| Explanation & Hint:
To defend against the OWASP (Open Web Application Security Project) Top 10 web application security risks, a Web Application Firewall (WAF) is often considered the most suitable security device. Here’s why:
- Load Balancer: While a load balancer can distribute traffic to prevent overloads and can sometimes offer basic security features, it is not primarily designed to protect against the specific types of attacks listed in the OWASP Top 10.
- Intrusion Prevention System (IPS): An IPS monitors network and/or system activities for malicious activity. It’s a good security measure but is generally designed to protect against known threats at the network level and may not be as effective against web application attacks, which are often more sophisticated and targeted at application-level vulnerabilities.
- Web Security Appliance: This type of security device can include various features like URL filtering, malware detection, and content inspection. While beneficial as part of a security strategy, it does not provide the same level of tailored protection for web applications as a WAF does.
- Stateful Firewall: A stateful firewall keeps track of the state of active connections and makes decisions based on the context of the traffic. However, this is more effective at the network level rather than the application level where the OWASP Top 10 risks reside.
- Web Application Firewall (WAF): A WAF is specifically designed to monitor, filter, and block harmful HTTP/S traffic to and from a web application. It understands the web application’s logic and can help protect against web application attacks such as SQL injection, cross-site scripting (XSS), and other vulnerabilities listed in the OWASP Top 10.
Therefore, among the options given, a Web Application Firewall is best suited for defending Web Servers against the OWASP Top 10 risks. It’s important to note that the best defense is often a layered approach, incorporating several types of security measures. |