Clear, field-tested guides and tutorials on staying secure and private online — from the Coppers.io editorial team.
A web application firewall (WAF) is a security layer that sits in front of a website or web app, inspecting incoming traffic and blocking malicious requests before they reach your server. Unlike a traditional firewall that guards your network’s perimeter, a WAF understands web traffic specifically — so it can stop attacks like SQL injection, cross-site scripting, and malicious bots that target applications directly. Here’s how a WAF works, the types available, and whether you need one.
AI workflow automation uses artificial intelligence to carry out multi-step business processes — reading information, making decisions, and taking actions — with little or no human input. It goes beyond rule-based automation by handling the messy, judgement-based steps that used to need a person: understanding an email, classifying a document, drafting a reply. Here’s what it really means, ten concrete examples of it in action, and how to start without writing code.
Split tunneling is a VPN feature that lets you choose which apps or websites go through the encrypted VPN tunnel and which use your normal, direct internet connection at the same time. Instead of all-or-nothing protection, you split your traffic — securing what matters while keeping full speed and local access for everything else. It’s genuinely useful, but it comes with a security trade-off worth understanding before you turn it on.
Phishing is a scam in which attackers impersonate a trusted person or organisation to trick you into revealing sensitive information — passwords, card numbers, codes — or into clicking a malicious link or attachment. It’s the most common cyberattack in the world and the starting point for everything from drained bank accounts to corporate ransomware. The good news: once you know the patterns, phishing is one of the most avoidable threats out there.
