Gcore thwarts massive 6 Tbps DDoS attack

In a remarkable display of resilience, Gcore has successfully mitigated what ranks among the largest DDoS attacks recorded so far. This noteworthy attempt, aimed at a hosting provider within the gaming industry, reached a peak bandwidth of 6 Tbps (terabits per second) and a packet rate of 5.3 Bpps (billion packets per second). Hosted across multi-regional zones, the onslaught highlights a burgeoning momentum of targeted DDoS campaigns across digital infrastructures.

The characteristics of this attack bore similarities to the notorious AISURU botnet, consistently linked to high-impact incidents on a global scale in recent months. The realisation of such capabilities underscores a deepening risk, as highlighted by Andrey Slastenov, Head of Security at Gcore. Without robust and adaptable protection mechanisms, various sectors face substantial risks.

Attack Highlights:

• Peak traffic: 6 Tbps
• Packet rate: 5.3 Bpps
• Main protocol: UDP, prevalent in volumetric floods
• Duration: 30-45 seconds
• Geographic concentration: Majority sourced from Brazil (51%) and the US (23.7%), collectively contributing 75% of traffic

This episode mirrors insights from the Gcore Radar report Q1-Q2 2025, which observes a 41% increase in DDoS attacks within a single quarter, with tech companies being notably affected.

The multi-regional origin and volumetric scale of the attack reflect a foreboding progression in botnet capacities. In regions noted for high device density and security vulnerabilities, AISURU's emphasis in Brazil and the US elucidates this challenging dynamic.

The attack typifies a growing trend—short-burst, high-intensity strikes not merely aimed at downtime but to test infrastructural robustness. "For hosting providers, uptime equates to currency," noted Slastenov. In such scenarios, robust countermeasures like adaptive mitigation and layer-specific traffic analysis are imperative.

Thanks to its globally distributed DDoS Protection solution, Gcore successfully absorbed the attack without service interruption. Leveraging over 210+ Points of Presence and a capacity surpassing 200 Tbps, Gcore’s defence mechanisms stand as a real-time bulwark against potential cyber threats, especially as attacks intertwine volumetric and application-layer exploits.