Over the past few years, you may have heard the term āDigital transformation is essentialā many times, and while yes, it is essential, the rapid progression is bringing some hidden threats to the playground.
It isnāt a hacker sitting behind their computer causing havoc in your environment, a glaring ransomware attack or even a flashing DDoS incident. It is the humble connectors that drive your applications, your services and your customer interactions. It is your APIs working in the background, until they no longer do.
APIs: Essentials with some downfalls
APIs are like the veins of your digital landscape. They transport your data, requests and responses between applications all day, every day. They are vitally important. The challenges that organisations are facing are that they do not know how many APIs are in use, where they are, and, importantly, the sensitive information they may be exposing. This not only poses a technical issue, but also a business risk.
Our API expert partners, Salt Security, have seen that API traffic accounts for more than 80% of all website traffic. Which is a significant number. This surge brings trouble where APIs are becoming prime targets for attackers. Unlike bold attack vectors, API attacks normally present themselves as ordinary activity, so you are totally unaware until data is being siphoned.
The Importance of APIs being a Top Priority
API weaknesses are not only an IT concern; they are also a governance issue. If an API is undocumented, untracked or poorly secured, it offers a gateway to sensitive customer data, internal operations or regulatory breaches.
For example, if a Fortune 500 firm launches a cutting-edge mobile app that communicates with its backend via APIs. They may find that everything seems fine initially, but a few months down the line, they discover that one of those APIs is exposing sensitive data due to a minor error, which brings large fines, negative press and ultimately, reputational damage.
Suddenly, what appeared to be a āminorā API oversight escalates into a board-level emergency.
The Issue of Invisibility
The core issues isnāt that APIs are overtly ābadā, it is that organisations lack visibility into them. They depend on outdated records, random audits and mere assumptions. This is where Salt Security is owning the landscape.
They provide ongoing discovery, monitoring, and protection of APIs, effectively shedding light on the most obscure parts of your digital framework. Their platform not only reacts to threats but also predicts and alleviates them by identifying anomalies in real-time and learning from previous behaviours.
Taking a Proactive Stance
If your company is dedicated to digital transformation, which should be the case, itās essential to examine your APIs closely. This means not only the well-known ones but also the neglected, shadow, and inactive endpoints found within your legacy systems.
Get your teams to consider the following:
Are we cognizant of all APIs currently in use?
Are we monitoring their performance consistently?
What is our plan if one is misused?
Visibility has become a necessity; it is the foundation of modern security. Itās time for the boardroom to give these discussions the attention they deserve.
To find out more about how we can assist in making your APIs more visible, get in touch.
