According to the Top 10 API Security Vulnerabilities list created by the Open Web Application Security Project (OWASP), the more popular the use of technology gets, the more it changes the security landscape and requires a new approach with advanced security solutions. Gartner’s research supports this claim and predicts that by 2022, API-related attacks will become the most frequent form of abuse, leading to the biggest number of data breaches.

Recent attacks show that Web Application Firewalls (WAFs) are not providing sufficient API protection. With higher pressure on budgets and skilled personnel, organisations find it increasingly hard to guard against targeted attacks.

Detecting zero-day attacks must start with deep context. Through a deep understanding of the API business logic, cybersecurity solutions can effectively detect anomalous behaviors that break the logic. By learning the application behavior patterns through full API data analysis, it becomes possible to detect and block breaches through anomaly detection.

Organisations adopting this proactive, automated security mechanism benefit from an ongoing security analysis that adapts itself in accordance with changes in API specifications. Risks are better managed by setting and enforcing security policies that are aligned with the API’s behavior and communication patterns. Cybersecurity analysts can then gain the visibility and insights needed for effective governance, controls, and collaboration, resulting in better protection of the enterprise application layer.