Unprecedented 11.5 Tbps UDP Flood DDoS Attack Originating from Google Cloud Platform
Cloudflare, a leading provider of web security and infrastructure, recently thwarted a massive cyber attack that peaked at a record-breaking 11.5 terabits per second (Tbps). This attack was identified as a Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attack, specifically a UDP flood, with the majority of the assault originating from compromised resources on the Google Cloud Platform. Cloudflare’s automated defence systems successfully detected and neutralised the hyper-volumetric attack, which, despite its staggering size, lasted only about 35 seconds. An image shared by Cloudflare illustrated the attack’s brief yet intense lifecycle, showcasing a rapid spike to 11.5 Tbps before being swiftly controlled. The company confirmed that its systems “autonomously detected and mitigated” the threat, underscoring the vital role of automated defences in addressing modern cyber threats that can emerge and dissipate within minutes.
This unprecedented event is not an isolated occurrence. Cloudflare reported that its security infrastructure has faced significant pressure in recent weeks, having blocked “hundreds of hyper-volumetric DDoS attacks.” Among these was another notable assault that registered 5.1 billion packets per second (Bpps), highlighting the diverse and persistent nature of threats targeting online services. A UDP flood attack overwhelms a target server with an excessive number of UDP packets, exhausting the server’s resources as it attempts to process each incoming packet. The fact that such a large-scale attack originated from a major public cloud provider like Google Cloud illustrates a persistent challenge in the cybersecurity landscape. Malicious actors frequently exploit the vast resources and scalability of cloud platforms to create powerful botnets capable of launching attacks of unprecedented magnitude. Cloudflare has indicated that a more detailed technical analysis of the attack will be available in an upcoming report.
Categories: Cybersecurity, DDoS Attacks, Cloud Infrastructure
Tags: Cloudflare, Cyber Attack, DDoS, UDP Flood, Google Cloud Platform, Automated Defense, Hyper-Volumetric, Cybersecurity, Botnets, Traffic Management