As businesses increasingly rely on APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) to power various digital services, a report by Cloudflare highlights the growing threat landscape associated with these vital technology components. APIs play a central role in facilitating communication between devices, systems, and applications, enabling seamless interactions on platforms ranging from banking systems to healthcare services. However, if left unmanaged or unsecured, APIs can become attractive targets for cyber threats, potentially leading to the compromise of sensitive information. Cloudflare’s CEO, Matthew Prince, emphasizes the need for companies to identify and protect all their APIs to prevent data breaches and secure their operations.
The popularity of APIs has surged across industries, with organizations leveraging them for enhanced functionalities in diverse sectors such as IoT, transportation, legal services, multimedia, and logistics. The report notes that APIs dominate dynamic internet traffic globally, constituting 57% of traffic. Africa and Asia stand out as regions experiencing explosive API adoption and witnessing the highest traffic share in 2023. However, the rise in API popularity has also attracted increased attack volumes. Cloudflare identifies HTTP Anomaly, Injection attacks, and file inclusion as the top three most commonly used attack types that the platform mitigated.
One significant challenge highlighted in the report is the prevalence of shadow APIs, where organizations struggle to protect what they cannot see. Machine learning identified nearly 31% more API REST endpoints than customer-provided identifiers, indicating a lack of full API inventory for many organizations. Despite this, the report underscores the role of DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service) mitigation solutions in blocking potential threats, with 33% of all mitigations applied to API threats being successfully blocked by existing DDoS protections. The report emphasizes the need for effective API security measures, including improved visibility, secure authentication and authorization processes, and enhanced protection against potential attacks.
