Posted on October 14, 2024 at 9:58 PM

The Return of the Internet Archive After a Cyberattack: The Challenge of Cybersecurity

“The Internet Archive, renowned for its vast digital library and its web preservation tool, the Wayback Machine, recently fell victim to a major cyberattack that disrupted its services. On October 9, a combined attack involving a data breach and a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack took the site offline. This incident also led to the theft of sensitive data, compromising a user database containing 31 million unique records. This event raises important questions about the security of online platforms and highlights the need for enhanced protection, such as that offered by KoDDoS, an expert in DDoS protection and other cyber threats.””The Internet Archive, renowned for its vast digital library and its web preservation tool, the Wayback Machine, recently fell victim to a major cyberattack that disrupted its services. On October 9, a combined attack involving a data breach and a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack took the site offline. This incident also led to the theft of sensitive data, compromising a user database containing 31 million unique records. This event raises important questions about the security of online platforms and highlights the need for enhanced protection, such as that offered by KoDDoS, an expert in DDoS protection and other cyber threats.”

The Return of the Internet Archive in Read-Only Mode

After several days of downtime, the Internet Archive is now accessible again, albeit in “read-only” mode. This means that users can now browse through the 916 billion web pages archived via the Wayback Machine, but they are currently unable to add new pages to the archive.

This partial service restoration follows intensive efforts by the technical teams to restore functionalities while strengthening security. According to Brewster Kahle, founder of the Internet Archive, this return is provisional and could require further interruptions to finalize maintenance. Among the restored services, the email accounts of employees and data crawlers essential for archiving by national libraries have also been reactivated.

Key Takeaway: The gradual restoration of services after an attack demonstrates the resilience of the Internet Archive team. However, it also underscores the need for robust protection solutions, such as those offered by KoDDoS, which specializes in defense against DDoS attacks and security breaches. KoDDoS provides secure hosting services capable of withstanding such attacks, ensuring the continuity of online services.

A Massive Security Breach

In addition to the DDoS attack, a security breach allowed attackers to steal a user database containing 31 million records. These records included email addresses, usernames, encrypted passwords, and other internal sensitive information.

The existence of this breach was first confirmed by an online message from a hacker claiming that a “catastrophic security flaw” had been exploited. The website Have I Been Pwned, which tracks data breaches, later validated this claim by confirming that information had indeed been stolen.

Challenges for Online Platforms: Security breaches like this one highlight the increasing vulnerability of online data. In this context, companies must implement stringent protection measures. KoDDoS excels in this area with tailored security solutions, including protection against attacks targeting databases, the theft of sensitive data, and intrusions. With high-performance firewalls and continuous monitoring, KoDDoS can swiftly prevent and contain such incidents.

The Impact on Online Archiving and the Crucial Role of the Wayback Machine

This attack comes at a critical time for the Internet Archive, which had just integrated new links to archived websites into Google search results through the Wayback Machine. Earlier this year, Google decided to remove its own cached page links, but compensated by linking certain searches to the Wayback Machine. This integration was a significant advantage for users looking to retrieve earlier versions of websites, especially when they were no longer accessible online.

Importance of the Service: The temporary inability of the Internet Archive to add new pages to its archives is a major obstacle to preserving online content. This emphasizes the need for such services to have resilient infrastructures against attacks. KoDDoS offers secure hosting services that enable critical platforms, such as digital archives, to maintain their operations even in the face of cyber threats.

How KoDDoS Prevents and Mitigates DDoS Attacks

Distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks are among the most common and destructive cyber threats faced by online platforms. A DDoS attack overwhelms a website with requests, causing it to overload and go offline. In the case of the Internet Archive, the DDoS attack contributed to the temporary interruption of access to its services.

KoDDoS Solutions:

Advanced DDoS Protection: KoDDoS offers multi-layered protection that filters malicious traffic, allowing legitimate requests to pass through while blocking attack attempts. This ensures that services remain online, even in the face of massive attacks.
Real-Time Monitoring: With continuous, real-time monitoring, KoDDoS teams can detect early signs of an attack, allowing them to act quickly to minimize service interruptions.
High-Performance Infrastructure: KoDDoS servers are specifically designed to absorb the excessive traffic caused by DDoS attacks, ensuring maximum uptime for end-users.
Tailored Solutions: KoDDoS provides solutions tailored to the specific needs of its clients, whether it’s a small business or a large organization like the Internet Archive. These solutions are designed to ensure that online platforms remain available and secure, even in the face of sophisticated threats.