What the heck is a DDoS attack?

Hey there, solo warriors and family business champs,

Ever tried getting into a popular restaurant on a Saturday night without a reservation? You show up, but the place is packed. No tables, no way in. That’s pretty much what happens when a DDoS attack hits your business website. Except, instead of hungry diners it’s a flood of junk traffic, and instead of a restaurant, it’s your online business getting slammed.

What the heck is a DDoS attack?

DDoS stands for Distributed Denial of Service. Let’s break that down:

Denial of Service = Your website or online tools get so overloaded that real customers can’t access them.

Distributed = The attack comes from multiple devices (often thousands) instead of just one.

Basically, hackers send so much traffic to your website that it crashes or slows to a crawl. It’s like a million bots trying to push through the doors of your online store at once while your actual customers are left standing in the cold.

What do hackers need to launch a DDoS Attack?

Not much. That’s the scary part. Cybercriminals don’t need an army of computers in their basement. Instead, they use something called a botnet: a network of infected devices (could be computers, phones, even smart fridges!) that have been hijacked with malware. These devices, often owned by regular people who have no idea they’ve been compromised, become zombie soldiers in the attack.

DDoS-for-hire services even exist. For as little as 10 bucks, someone can rent a botnet and take down a website. Yeah.

One such network just got taken down a few months ago, but there are countless others out there.

Why should small businesses care?

If you’re thinking, “Well, I’m not Amazon, why would hackers target me?” - good question. Here’s why you should still care:

Collateral damage - Maybe the hacker isn’t after you but your hosting provider, and you get caught in the blast.

Ransom demands - Some attacks stop if you pay up (don’t do that, though).

Lost sales & trust - If your site is down, customers might go elsewhere. People paying for ads on your site don’t get what they paid for.

Higher costs - If you pay for cloud hosting based on traffic, a DDoS attack can spike your bills.

How long do DDoS attacks last?

They can last from a few minutes to several days. The average attack is about 4 hours, but some last weeks or even months (we’ll get to that nightmare scenario in a sec).

How do you prevent a DDoS attack?

Okay, let’s talk defense. You don’t need a high-priced IT team to take basic precautions:

Get a good hosting provider. Cheap hosting is great, until it isn’t. Look for one with DDoS protection built in.

Use a CDN (Content Delivery Network). Services like Cloudflare can help absorb traffic spikes before they reach your site.

Monitor your traffic. If you see a sudden flood of visitors from a random country, that’s a red flag.

Rate limit requests. If you run an online store, limit how many requests a single IP can send in a short time.

Can you be under a permanent DDoS attack?

Sadly, yes. Some businesses experience “low and slow” DDoS attacks, meaning instead of a full-force flood, hackers trickle in just enough garbage traffic to keep your website struggling. Think of it like someone putting just enough sugar in your gas tank every day to keep your engine from running smoothly.

If this happens, you’ll need to work with your hosting provider or a cybersecurity expert to filter out the attack traffic.

Stay vigilant, stay online

DDoS attacks are annoying, but they’re not unbeatable. Think of them like bad weather. if you prepare in advance, you can keep the doors open and the customers coming. So, beef up your defenses, keep an eye on traffic, and don’t let the bad guys turn your business into a digital parking lot.

Until next time,

• Sead from SmallBiz CyberWiz