Table of contents

What is DDoS-protected web hosting?How it worksTypes of DDoS attacksBenefitsWho needs DDoS-protected hosting?How to chooseWHM, VPS, and dedicated server optionsDDoS protection vs other types of website securityHosting optionsAdditional resources

Get the industry’s best web hosting◦ Fastest speeds
◦ Fully managed options
◦ 24/7 expert support

What is Web Hosting → DDoS Protected

DDoS-protected web hosting: Definitions, benefits, and more

DDoS attacks are one of the fastest ways to knock a website offline—and they don’t even require hackers to breach your server. If you’ve ever dealt with mysterious traffic spikes, extended downtime, or sudden performance issues, your site might have already been a target.

That’s where DDoS-protected hosting comes in. Let’s look at what it is, how it works, and whether it makes sense for your site.

Ready to get started?

Get started with premium web hosting services for every platform and purpose—from WordPress to Magento, reseller to enterprise domains.

Explore Web Hosting

What is DDoS-protected web hosting?

DDoS-protected hosting is a type of hosting service that includes built-in defense mechanisms against distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks. These attacks flood a server with fake traffic—often from thousands of hijacked devices—to overload your resources and crash your site.

Hosting providers that offer DDoS protection typically monitor traffic in real time, filtering out illegitimate requests before they reach your server. The goal is to keep your site online and responsive, even under attack.

How DDoS protection works at the hosting level

Good DDoS protection starts before traffic even hits your application. Hosting providers use network-level and server-level tools to detect, reroute, or block malicious traffic in real time.

Common methods include:

Traffic filtering and rate limiting – Automatically drops requests that exceed expected thresholds or match known attack patterns.
Geo-blocking and IP reputation lists – Restricts traffic from locations or IPs associated with botnets or frequent attacks.
Anycast routing – Distributes traffic across a global network to absorb large-scale attacks.
Web application firewalls (WAFs) – Inspects and filters HTTP/S traffic, blocking suspicious behavior before it reaches your website.

Types of DDoS attacks this hosting defends against

A well-protected host can mitigate all three major types of DDoS attacks:

Volumetric attacks – Attempt to saturate the server’s bandwidth with sheer volume of traffic (e.g. UDP floods). Hosting providers counter this with traffic scrubbing centers or cloud-based mitigation networks that absorb and filter out the excess traffic before it reaches your server.
Protocol attacks – Exploit weaknesses in network protocols, like SYN floods or fragmented packets, to exhaust resources. These are blocked using smart firewalls and rate-limiting systems that track incomplete or malformed connection attempts and drop them at the edge of the network.
Application layer (Layer 7) attacks – Mimic real users to overload specific website features like search boxes, login forms, or checkout pages. WAFs (web application firewalls) and behavioral analytics tools are used to identify suspicious patterns—like repeated form submissions—and block them without affecting real users.

Benefits of using DDoS-protected web hosting

Whether you’re running a business or building a personal brand, keeping your site online is critical. DDoS protection gives you:

Improved uptime – Blocks or absorbs malicious traffic before it can crash your site. By filtering attacks at the network edge, your hosting provider ensures that only clean, legitimate traffic reaches your server, minimizing downtime during threats.
Better performance during spikes – Legitimate users can access your site even when it’s under attack. Advanced load balancing and traffic shaping allow the server to prioritize real users over suspicious connections, keeping pages fast and responsive.
SEO and reputation preservation – Prevents outages that can impact search rankings and customer trust. Since search engines penalize slow or inaccessible sites, staying online during an attack helps protect your visibility and credibility.
Hands-off security – Most protections run automatically and are managed by your host’s infrastructure team. This means you don’t need to manually configure firewalls or mitigation scripts—your hosting provider handles detection, filtering, and mitigation in real time.

Who needs DDoS-protected hosting?

Not every website is a high-profile target, but DDoS attacks aren’t always personal. Many are automated, sweeping up hundreds of small sites at once.

You should consider DDoS protection if you:

Run a popular ecommerce or SaaS website
Operate in a controversial or competitive industry
Accept online payments or handle sensitive data
Host political, media, or financial content
Have experienced unexplained traffic surges in the past

Even small WordPress blogs have been taken offline by low-cost DDoS-for-hire services.

How to choose a DDoS-protected hosting provider

When comparing hosting plans, don’t just look for “DDoS protection” in the feature list—dig deeper. The quality and scope of protection can vary widely.

Look for:

Mitigation capacity (in Gbps or Tbps) – Look for a provider that advertises high-capacity mitigation (at least 10–100 Gbps for most businesses) to withstand large-scale volumetric attacks. The more bandwidth their network can absorb, the more resilient your site will be under pressure.
Automatic detection and response – Choose a host that offers real-time attack detection and mitigation, without requiring you to manually intervene. This ensures that even sudden attacks are handled quickly, minimizing downtime or disruption.
Global traffic distribution (Anycast or CDN-based) – Look for providers that route traffic through multiple data centers or edge nodes around the world. This spreads out the impact of attacks and helps mitigate them closer to the source.
Integrated WAF (Web Application Firewall) – Pick a hosting service that includes or supports a WAF for application-layer protection. This defends against sophisticated Layer 7 attacks that target forms, logins, or other dynamic content.
24/7 support and response team – Make sure the host offers around-the-clock security monitoring and access to support staff who understand DDoS threats. Fast human response can be critical if an attack evolves or targets a specific vulnerability.
Clear SLAs and uptime guarantees – Look for a provider that backs their DDoS protection with guaranteed uptime (e.g., 99.9% or higher) and a documented service-level agreement. This shows they’re confident in their defenses—and that they’re accountable if something fails.

WHM, VPS, and dedicated server options with DDoS protection

Shared hosting may offer basic DDoS protection, but more advanced options give you better control and isolation:

VPS hosting – Offers root access and isolation with moderate protection. You can configure your own firewall rules and rate limiting tools.
Dedicated servers – Ideal for high-traffic sites or custom applications. Combine with advanced WAFs and on-demand mitigation services.
WHM/cPanel integration – Lets you manage firewalls (like CSF or mod_security) across multiple domains from a central interface.

DDoS protection vs other types of website security

DDoS mitigation is important, but it doesn’t protect you from every kind of threat. Here’s how it compares to other website security tools:

Security Feature	Protects Against	Included in DDoS Hosting?
DDoS mitigation	Traffic floods, protocol attacks	Yes
Web application firewall	SQL injection, XSS, HTTP floods	Often, but not always
Malware scanning	Infected plugins, backdoors	Sometimes
SSL certificates	Data interception, spoofing	Often
Regular backups	Ransomware, accidental deletion	Usually optional or add-on

Next steps for DDoS-protected web hosting

If your website needs to stay online no matter what, DDoS protection is one of the best ways to safeguard your uptime. Whether you’re running an online store or a mission-critical app, it’s worth investing in hosting that can take a hit and keep running.

The next step is to choose a hosting solution that fits your needs, and that’s where Liquid Web comes in. We offer the industry’s fastest and most secure VPS and dedicated servers—for Windows or Linux, unmanaged or fully managed.

Click below to explore options or start a chat with one of our hosting experts now.