What Does a DDoS Attack Involve and What Can Schools Do to Prevent it?

Charlie Sander, the CEO of ManagedMethods, explains what a DDoS attack typically involves and outlines what schools can do to prevent it from impacting them. This article originally appeared in Insight Jam, an enterprise IT community that enables human conversation on AI.

It’s well-established that the digital age has brought with it a whole host of benefits to schools. But, at the same time, it has exposed them to all kinds of cyber threats. One of the biggest threats is the distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack, which occurs when hackers overwhelm their network by directing tons of traffic there, completely disrupting the school’s operations.

Ransomware attacks understandably grab the most headlines, but DDoS attacks are more common and can be devastating. Given how vulnerable schools often are due to a lack of resources and funding, this is a concerning trend that needs to be addressed. Let’s examine DDoS attacks in more detail and what schools can do to prevent them.

The Increasing Prevalence of DDoS Attacks in Schools

In a recent Verizon report that analyzed Data Breaches, it was revealed that 1780 cybersecurity incidents occurred in educational institutions in 2024, with 86 percent of these involving some level of data leakage. This is 258 percent more than in the previous year, which shows how significantly the problem is escalating.

Looking more locally, in Harris County, Texas, an 18-year-old student recently orchestrated a DDoS attack in his school using only his school-issued Chromebook. It caused huge state-wide disruption, with 24,000 students affected over the next three days. One expert described the incident as like “pulling the fire alarm in all schools simultaneously and continuously.” The issue with these DDoS attacks is that they are very cheap to execute. A student can pay just a few dollars to various domains that host these kinds of “attacks-as-a-service,” and that’s all it takes.

What We Know About the Impact of DDoS Attacks on Schools

As discussed above, DDoS attacks hone in on a school’s network infrastructure, sending a ton of traffic to cause outages. One issue is that the attacks are often not immediately recognized, instead mistaken for being routing tests or minor outages, which means the response and any potential mitigation efforts are too late. The implications of the disruption are not just localized to within the school grounds. It can damage the school’s public reputation and might affect enrollment and trust with the local community.

Perhaps most concerning of all, DDoS attacks often are launched at the same time as other malicious activities. They are commonly used as a diversion that can soften the school’s defenses while the hacker infects the network with something more damaging, such as ransomware.

How DDoS Attacks are Evolving

Hackers’ methods are rapidly changing. As technology generally becomes more sophisticated, so do attack vectors. A common strategy that has become more effective recently is a “kill chain,” whereby a series of stages are carried out to breach security defenses. In the context of a DDoS attack, this could include reconnaissance (scanning for vulnerabilities), deploying the attack, and maintaining pressure on the network during an attack.

Another concerning development is the use of botnets, which are networks made up of compromised devices that can be directed to flood traffic to a particular target. Microsoft did a report on botnet attacks during the pandemic and discussed how one botnet identified in 2007, Cutwail, could send 74 billion emails in one day, and another botnet, Mariposa, had hijacked 12.7 million computers around the world.

They have become more potent, and this is partly due to the availability of botnets for hire, similar to what we discussed with students buying these services earlier, which lowers the barrier to entry for would-be attackers.

Strategies for Defending Against DDoS Attacks

A comprehensive strategy is needed to defend against these kinds of attacks. First, implementing monitoring tools is crucial. They give you real-time visibility into network traffic so that IT teams can quickly identify and respond to unusual patterns that may indicate an attack.

Then comes real-time traffic analysis. There are several packet analysis tools out there that can help detect and block malicious activities. These tools analyze network packets in real-time to provide insights into potential threats and enable swift action to mitigate them.

In terms of network services, schools can enhance their defenses by using web protection services and content delivery networks (CDNs). They act as intermediaries between the school’s servers and incoming traffic so that you can filter out malicious requests and make sure that legitimate traffic is properly dealt with. Network redundancy and resilience is the final crucial element, which involves setting up backup systems and alternative pathways for network traffic. This means that all the essential services stay operational even during an attack.

Finally, your incident response plan should include steps to take in the event of a DDoS attack. That plan should also include how to communicate the incident to faculty and staff and what is expected of them during such an event. Schools that take these steps can better protect themselves against the increasing threat of DDoS attacks. That way, they can keep doing their best to give students and teachers the safest possible environment for learning and growth.