News: Distributed reflector denial of service attacks
Computer Researchers Warn of Net Attacks
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A new variety of unusually powerful Internet attacks can overwhelm popular Web sites and disrupt e-mails by exploiting the computers that help manage global Internet traffic, according to security researchers.
First detected late last year, the new attacks direct such massive amounts of spurious data against victim computers that even flagship technology companies could not cope. In one of the early cases examined, the unknown assailant apparently seized control of an Internet name server in South Africa and deliberately corrupted its contents.
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The attacker then sent falsified requests to the compromised directory computer, which unleashed overwhelming floods of amplified data aimed wherever the attacker wanted.
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"This is significantly larger than what we saw in 2002, by an order of magnitude," Silva said.
Silva said the attacks earlier this year used only about 6 percent of the more than 1 million name servers across the Internet to flood victim networks. Still, the attacks in some cases exceeded 8 gigabits per second, indicating a remarkably powerful electronic assault.
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"This would be the Katrina of Internet storms," Silva said.
When are people going to stop using Huricane Katrina as a comparator to everything. :mad:
This does make me wonder if it wasn't related in some way to what was posted in the "U.S. Government unleashes cyber storm" thread posted last month.
