Endpoint Security

The practice of securing endpoints or entry points of end-user devices such as desktops, laptops, and mobile devices from being exploited by malicious actors and campaigns.

Endpoint security refers to the practice of protecting network entry points -- including end-user devices, servers, and API endpoints -- from unauthorized access and malicious activity. In the traditional IT sense, this involves securing laptops, desktops, and mobile devices with antivirus, encryption, and access controls.

In the context of APIs, endpoint security focuses on protecting API endpoints from threats such as injection attacks, credential stuffing, data exfiltration, and denial-of-service attacks. This includes implementing authentication, input validation, encryption in transit (TLS), and monitoring for anomalous request patterns.

API gateways serve as a centralized enforcement point for endpoint security. They can validate incoming requests, strip malicious headers, enforce content-type restrictions, and block suspicious traffic before it reaches backend services. In serverless architectures, where backend functions are stateless and ephemeral, the gateway is often the primary layer of defense. Web Application Firewall (WAF) rules can be applied at the gateway to protect against common attack vectors.