Methods of Attack
A "denial-of-service" attack is characterized by an explicit attempt by attackers to prevent legitimate users of a service from using that service. There are two general forms of DoS attacks: those that crash services and those that flood services.
A DoS attack can be perpetrated in a number of ways. The five basic types of attack are:
- Consumption of computational resources, such as bandwidth, disk space, or processor time.
- Disruption of configuration information, such as routing information.
- Disruption of state information, such as unsolicited resetting of TCP sessions.
- Disruption of physical network components.
- Obstructing the communication media between the intended users and the victim so that they can no longer communicate adequately.
A DoS attack may include execution of malware intended to:
- Max out the processor's usage, preventing any work from occurring.
- Trigger errors in the microcode of the machine.
- Trigger errors in the sequencing of instructions, so as to force the computer into an unstable state or lock-up.
- Exploit errors in the operating system, causing resource starvation and/or thrashing, i.e. to use up all available facilities so no real work can be accomplished or it can crash the system itself
- Crash the operating system itself.
Read more about this topic: Denial-of-service Attack
Famous quotes containing the words methods of, methods and/or attack:
“A woman might claim to retain some of the childs faculties, although very limited and defused, simply because she has not been encouraged to learn methods of thought and develop a disciplined mind. As long as education remains largely induction ignorance will retain these advantages over learning and it is time that women impudently put them to work.”
—Germaine Greer (b. 1939)
“The ancient bitter opposition to improved methods [of production] on the ancient theory that it more than temporarily deprives men of employment ... has no place in the gospel of American progress.”
—Herbert Hoover (18741964)
“Hence that general is skilful in attack whose opponent does not know what to defend; and he is skilful in defense whose opponent does not know what to attack.”
—Sun Tzu (6th5th century B.C.)