What Is Web Security?
Web security deals with protecting websites, web applications, and underlying servers from cyber attacks. It includes web application firewalls, threat intelligence, and malware scanning to prevent unauthorized access to critical data and systems. A typical web security solution also includes identity and access management capabilities such as multifactor authentication, role-based access control, and encryption tools. It may also include a content filtering service and a tool to manage staff internet usage, preventing them from visiting potentially malicious sites that could cause a malware infection on their devices.
The most common threat to web applications is the injection of malicious code. This can happen from both the client-side and the server-side, and is triggered when unvalidated user input enters a web form or script. Most modern web frameworks sanitize user input by default, and most vulnerabilities are mitigated through the use of publicly available vulnerability scanners.
Another common threat is a denial-of-service attack, which attempts to crash a web server by flooding it with traffic. This can be blocked by a number of different methods, including TLS/SSL decryption and load balancing to spread the traffic across multiple servers.
Hackers also look for opportunities to steal sensitive information from website visitors. This can be done by hijacking a user session or sending them to a site they didn’t intend to visit. Both of these types of attacks can be prevented by requiring users to login using unique session IDs and automatically logging out after a period of inactivity. It’s also important to avoid exposing any sensitive data in the URL query string, as this can be indexed by public web crawlers, HTTP proxies, and even archiving services like the internet archive, giving attackers a way to steal information from website visitors long after they have left the site.
Other attacks can be prevented by requiring users to log in with a username and password, or by using SSL/TLS to encrypt all communications with the web server. This helps to protect the integrity of sensitive data, reduce the risk of man-in-the-middle attacks, and reduce the impact of any breaches that occur.
Web security solutions should offer a single dashboard to map the attack surface and identify potential risks with a click, as well as provide an actionable list of mitigation options. These solutions should also have an integration with a code repository to check for new third-party JavaScript dependencies and other changes that could increase the risk of an attack.
As businesses rely more and more on web-based applications, the attack surface for cyber threats grows larger. Effective web security requires careful design efforts on both the server-side and the client-side, and ongoing monitoring to identify and stop emerging threats. A good web security solution will include a range of solutions to mitigate these threats, and will be continuously updated to reflect the latest research into new and evolving attacks. This is a critical component of an enterprise’s overall cybersecurity strategy. Managing this effectively is essential for keeping business operations running smoothly, maintaining customer trust, and avoiding the costly disruption of a major data breach.