Blog Security Anatomy of a SYN-ACK Attack Chad Seaman is a Principal Security Researcher and Team Lead of Akamai’s Security Intelligence Response Team. He proudly refers to himself as an “Internet Dumpster Diver,” and enjoys looking through the muck and mire he finds there. Chad began his career as a programmer, and after being exposed to security, exploitation, and forensics via breach investigations, security quickly became his preferred work. He now spends his time engulfed in malware investigations, reverse engineering, vulnerability research, DDoS, and cybercrime investigations. He likes flying airplanes, poking holes in paper at a distance, and spending time in nature, preferably in the woods, on a trail, or on a dirt bike. The observed attacks sparked conversations both publicly and privately among several organizations, including Akamai. Originally published July 2, 2019; updated April 2025 Contents \r\n \r\n What is TCP/IP, and why does it matter?…