What Is Web Application Firewall (WAF)?
A security tool that monitors and filters HTTP traffic between the internet and a web application. A WAF protects against common attacks like SQL injection, XSS, and request forgery by analyzing request patterns and blocking malicious traffic before it reaches your application.
In Laravel Applications
WAFs like Cloudflare, AWS WAF, or Sucuri sit in front of your Laravel application and filter malicious requests. They complement but do not replace application-level security. A WAF blocks known attack patterns but cannot detect configuration issues like exposed .env files or debug mode.
Example
A WAF detects and blocks a SQL injection attempt in a query parameter before it reaches your Laravel application. However, it would not alert you that your Telescope dashboard is publicly accessible.
Related Terms
External Attack Surface Management (EASM)
The continuous process of discovering, monitoring, and managing all internet-facing assets and their security posture from an external perspective. EASM tools scan your applications the way an attacker would, identifying exposed services, misconfigurations, and vulnerabilities visible from the outside.
DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service)
An attack that overwhelms a server or network with traffic from many sources simultaneously, making it unavailable to legitimate users. Unlike a simple DoS attack from one source, DDoS attacks use thousands of compromised devices (a botnet) to generate traffic that is difficult to filter.
OWASP (Open Worldwide Application Security Project)
A nonprofit foundation that produces freely available tools, documentation, and standards for web application security. OWASP is best known for the OWASP Top 10, a list of the ten most critical web application security risks, updated every few years based on real-world data.
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