Best Web Application Firewalls (WAF)

How Many Web Application Firewalls (WAF) Products Does G2 Track?

Total Products under this Category: 99

Category Stats (Sep 2026)

  • Average Rating: 4.45/5 The average rating of products in this category, based on all submitted ratings
  • Top Trending Product: F5 NGINX (+0.28%) - Among all products in this category, F5 NGINX recorded the largest rating increase compared to last month

Last updated: September 01, 2026

How Does G2 Rank Web Application Firewalls (WAF) Products?

Why You Can Trust G2's Software Rankings:

  • 30 Analysts and Data Experts
  • 3,400+ Authentic Reviews
  • 99+ Products
  • Unbiased Rankings

G2's software rankings are built on verified user reviews, rigorous moderation, and a consistent research methodology maintained by a team of analysts and data experts. Each product is measured using the same transparent criteria, with no paid placement or vendor influence. While reviews reflect real user experiences, which can be subjective, they offer valuable insight into how software performs in the hands of professionals. Together, these inputs power the G2 Score, a standardized way to compare tools within every category.

G2 Grid® for Web Application Firewalls (WAF)

G2 Grid® for Web Application Firewalls (WAF) plotting products by satisfaction and market presence

Highlighted products: Cloudflare Application Security and Performance, Radware Cloud WAF, Check Point WAF (formerly CloudGuard WAF), HAProxy, Fastly's Web Application and API Security, FortiAppSec Cloud, Azion, and Fortinet Managed Rules for AWS WAF.

Underlying data: [Grid® JSON](https://www.g2.com/categories/web-application-firewall-waf/grids.json?focus%5B%5D=cloudflare-application-security-and-performance&focus%5B%5D=radware-cloud-waf&focus%5B%5D=check-point-waf-formerly-cloudguard-waf&focus%5B%5D=haproxy&focus%5B%5D=fastly-s-web-application-and-api-security&focus%5B%5D=fortiappsec-cloud&focus%5B%5D=azion&focus%5B%5D=fortinet-managed-rules-for-aws-waf)

Cloudflare Application Security and Performance

Cloudflare is the connectivity cloud for the "everywhere world," on a mission to help build a better Internet. We provide a unified platform of networking, security, and developer services delivered from a single, intelligent global network that spans hundreds of cities in over 125 countries. This empowers organizations of all sizes, from small businesses to the world's largest enterprises, to make their employees, applications, and networks faster and more secure everywhere, while significantly reducing complexity and cost. Our comprehensive platform includes: - Advanced Security: Protect your online presence with industry-leading DDoS protection, a robust Web Application Firewall (WAF), Bot mitigation, and API security. Implement Zero Trust security to secure remote access, data, and applications for your entire workforce. - Superior Performance: Accelerate website and application loading times globally with our Content Delivery Network (CDN), intelligent DNS, and smart routing capabilities. Optimize images and deliver dynamic content with unparalleled speed. - Powerful Developer Tools: Empower your developers to build and deploy full-stack applications at the edge using Cloudflare Workers (serverless functions), R2 Storage (object storage without egress fees), and D1 (serverless SQL database). Cloudflare helps connect and protect millions of customers globally, offering the control, visibility, and reliability businesses need to work, develop, and accelerate their operations in today's hyperconnected landscape. Our global network continuously learns and adapts, ensuring your digital assets are always protected and performing at their best.

Average Rating: 4.5/5.0

Total Reviews: 733

How Do G2 Users Rate Cloudflare Application Security and Performance?

  • Has the product been a good partner in doing business?: 8.8/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10)
  • Traffic Controls: 9.0/10 (Category avg: 9.1/10)
  • Security Monitoring: 9.0/10 (Category avg: 9.1/10)
  • Issue Tracking: 8.5/10 (Category avg: 8.7/10)

Who Is the Company Behind Cloudflare Application Security and Performance?

  • Seller: Cloudflare, Inc.
  • Company Website:
  • Year Founded: 2009
  • HQ Location: San Francisco, California
  • Twitter: @Cloudflare
    286,254 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    8,094 employees on LinkedIn®

Who Uses This Product?

  • Who Uses This: Web Developer, Software Engineer
  • Top Industries: Information Technology and Services, Computer Software
  • Company Size: 62% Small, 27% Medium

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About Cloudflare Application Security and Performance?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users value the robust security features of Cloudflare, appreciating its effective protection against attacks and fast page loads.
  • Users appreciate the user-friendly interface of Cloudflare, making management of security and performance settings effortless.
  • Users appreciate the user-friendly interface of Cloudflare, making security and performance management easy and efficient.
  • Users appreciate the enhanced site performance provided by Cloudflare, leading to faster page load times and improved security.
  • Users value Cloudflare's DDoS protection, as it effectively secures websites and significantly improves page load times.
Cons
  • Users find the complex user interface of Cloudflare challenging, often leading to confusion and a steep learning curve.
  • Users find the high pricing for advanced features to be a significant drawback, restricting access to essential tools.
  • Users find the complex setup challenging, particularly with advanced configurations that require extra time and support.
  • Users find the complexity of advanced configurations challenging, impacting user-friendliness for those new to security platforms.
  • Users experience a steep learning curve for advanced features in Cloudflare Application Security and Performance, complicating user experience.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of Cloudflare Application Security and Performance?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About Cloudflare Application Security and Performance?

Radware Cloud WAF

Radware Cloud WAF is a fully managed Cloud Application Protection Service providing the industry's most comprehensive web application security solution. The service integrates Radware's Cloud WAF, API Protection, Bot management, client-side and application layer DDoS protection in a single portal that provides security analytics, threat detection and real-time security feeds to protect applications against hacking, malicious bots, API exposure, Web DDoS attacks, supply chain attacks and other vulnerabilities.

Average Rating: 4.6/5.0

Total Reviews: 154

How Do G2 Users Rate Radware Cloud WAF?

  • Has the product been a good partner in doing business?: 8.9/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10)
  • Traffic Controls: 9.2/10 (Category avg: 9.1/10)
  • Security Monitoring: 9.3/10 (Category avg: 9.1/10)
  • Issue Tracking: 8.8/10 (Category avg: 8.7/10)

Who Is the Company Behind Radware Cloud WAF?

  • Seller: Radware
  • Company Website:
  • Year Founded: 1997
  • HQ Location: Tel Aviv, Tel Aviv
  • Twitter: @radware
    12,488 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    1,609 employees on LinkedIn®

Who Uses This Product?

  • Top Industries: Information Technology and Services, Computer & Network Security
  • Company Size: 49% Medium, 40% Large

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About Radware Cloud WAF?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users value the dynamic protection and robust security features of Radware Cloud WAF, ensuring peace of mind.
  • Users value the strong AI-driven protection of Radware Cloud WAF, ensuring robust security with minimal performance impact.
  • Users appreciate the dynamic protection and AI-powered defense of Radware Cloud WAF, enhancing overall cybersecurity effortlessly.
  • Users praise the effective DDoS protection of Radware Cloud WAF, successfully mitigating attacks without impacting performance.
  • Users value the real-time monitoring of Radware Cloud WAF, ensuring robust protection against emerging threats and vulnerabilities.
Cons
  • Users find the difficult reporting aspect of Radware Cloud WAF limits usability and clarity for ongoing monitoring.
  • Users report a steep learning curve with Radware Cloud WAF, making it challenging for new users to utilize effectively.
  • Users find the complex configuration of Radware Cloud WAF challenging and time-consuming for optimal setup and tuning.
  • Users note a lack of customization options with Radware Cloud WAF, limiting adaptability to their specific needs.
  • Users find the user interface too complicated, requiring improvements for a more intuitive and user-friendly experience.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of Radware Cloud WAF?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About Radware Cloud WAF?

Check Point WAF (formerly CloudGuard WAF)

CloudGuard WAF is a cloud-native Web and API security solution designed to help users safeguard their applications from both known and unknown threats. By leveraging advanced contextual AI, this solution provides precise threat prevention without the need for traditional signature-based detection methods. This innovative approach allows organizations to maintain a robust security posture while minimizing the risks associated with evolving cyber threats. Targeted primarily at businesses that rely on web applications and APIs, CloudGuard WAF is particularly beneficial for enterprises in sectors such as finance, healthcare, and e-commerce, where data protection is paramount. The solution is designed to address the complex security challenges that arise in modern application environments, especially those utilizing continuous integration and continuous deployment (CI/CD) practices. As organizations increasingly adopt cloud-native architectures, the need for flexible and efficient security solutions becomes critical. One of the standout features of CloudGuard WAF is its preemptive protection capabilities. By employing machine learning-based security measures, the solution can effectively prevent zero-day threats, which are vulnerabilities that have not yet been discovered or patched. This proactive approach eliminates the reliance on frequent signature updates, allowing organizations to stay ahead of potential attacks without the need for constant manual intervention. Moreover, CloudGuard WAF excels in precise detection, enabling it to identify a broader range of attacks while minimizing the need for ongoing fine-tuning and exception creation. This feature not only enhances the accuracy of threat detection but also reduces the operational burden on security teams, allowing them to focus on more strategic initiatives rather than routine adjustments. Designed with cloud-native principles in mind, CloudGuard WAF supports CI/CD-friendly deployment and automation. This means that organizations can easily integrate the solution into their existing workflows, from installation to upgrades and configuration. By utilizing declarative infrastructure-as-code or APIs, users can streamline their security processes, ensuring that their applications remain protected as they evolve. Overall, CloudGuard WAF represents a significant advancement in the realm of web and API security, offering organizations a sophisticated and adaptable solution to combat the ever-changing landscape of cyber threats. Its combination of preemptive protection, precise detection, and cloud-native design makes it a valuable asset for any organization looking to enhance its security posture in today's digital environment.

Average Rating: 4.3/5.0

Total Reviews: 89

How Do G2 Users Rate Check Point WAF (formerly CloudGuard WAF)?

  • Has the product been a good partner in doing business?: 8.6/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10)
  • Traffic Controls: 8.6/10 (Category avg: 9.1/10)
  • Security Monitoring: 9.3/10 (Category avg: 9.1/10)
  • Issue Tracking: 8.6/10 (Category avg: 8.7/10)

Who Is the Company Behind Check Point WAF (formerly CloudGuard WAF)?

Who Uses This Product?

  • Who Uses This: Software Engineer
  • Top Industries: Computer & Network Security, Information Technology and Services
  • Company Size: 59% Medium, 28% Small

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About Check Point WAF (formerly CloudGuard WAF)?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users value the strong protection offered by Check Point WAF, enhancing security against various web application threats.
  • Users commend the top-notch security of Check Point CloudGuard WAF, ensuring comprehensive protection across diverse environments effortlessly.
  • Users value the proactive AI-driven threat prevention of Check Point CloudGuard WAF, ensuring robust security effortlessly.
  • Users value the AI-driven threat prevention of Check Point CloudGuard WAF, offering seamless protection against various cyber threats.
  • Users commend Check Point WAF for its easy management across hybrid environments, enhancing efficiency and reducing operational burden.
Cons
  • Users find the complex setup challenging, making initial adoption and management of configurations difficult.
  • Users find Check Point WAF to be expensive, especially smaller teams, impacting their overall value and accessibility.
  • Users find the steep learning curve of Check Point WAF challenging, complicating the initial setup and usage.
  • Users face a difficult learning curve with Check Point WAF, making initial setup and navigation challenging for newcomers.
  • Users often find the user interface overwhelming, particularly during initial setup and while navigating complex features.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of Check Point WAF (formerly CloudGuard WAF)?

HAProxy

HAProxy is an open-source software load balancer and reverse proxy for TCP, QUIC, and HTTP-based applications. It provides high availability, load balancing, and best-in-class SSL processing. HAProxy One is an application delivery and security platform that combines the HAProxy core with enterprise-grade security layers, management and orchestration, cloud-native integration, and more. Platform components: HAProxy Enterprise: a flexible data plane layer for TCP, UDP, QUIC, and HTTP-based applications that provides high-performance load balancing, high availability, an API/AI gateway, container networking, SSL processing, DDoS protection, bot detection and mitigation, global rate limiting, and a web application firewall (WAF). HAProxy Fusion: a scalable control plane that provides full-lifecycle management, observability, and automation of multi-cluster, multi-cloud, and multi-team HAProxy Enterprise deployments, with infrastructure integration for AWS, Kubernetes, Consul, and Prometheus. HAProxy Edge: a globally distributed application delivery network that provides fully managed application delivery and security services, a secure partition between external traffic and origin networks, and threat intelligence enhanced by machine learning that powers the security layers in HAProxy Fusion and HAProxy Enterprise. Learn more at HAProxy.com

Average Rating: 4.7/5.0

Total Reviews: 905

How Do G2 Users Rate HAProxy?

  • Has the product been a good partner in doing business?: 9.1/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10)
  • Traffic Controls: 9.0/10 (Category avg: 9.1/10)
  • Security Monitoring: 8.3/10 (Category avg: 9.1/10)
  • Issue Tracking: 8.2/10 (Category avg: 8.7/10)

Who Is the Company Behind HAProxy?

  • Seller: HAProxy
  • Company Website:
  • Year Founded: 2013
  • HQ Location: Newton, MA
  • Twitter: @HAProxy
    21,218 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    125 employees on LinkedIn®

Who Uses This Product?

  • Who Uses This: DevOps Engineer, Software Engineer
  • Top Industries: Information Technology and Services, Computer Software
  • Company Size: 42% Medium, 35% Large

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About HAProxy?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users appreciate the ease of use of HAProxy, finding its intuitive setup and stats page very helpful.
  • Users appreciate the easy implementation and effective workload balancing capabilities of HAProxy for traffic management.
  • Users find HAProxy to be exceptionally reliable and fast, enhancing their data security and operational efficiency.
  • Users highlight HAProxy's high performance, appreciating its robust data transmission and seamless operations for reliable web management.
  • Users value the easy configuration of HAProxy, enabling seamless management of traffic and services.
Cons
  • Users face difficult configuration challenges with HAProxy, struggling with complex syntax and readability of files.
  • Users find HAProxy's steep learning curve challenging, particularly for beginners in load balancing or networking.
  • Users find the complex setup of HAProxy challenging, requiring time and effort to overcome initial difficulties.
  • Users find the complex configuration of HAProxy to be challenging, particularly for newcomers to load balancing.
  • Users find HAProxy's complexity daunting, especially regarding configuration and debugging in advanced environments.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of HAProxy?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About HAProxy?

Fastly's Web Application and API Security

Fastly’s AppSec solutions empower teams to mitigate threats and control bots while helping the business move faster, confidently. Protect Your Apps and APIs While Accelerating Growth with Fastly’s Next-Gen WAF, DDoS Protection, Bot Management, API Security, and more. Our solutions are designed to help you stop cyber threats from derailing your biggest moments, accelerate innovation while minimizing new risk, and govern bots without increasing user friction.

Average Rating: 4.2/5.0

Total Reviews: 29

How Do G2 Users Rate Fastly's Web Application and API Security?

  • Has the product been a good partner in doing business?: 9.2/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10)
  • Traffic Controls: 8.1/10 (Category avg: 9.1/10)
  • Security Monitoring: 9.1/10 (Category avg: 9.1/10)
  • Issue Tracking: 8.1/10 (Category avg: 8.7/10)

Who Is the Company Behind Fastly's Web Application and API Security?

  • Seller: Fastly
  • Year Founded: 2011
  • HQ Location: San Francisco, California, United States
  • Twitter: @Fastly
    29,199 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    1,456 employees on LinkedIn®
  • Ownership: NYSE: FSLY

Who Uses This Product?

  • Top Industries: Computer Software
  • Company Size: 50% Medium, 37% Large

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About Fastly's Web Application and API Security?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users appreciate the ease of setup with Fastly's Web Application and API Security, enjoying excellent support and a user-friendly interface.
  • Users praise Fastly's Web Application and API Security for its robust protection against all types of attacks.
  • Users commend the excellent customer support provided by Fastly, enhancing their experience and implementation process.
  • Users value the effective DDoS protection of Fastly, ensuring robust security against various web application threats.
  • Users appreciate the excellent security protection Fastly's solution offers against a wide range of application attacks.
Cons
  • Users note that the pricing can be a barrier for smaller projects, with additional costs for support and multiple hostnames.
  • Users report poor customer support, highlighting issues with responsiveness and difficulty in obtaining assistance for configurations.
  • Users find the complex configuration of Fastly's WAF overwhelming and time-consuming, especially for rule management.
  • Users find the complex setup of Fastly's WAF cumbersome, making rule management and configurations time-consuming.
  • Users find the management complex, as the cumbersome interface and poor support hinder effective rule setup.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of Fastly's Web Application and API Security?

FortiAppSec Cloud

FortiAppSec Cloud - the next evolution of FortiWeb Cloud - simplifies and strengthens web application security and delivery across your cloud environments. This SaaS platform secures network availability and accelerates application performance while delivering consistent security against web-based threats. The AI-driven engine detects zero-day exploits and unknown threats, maximizing detection accuracy while securing the user experience and minimizing false positives. FortiAppSec Cloud is unified platform that provides comprehensive web application and API protection (WAAP) with a single management interface. It includes: • GenAI-ready protection for known and zero-day threat detection • ML-driven bad bot behavioral analysis to fend off sophisticated bots • Advanced API discovery and security • Built-in DAST allows for vulnerability scanning and patching in advance • Global server load balancing and CDN provide optimized application availability and performance. • Threat analytics helps prioritize security events for operational efficiency.

Average Rating: 4.4/5.0

Total Reviews: 29

How Do G2 Users Rate FortiAppSec Cloud?

  • Has the product been a good partner in doing business?: 9.3/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10)
  • Traffic Controls: 8.2/10 (Category avg: 9.1/10)
  • Security Monitoring: 9.2/10 (Category avg: 9.1/10)
  • Issue Tracking: 7.9/10 (Category avg: 8.7/10)

Who Is the Company Behind FortiAppSec Cloud?

  • Seller: Fortinet
  • Company Website:
  • Year Founded: 2000
  • HQ Location: Sunnyvale, CA
  • Twitter: @Fortinet
    151,422 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    16,564 employees on LinkedIn®

Who Uses This Product?

  • Top Industries: Computer & Network Security, Information Technology and Services
  • Company Size: 61% Medium, 19% Large

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About FortiAppSec Cloud?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users appreciate the comprehensive security FortiAppSec Cloud provides, enhancing visibility and efficiency in threat management.
  • Users value the automatic security and centralized dashboard of FortiAppSec Cloud for enhanced protection and efficiency.
  • Users appreciate the automated AI-driven protection of FortiAppSec Cloud, enhancing web application security with minimal manual effort.
  • Users value the ease of use of FortiAppSec Cloud, finding it straightforward and highly user-friendly for implementation.
  • Users value the automatic security and centralized dashboard of FortiAppSec Cloud, enhancing visibility and response efficiency.
Cons
  • Users find the user experience challenging due to complex initial setup and a need for more intuitive design.
  • Users experience occasional slow performance with FortiAppSec Cloud, particularly under high traffic and complex rule management.
  • Users find the user interface issues in FortiAppSec Cloud hinder navigation and overall user experience, especially for beginners.
  • Users struggle with complex configuration, making initial setup challenging and impacting ease of use for newcomers.
  • Users find the complex setup process challenging, especially for first-time configurations and fine-tuning security policies.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of FortiAppSec Cloud?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About FortiAppSec Cloud?

Azion

Azion is the web platform that enables businesses to build, secure, and scale modern applications on a fully managed global infrastructure, with a robust suite of solutions for Application Development, cybersecurity, and AI. Azion allows developers to deploy applications closer to users, ensuring ultra-low latency and high availability. With Functions, you can run distributed serverless code, enhancing performance and reducing costs. For enhanced security, Azion’s Web Application Firewall (WAF) protects against cyber threats. Azion also provides SQL Storage, Object Storage and KV Storage, enabling fast, distributed data storage and retrieval. With Real-Time Metrics and Real-Time Events, businesses gain actionable insights into their applications and infrastructure, ensuring optimal performance and security. Global leaders like Prime Video, Neon, Global Fashion Group, and Radware trust Azion to deliver high-performance, secure digital experiences worldwide. Whether you're building AI-driven applications, securing your digital assets, or scaling globally, Azion provides the fastest path to modern applications. Discover how Azion can transform your digital experiences and empower your business to thrive in the digital age. Visit www.azion.com to learn more about our innovative solutions.

Average Rating: 4.7/5.0

Total Reviews: 33

How Do G2 Users Rate Azion?

  • Has the product been a good partner in doing business?: 9.3/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10)
  • Traffic Controls: 9.6/10 (Category avg: 9.1/10)
  • Security Monitoring: 9.3/10 (Category avg: 9.1/10)
  • Issue Tracking: 9.1/10 (Category avg: 8.7/10)

Who Is the Company Behind Azion?

  • Seller: Azion
  • Year Founded: 2011
  • HQ Location: Palo Alto, California, United States
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    192 employees on LinkedIn®

Who Uses This Product?

  • Top Industries: Retail
  • Company Size: 35% Large, 29% Medium

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About Azion?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users highly value Azion's responsive and knowledgeable customer support, ensuring smooth and efficient business operations.
  • Users value the ease of use of Azion, praising its quick implementation and seamless integration into daily operations.
  • Users value the easy integrations with Azion, praising its simple setup and seamless functionality for daily operations.
  • Users highlight Azion's consistent reliability and performance, making it a trusted partner for critical operations.
  • Users praise Azion for its excellent performance, significantly improving latency and enhancing user experience.
Cons
  • Users are concerned about the missing features in Azion for Web3 and related service integrations.
  • Users find the complexity of the administration console challenging, requiring significant time to learn and navigate.
  • Users find the difficult learning curve in Azion's administration console frustrating and time-consuming to navigate.
  • Users find the difficult learning curve of Azion's administration console frustrating and time-consuming to navigate.
  • Users desire more flexible pricing and product offerings, as the current costs feel too high for many.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of Azion?

Fortinet Managed Rules for AWS WAF

Fortinet’s WAF rulesets are additional security signatures that can be used to enhance the protections included in the base AWS WAF product. They are updated on a regular basis to include the latest threat intelligence from the award-winning FortiGuard Labs. The Complete OWASP Top 10 Ruleset provides a comprehensive package for web application protection offered by Fortinet to help address the OWASP Top 10 web application threats. Includes protection for various Injection attacks such as SQL and command Injection , Cross Site Scripting, General and Known Exploits, Malicious Bots and Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE).

Average Rating: 4.3/5.0

Total Reviews: 30

How Do G2 Users Rate Fortinet Managed Rules for AWS WAF?

  • Has the product been a good partner in doing business?: 8.9/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10)
  • Security Monitoring: 10.0/10 (Category avg: 9.1/10)
  • Issue Tracking: 8.3/10 (Category avg: 8.7/10)

Who Is the Company Behind Fortinet Managed Rules for AWS WAF?

  • Seller: Fortinet
  • Company Website:
  • Year Founded: 2000
  • HQ Location: Sunnyvale, CA
  • Twitter: @Fortinet
    151,422 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    16,564 employees on LinkedIn®

Who Uses This Product?

  • Top Industries: Computer Software, Information Technology and Services
  • Company Size: 57% Small, 27% Medium

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About Fortinet Managed Rules for AWS WAF?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users value the comprehensive and robust security provided by Fortinet's Managed Rules for AWS WAF, ensuring strong protection.
  • Users find the ease of implementation of Fortinet Managed Rules for AWS WAF invaluable for enhancing security effortlessly.
  • Users value the comprehensive protection of Fortinet Managed Rules, ensuring robust security against various evolving threats.
  • Users appreciate the easy integrations of Fortinet Managed Rules for AWS WAF, simplifying security for API Gateway deployments.
  • Users commend the ease of implementation of Fortinet Managed Rules, simplifying the setup process for AWS WAF.
Cons
  • Users express concerns over pricing issues with Fortinet Managed Rules, especially for smaller organizations with limited budgets.
  • Users may face a difficult setup process for Fortinet's Managed Rules, especially when unfamiliar with AWS WAF.
  • Users express concerns about the expensive nature of Fortinet Managed Rules for AWS WAF, impacting overall value.
  • Users experience a challenging learning curve with Fortinet Managed Rules, particularly if they're new to WAF management.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of Fortinet Managed Rules for AWS WAF?

AWS WAF

AWS WAF (Web Application Firewall) is a security service designed to protect web applications and APIs from common web exploits and bots that can compromise security, affect availability, or consume excessive resources. By enabling users to define customizable web security rules, AWS WAF allows precise control over which traffic to allow or block, ensuring robust protection tailored to specific application needs. Key Features and Functionality: - Customizable Security Rules: Users can create rules to filter web requests based on conditions such as IP addresses, HTTP headers, HTTP body, or custom URIs, allowing for tailored security measures. - Managed Rule Groups: AWS WAF offers pre-configured rule groups managed by AWS or AWS Marketplace sellers, providing protection against common threats like SQL injection and cross-site scripting (XSS). These rules are regularly updated to address emerging vulnerabilities. - Bot Control: The service includes capabilities to monitor, block, or rate-limit common and pervasive bots, helping to prevent automated attacks such as web scraping and credential stuffing. - Real-Time Monitoring and Logging: AWS WAF integrates with Amazon CloudWatch, offering real-time metrics and capturing detailed information about web requests. This visibility aids in analyzing traffic patterns and fine-tuning security settings. - DDoS Protection: When used in conjunction with AWS Shield, AWS WAF provides automatic protection against Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks, ensuring application availability during large-scale attack attempts. - Integration with AWS Services: AWS WAF seamlessly integrates with other AWS services such as Amazon CloudFront, Application Load Balancer, and Amazon API Gateway, enabling centralized security management across various applications. Primary Value and Problem Solved: AWS WAF addresses the critical need for robust web application security by providing a scalable and customizable firewall solution. It empowers organizations to protect their web applications and APIs from a wide range of threats, including common exploits and automated attacks, without compromising performance. By offering both managed and custom rule capabilities, AWS WAF enables businesses to implement security measures that align with their specific requirements. Its integration with other AWS services and real-time monitoring features further enhance an organization's ability to maintain a strong security posture, ensuring the availability and integrity of their web applications.

Average Rating: 4.3/5.0

Total Reviews: 65

How Do G2 Users Rate AWS WAF?

  • Has the product been a good partner in doing business?: 8.8/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10)
  • Traffic Controls: 8.7/10 (Category avg: 9.1/10)
  • Security Monitoring: 8.9/10 (Category avg: 9.1/10)
  • Issue Tracking: 8.1/10 (Category avg: 8.7/10)

Who Is the Company Behind AWS WAF?

  • Seller: Amazon Web Services (AWS)
  • Year Founded: 2006
  • HQ Location: Seattle, WA
  • Twitter: @awscloud
    2,232,483 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    147,094 employees on LinkedIn®
  • Ownership: NASDAQ: AMZN

Who Uses This Product?

  • Top Industries: Information Technology and Services, Computer Software
  • Company Size: 36% Large, 35% Medium

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About AWS WAF?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users value the easy protection against common attacks provided by AWS WAF, enhancing website security effortlessly.
  • Users value the seamless cloud integration of AWS WAF, enhancing security with unified management and visibility.
  • Users appreciate the custom rules in AWS WAF for simplifying website protection against common attacks.
  • Users appreciate the ease of protecting websites from attacks like SQL injection and XSS with AWS WAF.
  • Users value the robust DDoS protection of AWS WAF, ensuring quick and effective mitigation against layer 7 attacks.
Cons
  • Users find the complex configuration challenging initially, along with confusing pricing for beginners.
  • Users find the pricing confusing for beginners, making AWS WAF feel expensive and complex to configure initially.
  • Users find the ineffective blocking of specific regions limits their ability for precise geographic access controls.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of AWS WAF?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About AWS WAF?

Azure Application Gateway

Azure Application Gateway is a web traffic load balancer that enables you to manage traffic to your web applications. Unlike traditional load balancers that operate at the transport layer (Layer 4), Application Gateway operates at the application layer (Layer 7), allowing it to make routing decisions based on attributes such as URL paths and host headers. This capability provides more control over how traffic is distributed to your applications, enhancing both performance and security. Key Features and Functionality: - Layer 7 Load Balancing: Routes traffic based on HTTP request attributes, enabling more precise control over traffic distribution. - Web Application Firewall (WAF): Protects applications from common web vulnerabilities like SQL injection and cross-site scripting by monitoring and filtering HTTP requests. - SSL/TLS Termination: Offloads SSL/TLS processing to the gateway, reducing the encryption and decryption overhead on backend servers. - Autoscaling: Automatically adjusts the number of gateway instances based on traffic load, ensuring optimal performance and cost efficiency. - Zone Redundancy: Distributes instances across multiple availability zones, enhancing resilience and availability. - URL Path-Based Routing: Directs requests to backend pools based on URL paths, allowing for efficient resource utilization. - Host Header-Based Routing: Routes traffic to different backend pools based on the host header, facilitating multi-site hosting. - Integration with Azure Services: Seamlessly integrates with Azure Traffic Manager for global load balancing and Azure Monitor for centralized monitoring and alerting. Primary Value and User Solutions: Azure Application Gateway provides a scalable and highly available solution for managing web application traffic. By operating at the application layer, it offers intelligent routing capabilities that enhance application performance and reliability. The integrated Web Application Firewall ensures robust security against common web threats, while features like SSL/TLS termination and autoscaling optimize resource utilization and reduce operational overhead. This comprehensive set of features addresses the needs of organizations seeking to build secure, scalable, and efficient web front ends in Azure.

Average Rating: 4.4/5.0

Total Reviews: 139

How Do G2 Users Rate Azure Application Gateway?

  • Has the product been a good partner in doing business?: 8.8/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10)
  • Traffic Controls: 9.4/10 (Category avg: 9.1/10)
  • Security Monitoring: 9.5/10 (Category avg: 9.1/10)
  • Issue Tracking: 8.5/10 (Category avg: 8.7/10)

Who Is the Company Behind Azure Application Gateway?

  • Seller: Microsoft
  • Year Founded: 1975
  • HQ Location: Redmond, Washington
  • Twitter: @microsoft
    13,091,739 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    232,750 employees on LinkedIn®
  • Ownership: MSFT

Who Uses This Product?

  • Who Uses This: DevOps Engineer, Software Engineer
  • Top Industries: Information Technology and Services, Computer Software
  • Company Size: 47% Large, 34% Medium

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About Azure Application Gateway?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users appreciate the user-friendly and customizable dashboard of Azure Application Gateway, enhancing their overall experience effortlessly.
  • Users appreciate the perfect scalability of Azure Application Gateway, making it easy to adapt to changing needs.
  • Users appreciate the cost efficiency of Azure Application Gateway, enjoying its pricing model and scalability benefits.
  • Users value the high availability and cost efficiency of Azure Application Gateway, enhancing stability and supporting business growth.
  • Users commend Azure Application Gateway for its seamless integrations with Microsoft products, enhancing overall cloud transition and usability.
Cons
  • Users find the complexity of Azure challenging, struggling to choose optimal services and navigate the interface.
  • Users find the cost issues of Azure Application Gateway to be a significant drawback compared to other providers.
  • Users find the learning difficulty of Azure Application Gateway challenging, as it requires significant technical expertise to navigate.
  • Users find Azure Application Gateway not user-friendly, struggling with usability issues and a confusing interface for new users.
  • Users find the complexity issues of Azure Application Gateway overwhelming, creating challenges for new adopters and scaling services.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of Azure Application Gateway?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About Azure Application Gateway?

TR7 ASP

An application security platform (ASP) designed by IT users angry and frustrated with the time-to-manage complex legacy application delivery and WAF products. TR7's friendly design, dynamic flow-panel, and rich reporting makes it very easy for IT Teams to increase application performance, improve resilience, and prevent cyber attacks faster. The core components of the platform are: ⚖️ Load Balancer 🚪 Access Policy Manager 🌐 Global Traffic Manager 🛡️ WebApp Firewall (WAF) Effective user access controls make it simple to provide the right access and visibility to the right people, enabling IT Network, Application, and Security teams to work more effectively together, and on their respective priorities. Deploy as physical or virtual appliance, or both, depending on your scope and requirements. Friendly cluster options and attractive economies of scale are designed for you to architect resilience and best practice affordably.

Average Rating: 4.9/5.0

Total Reviews: 27

How Do G2 Users Rate TR7 ASP?

  • Has the product been a good partner in doing business?: 10.0/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10)
  • Traffic Controls: 9.7/10 (Category avg: 9.1/10)
  • Security Monitoring: 9.5/10 (Category avg: 9.1/10)
  • Issue Tracking: 9.3/10 (Category avg: 8.7/10)

Who Is the Company Behind TR7 ASP?

  • Seller: TR7
  • Year Founded: 2023
  • HQ Location: Cheltenham, UK
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    39 employees on LinkedIn®

Who Uses This Product?

  • Company Size: 59% Large, 33% Medium

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About TR7 ASP?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users praise the exceptional customer support of TR7 ASP, highlighting its responsiveness and proactive assistance.
  • Users commend TR7 ASP for its efficient load balancing, ensuring reliable traffic management and seamless application performance.
  • Users find TR7 ASP remarkably easy to use, appreciating its user-friendliness and responsive customer support.
  • Users commend the reliability of TR7 ASP, effectively resolving traffic routing and security issues in their applications.
  • Users highlight the remarkable ease of configuration with TR7 ASP, making implementation a breeze for teams.
Cons
  • Users find the complex operation of TR7 ASP makes software updates more challenging compared to similar products.
  • Users find the complex setup of TR7 ASP to be a barrier, making software updates more challenging.
  • Users find the difficult setup due to the absence of an in-place upgrade for updates.
  • Users find the limited customization of the TR7 ASP's monitoring screens restricts their ability to tailor the experience.
  • Users desire improved features like API Security, indicating a need for increased functionality in TR7 ASP.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of TR7 ASP?

Azure Web Application Firewall

Azure Web Application Firewall is a cloud-native security service designed to protect web applications and APIs from common web vulnerabilities and attacks, such as SQL injection and cross-site scripting. By integrating seamlessly with Azure services like Application Gateway, Front Door, and Content Delivery Network , Azure WAF offers centralized protection, ensuring the security and availability of web applications without the need for modifications to backend code. Key Features and Functionality: - Managed Rule Sets: Azure WAF provides pre-configured rule sets that are regularly updated to defend against the latest threats, including the OWASP Top 10 security risks. - Customizable Rules and Policies: Users can create custom rules tailored to specific application requirements, allowing for granular control over security measures. - Real-Time Monitoring and Logging: Integrated with Azure Monitor, Azure WAF offers detailed logging and real-time monitoring of security events, enabling prompt detection and response to potential threats. - Flexible Deployment Options: Azure WAF can be deployed with Azure Application Gateway, Azure Front Door, and Azure CDN, providing versatile options to suit various architectural needs. - Bot Protection and DDoS Mitigation: The service includes features to detect and block malicious bot traffic and offers protection against Distributed Denial of Service attacks at the network edge. Primary Value and Problem Solved: Azure Web Application Firewall addresses the critical need for robust web application security by providing centralized protection against a wide range of web-based attacks. By leveraging managed and custom rule sets, real-time monitoring, and seamless integration with other Azure services, Azure WAF simplifies security management, reduces the risk of data breaches, and ensures the continuous availability of web applications. This comprehensive approach allows organizations to focus on delivering their services without compromising on security.

Average Rating: 4.4/5.0

Total Reviews: 31

How Do G2 Users Rate Azure Web Application Firewall?

  • Has the product been a good partner in doing business?: 9.1/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10)
  • Traffic Controls: 8.1/10 (Category avg: 9.1/10)
  • Security Monitoring: 8.5/10 (Category avg: 9.1/10)
  • Issue Tracking: 8.1/10 (Category avg: 8.7/10)

Who Is the Company Behind Azure Web Application Firewall?

  • Seller: Microsoft
  • Year Founded: 1975
  • HQ Location: Redmond, Washington
  • Twitter: @microsoft
    13,091,739 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    232,750 employees on LinkedIn®
  • Ownership: MSFT

Who Uses This Product?

  • Top Industries: Information Technology and Services
  • Company Size: 42% Large, 42% Medium

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of Azure Web Application Firewall?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About Azure Web Application Firewall?

Barracuda Web Application Firewall

Barracuda Web Application Firewall (WAF) is purpose-built to protect your web, mobile, and API applications from today’s most advanced threats. It helps prevent data breaches and ensures business continuity by blocking OWASP Top 10 attacks, L4–L7 DDoS, zero-day exploits, and more. With Advanced Bot Protection powered by cloud-based machine learning, Barracuda WAF detects and stops malicious bots responsible for web scraping, credential stuffing, and account takeover attempts—before they can do damage. Flexible deployment options include hardware appliances, virtual machines, public cloud platforms, and containers—so you can secure your applications wherever they live.

Average Rating: 4.3/5.0

Total Reviews: 13

How Do G2 Users Rate Barracuda Web Application Firewall?

  • Has the product been a good partner in doing business?: 8.7/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10)
  • Traffic Controls: 8.3/10 (Category avg: 9.1/10)
  • Security Monitoring: 8.8/10 (Category avg: 9.1/10)
  • Issue Tracking: 5.8/10 (Category avg: 8.7/10)

Who Is the Company Behind Barracuda Web Application Firewall?

  • Seller: Barracuda
  • Year Founded: 2002
  • HQ Location: Campbell, CA
  • Twitter: @Barracuda
    15,239 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    2,327 employees on LinkedIn®
  • Ownership: Private

Who Uses This Product?

  • Company Size: 64% Medium, 21% Large

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About Barracuda Web Application Firewall?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users value the ease of configuration of Barracuda Web Application Firewall, enhancing their setup and management experience.
  • Users commend the layered protection of Barracuda Web Application Firewall, ensuring comprehensive security for Web Apps and APIs.
  • Users value the layered protection of Barracuda Web Application Firewall, enhancing security for sensitive data and compliance.
  • Users appreciate the management efficiency of Barracuda Web Application Firewall, finding it easy to configure and manage.
  • Users appreciate the easy setup and management of Barracuda Web Application Firewall, simplifying their overall experience.
Cons
  • Users experience false positives with Barracuda Web Application Firewall, leading to inconsistent threat detection and manual reviews.
  • Users experience poor customer support, often facing delays in troubleshooting technical issues with the Barracuda Web Application Firewall.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of Barracuda Web Application Firewall?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About Barracuda Web Application Firewall?

Google Cloud Armor

Google Cloud Armor is a comprehensive security solution designed to protect applications and websites from a variety of threats, including distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks and common web vulnerabilities. Leveraging Google's global infrastructure, Cloud Armor offers robust defenses to ensure the availability and security of online services. Key Features and Functionality: - Built-in DDoS Defense: Provides automatic protection against Layer 3 and Layer 4 DDoS attacks, benefiting from Google's extensive experience in safeguarding major internet properties. - Adaptive Protection: Utilizes machine learning to detect and mitigate high-volume Layer 7 DDoS attacks, analyzing traffic patterns in real-time to identify and respond to threats. - Pre-configured WAF Rules: Offers out-of-the-box web application firewall rules based on industry standards to defend against common vulnerabilities, such as cross-site scripting (XSS) and SQL injection (SQLi) attacks. - Bot Management: Integrates with reCAPTCHA Enterprise to provide automated protection against malicious bots, helping to prevent fraud and abuse at the edge of the network. - Rate Limiting: Implements rate-based rules to control the volume of incoming requests, protecting applications from being overwhelmed by excessive traffic and ensuring access for legitimate users. Primary Value and User Solutions: Google Cloud Armor delivers enterprise-grade protection by combining DDoS defense and web application firewall capabilities at a predictable monthly price. It addresses critical security challenges by mitigating the OWASP Top 10 risks and providing adaptive, machine learning-based defenses against sophisticated attacks. By integrating seamlessly with Google's global load balancing infrastructure, Cloud Armor ensures that applications remain secure and available, regardless of deployment environment—be it on-premises, in the cloud, or in a hybrid setup.

Average Rating: 4.0/5.0

Total Reviews: 23

How Do G2 Users Rate Google Cloud Armor?

  • Has the product been a good partner in doing business?: 8.5/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10)

Who Is the Company Behind Google Cloud Armor?

  • Seller: Google
  • Year Founded: 1998
  • HQ Location: Mountain View, CA
  • Twitter: @google
    31,899,995 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    301,144 employees on LinkedIn®
  • Ownership: NASDAQ:GOOG

Who Uses This Product?

  • Top Industries: Computer & Network Security
  • Company Size: 52% Small, 39% Large

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About Google Cloud Armor?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users appreciate the flexible pricing of Google Cloud Armor, benefiting from substantial long-term savings.
  • Users appreciate the scalability of Google Cloud Armor, allowing for easy adjustment of resources as needed.
  • Users value the advanced security and built-in compliance features of Google Cloud Armor for robust protection.
Cons
  • Users find the complexity of pricing and support plans a barrier to fully utilizing Google Cloud Armor.
  • Users find the cost issues of Google Cloud Armor complex, with pricey support plans and limited enterprise tools.
  • Users find the limited availability of Google Cloud Armor frustrating compared to alternatives like AWS.
  • Users note the limited features of Google Cloud Armor, particularly in enterprise tools compared to competitors.
  • Users find the time-consumption of learning Google Cloud Armor to be a significant challenge in their experience.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of Google Cloud Armor?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About Google Cloud Armor?

F5 NGINX

NGINX, Inc. is the company behind NGINX, the popular open source project trusted by more than 400 million sites. We offer a suite of technologies for developing and delivering modern applications. The NGINX Application Platform enables enterprises undergoing digital transformation to modernize legacy, monolithic applications as well as deliver new, microservices‑based applications. Companies like Netflix, Starbucks, and McDonalds rely on NGINX to reduce costs, improve resiliency, and speed innovation. NGINX investors include Blue Cloud Ventures, e.ventures, Goldman Sachs, Index Ventures, MSD Capital, NEA, Runa Capital, and Telstra Ventures. NGINX, Inc. is headquartered in San Francisco, CA, with an EMEA head office in Cork, Ireland and APAC head office in Singapore. Learn more at https://www.nginx.com/

Average Rating: 4.6/5.0

Total Reviews: 112

How Do G2 Users Rate F5 NGINX?

  • Has the product been a good partner in doing business?: 9.1/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10)
  • Traffic Controls: 9.0/10 (Category avg: 9.1/10)
  • Security Monitoring: 9.1/10 (Category avg: 9.1/10)
  • Issue Tracking: 8.9/10 (Category avg: 8.7/10)

Who Is the Company Behind F5 NGINX?

  • Seller: F5
  • HQ Location: Seattle, Washington
  • Twitter: @F5Networks
    1,385 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    6,247 employees on LinkedIn®

Who Uses This Product?

  • Who Uses This: Software Engineer
  • Top Industries: Information Technology and Services, Computer Software
  • Company Size: 41% Small, 40% Medium

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About F5 NGINX?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users appreciate the configuration ease of F5 NGINX, benefiting from a smooth cross-platform installation process.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of F5 NGINX?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About F5 NGINX?

Lauren Worth
LW
Researched and written by Lauren Worth
Updated January 22, 2025

Web Application Firewall (WAF) Topics

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Learn More About Web Application Firewalls (WAF)


What is Web Application Firewall (WAF) Software?

WAF software products are used to protect web applications and websites from threats or attacks. The firewall monitors traffic between users, applications, and other internet sources. They're effective in defending against cross-site forgery, cross-site scripting (XSS attacks), SQL injection, DDoS attacks, and many other kinds of attacks.

These software solutions provide automatic defense and allow administrative control over rule sets and customization since some applications may have unique traffic trends, zero-day threats, or web application vulnerabilities. These tools also provide logging features to document and analyze attacks, incidents, and normal application behaviors.

Companies with web applications should use WAF tools to ensure all weak spots in the application itself are filled. Without WAF, many threats may go undetected, and data leakage may occur. They have truly become an obligatory component of any business-critical web application containing sensitive information.

Key Benefits of Web Application Firewall (WAF) Software

  • Protection against web-based threats
  • Historical documentation of incidents and events
  • Elastic, scalable web application protection

Why Use Web Application Firewall (WAF) Software?

There are a variety of benefits associated with WAF tools and ways they can boost security of applications deployed online. Most of the reasoning behind WAF usage is the generally accepted belief that web-based threats should be a concern for all businesses. Therefore, all businesses deploying web-based applications should be sure they are doing all they can to defend against the myriad cyberthreats that exist today.

Some of the numerous threats WAF products can help defend against include:

  • Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) — Cross-site scripting (XSS) is an attack where a malicious script is injected into websites using a web application to send malicious code. Malicious scripts can be used to access information such as cookies, session tokens, and other sensitive data collected by web browsers.
  • Injection Flaws — Injection flaws are vulnerabilities which allow attackers to send code through an application to another system. The most common type is a SQL injection. In this scenario, an attacker finds a point in which the web application passes through a database, executes their code, and can begin querying whatever information they want.
  • Malicious File Execution — Malicious file execution is accomplished when an attacker is able to input malicious files that are uploaded to the web server or application server. These files can be executed upon upload and completely compromise an application server.
  • Insecure Direct Object Reference — Insecure direct object reference occurs when user input can directly access an application's internal components. These vulnerabilities can allow attackers to bypass security protocols and access resources, files, and data directly.
  • Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) — CSRF attacks force users to execute actions on a web application the user has permission to access. These actions can force users to unwillingly submit requests that may damage the web application or change their credentials to something the attacker can reuse to gain access to an application at a future date.
  • Information Leakage — Information leakage can occur when unauthorized parties are able to access databases or visit URLs that are not linked from the site. Attackers may be capable of accessing sensitive files such as password backups or unpublished documents.
  • Improper Error Handling — Error handling refers to preprogrammed measures that allow applications to dismiss unexpected events without exposing sensitive information. Improper error handling leads to a number of various issues, including the release of data, vulnerability exposure, and application failure.
  • Broken Authentication — Broken authentication is the result of improper credential management functions. If authentication measures fail to function, attackers can walk by security measures without the valid identification. This can lead to attackers gaining direct access to entire networks, servers, and applications.
  • Session Management — Session management errors occur when attackers manipulate or capture the tokenized ID provided to authenticated visitors. Attackers can impersonate generic users or target privileged users to gain access control and hijack an application.
  • Insecure Cryptographic Storage — Cryptographic storage is used to authenticate and protect communications online. Attackers may identify and obtain unencrypted or poorly encrypted resources that may contain sensitive information. Proper encryption typically protects against this, but poor key storage, weak algorithms, and flawed key generation may put sensitive data at risk.
  • Insecure Communications — Insecure communications occur when messages exchanged between clients and servers becomes visible. Poor network firewalls and network security policies can lead to easy access for attackers by gaining access to a local network or carrier device or installing malware on a device. Once applications are exploited, individual user information and other sensitive data becomes extremely vulnerable.
  • Failure to Restrict URL Access — Applications may fail to restrict URL access to unauthorized parties who attempt to visit unlinked URLs or files without permission. Attackers may bypass security by directly accessing URLs containing sensitive information or data files. URL restriction can be accomplished by utilizing page tokens or encrypting URLs to restrict access unless they visit restricted pages through approved navigational paths.

Who Uses Web Application Firewall (WAF) Software?

The actual individuals using application firewalls are software developers and security professionals. The developer will typically build and implement the firewall, while it is maintained and monitored by security operations teams. Still, there are a few industries that may be more inclined to use WAF tools for various purposes.

Internet Businesses — Internet businesses are a natural fit for WAF tools. They often have one or multiple public-facing web applications and various internal web apps for employee use. Both of these kinds of applications should be guarded by some kind of firewall, as well as additional layers of security. While nearly all modern businesses use web applications in some capacity, internet-centric businesses are more susceptible to attacks simply because they likely possess more web apps.

E-Commerce Professionals — E-commerce professionals and e-commerce businesses that build their own online tools should be using WAF technology. Many e-commerce applications are managed by some kind of SaaS provider, but custom-built tools are incredibly vulnerable without an application firewall. E-commerce businesses who fail to protect their applications put the data of their visitors, customers, and business on the line.

Compliant-Required Industries — Industries that require a higher level of compliance for data security should use a web application firewall for any application that communicates with a server or network with access to sensitive information. The most common business types with increased compliance requirements include health care, insurance, and energy industries. But many countries and localities have expanded IT compliance requirements across industries to prevent data breaches and the release of sensitive information.

Web Application Firewall (WAF) Software Features

Some WAF products may be geared toward specific applications, but most share a similar set of core security features and capabilities. The following are a handful of common features to look for when considering the adoption of WAF tools.

Logging and Reporting — Provides required reports to manage the business. Provides adequate logging to troubleshoot and support auditing.

Issue Tracking — Tracks security issues as they arise and manages various aspects of the mitigation process.

Security Monitoring — Detects anomalies in functionality, user accessibility, traffic flows, and tampering.

Reporting and Analytics — Provides documentation and analytical capabilities for data gathered by the WAF product.

Application-Layer Control — Gives user-configurable WAF rules, such as application control requests, management protocols, and authentication policies, to increase security.

Traffic Control — Limits access to suspicious visitors and monitors for traffic spikes to prevent overloads like DDoS attacks.

Network Control — Lets users provision networks, deliver content, balance loads, and manage traffic.