 incidents.
While the average attack size stood at 2.7 Gbps, the largest attack reached 412.9 Gbps. On average the incidents lasted 42 minutes. Luckily, the longest attack lasted only 3.3 hours, unlike the longest attack in Q2, which lasted 799.7 hours.
Continent 8 also noted that the peak megapackets per second (MPPS) rate came at 36. The company noted that the Q4 results highlight a need for targeted DDoS mitigation strategies.
The Intensity of the Attacks Declined but Risks Remain High
Continent 8 also highlighted some of FY 2023 stats, saying that the most attacked locations during each quarter were Kahnawake (Q1), Paris (Q2), Isle of Man (Q3) and Malta (Q4). The number of unique customers affected by such incidents in each quarter was 83, 29, 24 and 27 respectively.
The highest number of attacks against a single customer was recorded in Q2 when one of Continent 8’s clients dealt with 669 incidents. The longest single attack also came in Q2 and, as mentioned, lasted 799.7 hours.
Continent 8 remarked that while Q2 saw a small number of customers being attacked, the severity of the attacks was much greater with the largest one reaching 560.6 Gbps.
Continent 8 concluded that 2023 began with frequent but less severe attacks. The intensity eventually declined although the potential impact remains high. The specialist noted that businesses absolutely must have sufficient protections in place to defend their systems, networks and data.
Continent 8 Seeks to Better Protect Its Clients
In order to better serve its clients, Continent 8 continued to enhance its DDoS protection services.
We have streamlined our Tier 1 provisions by optimizing the number of providers and doubling capacity. This was achieved by optimizing the number of tier 1 providers, allowing for more efficient global traffic management and engineering.
Continent 8 statement
In addition to that, Continent 8 introduced a new scrubbing center in Denver. In addition, the company enhanced its internal systems and the Customer Portal & API, which now boast many new features. These include improved notifications, better visibility and access to downloadable reports.