Search free DDoS protection and you will find CDN-bundled basics, open-source scripts, cloud hidden allowances, and professional scrubbing services. What differs, and when should you pay?
Four options compared
| Option | Scrubbing capacity | Architecture | Pricing | Blackhole risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free CDN basic | Low (capped) | Single-layer, rule-based | Free / overage fees | Medium to High |
| DIY scripts / iptables | Your egress | No pro scrubbing | Time cost | High |
| Cloud basic | Medium | Single-layer | Billed during attack | Medium (blackhole on overage) |
| Professional (e.g. AwayDDoS) | Tbps-scale | Two-layer | Fixed fee | Low (no-blackhole promise) |
Who is free OK for?
- Small, low-risk personal sites with occasional crawler annoyance.
- Businesses that can accept being throttled or blackholed once over the cap.
Reality: most free tiers, once the attack exceeds the gift quota, either throttle, bill, or blackhole — and attacks tend to hit exactly when you cannot afford to go down.
Why DIY is not enough
- Your egress bandwidth is the ceiling; reflection amplification easily buries it.
- Single-host iptables / scripts struggle to spot CC and Botnet disguised as normal.
- When it breaks, you are on call — no 7x24 expert backup.
Value of professional protection
Professional DDoS protection bundles capacity, architecture depth, and expert response:
- Two-layer scrubbing: near-source dilution plus deep application-layer filtering; both massive floods and precise attacks stay out of the origin.
- Fixed pricing: no surge fees during attacks; cost is predictable.
- No blackhole promise: business stays online; never passively isolated.
- Multi-protocol: UDP and non-standard ports supported — gaming, APIs, and owned racks included.
How to choose
- Personal / low-risk: start with free CDN basics plus rate limiting.
- Revenue depends on being online, been attacked before, or in gaming / finance / e-commerce: go straight to professional scrubbing; trade unpredictable downtime cost for a fixed fee.
For onboarding, see What to Do When Your Site Is Under a DDoS Attack; for industry plans, see Industry DDoS Protection Solutions, or contact us.