Web applications and application programming interfaces (APIs) give constituents online entry to government services, but the technology is uniquely vulnerable to cyberattacks. Conventional firewalls protect agency networks but cannot secure apps that must provide 24/7 public access. Weaknesses in legacy applications are difficult to patch without interrupting essential functions. In addition, generative AI accelerates the risk, making it easier for malicious actors identify vulnerabilities, generate exploits, and scale attacks.
To answer these threats, agencies must prioritize web-focused protection and adopt AI-assisted security tools that learn normal application behavior and detect abnormal activity. With this strategy, they can move from discovery and monitoring to active prevention, reducing risk while giving agencies time to modernize legacy systems safely.
“Agencies are deploying chatbots, AI assistants and new API connections, which bring additional risks like prompt injection and data leakage. So we’re facing a bigger surface and faster, cheaper attacks. The static defenses that we used to use can’t keep pace,” said Glen Deskin, Head of Engineering and Cybersecurity Evangelist, Office of the Chief Technology Officer at Check Point Software Technologies.
In this video interview, Deskin discusses the challenges of protecting online services and the special strategies agencies need to defend data and systems without interrupting access. Topics include:
- Why government web applications are at greater risk than commercial sites
- How agencies’ own AI tools can expand the attack surface
- How to build a web-focused defense
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