Security analyst Bruce Schneier reports on the recent increase in Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks against critical Internet infrastructure. He’s unable to go into details about exactly which companies and resources are involved, but the attacks are real. Someone is engaged in a series of DDoS probes that are clearly meant to test the Internet’s ability to cope with extreme stress.

Most DDoS attacks are perpetrated by angry hackers against web sites they don’t like, or simply to demonstrate their skills. Underground DDoS attack services are available for those not possessing the requisite skills. But the attacks Schneier is talking about stand out: they’re much more calculated and methodical than usual.

Assuming that Schneier is correct, and someone is gathering information about the Internet’s potential breaking point, one can only wonder what they have in mind. If the perpetrators are – as Schneier suggests – a state actor like China, the possibilities are the stuff of nightmares.