Fraud prevention at the edge: How AWS WAF keeps CX platforms secure

Dann Nyanguen -- Cloud Center of Excellence

Fraud in digital platforms doesn’t stop at stealing information. It also eats away at customer trust, skews business data, and adds extra costs for support and compliance. For customer experience (CX) platforms that handle millions of interactions a day, the impact can be massive.

That’s why we use AWS WAF Fraud Control as part of our cloud security strategy. Think of it as a protective layer at the “front door” of a platform. It stops fraud before it sneaks inside without slowing down legitimate users or disrupting the experience.

Why fraud hits CX platforms so hard

CX platforms are designed to handle huge volumes of activity. They include sign-ups, logins, loyalty programs, and constant customer interactions. That scale is exactly what makes them appealing to fraudsters. The most common tactics include:

Testing stolen usernames and passwords until something works
Fake account to exploit promotions, rewards or bonuses
Flooding registration or login systems to manipulate traffic and overwhelm defenses

When fraud makes it past the defenses, the impact is felt everywhere. Analytics data becomes unreliable, making it harder for teams to make informed decisions. Support teams get tied up with resolving fraudulent cases instead of helping real customers. And over time, the damage chips away at customer trust and the brand’s reputation.

Smarter protection at login and sign-up

The real risk areas are login and account creation, and that’s where AWS WAF Fraud Control steps in.

For logins (Account takeover prevention): WAF looks at login attempts in real time. If it sees patterns like repeated failed attempts from the same IP, impossible login speeds, or unusual device fingerprints, it blocks them automatically. This keeps sessions safe and reduces the support tickets that usually come with account lockouts.

For sign-ups (Account creation fraud prevention): WAF checks registration requests for red flags—like disposable email addresses, suspiciously fast sign-ups, or behavior that looks automated. This helps stop fake accounts before they ever exist, keeping loyalty programs and promotions safe.

And the best part is that legitimate users don’t notice. The process feels seamless while fraud gets filtered out in the background.

One of the biggest advantages of AWS WAF is how little heavy lifting it requires. No redesigning your systems, no complex integrations, simply adding a managed rule group to your WAF setup. From there, fraud detection and blocking begin immediately.

Because it’s cloud-native, protection scales automatically with demand. The platform could handle thousands of requests or millions, WAF adapts in real time. Security teams also get visibility into attack patterns through logs and dashboards, which can plug into existing monitoring tools.

Delivering enhanced business value

Fraud prevention directly supports growth, efficiency, and brand reputation. Stopping fraud early has ripple effects across the business:

- Analytics remain clean, ensuring marketing and product teams can trust the data they rely on
- Support teams spend less time investigating fraud-related issues 
- Compliance audits become easier with WAF logs providing clear, audit-ready records 
- Customers continue to trust the platform, knowing their accounts and information are protected

Fraud tactics evolve quickly, and defenses need to keep pace. At TP, we are working with clients to extend WAF protections into wider identity and access frameworks. This means tying fraud signals to IAM policies, integrating with SIEM platforms for unified visibility, and using insights to strengthen both compliance and governance. We are also exploring ways to enrich WAF data with signals from other cloud tools, giving businesses an even clearer picture of how fraud interacts with customer journeys and sensitive data.

In today’s digital-first economy, security and customer experience go hand in hand. Every login, every registration, and every transaction must be both smooth and safe.

With AWS WAF Fraud Control, block fraud at the edge, protecting customer trust, and keeping platforms ready to grow without compromise. Contact us to learn more.