Product Summary
DDoS Shield
Automated cyberthreat detection and mitigation technology that works in real time to scan for malicious traffic and block it, before it affects your network.
ARTICLE
Understanding and Mitigating a DDoS Attack
Mary Ann Labricciosa
About the author:Mary Ann Labricciosa is a seasoned Product Manager at Acronym Solutions, bringing over 20 years of B2B product management experience to the role. She leads a diverse portfolio that includes cloud services, DDoS Shield security solutions, and specialized offerings that prioritize data sovereignty—an area where she holds deep subject matter expertise.
Mary Ann is known for her collaborative leadership style, working cross-functionally across engineering, sales, and marketing to guide products from conception through to market success.
As global cyber warfare continues to rage, there still lurks a hidden danger—Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS)—that should be taken seriously by today’s IT professionals as part of their threat landscape. Though not a true “stealth” threat, its “stealthy” nature makes it hard to identify and protect your network against. This article will help you better understand, recognize, and respond to this insidious enemy via early detection and fast blocking before it does any damage. Also highlighted is an industry-leading cyber security service (provided by Acronym Solutions, Inc.) that fully automates DDoS risk mitigation across your exposed attack surface.
Key Takeaways
- DDoS attacks are rising sharply – traffic peaks have grown from 309 Gb/s in 2013 to 5.6 Tb/s in 2024, turning them into a mainstream threat that targets every sector.
- Impact goes beyond downtime – outages ripple into lost revenue, reputational damage, and can camouflage deeper intrusions such as malware drops or credential theft.
- Three main attack layers – volumetric (bandwidth‑flooding), protocol (state‑exhaustion), and application‑layer (resource‑draining) assaults each require tailored defences.
- Speed and automation are critical – modern attacks often last seconds or minutes, so mitigation must detect and scrub malicious traffic in real‑time without blocking legitimate users.
- Acronym Solutions’ DDoS Shield delivers 24 / 7 automated detection, multi‑stage behavioural analysis, and a customer portal for forensic insight, all housed in a Canadian‑owned network for data‑sovereignty compliance.
- Scalable protection for any size enterprise – financial services, energy, government, retail, security, and healthcare gain continuous uptime while offloading security expertise to Acronym.
What is a Distributed Denial-of-Service attack and why does it matter?
In each DDoS attack, multiple compromised devices—often jointly referred to as a botnet—are used to send a large volume of internet traffic to actual or virtual targets. By definition, DDoS attacks are malicious, targeted attempts to upset the normal functioning of on-prem servers, online services, or entire networks via a simultaneous flood of unwanted traffic. When this occurs, it overwhelms victimized systems, causing them to slow down or crash altogether, denying access to important business functions. The result is a disruption of your company’s productivity, continuity, and security that can result in significant economic losses if left unchecked.
DDoS attacks are of great concern, as they have increased at an alarming rate over the past decade. A recent Cyber Security News article reports a worrisome statistic, claiming “The bits per second (bps) of attacks skyrocketed from 309 Gbps in 2013 to 5.6 Tbs in 2024.” No one is immune, including Canada’s very own former Prime Minister. Some might recall that back in April of 2023, IT World Canada disclosed, “A pro-Russian threat group is believed to be behind a DDoS attack that blocked access to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s official website.”
How different types of DDoS attacks work
According to the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security, a Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attack differs from a standard Denial-of-Service (DoS) attack in that it originates from multiple systems rather than a single source. This distributed nature makes DDoS attacks more complex, larger, and significantly more difficult to mitigate, as the traffic comes from numerous locations and often overwhelms targeted systems before defences can react.
DDoS attacks are further distinguished by several types, or layers, depending on what they seek to harm. For example:
- Volumetric attacks overwhelm network bandwidth
- Protocol attacks exploit weaknesses in how devices communicate to overwhelm a target
- Application attacks target specific applications to exhaust computing resources
The pervasive impact of DDoS attacks
Although DDoS attacks don’t steal data per se, they are often used to camouflage such invasive hacks, making it not only tricky to spot but also challenging to repair. When a DDoS attack is launched, it can have a ripple effect with consequences throughout all facets of business, including:
- Operations – causing downtime and slow productivity
- Finance and reputation – leading to fraud, loss of revenue, customer trust, and potential long-term brand damage
- Heightened security risks –creating a smokescreen or diversionary tactic, opening the door to and hiding other malicious activities (malware deployment, network spyware, credential theft, etc.)
The stakes are high, especially with DDoS attacks becoming so prevalent and ever more sophisticated in our digital age. Therefore, IT organizations need to prepare in advance to avoid the onslaught.
Advanced DDoS mitigation solutions are here
Complex cyber attacks call for complex solutions, and advanced solutions to combat DDoS strikes are now widely available. These specialized technology tools are designed to handle huge DDoS incidents while maximizing uptime, not slowing down performance, and allowing ‘legitimate’ traffic to keep flowing. They constantly check for DDoS vulnerabilities and close security gaps in IT-related environments, ranging from data centers to business-critical applications and networks.
If you are looking for robust, enterprise-grade protection, consider DDoS Shield offered by Acronym Solutions as an add-on to our suite of Internet services. It delivers intelligent defence mechanisms that protect your networks seamlessly while also providing insightful threat data. Key features include real-time monitoring 24/7, automated DDoS detection and mitigation, a user-friendly portal that displays threat details, and flexible scalability to keep pace with your expanding IT estate.
Benefits of DDoS Shield
DDoS Shield benefits small, medium, or large organizations that require secure and uninterrupted connectivity, including those in the financial services, energy, government, retail, security, and healthcare sectors. It helps improve their network performance, reduces downtime risks, lowers costs, and allows them to focus on growing their core business.
Here are some of the many client-centric benefits:
Here are some of the many client-centric benefits:
| 24/7 Automated Detection | • Monitors all traffic that enters the network to detect and automatically block malicious traffic before it impacts your network • No need for in-house security expertise or manual intervention • Multi-stage, data-driven mitigation using behavioural analysis • Comprehensive and accurate protection against the latest trends and attack vectors |
|---|---|
| Lightning-Fast Detection and Mitigation | • Detects and mitigates malicious traffic in seconds within our network, and before it reaches you, for protection with ultra-low latency • Allows legitimate traffic to continue flowing without degrading performance and with zero downtime • Built on a scalable platform with massive total mitigation capacity to support your growing needs |
| Near-Real-Time Customer Portal | • Complete visibility into the history and nature of attacks—size, frequency, duration, and forensic details, such as type, source(s), port, protocol, and packet length—for deeper cyber security insight and situational intelligence • Alerting and reporting for clear, actionable recommendations and compliance |
Protecting Canada’s precious IT resources
According to a statement from the Canadian Ministry of National Defence in the National Cyber Threat Assessment 2025-2026, by the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security, “As a nation with a significant global presence, Canada is a valuable target for cybercriminals looking to make a profit and state adversaries aiming to disrupt the systems we rely on.”
Acronym Solutions has been responding to Canada’s sharp increase in both the number and severity of cyber incidents for decades. Opting for a Canada-based IT security provider ensures you receive localized support and protection. This is particularly the case with DDoS Shield, a proven solution that we continuously strive to improve since it was first introduced in 2021. Updates and enhancements are made, as necessary, based on real-world attack analytics.
Furthermore, DDoS Shield lets you leverage our high-performance protection platform that resides in Acronym’s Canadian-owned and operated network. This means your traffic is monitored and protected under our country’s legal authority.
Optimize your network security posture
There is no end in sight, with Radware’s 2025 Global Threat Analysis Report confirming, “Network-layer attacks have increased 120% compared to 2023.” So, companies of all sizes need to invest time and resources to develop a strong, strategic defence against DDoS attacks.
While DDoS attacks may seem daunting, there are optimization steps you can take to detect and prevent this unwanted network traffic deluge. Arming yourself with knowledge and preparation is essential, combined with a proactive and layered security approach implemented by your IT department and/or a managed service provider.
Now is the time to take stock of your current cyber security defences and explore the latest technology solutions, such as the advanced DDoS Shield from Acronym, to properly safeguard your network’s integrity.
Ready to ensure your network security posture? Contact us at: Sales@AcronymSolutions.com.
FAQs
Q: What exactly is a DDoS attack?
A: A coordinated flood of traffic from thousands of hijacked devices (botnet) that overwhelms a server, service, or network until it slows or crashes.
Q: Why are DDoS attacks so hard to stop?
A: They originate from many IP addresses simultaneously, making traditional IP‑blocking or on‑prem firewalls ineffective and too slow to respond.
Q: Does a DDoS attack steal data?
A: The traffic itself doesn’t exfiltrate data, but it can distract defenders while separate malware or intrusion campaigns run unnoticed.
Q: How quickly can DDoS Shield react?
A: Detection and mitigation occur within seconds inside Acronym’s backbone before malicious packets ever reach the customer edge, ensuring zero downtime.
Q: Will mitigation slow down my legitimate users?
A: No. The platform analyses traffic behaviourally and only scrubs malicious flows, leaving genuine requests untouched and latency‑free.
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About Acronym
Acronym Solutions Inc. is a full-service information and communications technology (ICT) company that provides a range of scalable and secure Network, Voice & Collaboration, Security, Cloud and Managed IT Solutions. We support Canadian businesses, large enterprises, service providers, healthcare providers, public-sector organizations and utilities. We leverage our extensive network expertise to design and build customized, fully scalable solutions to help our customers grow their businesses and realize their full potential. With more than 20 years’ experience managing the communications system that enables Ontario’s electrical grid, Acronym is uniquely positioned to understand the mission-critical needs of any business to deliver the innovative and reliable services that respond to the changing demands of businesses, and support rapid growth and digital transformation initiatives.