DIA DDoS PROTECT: Closing The Cybersecurity Gap for SMEs

Across Europe, businesses are increasingly confronted by a rising wave of cyberattacks that jeopardize not only their digital assets but also their operational continuity. In 2024, the Republic of Estonia’s Information System Authority (RIA)¹ reported a record high of over 40,000 security vulnerabilities globally, representing a 33% increase compared to 2023. Specifically focusing on Estonia, the country experienced 6,515 cyber incidents in 2024—double the figure recorded in the previous year. Nearly 92% of these incidents involved phishing, service disruptions, fraud, and malicious redirects. A notable trend was the exponential growth in the frequency and magnitude of DDoS attacks, elevating the overall cybersecurity threat landscape. For example, one of Estonia’s public sectors faced an attack generating nearly 2.8 billion malicious² requests across the websites of three institutions within four hours – an amount of traffic that, under normal conditions, would have taken approximately 26 years to accumulate!

For many small and mid-sized enterprises (SMEs), cyberattacks have become a major destabilizing threat, disrupting services, damaging reputations, and often serving as extortion tactics. Traditional defenses against distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks have typically been cost-prohibitive, overly complex, or required infrastructure changes beyond SMEs’ capacity. Consequently, numerous organizations remain highly vulnerable to these escalating threats.

CITIC Telecom CPC identified the vulnerability of SMEs to costly and complex DDoS attacks and developed DIA DDoS PROTECT to provide accessible, enterprise-grade defense. The service operates invisibly during normal operations and activates only when an attack occurs, avoiding additional hardware or network reconfiguration. It features a usage-based pricing model, charging clients only during mitigation with the first 15 minutes free monthly, making world-class protection affordable. DIA DDoS PROTECT combines high-speed Direct Internet Access with advanced DDoS defense and uses a globally distributed mitigation network, intercepting malicious traffic close to its source.

From a technical perspective, DIA DDoS PROTECT uses a globally distributed mitigation network with scrubbing centers in Asia, Europe, North America, and South America. This multi-location setup intercepts malicious traffic near its origin, reducing latency and improving response times. 

The solution defends against all major attack vectors—including volumetric floods, application-layer exploits, and state exhaustion attacks—covering network layers three through seven, ensuring comprehensive protection across critical vectors.

Since its introduction, DIA DDoS PROTECT has made a significant impact, especially in Estonia and Central and Eastern Europe, where rising cyber risks threaten SMEs. Organizations using the service have maintained business continuity during attacks, avoiding downtime and reputational damage. Customers appreciate the automatic activation of protection, which operates seamlessly without disrupting their services, providing valuable peace of mind.

What distinguishes DIA DDoS PROTECT is its unique blend of affordability, ease of use, and robust effectiveness. Unlike traditional solutions that require costly hardware or complex network configurations—barriers that often exclude SMEs—CITIC Telecom CPC has made enterprise-grade DDoS protection practical and accessible. Many customers view it as the first realistic option for SMEs to adopt comprehensive defense.

In an era when digital resilience is imperative, DIA DDoS PROTECT lowers adoption barriers, enabling organizations of all sizes to withstand cyberattacks, safeguard business continuity, and protect reputations. It fundamentally redefines how cybersecurity should be delivered for SMEs.

With over 25 years of extensive experience working with national and international service providers, Serve Bunnik is a well-recognized expert in the ICT industry. He brings deep expertise in product management, security, business applications, and pre-sales. In addition to helping enterprises overcome complex IT challenges, Serve has a broad range of interests spanning emerging technologies and corporate strategy.