Packet Interception for Network Overload Mitigation
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Solution Overview
Problem
The growing user base and content provider base on the Internet are causing increasing congestion and strain on network infrastructure, leading to issues like 'World Wide Wait' and vulnerability to malicious activities such as Denial of Service (DOS) attacks, which overwhelm servers and disrupt network services.
Innovation Solution
A method and system for transparently interfacing with networks to intercept and analyze packets, determining their origin and destination, and taking actions to prevent overload and mitigate DOS attacks by accounting for each intercepted packet and managing network traffic effectively.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If network infrastructure capacity is increased to handle growing user base and content, then network throughput and service availability are improved, but network complexity and vulnerability to attacks increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments network traffic into distinct categories (legitimate vs. malicious) by implementing packet interception and analysis at strategic network points. This segmentation allows the system to process and manage different traffic types separately, reducing overall network complexity while maintaining high throughput for legitimate traffic.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces intermediary components (packet interceptors, analysis systems, and mitigation devices) that act as mediators between network traffic sources and destinations. These intermediaries analyze packets and make routing decisions, simplifying the overall network architecture by centralizing security functions rather than distributing complexity across all network elements.
2Reliability
If packet inspection and analysis are performed to detect DOS attacks, then security and reliability are improved, but processing time and system resource consumption increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary packet inspection and analysis at the point of interception, before malicious traffic can overwhelm the network. By analyzing packets upfront and identifying DOS attack patterns early, the system prevents processing delays that would occur if inspection were performed later when the system is under attack.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates copies of intercepted packets for analysis while allowing original packets to continue flowing through the network. This copying approach enables thorough security inspection without blocking or delaying legitimate traffic, as the analysis operates on replicated data rather than the original packet stream.
3Reliability
If transparent packet interception is implemented to mitigate DOS attacks, then service availability is improved, but network performance overhead increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements partial packet interception by selectively analyzing only suspicious or potentially malicious packets rather than inspecting every packet in the network. This partial action approach maintains service availability by minimizing overhead on legitimate traffic while still providing adequate protection against DOS attacks through targeted analysis.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the operational parameters of packet processing by adjusting inspection depth, analysis thresholds, and mitigation triggers based on network conditions and detected attack patterns. These parameter changes allow the system to optimize performance by reducing overhead during normal operation while intensifying scrutiny when DOS attacks are detected.
Data Source
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AI summary
Overload of a source included in a network (100) is prevented. Each packet of a plurality of packets is transmitted, via the network (100), between at least one source and at least one intended destination. The network (100) is interfaced between each of the at least one source and each of the at least one intended destination. Each packet of at least a subset of packets of the plurality of packets is intercepted at the interfacing. For each intercepted packet, it is determined whether the intercepted packet is transmitted from one source to one intended destination or is transmitted from one intended destination to one source. For each of the at least one intended destination, each intercepted packet transmitted thereto or received therefrom is accounted based on the determining. An action is taken based on the accounting.