DDoS Attacks and DNS Amplification in the Spotlight

With the recent 300 Gbit/sec DDoS attack against Spamhaus, is making major waves, not just getting covered by technology publications and blogs such as GigaOm, but mainstream media venues like the New York Times.  This attack was accomplished by using poorly configured DNS servers in a DNS amplification attack and while neither of these things are new, this story has definitely brought more attention to them.

In response, here at Steadfast we are taking multiple actions to better serve our customers.  First, we have developed a list of customer IPs that have at least moderate susceptibility for DNS amplification and will be individually contacting those customers. We will be able to assist all customers in mitigating this type of issue, no matter what level of service or management they have.  In addition, we have made a knowledgebase article outlining the ways to identify if you are at risk for a DDoS amplification attack and how to eliminate the risk to help give people across the Internet guidance on resolving this issue. In addition, we have added connectivity and capacity throughout our network to mitigate the affects of any such attacks on other customers. Finally, to protect our own customers from these attacks we are working with an established DDoS protection vendor in offering DDoS protected services to all of our cloud, dedicated server, and Chicago colocation customers.  These DDoS protection services should be available within a couple weeks and will be available starting at just $50/mo.  Expect an announcement soon! (Note: Our DDoS mitigation services have now been launched!)

If you're a Steadfast customer and have any questions or concerns about DDoS protection or DNS Amplification attacks, always feel free to contact us and we're more than happy to help!

Recommended Reading:
Preventing DNS Amplification Attacks