What Is Application Detection and Response (ADR)?

Why the application layer needs its own detection

Perimeter and endpoint tools operate at different layers and miss application logic. A WAF inspects traffic at the edge. An EDR watches the endpoint and operating system. Neither sees what happens inside the application when a request is processed. Many modern exploits look like normal HTTP, socket, and memory activity to outside observers, which is exactly why they evade perimeter and endpoint detection. ADR closes that blind spot.

ADR vs WAF vs EDR vs RASP

• WAF filters and blocks at the perimeter based on request patterns. It has no view of application execution.
• EDR detects on the endpoint and operating system. It does not understand application logic.
• RASP instruments the application from the inside. It provides application context but is typically high overhead and operationally complex to tune and deploy at scale.
• ADR observes application execution with low overhead and without running third-party code inside the application process, then detects deviation toward exploitation. ADR complements WAF and EDR rather than replacing them.

How ADR detects attacks

The defining characteristic of ADR is detection at the moment of exploit initiation, not after compromise. Rather than relying on pre-loaded signatures, ADR builds behavioral baselines of normal and known-vulnerable execution and detects deviation from them. That makes it effective against zero-day and logic-based attacks, including in-memory techniques that leave no file artifact.

A concrete example

Consider an authentication-bypass attempt that manipulates a request header to skip middleware. To external monitoring this looks like ordinary HTTP and memory activity. An application-aware detector that has baselined the middleware function can see the deviation and the unexpected high-privileged execution flow, and block at the bypass point. The difference is context: the same syscalls look identical to infrastructure tools, but the application execution path tells the real story.

How Kodem delivers ADR

The Kodem ADR layer, called Shield, uses the platform runtime intelligence to detect exploit attempts inside application logic. It detects new execution of dormant vulnerable code paths, recognizes exploitation patterns without signatures, and can trigger automated incident workflows. It integrates with SIEM and SOAR platforms and adds application-layer context that perimeter and endpoint tools cannot provide.

Frequently asked questions

Does ADR replace my WAF or EDR?

No. ADR operates at the application layer and complements perimeter and endpoint tools with context they cannot see.

Can ADR stop zero-day attacks?

Because ADR detects deviation from baseline execution rather than matching signatures, it can identify zero-day and logic-based attacks that signature-based tools miss.

Is ADR the same as RASP?

Both add application context, but RASP instruments the app inline and is typically heavier to operate. ADR observes execution with low overhead and without running third-party code in the application process.