Does a VPN Prevent DDoS Attacks?

Using a virtual private network (VPN) could help protect you against a DDoS attack by masking your IP address and encrypting your traffic. A distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack can prevent any new connections from being processed, making the targeted website or network unavailable.  

Read on to discover what a DDos attack is and how to use a VPN to prevent it. Also, learn other ways to prevent future DDoS attacks. 

Does a VPN prevent DDoS attacks?

VPNs can help by encrypting your online traffic and hiding your real IP address behind the VPN server's IP address.

Unfortunately, stopping a DDoS attack completely is nearly impossible. Hackers often target known websites and public IP addresses. Most DDoS attacks are automated botnet scripts that often run on random schedules. Hackers will stop attacks and restart them just to get around any preventive controls.

The hackers will also attempt to load malware on hosts so they can become a launch platform for future attacks. This is also known as a zombie host. (No relation to "The Walking Dead" series)

If a hacker has no idea what your actual IP address is, they have no target for their DDoS attack scripts. Once a hacker does obtain your real IP address, there are limited options available to help stop the attack.

What’s the best VPN service for DDoS protection?

Several VPN providers offer excellent DDoS protection capabilities. Many also provide global VPN coverage and other built-in functions that could be beneficial in the event of a DDoS attack:

• NordVPN: NordVPN is one of the best VPNs due to its commitment to privacy. You can protect your online activity from DDoS attacks with its kill switch and leak protection and you can switch between protocols like OpenVPN and WireGuard depending on your VPN needs. 
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  • 3 plans to choose from for custom protection on up to 10 devices

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• ExpressVPN: ExpressVPN has a high price tag, but it has server locations in 105 countries and it can stream platforms like Netflix with ease. You can use its 30-day money-back guarantee to determine if it's worth the premium cost.
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• CyberGhost: CyberGhost is an affordable VPN provider with useful features like dedicated IP addresses. It also offers specialty gaming servers to help you get the lowest possible latency and improve your internet connection while gaming. 
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What’s a DDoS attack?

A distributed denial-of-service attack harasses and attacks legitimate users and organizations globally. This cyberattack is very much like coming into a crowded room and everyone screaming, "John!" at the same time. Trying to figure out who said your name first is overwhelming. Your brain, like the web servers targeted by a DDoS attack, can only process so much.

Hackers use this same method to overwhelm routers and firewalls with too many network connections. And just like you might feel after hearing your name called a thousand times in one second, the device receiving more connection requests than it’s built to handle quickly becomes overwhelmed and begins to shut down.

Cybercriminals use botnets to launch DDoS attacks. Botnets are usually composed of hundreds or thousands of computers or zombie hosts whose owners are not aware they are being used as an attack platform.

Are DDoS and DoS the same thing?

Denial-of-service (DoS) attacks are different from DDoS attacks in several ways. DoS attacks originate from a single attacking source. DDoS attacks tend to launch from several distributed sources.

DoS attacks fall into two major categories:

• Application attacks: Attacks against applications being hosted on a targeted platform.
• Network attacks: These attempt to overwhelm the network by sending several connections for the device to process. Ultimately, if the device reaches its connection processing limit, the system will be unavailable and network traffic will stop.

Type of attack	DDoS	DoS
Threat level	High	Medium
Does it use malware?	Yes	Yes
How it works	A botnet or multiple hosts infected with malware.	A script is executed on a single device to attack a specific IP address or DNS name.
How easy is it to trace?	Difficult. DDoS attacks are distributed across many unrelated networks and hosts globally.	Easy. DoS attacks come from a single source IP address that can be blocked by your router or firewall.

Both DoS and DDoS attacks may use malware. Often DDoS will start with a phishing email containing a malware payload. This malware will turn the unsuspecting host into a zombie. The host becomes part of the attack vector along with other zombie hosts.

DoS attacks will normally use malware to set up and disrupt the victim's network. After the malware is installed, the hacker will launch a script from a single source against an IP address attempting to overwhelm the TCP stack with too many connections to process.

DDoS attacks are far more complex and difficult to stop because the attack hosts are distributed globally. Many DDoS hacker groups will throttle their attacks to avoid detection.

However, DoS attacks can still cause serious problems for any single website or a range of IP addresses. Compared to DDoS, a DoS attack can be stopped once the source attack IP has been discovered.

How do you know if you’ve been DDoSed?

There are several ways to determine whether you are under a DDoS attack, including

• Your website is down and visitors see an HTTP 503 error code
• Your connection speeds drop dramatically
• You’re unable to log in to a banking or other financial system
• Your Wi-Fi connection drops out

Hackers tend to launch attacks during the busiest times of the day for maximum impact. If you realize you’re being DDoSed, you could try restarting your router to see whether you receive a new dynamic IP address the hacker isn’t targeting.

How to prevent future DDoS attacks

Here are some recommendations to help avoid a future DDoS attack

• Ensure the service provider you subscribe to issues a dynamic IP address, not a static one. With dynamic addresses, they will change every day. The hackers will have difficulty discovering your IP address if it changes frequently.
• Make sure that all your home devices are protected from viruses and malware.
• Enable a VPN connection on your device to protect your data and IP address.
• Use a Wi-Fi router to protect your internal network from a DDoS attack. Most routers have several security features to help protect your home network. You should also update your Wi-Fi network name and password.
• Use a DDoS protection service, like Indusface AppTrana or SolarWinds Security Event Manager. (Heads up: These anti-DDoS apps may be a pricier solution since they're geared toward businesses.)

FAQs

Bottom line

Although there's no guaranteed prevention against a DDoS attack, a VPN does provide capabilities, including IP address masking and encryption, to help provide critical layers of protection.

About 43% of people use a VPN for security reasons.^[1] It makes sense because VPNs help reduce your exposure to DDoS attacks by hiding your IP address. If a hacker doesn’t know your IP address, it reduces the ability for them to launch an attack against you.

Protection against hackers is just one benefit of using a VPN, which can make it well worth the investment.