Designing and implementing the best functionality for your APIs may be much easier when you do it internally – business and development departments are much closer to each other. But even internal developers rarely give high priority to security, as businesses tend to focus on functionality, UX, and deadlines. As security teams typically have limited influence on the development process, APIs may be vulnerable to multiple attack vectors.

Make sure you investigate these four aspects:

1. Controlling API traffic between your internal servers, and between the internal servers and the outside world – including non-public endpoints
2. Inspecting API messages based on the content to make sure even approved interactions cannot cause any harm – signatures are not enough
3. Segmenting your microservices architecture to prevent lateral movement of malicious actors between your internal servers
4. Enforcing security schemas to protect against rogue endpoints left in during development