-1

In terms of header, size and payload?

We've been learning about DDOS attacks in class and they've been telling us all of the abstract ideas, but haven't told us what the actual makeup of the packets being sent would look like and I'm curious.

7
  • They can look like valid packets.
    – schroeder
    Apr 30, 2015 at 19:22
  • But then how they can spoof their source addresses etc.?
    – JmJ
    Apr 30, 2015 at 19:28
  • 2
    Who said spoofing was required
    – schroeder
    Apr 30, 2015 at 19:29
  • 1
    Spoofing can be used, in some cases. But even then, the packet is perfectly valid: an address is an address.
    – schroeder
    Apr 30, 2015 at 19:32
  • 1
    DoS can be achieved by a single, specially crafted packet that exploits a problem in the server/router. DDoS is distributed, meaning it's about volume: no special crafting required.
    – schroeder
    Apr 30, 2015 at 19:35

1 Answer 1

4

DDoS is devastating because it can use perfectly valid traffic, thereby bypassing defences looking for anomalies. It does it's damage due to the volume alone.

There are DDoS attacks that can take advantage of vulnerabilities, and their packets do have unique characteristics to look for, but that will depend on the vulnerability being exploited, so we cannot tell you what that looks like without knowing which specific DoS exploit you are wondering about.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .