What types of attacks do Web Application Firewalls (WAF) commonly mitigate?

Web Application Firewalls (WAF) are specifically designed to protect web applications by filtering and monitoring HTTP traffic between a web application and the Internet. One of the primary functions of a WAF is to mitigate common web-based attacks, which include SQL injection and cross-site scripting (XSS).

SQL injection involves an attacker inserting malicious SQL statements into an entry field for execution, which can lead to unauthorized access to database information. WAFs help prevent this by analyzing requests and blocking any that are deemed suspicious or that contain known malicious patterns associated with SQL injection attacks.

Cross-site scripting (XSS) is another prevalent threat where attackers inject malicious scripts into content that is served to users. This allows them to execute scripts in the users' browsers, potentially hijacking sessions or stealing cookies. WAFs provide a layer of security by sanitizing inputs and ensuring that potentially dangerous scripts are not executed.

By focusing on these types of attacks, WAFs play a critical role in maintaining the integrity, security, and availability of web applications, making option B the correct choice in this context. While denial of service attacks, phishing attempts, and malware injections are also significant concerns for web security, they typically require different types of security measures or solutions alongside what a