Gcore snaps up StackPath WAAP offering

An abstract image of a lock against a digital background, denoting cybersecurity.
(Image Credit: TheDigitalArtist / Pixabay) (Image credit: Pixabay)

Gcore has announced its acquisition of StackPath’s web application and API protection (WAAP) solution. Gcore is a global edge AI, cloud, network, and security solutions provider, while StackPath is an American edge computing platform provider.

Gcore said that the new acquisition will provide its customers with an enhanced, enterprise-grade security solution, incorporating web application firewall (WAF), API security, bot protection, and Layer-7 DDoS mitigation at the edge.

Financial details of the deal were not disclosed, so at this time we don’t know how much Gcore shelled out for this acquisition. The company did say that the integration of StackPath WAAP into Gcore’s security product lineup was scheduled to be completed by Q3 2024.

APIs often targeted

Today, web applications and application programming interfaces - APIs - are considered business-critical technologies. As such, they are often the main targets of various cybercriminal campaigns, including malware attacks, cross-scripting attacks, adversarial bots and volumetric Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS).

In fact, Verizon recently published its Data Breach Investigation report (DBIR) which found that web apps were used in 80% of security incidents and 60% of breaches in 2023, while Barracuda reported having to deal with 18 billion attacks on web apps last year, with over a billion in December alone.

Barracuda claims that many carry vulnerabilities or configuration errors, and since they often contain confidential information to businesses, such as personal and financial data, they make for prime attack targets. The company also found that 40% of IT professionals believe attacks on web apps to be one of the most lucrative for cybercriminals, while 55% thought the same of attacks on APIs.

Web applications include popular productivity tools such as Google Workspace and Microsoft 365, which allow users to work and collaborate on documents from anywhere via their web browser alone.

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Sead is a seasoned freelance journalist based in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina. He writes about IT (cloud, IoT, 5G, VPN) and cybersecurity (ransomware, data breaches, laws and regulations). In his career, spanning more than a decade, he’s written for numerous media outlets, including Al Jazeera Balkans. He’s also held several modules on content writing for Represent Communications.