DDoS is making headlines recently with attacks on NZX, Stuff, RNZ, and most recently Metservice websites.

Organisations should be aware of it and understand the consequences of such an attack on your organisation. Understand your risk levels to then develop a plan in case of an attack. Here are a couple of easy to understand articles explaining DDoS.

What can I do to prevent a DDoS attack on my organisation?

1. Discuss with your software vendor who manages and hosts your website or any other online system such as membership/competition software. Ensure these vendors have mechanisms in place to help protect against such an attack.
   
   
2. If your organisation does have online systems and is hosted onsite, then ensuring you have a robust firewall with content filtering, antivirus to all devices and virtual private networks (VPN) access. Discuss with your IT provider to ensure this is the case.

The current news around DDoS is a friendly reminder that users need to remain vigilant when using computers. Some important reminders of some task’s users can do to protect their computers from becoming compromised.

• Keep your computer safe through secure passwords.
• Having antivirus software installed and updated regularly.
• Having regular backups of data.
• Having your operating system regularly updated.
• Do not open suspicious emails or links online.

A good reminder to leverage cloud services where possible

One of the biggest benefits you will get with utilising cloud services is the level of security that comes with it. Many well-established cloud services such as Microsoft and Amazon Web Services invest significant amount of resources into security, resources that many in the sport sector may not have access to if they were to host onsite themselves.