DDoS stands for distributed denial-of-service. This is when someone attempts to make a computer or console respond slower or not at all. This is done by constantly sending traffic to the machine, so it becomes overwhelmed and cannot respond to legitimate traffic. This is a common tactic used in the gaming industry to cause annoyance or gain an advantage. Popular streamers with hundreds of thousands or millions of followers are most at risk.
Even if it’s not a serious problem for casual gamers, it can cause issues if you get offended, find someone who is willing to cheat, or someone who wants to be annoying someone else. Here are some ways to stop DDOS if you feel like you’re slipping away from control, seeming out of nowhere, or have been threatened by someone.
Pre DDOS Protection
VPN
VPN stands for virtual privacy network. It acts as a middleman between your device, and all other devices on internet. All traffic and requests from your device will be routed through the VPN server. It hides your IP address so that if someone attempts to DDOS you they only hit the VPN server and not your computer. VPNs are designed so that if one VPN server has a poor performance, they will switch you to another server and you can continue without being noticed.
Request a Proxy Server
Proxy servers act as a mediator between you and another computer. This is crucial for DDOS protection because a proxy server hides you IP Address. Proxy servers handle all communications and make it appear that it originated the request. It protects your IP address from DDoS attacks and prevents others from tracing your IP address. It also serves other purposes, such as gaming.
1) Speed up your connection: Some servers offer speeds as high as 1GBps.
2) You can log into any location. Proxy servers manage all your communications and hide your location. This allows you to appear from any country that you wish. This allows you to play with friends from different regions or participate in regional competitions.
3) Access blocked sites: A proxy server lets you access blocked websites without being blocked by your ISP.
You will need to find a proxy service provider in order to obtain a proxy. Here are some options to look at. This tutorial is great for PS4, Windows PC, and Mac OS X.
Post-DDOS Fix
Modify your IP address
An IP address is a numeric number that uniquely identifies a device. Think of it as a name that other computers use for their computer. Your computer uses the name you have entered to access a website such as domain.com to find the IP address. The server with that IP address then connects with your computer. Computers do not understand names such as domain.com. They only understand IP addresses. An example IP address would be 172.16.254.1.
There are still ways to protect yourself if you have already been affected by DDoS attacks due to someone finding your IP address. You can change your IP address. You can contact your Internet Service Provider to request that it be reset. Some providers may do this, while others might not. If they refuse to do this, you could try turning off your devices and router for a while to see if it causes a new IP to be assigned to you. This can be done right before you go bed and re-enabled in the morning. If your current provider is not willing to assist you, you can switch ISPs.
Final Thoughts
DDoS attacks are used to harass gamers or gain an advantage in the game. This works by sending traffic towards a specific machine to cause significant lag, or prevent you from using the machine at all. You can prevent this by using VPNs and Proxy Servers which hide your IP address when gaming. You can set up a Proxy Server or VPN to stop the problem from returning if you are already having it. If you are able to identify the person, you should report them. This will stop them from doing the same thing to others and ruining your online experience.
