A smaller, crucial group – security gateways such as firewalls, proxies, web application firewalls (WAFs), and API gateways – sit directly in the traffic path. In a crisis, these controls buy application teams precious time during the critical first hours or days after disclosure. Strategic Gateways Multiply Defense in CrisesThe greatest strength of strategic gateways is leverage. That is how mature organizations shrink mitigation time: a single configuration update at a strategic gateway becomes an organization-wide defense. The Three-Question Zero-Day Readiness TestTo assess architectural readiness for the next zero-day, start by asking three questions about your gateways as centralized, strategic controls:How many internet-facing applications bypass strategic gateways?