News broke that the website used to sell merchandise for the University of Warwick’s rowing club, including a nude calendar, produced every year to raise money for charity, was hit with a DDoS attack this week after the team magazine was banned for sale in Russia. Newman, Director at Corero Network Security commented below.
Sean Newman, Director at Corero Network Security:
“The recently reported attack against the University of Warwick Rowing Club’s merchandise site is a prime example of how easy it can be for online business to be impacted. Whatever the motive, it just goes to show how even a modest sized DDoS attack can put an inadequately protected retail website out of action. With DDoS attack tools being inexpensive and easy to find – these days the perpetrators don’t even need to make their way into the depths of the dark web to procure a DDoS-for-hire service. These techniques provide a cheap and anonymous vehicle for expressing opinion or targeting competitors. When a revenue generating digital property is taken offline, it can significantly impact the bottom line – in this case the ability to raise funds for charity. The only way to beat these attacks is to have a robust, real-time DDoS mitigation solution in place, which can defeat DDoS attacks and prevent service interruptions.”