What is a Web Application Firewall? (1 minute read)

A firewall is a security system that monitors and controls network traffic based on a set of security rules. Firewalls usually sit between a trusted network and an untrusted network; oftentimes the untrusted network is the Internet. For example, office networks often use a firewall to protect their network from online threats. While traditional firewalls help protect private networks from malicious web applications, web application firewalls (WAFs) help protect web applications from malicious users. A WAF helps protect web applications by filtering and monitoring HTTP traffic between a web application and the Internet. It typically protects web applications from attacks like cross-site forgery, cross-site-scripting (XSS), file inclusion, and SQL injection, among others. By deploying a WAF in front of a web application, a shield is placed between the web application and the Internet. 

Cloudflare Web Application Firewall's intuitive dashboard enables users to build powerful rules through easy clicks. Every request to the WAF is inspected against the rule engine and the threat intelligence curated from protecting approximately 25 million websites. Suspicious requests can be blocked, challenged ,or logged as per the needs of the user while legitimate requests are routed to the destination. Cloudflare’s WAF enables protection against malicious attacks that aim to exploit vulnerabilities. 

Learn more: Cloudflare Video on Web Application Firewall