Buyer's guide
DDoS protection, explained
DDoS protection keeps a website or network online during a distributed denial-of-service attack, when thousands of compromised devices flood it with traffic. Protection works by spreading traffic across a large network, recognising attack patterns, and dropping bad requests while real visitors get through.
- ISO 27001 compliant
- SOC 2 Type 2 compliant
- Preferred Cloudflare Partner
- 24/7 follow-the-sun support
How a DDoS attack works
Attackers control botnets of hacked computers, routers and cameras, or abuse open servers that reflect and amplify traffic. They point all of it at one target. The aim is to use up bandwidth, connections or server capacity so real users cannot get in.
How DDoS protection works
- Absorb: an anycast network spreads traffic across many data centres, so no single link fills up.
- Detect: traffic is compared with normal patterns to spot floods within seconds.
- Filter: attack packets and requests are dropped at the edge while legitimate traffic is passed through.
- Challenge: suspicious clients get a browser or bot challenge instead of a hard block.
The layers you need
- Network layer (3 and 4): protection against volumetric floods, usually from your hosting or edge provider.
- Application layer (7): WAF rules, rate limits and bot management tuned to your login, search and checkout pages.
- Origin shielding: hide your server's real IP address so attackers cannot bypass the protection.
Protection that someone runs for you
Vigilbase Shield combines Cloudflare's DDoS protection with a managed WAF and bot protection, configured and watched by Vigilbase's team. If an attack gets through the defaults, the team changes the rules while it is happening.
How Vigilbase helps
Vigilbase runs security operations and website protection for businesses that would rather not build a security team.
Vigilbase Shield
Managed Cloudflare WAF, DDoS and bot protection, configured and watched by our team.
Learn moreVigilbase OS
AI investigates every alert and brings you only verified threats, with the fix ready to approve.
Learn moreManaged SOC
A security team watching your environment around the clock, without hiring one.
Learn moreFrequently asked questions
How do I know if I am under a DDoS attack?
The site becomes slow or unreachable, and your analytics or hosting graphs show a sudden spike in requests or bandwidth from many sources at once.
Is DDoS protection the same as a firewall?
No. A firewall blocks unwanted connections, but a large flood can overwhelm it. DDoS protection works upstream on a network big enough to absorb the attack.
Can I stop a DDoS attack myself?
Small attacks, sometimes, with rate limits. Large ones need a provider with network capacity far larger than the attack.
More free tools and guides
Security handled, around the clock
Vigilbase is ISO 27001 and SOC 2 Type 2 compliant and a Preferred Cloudflare Partner, with follow-the-sun support from teams in Kenya, South Africa, the UAE and Portugal.