Radware's Cyber Threat Report: Web DDoS Attacks Surge 550% in 2024

Core Insights - Radware released its 2025 Global Threat Analysis Report, highlighting significant changes in the cybersecurity landscape driven by geopolitical conflicts, complex threat surfaces, and the impact of AI on cyber threats [1][3]. Threat Landscape - The report indicates that multiple factors contributed to a "threat revolution" in 2024, including geopolitical tensions and the accessibility of sophisticated tools for cybercriminals [3]. - AI has lowered barriers to entry for malicious actors, increasing the number of adversaries and enabling novice actors to launch successful attacks [3]. DDoS Attack Trends - Layer 7 (L7) Web DDoS attacks surged, primarily linked to hacktivist groups motivated by geopolitical issues [4]. - Total Web DDoS attacks increased by 550% compared to 2023, with the average mitigated attack volume rising by 120% [6]. - The average duration of network DDoS attacks increased by 37% over 2023 [5][6]. Geographic and Industry Targets - EMEA accounted for 78% of global DDoS incidents, with North America facing 66% of web application and API attacks [6][7]. - The telecommunications sector experienced 43% of global network DDoS attack volume, followed by finance at 30% [6][14]. - Ukraine was the most targeted nation with 2,052 claimed attacks, followed by Israel and the United States [7][14]. Hacktivism and Attack Dynamics - Hacktivist campaigns intensified, with a 20% increase in claims globally, targeting government institutions primarily [5][14]. - The financial sector accounted for 44% of total L7 DNS attack activity, with healthcare and telecom following [7][14]. - Vulnerability exploitation remained the most prominent attack type, comprising over one-third of all malicious requests [14].