Over the past decade, millions of businesses have embraced web applications as an inexpensive way to build relationships and transactions with prospects and customers. But while they provide the opportunity for greater customer insight and efficiency, web applications also have vulnerabilities that can be exploited by cybercriminals. One of the most common and devastating of these is a web attack.
A web attack is an example of a cyberattack where the attacker impersonates another person to gain access to sensitive information or malicious activities like the theft of credit card numbers or other personal data. Web attacks are typically characterized by SQLi (Structured Query Language Injection), XSS (cross-site scripting) and file upload attacks.
In a SQLi attack hackers enter customized Structured Query Language commands into a web application or website field to steal private data stored on the database server behind. In an XSS attack hackers insert malicious code into websites or web apps that the victim’s web browser automatically executes without confirmation or encodes. The attack can hijack session information, display unauthorised text or images or redirect the victim to a phishing website.
The best way to protect against an attack on your website is to run regular vulnerability scans and apply patches to your website and its web servers and any other databases that are underlying. It is also recommended to create an incident response plan so that should an attack occur, it can be quickly discovered and addressed. You should also be able detect web attacks by being able to recognize warning signs such as network slowdowns and intermittent website shutdowns.