Internet traffic , the way we connect to the network and the services we use have changed a lot in recent years. We have been able to see it progressively with technological advances to achieve greater speed, the change in the use of devices to connect or the applications we use. Now, in recent months there has been a more significant change in the consumer trend, in the tools we use and the way in which we connect.
Changes on the Internet in recent months
The Covid-19 pandemic has brought important changes to our day to day. We can see notable differences, as we all know. This also applies to technology, of course. We make use of other devices, we connect more from home and we even use more tools that previously went unnoticed. All this to adapt to the current times that we are living.
One of the most important changes has taken place in the weeks in which countries or territories have had some kind of block or restrictions, such as home confinement. This has made Internet traffic change radically. Mobile data use plummeted, while home Internet consumption rose sharply.
This we mentioned put the infrastructures to the test. A litmus test for the operators that in a very short time saw how all Internet traffic moved and changed the way in which users surf the net.
Manish Gulyani, CEO and Director of Nokia Deepfield, has indicated that never before has there been such a sudden and intense demand on the networks. In addition, the latest data they collect shows how in September 2020 the demand was still higher than normal.
Increased use of VPN and communications applications
Another issue to take into account is the change that has occurred in the use of services and platforms on the Internet. An example is communications applications. Social distancing, having to avoid crowds and face-to-face meetings, has made many users use services for videoconferencing, such as Zoom, Skype, etc.
There has also been a significant increase in the use of VPN services . Many users have now started working remotely from home. This implies important changes also when using technology. To access corporate networks, for example, having a VPN is very useful. Also to protect our security by encrypting the connection.
Cyber attacks have also adapted
Security attacks have certainly adapted to the current changes to a great extent. Some threats have intensified and may be more present in certain circumstances.
An example of what we mentioned is DDoS attacks . They have increased between 40 and 50% in recent months. A more than significant figure that shows us a little more how the panorama on the Internet has changed.
Ransomware attacks have also intensified, especially targeting users now working remotely. Many of them do not have the necessary knowledge to recognize these types of threats and that is where they find a possibility of attack.
In short, Internet traffic, the tools we use and also the attacks have changed notably in recent months due to the changes derived from the Covid-19 pandemic. In another article we talked about how to avoid RAT attacks.
