The Digital Press

A security researcher discovered a clever way to bypass a Web Application Firewall (WAF) on a New Zealand website by exploiting its autocomplete search feature. By using misspelled but autocompleted script tags, they were able to inject malicious HTML and JavaScript without triggering the WAF’s defenses.

Why it matters: This technique shows that even well-configured WAFs can be circumvented by leveraging frontend input transformations like autocomplete.

The big picture: Autocomplete and other input sanitization features can inadvertently aid attackers by transforming harmless inputs into executable code.

The stakes: Successful bypasses could lead to cross-site scripting (XSS) attacks, exposing users to cookie theft and broader security compromises.

Commenters say: Readers appreciate the creative approach to WAF bypass but warn that defenses must consider frontend behavior, not just raw input filtering.