DDoS attacks in Mena up 163%, attacks on retail at a historical all-time-high

Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) were up 163 per cent year over year in Q3 2025, mostly driven by profit-seeking attackers, a report showed. That’s a change from the previous quarter, when most of the activity came from hacktivists or politically motivated groups.

StormWall, a cybersecurity company specializing in DDoS protection, analysed attack patterns across the throughout the third quarter of 2025 and shared their findings in a new report. Here are the most important trends.

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For-profit hackers and extortionists now make up 68 per cent of malicious traffic, while hacktivists account for just 32 per cent. In Q2, the split was reversed, with politically motivated groups responsible for 73 per cent of attack traffic in the region.

This directly affected which industries were hit hardest by DDoS attacks. Retail became the most targeted sector (22 per cent attack share, 164 per cent year-over-year increase), up from just 7 per cent in Q2 — a 214 per cent quarter-over-quarter jump. A clear warning for retail businesses in Mena, as the risk of DDoS attacks is currently at an all-time high. Finance was the second most affected industry (19 per cent share, 138 per cent year-over-year growth), followed by telecommunications (17 per cent share, 126 per cent year-over-year growth). Another notable trend was the surge in attacks against gaming companies. This vertical saw its share increase from 5 per cent to 14 per cent, nearly tripling over the quarter.

StormWall analysts advise paying close attention to botnet-based attacks. Data shows a 182 per cent year-over-year increase in botnet-driven activity. At the same time, the average botnet now consists of roughly 215,000 compromised devices, up from 140,000 in Q2. Larger botnets can launch more powerful attacks, making websites and services more vulnerable to prolonged downtime.

In terms of the most attacked countries in Mena, Saudi Arabia was the most targeted, receiving 22 per cent of all attacks, which is unchanged from Q2. Qatar was the second most attacked country, with its share increasing from 9 per cent to 17 per cent — an 89 per cent quarter-on-quarter growth rate. The United Arab Emirates was the third most attacked country, accounting for 14 per cent of DDoS traffic in Mena.

“When profit-driven hackers generate the majority of malicious traffic, attack volume usually spikes the most in those sectors where downtime causes the greatest revenue losses,” said Ramil Khantimirov, CEO and founder of StormWall. “That’s why gaming and retail were targeted so heavily in Q3: when websites go down or lag, users leave the platform and often switch to a competitor that wasn’t attacked — or was better protected.”

With profit-driven attackers targeting industries where downtime hits revenue hardest, businesses in retail, gaming, finance, and telecommunications in Mena should strengthen their DDoS protection strategies, StormWall analysts warn.

Somshankar Bandyopadhyay

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somshankar@khaleejtimes.com

Somshankar Bandyopadhyay is a News Editor with close to three decades of experience. Currently, he manages the business section, ensuring that the top economic and business news of the day reaches its readers.