Web Application Firewall (WAF) Implementation
Overview
The client is one of Ethiopia’s leading private financial institutions, operating a rapidly growing network of digital banking channels, including internet and mobile banking. As the bank expanded its online presence, its web applications became increasingly exposed to cyber threats such as SQL injection, cross-site scripting (XSS), and denial-of-service (DoS) attacks.
To safeguard its digital assets and ensure uninterrupted online banking operations, the bank sought a comprehensive Web Application Firewall (WAF) solution to secure its external-facing systems and comply with both internal and regulatory cybersecurity standards.
Challenge
Before the project, the Banks’ external web infrastructure faced several security and operational challenges:
Exposure to Web-Based Attacks — Frequent attempts of injection and cross-site scripting attacks targeting online portals.
Limited Threat Visibility — Security logs and attack data were scattered, with no centralized monitoring.
Compliance Requirements — National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE) and PCI DSS regulations required stronger web-layer protection.
Manual Rule Management — Existing network firewalls were not designed to protect at the application layer.
Performance Concerns — The bank needed stronger security without slowing down web services or customer experience.
Solution
V-Tech Solutions implemented an F5 Web Application Firewall (WAF) to deliver intelligent, adaptive protection for the Bank ’s digital services.
Key solution components included:
F5 Advanced WAF Deployment — Configured to protect internet and mobile banking web portals against OWASP Top 10 threats.
Traffic Profiling & Behavioral Analysis — Machine learning-based detection of anomalies and zero-day exploits.
Bot and DDoS Protection — Prevented automated bot attacks and mitigated denial-of-service attempts in real time.
Custom Security Policies — Tailored rulesets aligned with the bank’s internal security architecture and compliance standards.
SSL/TLS Offloading — Optimized performance by handling encryption at the WAF layer.
Integration with SIEM — Centralized alerting and reporting for SOC visibility and incident management.
Results
The implementation resulted in measurable improvements in both security posture and operational efficiency:
100% protection against OWASP Top 10 vulnerabilities.
Zero downtime during or after deployment, ensuring seamless digital banking services.
Significant reduction in malicious traffic reaching backend servers.
Improved compliance with NBE and PCI DSS cybersecurity audit requirements.
Enhanced visibility for the SOC team with real-time dashboards and alerting.
Technologies
- F5 Advanced Web Application Firewall (WAF)
- F5 BIG-IP Platform
- IBM QRadar for SIEM IntegrationSSL/TLS Offloading
- SSL/TLS Offloading
- OWASP Rule Sets and Custom Policy Framework