1 Tbps threshold breached as DNS floods fuel record DDoS attacks (Cloudflare H1 2026)

Cloudflare's biannual DDoS threat report reveals unprecedented terrain in cybersecurity: the first half of 2026 saw terabit-scale attacks become routine, with malicious DNS queries weaponized in 41% of network-layer assaults—a 17-point increase from 2025. The data shows state-aligned groups increasingly exploiting protocol vulnerabilities during international crises, with Ukraine and Taiwan-facing infrastructure suffering 53% more attacks than the global average. Cloudflare's automated mitigation systems successfully absorbed a 1.4 Tbps HTTPS campaign, the largest application-layer attack ever observed by the company.