Method and system for protecting a computer network against packet floods

A rate limiting system comprising:

• hardware;
• and
• a filtering module to:
• receive data packets from a first network and directed to a first computing device in a second, different network;
• control a rate of the data packets permitted to enter the second network, based on at least one filtering rule;
• send filtered data packets after performing the controlling, over the second network to the first computing device;
• receive feedback data from the first computing device, wherein the received feedback data is based on the first computing device detecting breach of a threshold at the first computing device due to receipt of the filtered data packets at the first computing device;
• and
• modify the at least one filtering rule using the feedback data.

A method comprising:

• receiving, by a computing device, data packets over a network from a rate limiting system that intercepts data packets directed to the computing device and that controls, using at least one filtering rule, a rate of the intercepted data packets permitted to be communicated to the computing device;
• detecting, by the computing device, a breach of at least one threshold parameter for identifying a data flood condition due to the received data packets, the at least one threshold parameter being a function of resources of the computing device;
• generating, by the computing device, feedback data in response to occurrence of the breach;
• and
• sending, by the computing device, the feedback data to the rate limiting system to cause the rate limiting system to modify the at least one filtering rule.