---
header: Fastly Network Protect
last_updated: '2026-10-08'
url: https://docs.fastly.com/products/fastly-network-protect
---

[Fastly Network Protect](https://www.fastly.com/documentation/guides/security/network-protect/about-network-protect/) provides real-time visibility into and defense against common network-based Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks. It can block or allow traffic to your network, reducing the impact of DDoS attacks.

## Prerequisites

To activate Fastly Network Protect, [contact support](https://support.fastly.com). You must purchase [setup onboarding services](https://docs.fastly.com/products/professional-services) and [Enterprise Support](https://docs.fastly.com/products/network-services-support-description-and-sla) to deploy this offering. Additionally, you must fulfill the following requirements:

- **Letter of Authorization (LOA):** Submit a signed LOA using the Fastly-provided form via a support ticket to authorize prefix announcements. Include the IP blocks to announce, registry and object identifier, and the administrative, technical, and abuse contacts.
- **Prefix requirements:** Provide at least one /24 IPv4 or /48 IPv6 prefix. These prefixes must not originate from any autonomous system number (ASN) at the time of announcement and must remain dormant for approximately three months prior to use.
- **GRE tunnels:** Configure Generic Route Encapsulation (GRE) tunnels between your infrastructure and Fastly to enable packet forwarding.
- **Firewall configuration:** Provide an initial set of network firewall rules.

## How it works

Once enabled, the Fastly Network Protect product is always running, supporting all of your internet protocol (IP) traffic, agnostic of application level protocols. Each packet in your network traffic will be evaluated using the network firewall rules you have configured. Packets that meet blocking criteria will be dropped. The rest of the filtered traffic will be forwarded to your pre-configured tunnel endpoint using the GRE protocol. Fastly will monitor the health of GRE tunnels using ICMP pings and will make the appropriate forwarding decisions.

Fastly announces the prefixes identified in your LOA along with existing Fastly prefixes and will originate from a Fastly Autonomous System (AS) number.

## Limitations and considerations

Fastly Network Protect provides protection by enforcing network firewall rules set up in advance and does not perform traffic baselining or automatic detection and mitigation without configuration.

No security product, including those security services offered by Fastly, will detect or prevent all possible attacks or threats. As a subscriber, you should maintain appropriate security controls on all web applications and origins. The use of Fastly's security products does not relieve you of this obligation. As a subscriber, you should test and validate the effectiveness of Fastly's security services to the extent possible prior to deploying these services in production, continuously monitor their performance, and adjust these services as appropriate to address changes in your web applications, origin services, and configurations of the other aspects of your Fastly services.

## Billing

> **NOTE:** Billing limits for this product may be different depending on your [account type](https://www.fastly.com/documentation/guides/account-info/billing/account-types/), if you've purchased a [packaged offering](https://www.fastly.com/package-entitlements/), or are using a [product or feature trial](https://www.fastly.com/documentation/guides/account-info/billing/about-the-products-page).

Fastly Network Protect automatically manages attack traffic based on your configurations. You are not billed for blocked traffic. Fastly charges for Network Protect based on the number of IP prefixes announced, the number of GRE tunnels enabled, and the average traffic volume that is forwarded to your origin each month based on location.

> **NOTE:** Some Fastly products can be purchased directly in the web interface on the [Products page](https://www.fastly.com/documentation/guides/account-info/billing/managing-product-purchases-and-trials/) by an account Superuser or User Admin. Be sure to review all limitations, considerations, and [pricing information](https://www.fastly.com/pricing) before purchase. Alternatively, contact your customer success manager or email [sales@fastly.com](mailto:sales@fastly.com) for product purchase or pricing information.