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Security8 min read

API Security: Cost of a Breach vs. Cost of Prevention

APIs are the #1 attack vector in 2026. Prevention costs 1% of breach costs.

By Richard Ewing·

APIs as Attack Surface

OWASP: APIs are the most common attack vector. Prevention costs: API gateway with rate limiting ($10-50K/year), API authentication/authorization ($5-20K), API monitoring ($10-30K), penetration testing ($15-30K/year).

Total prevention: $40-130K/year. Average API breach cost: $4.1M. Prevention is 30-100x cheaper than remediation.

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Published Work

This article expands on ideas from my published work in CIO.com, Built In, Mind the Product, and HackerNoon. View published articles →

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Richard Ewing

The Product Economist — Quantifying engineering economics for technology leaders, PE firms, and boards.