A DDoS attack, or Distributed Denial of Service attack, is a type of attack on a computer system or network in which the attacker attempts to make the system or network unavailable to its legitimate users by flooding it with data packets or requests. The attacker does this by sending a large number of requests from multiple sources, often from different computers, at the same time. This flood of requests overwhelms the target system and can cause it to crash or become unavailable.

DDoS attacks are usually launched with the intention of disrupting or disabling a website or other online services. The attacker may also be seeking to gain access to restricted resources, such as confidential information or databases. The attacker can also use the attack to send spam or launch other malicious activities.

DDoS attacks can be difficult to detect and defend against because the source of the attack is not easily identified. In addition, the attacker is typically using multiple computers or networks to send the attack, making it hard to trace back to the source. As a result, organizations must have effective monitoring and response procedures in place to detect and respond to DDoS attacks.