Cross-layer detection and defence mechanism against DDoS and DRDoS attacks in software-defined networks using P4 switches

Abstract

This paper presents a comprehensive system for detecting and defending against distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) and distributed reflective denial-of-service (DRDoS) flood attacks in software-defined networking (SDN) environments using Programming Protocol-Independent Packet Processors (P4). The proposed system introduces a hybrid intrusion statistical threshold algorithm (HISTA) that analyzes intrusion data statistics to identify potential malicious attacks. Upon detection, the system utilises P4 programmability to implement a custom defence mechanism on the P4 switch. A novel Uruk protocol header collaborates with HISTA for enhanced cross-layer attack detection and categorisation. The HISTA-Uruk mechanism selectively discards malicious packets while ensuring uninterrupted communication for legitimate packets, effectively preventing DDoS/DRDoS attacks. Extensive experiments validate the system’s ability to efficiently detect and thwart various DDoS, DRDoS, and internal attacks, demonstrating its effectiveness in identifying threats and restoring impacted network connections across diverse attack scenarios.