Cloudflare — status

Cloudflare is an American company that provides a comprehensive suite of internet infrastructure services, including a content delivery network (CDN), cybersecurity, and DNS services, all with the ambitious mission "to help build a better Internet" by making it faster, more secure, and more reliable for everyone. Founded in 2009 by Matthew Prince, Lee Holloway, and Michelle Zatlyn, the company's origin lies in a project to combat email spam, which quickly evolved into a powerful web security and performance solution. Cloudflare operates as a reverse proxy, meaning it sits between a website's visitor and the hosting server, routing all traffic through its massive global network of over 300 data centers. This unique position allows it to both protect a website from malicious traffic and speed it up by caching content closer to the user, reducing latency and improving performance. Its core offerings range from unmetered DDoS protection and a Web Application Firewall (WAF) that blocks common web exploits to free SSL certificates and a highly performant DNS service, including its popular 1.1.1.1 resolver. The business model is a freemium one, providing a powerful free tier for small websites and personal blogs, which acts as a gateway to its paid plans for businesses and enterprises. These paid tiers offer more advanced features like Argo Smart Routing, load balancing, and enhanced support. The company generates substantial revenue from these subscriptions, as well as from its enterprise solutions, which are tailored for large-scale clients, and its newer products, such as serverless computing with Cloudflare Workers and object storage with R2. Cloudflare's continuous innovation and its foundational role in protecting and accelerating online properties have cemented its position as a critical layer of modern internet infrastructure.