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What Cyber Security and Game of Thrones Have in Common

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We live in a hyper-connected world: enterprises are required to be online, available and responsive at all times. As global cyber threats become more and more sophisticated, network protection is a top priority for 2019 and half the battle is understanding the architecture of cyber security.

Picture the Wall, in the Game of Thrones

It was built to defend the continent of Westeros and its people from the Night King and his army of White Walkers, who would pose a major threat to any living being if they breached the Wall. The impressive construction of ice and stone stands hundreds of feet tall and transverses for miles along the northern border of the Seven Kingdoms. Because White Walkers are thought to possess magical powers and superhuman strength, numerous layers of protection were created to strengthen the ice and stone. Interwoven magical spells, posts created specifically for archers to remain hidden as they fire down upon their enemies, catapults, and pulleys strong enough to launch giant stones: endless layers, all manned by the men of the Night’s Watch, to ensure perpetual protection.

Now imagine your network is the continent of Westeros, your customer data are the vulnerable citizens and DDoS attacks are the deadly White Walkers breaking through the Wall. While increased “fake” web traffic doesn’t seem quite as intimidating as an attack of the superhuman beings that rise from the dead, we assure you, the implications are worse. Your network becomes unreachable, your customers’ data is at risk and the disruption can cost upwards of $250,000 per hour–not to mention the damage to your brand’s reputation.

Enter Zayo’s DDoS Protection

Zayo’s DDoS Protection solution, minus the magic and catapults, is the Wall, positioned at the network edge, protecting your business against attacks before they reach your borders. Best cyber security practices include a layered solution where DDoS Protection is a critical element. Each layer from the server outward to the customer serves to control access and maintain reliability and performance. Each layer inward, to the data sources themselves, augments those protections and ultimately enforces the security of an organization.

How does DDoS Protection enhance cyber security?

Zayo’s DDoS Protection is comprehensive and precise in its defense, able to profile customer traffic, surgically mitigate attacks and deliver clean traffic with efficiency and ease. The solution includes:

Constant traffic analysis to identify trends and anomalies including:

  • Network flow data
  • SNMP metrics
  • BGP tables

Traffic monitoring from individual IP addresses on the internet to individual IP addresses in the customer’s network, including overall TCP traffic, UDP traffic, and other specific types of traffic that are commonly abused during DDoS attacks.

Strategically leveraging scrubbers positioned at high volume peering locations to provide comprehensive coverage across the US, Canada and Europe.

As is true in battle, preparation is key to thwarting surprise attacks and security protocols should be part of every business’ toolkit. The prevalence of attacks continues to grow, currently sitting at upwards of 2,000 attacks daily.

At Zayo, we are committed to providing high-capacity, high-performance bandwidth, fueled by our trusted fiber backbone, for our customers. This includes having the best security available. Zayo has built a comprehensive DDoS Protection solution that protects businesses and their bandwidth at the network edge. So, unless you’re the Night King and can resurrect the dead you’re not getting through our wall.

Read more about Zayo’s DDoS protection solutions.

DDoS attacks. Just a matter of time.

Stop DDoS attacks before they stop your business.