How Are Online Casinos Preventing DDoS Attacks?

Cybercrime is a major threat to many online industries, and the online gambling industry is no exception. As the online casino market expands, hackers find more loopholes to exploit unsuspecting online casinos.

One of the major threats is the distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack. This is an attack where cyber criminals disrupt an unsuspecting server (in this case, an online casino website) by overwhelming it with bogus traffic. This overloads the online casino website, disrupting connectivity and stopping the platform’s system from processing genuine user requests.

DDoS attacks result in gamblers not having the best gambling experiences in their favorite online casinos. That said, here’s how online casinos prevent DDoS attacks.

Making Their Networks as Resilient as Possible

Network security is a critical step in preventing DDoS attacks. Fortunately, there are many types of network security online casinos use to avoid DDoS attacks.

The most common one is the firewall. Websites use this online security device to monitor incoming network traffic. In simple terms, it acts as a “security guard” that only lets in non-threatening traffic and keeps dangerous network traffic out.

Practising Basic Online Security

Basic online security is one of the vital steps to preventing DDoS attacks. Online casinos use several basic security protocols to keep their platforms safe and fully functional for their customers. The most common one is the Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) encryption. This online security protocol encrypts sensitive data browsers share on websites, preventing unauthorized individuals from accessing it.

Gamblers need always to ensure that the online casino websites they are gambling on have SSL encryption. Usually, online casino platforms with SSL encryption have “https” at the beginning of their web address.

Another basic security protocol that online casino platforms use is the two-factor authentication (2FA) security protocol. This security feature enables a website to set up another authentication step, especially on more sensitive sections, such as the payment section.

So, besides putting in their password, an individual will also be required to answer a security question. This way, hackers attempting to access an individual’s account will be unable to because of the extra authentication step, which is the security question.

Understanding Their Network Traffic Patterns

Online casino platforms need to know their network traffic patterns. That way, they will be able to quickly identify any unusual network traffic patterns, which is a sign of a DDoS attack.

Some online casino websites have taken it further by having network monitoring software. This software helps keep track of their network’s baseline traffic and quickly notify these sites if there’s unusual network traffic.

Creating a Denial-of-Service Safety Plan

While it is recommended for online casino sites to implement measures to prevent DDoS attacks, it’s also essential for them to have an elaborate plan on what to do if they have a DDoS attack.

Creating a denial-of-service safety plan will enable online casino platforms to sort everything out, preventing unnecessary damage. Usually, a denial-of-service safety plan varies from one online casino to another. But here’s a good example.

The first step is checking the systems. Online casinos should first make a checklist of every one of their systems prone to a DDoS attack. That way, if they happen to have a DDoS attack, they will be able to quickly check which systems have been affected and which ones have not.

The next step is having a well-trained response team that will immediately spring into action when there’s a DDoS attack. The online casino should also have a list of internal emergency contacts that it will inform in the event of a DDoS attack. Finally, the online casino should have a communication plan to notify customers of the DDoS attack. Doing so will help the gamblers know what’s happening, not get frustrated, and leave for another casino.

Increasing Their Bandwidth

A DDoS attack aims to overwhelm a website with too much false network traffic, preventing genuine users from using the site. An excellent way for online casino sites to avoid this is to increase their bandwidth. Doing so will enable their website to absorb more traffic, making DDoS attacks less severe. But, this has to be used with other DDoS prevention measures as the size of DDoS attacks is increasing.

Using Anti-DDoS Hardware and Software

Most online casino sites use anti-DDoS hardware and software that help them mitigate different types of DDoS attacks. All they have to do is find one that works for their platforms.

Conclusion

DDoS attacks are a major setback for online casinos. Once a casino is hit by one, they risk losing customers, which will significantly affect its profits. DDoS attacks also prevent gamblers from having the best gambling experiences, which is a significant disadvantage. Fortunately, online casino sites are now implementing measures to prevent and quickly deal with DDoS attacks.

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