Web Application Firewall Market Report 2025

The web application firewall market size has grown rapidly in recent years. It will grow from $5.85 billion in 2024 to $6.87 billion in 2025 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 17.4%. The growth in the historic period can be attributed to cybersecurity maturation, awareness and education, vendor competition and innovation, web application development, remote work trends.

The web application firewall market size is expected to see rapid growth in the next few years. It will grow to $13.96 billion in 2029 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 19.4%. The growth in the forecast period can be attributed to demand for scalable solutions, industry-specific application security needs, agile development practices, increasing application complexity. Major trends in the forecast period include customization and scalability, growing importance of application security, integration into DevOps processes, remote workforce security, advancements in WAF technologies.

The rise in cyberattacks and data breach incidents is anticipated to drive the growth of the web application firewall market in the future. A cyberattack or data breach refers to a malicious and deliberate attempt by an individual or group to infiltrate the information systems of another person or organization. This is typically aimed at gaining unauthorized access, corrupting, disrupting, disabling, or taking control of someone's computer. A web application firewall serves to prevent and protect web applications from such cyberattacks, ensuring data security. For example, in April 2024, the Government of the UK reported that in 2023, 50% of businesses and 32% of charities experienced cyber security breaches or attacks. These figures rose to 70% for medium-sized businesses, 74% for large companies, and 66% for high-income charities. Phishing was the most common type of breach, impacting 84% of businesses and 83% of charities, followed by impersonation attacks affecting 35% of businesses and 37% of charities, and malware incidents involving 17% of businesses and 14% of charities. The estimated cost of the most disruptive breach for businesses averaged around £1,205 ($1,573.01), with medium and large businesses facing losses of approximately £10,830 ($14,137.5). Consequently, the rise in cyberattacks and data breaches is significantly boosting the growth of the web application firewall market.

An increase in e-commerce is anticipated to boost the growth of the web application firewall market in the future. E-commerce, which stands for electronic commerce, involves the buying and selling of goods and services over the Internet. Web Application Firewalls (WAF) provide e-commerce platforms with robust cybersecurity by defending against malicious web traffic, ensuring secure transactions, and protecting sensitive customer information. For example, in August 2023, the Census Bureau of the Department of Commerce reported that U.S. retail e-commerce sales for the second quarter of 2023, adjusted for seasonal variation but not for price changes, reached $277.6 billion. This marked a 2.1 percent (±0.9%) increase from the first quarter of 2023. Consequently, the growth of e-commerce is driving demand for the web application firewall market.

A significant trend observed in the web application firewall market is technological advancement. Key players operating in this space are adopting sophisticated technologies, such as cloud-based website firewalls and advanced WAF features. These advancements incorporate behavioral analytics, proactive bot defense, and application-layer data encryption. For example, StackPath, a US-based edge computing platform provider, unveiled the StackPath Web Application Firewall (SP//WAF) subscription in May 2022. This offering introduces monthly WAF usage and enhanced access to specialized features, including advanced rule extensions, professional services, and comprehensive technical support. The SP//WAF's potent threat-detection capabilities cater to businesses of varying sizes, effectively addressing their unique security and operational management needs in a cost-efficient manner.

Major companies in the web application firewall market are prioritizing strategic partnerships to tackle cybersecurity challenges. Strategic partnerships involve companies utilizing each other's strengths and resources to achieve shared benefits and success. For example, in May 2024, Wissen, an India-based company that provides a wide range of IT services, including application development, testing, and infrastructure management, formed a partnership with Cyberbay, a cybersecurity solutions provider based in India. This collaboration aims to address the specific cybersecurity challenges faced by ASEAN companies by promoting a culture of vigilance through bug bounty programs. Emphasizing proactive security measures is crucial but often neglected in the region.

In a significant development during September 2022, Vista Equity Partners, a US-based investment firm, along with Evergreen Coast Capital Corp, a US-based private equity firm, completed the acquisition of Citrix Systems for a substantial sum of $16.5 billion. This acquisition envisions the amalgamation of Citrix Systems with TIBCO Software, strategically leveraging the unique strengths of both entities to drive innovation and transformation in the enterprise software landscape. Citrix Systems, a prominent US-based company specializing in cloud computing, virtualization technology, and providing server and web application firewall solutions, aligns with TIBCO Software to foster an enhanced operational framework and product innovation within the sector.

Major companies operating in the web application firewall market are Imperva Inc., Akamai Technologies Inc., Barracuda Networks Inc., Citrix System Inc., Cloudflare Inc., F5 Networks Inc., Fortinet Inc., Radware Ltd., Qualys Inc., Amazon Web Services Inc., Nsfocus Information Technology Co. Ltd., Microsoft Corporation, AppTrana by Indusface, Fastly Inc., Penta Security Systems Inc., PerimeterX, Signal Sciences Corporation, SiteGuard, SiteLock LLC, Sophos Group, Sucuri Inc., Trustwave Holdings Inc., Virsec Systems, Wallarm Inc.

Asia-Pacific was the largest region in the web application firewall market in 2024. Asia-Pacific is expected to be the fastest-growing region in the forecast period. The regions covered in the web application firewall market report are Asia-Pacific, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, North America, South America, Middle East, Africa. The countries covered in the web application firewall market report are Australia, Brazil, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Japan, Russia, South Korea, UK, USA, Canada, Italy, Spain.

A web application firewall is a specialized type of application firewall designed to prevent, monitor, and filter potentially harmful HTTP traffic to and from online services. The primary purpose of web application firewalls is to thwart attacks, safeguard customer data, and ensure compliance with relevant regulations. These firewalls operate based on a set of policies that aid in distinguishing between malicious and safe traffic.

The main components of web application firewall systems include both solutions and services. Web application firewall solutions are designed to filter out malicious HTTP traffic, preventing the compromise of critical data from the application server. These solutions can be custom-built or configured to address specific customer needs and are deployed either on-premise or in the cloud. They find application in a variety of industries, including banking, financial services, insurance, retail, IT and telecommunications, government and defense, healthcare, energy and utilities, education, and others.

The web application firewall market research report is one of a series of new reports that provides web application firewall market statistics, including web application firewall industry global market size, regional shares, competitors with a web application firewall market share, detailed web application firewall market segments, market trends and opportunities, and any further data you may need to thrive in the web application firewall industry. This web application firewall market research report delivers a complete perspective of everything you need, with an in-depth analysis of the current and future scenario of the industry.

The web application firewall market includes revenues earned by entities by providing negative security, positive security, and hybrid security for web services. The market value includes the value of related goods sold by the service provider or included within the service offering. Only goods and services traded between entities or sold to end consumers are included.

The market value is defined as the revenues that enterprises gain from the sale of goods and/or services within the specified market and geography through sales, grants, or donations in terms of the currency (in USD, unless otherwise specified).

The revenues for a specified geography are consumption values that are revenues generated by organizations in the specified geography within the market, irrespective of where they are produced. It does not include revenues from resales along the supply chain, either further along the supply chain or as part of other products.

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