DDoS is a kind of cyber-attack that compromises the availability of a website to visitors in a process where attackers direct a huge amount of traffic to that particular website using bots, software that performs automated tasks over the internet.
The number of Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) events topping 20 gigabits per second (Gbps) in the first half of 2014, were double than those in 2013 as more than 100 attacks at 100Gbps or higher were recorded in the first six months of 2014, Forbes said in a report last July while quoting a research from Arbor Networks.
DDoS attacks are a global threat and countries around the world are working on solutions to mitigate such attacks. However, Islamabad lags far behind in dealing with the rising threat of cyber-attacks that continue to target Pakistani websites.
In 2014, hackers from different parts of the world continued to launch DDoS attacks on Pakistani websites. They also hacked websites belonging to the security forces and the federal government; defaced them and leaked private data of government and security officials.
By contrast, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) – the country’s premier anti-cybercrime watchdog – lacks the capabilities to cope with such attacks, according to industry experts.
According to an official, such attacks will continue to take place because the country has no facilities or resources to trace the hackers. Even the National Response Centre for Cyber Crime (NR3C), an FIA division responsible for dealing with cybercrimes, can’t trace such attacks that are executed by hackers through proxies, such as TOR – free software that enables online anonymity and resists censorship.
Pakistani websites are attacked almost on a daily basis with DDoS and security breaches. Such attacks usually intensify around or on August 14, Pakistan’s Independence Day, say sources adding that these attacks mainly originate from India. In return, Pakistani hackers attack Indian websites in a similar way on August 15.
