This report proposes a generic set of threat profiles to be used when there is a need to categorize threats against a cyber system. The six levels of threat are based upon characteristics that have been identified over the last seven years of work in cyber assessments. These categories are not associated with common names such as "nation-state", "hacker" or others due to the overloaded nature of the names. Instead, each category is identified by the specific levels it achieves with respect to each characteristic.
Distributed denial of service (DoS) attacks on cyber-resources are complex problems that are difficult to completely define, characterize, and mitigate. We recognize the process-nature of DoS attacks and view them from multiple perspectives. Identification of opportunities for mitigation and further research may result from this attempt to characterize the DoS problem space. We examine DoS attacks from the point of view of 1) a high-level that establishes common terminology and a framework for discussing the DoS process, 2) layers of the communication stack, from attack origination to the victim of the attack, 3) specific network and computer elements, and 4) attack manifestations. We also examine DoS issues associated with wireless communications. Using this collection of views, one begins to see the DoS problem in a holistic way that may lead to improved understanding, new mitigation strategies, and fruitful research.
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