---
title: CloudFront without WAF
description: Datadog, the leading service for cloud-scale monitoring.
breadcrumbs: >-
  Docs > Datadog Security > Code Security > Infrastructure as Code (IaC)
  Security > IaC Security Rules > CloudFront without WAF
---

# CloudFront without WAF

{% callout %}
# Important note for users on the following Datadog sites: app.ddog-gov.com

{% alert level="danger" %}
This product is not supported for your selected [Datadog site](https://docs.datadoghq.com/getting_started/site.md). ().
{% /alert %}

{% /callout %}

## Metadata{% #metadata %}

**Id:** `22c80725-e390-4055-8d14-a872230f6607`

**Cloud Provider:** AWS

**Platform:** Ansible

**Severity:** Medium

**Category:** Networking and Firewall

#### Learn More{% #learn-more %}

- [Provider Reference](https://docs.ansible.com/ansible/latest/collections/community/aws/cloudfront_distribution_module.html)

### Description{% #description %}

CloudFront distributions must be associated with an AWS WAF Web ACL to filter malicious HTTP traffic and reduce the risk of application-layer attacks such as SQL injection, cross-site scripting, and automated bot abuse.

For Ansible tasks using the `community.aws.cloudfront_distribution` or `cloudfront_distribution` module, the `web_acl_id` property must be defined and set to the ARN of a WAFv2 Web ACL (global scope). This rule flags distributions where `web_acl_id` is missing or undefined. Ensure the attached WAFv2 Web ACL ARN is compatible with CloudFront.

Secure example (Ansible):

```yaml
- name: create cloudfront distribution with WAF
  community.aws.cloudfront_distribution:
    state: present
    alias:
      - example.com
    web_acl_id: arn:aws:wafv2:global:123456789012:regional/webacl/example-web-acl/abcd1234-ef56-7890-gh12-ijklmnopqrst
    # other required distribution properties...
```

## Compliant Code Examples{% #compliant-code-examples %}

```yaml
- name: create a basic distribution with defaults and tags
  community.aws.cloudfront_distribution:
    state: present
    default_origin_domain_name: www.my-cloudfront-origin.com
    tags:
      Name: example distribution
      Project: example project
      Priority: '1'
    web_acl_id: my-web-acl-id
```

## Non-Compliant Code Examples{% #non-compliant-code-examples %}

```yaml
- name: create a basic distribution with defaults and tags
  community.aws.cloudfront_distribution:
    state: present
    default_origin_domain_name: www.my-cloudfront-origin.com
    tags:
      Name: example distribution
      Project: example project
      Priority: '1'
```