"DDoS Attack Knocks Belgian Government Websites Offline"

Many government websites and services in Belgium were knocked offline on Tuesday after Belnet, the internet service provider (ISP) for the country’s public sector, was hit by a massive distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack.  Belnet stated that the attack started on Tuesday morning and affected all of the approximately 200 institutions and organizations that use the company’s services. Public offices, universities, and research institutes were all left partially or entirely without internet access, and their websites were all but inaccessible.  They also stated that there is no indication that cybercriminals have infiltrated any network. Everything indicates that the attack was aimed solely at saturating the Belnet network.  Researchers noted that DDoS onslaughts that involve overwhelming a target with traffic from many devices corralled into a botnet are often unleashed to extort money from the targets or as a cover for other attacks.  DDoS attacks cost organizations millions in lost revenue, not to speak of reputational damage. The attacks in Belgium may, in a way, be seen as a worrying testimony to the scale of the cyberthreat faced by governments worldwide.  The effects of the attack were also felt by online reservation systems for COVID-19 vaccinations.

WeLiveSecurity reports: "DDoS Attack Knocks Belgian Government Websites Offline"