The Importance of WAF Security

Functions of a Web Application Firewall

The key difference between a traditional firewall and an advanced WAF is that the latter is specifically intended and designed to inspect traffic to a web application and API. Here is a more detailed look at the capabilities of a WAF:

• Filtering Malicious Traffic: WAFs are designed to analyze web traffic, identify malicious or anomalous patterns, and block those requests. They may utilize machine learning and/or behavioral analysis to improve detection accuracy.
• Preventing Both Known and Unknown Attacks: Traditional WAFs are designed to handle common attacks such as SQL injection, XSS attacks, and other threats. Advanced WAF capabilities include protection against zero-day threats and adaptation to unknown, emerging threats.
• Protecting Sensitive Data: WAFs can enforce access controls and prevent data exfiltration. These capabilities can help organizations meet the compliance requirements of regulations such as PCI DSS, HIPAA, and GDPR.

We’ve seen what WAFs are and touched on how they work, and next we’ll explore the different types of WAF.

WAFs vs. Other Security Tools

WAFs notably provide protection against application-layer threats, making them the ideal choice for protecting web applications and APIs. Here is a brief rundown of how other security tools compare.

• Traditional Firewalls: Traditional firewalls control incoming and outgoing traffic based on source and destination IP addresses, ports, and protocols. They operate at the network layer, and though effective at blocking network-based attacks, they aren’t a sufficient line of defense for blocking threats that target the application layer.
• 次世代ファイアウォール (NGFWs): NGFWs have evolved to incorporate some application-layer inspection capabilities, such as traffic flow analysis, protocol inspection, and attack detection. They tend to be an all-purpose security device that can handle a wide range of tasks. That said, they do not offer the same level of control or granularity as dedicated WAFs.
• 侵入防止システム (IPSs): IPSs are designed to detect and block known attacks within network traffic, and are ideal for identifying and preventing common exploits such as malware and DoS attacks. However, like traditional firewalls, they also operate at the network layer and therefore lack the capability to handle threats targeting web applications.

This brief comparison demonstrates that the most effective protection of web assets requires implementation of layered security, and which positions the WAF as a key component to guard the application layer.

Protect Your Organization with Check Point CloudGuard WAF

Ensuring the security of web applications is more important today than it’s ever been. As the threats grow in number and severity, WAFs are well-positioned to protect web assets in ways other systems cannot.

Check Point’s CloudGuard WAF leads the way in protecting cloud-native web applications and APIs from the internet’s most dangerous threats. Leveraging a contextual AI engine, it is able to provide preemptive zero-day prevention, DDoS, and BOT prevention with a nearly perfect detection rate and zero false positives.CloudGuard WAF is the ideal solution for protecting valuable web assets. To learn more about how Check Point can help your organization protect its critical cloud applications from cyber threats, book a demo of CloudGuard WAF today.