42Crunch API Protection vs Data Theorem API Security: Side-by-Side Comparison (2026)

42Crunch API Protection

Teams protecting microservices architectures should pick 42Crunch API Protection for its positive security model that enforces OpenAPI contracts at runtime, catching malformed requests before they reach application code. The tool covers all ten OWASP API vulnerabilities natively and deploys directly from CI/CD pipelines into containers and API gateways without requiring code changes. Skip this if you need a broader API management platform; 42Crunch is purpose-built for threat prevention, not governance or monetization.

Data Theorem API Security

Mid-market and enterprise teams managing APIs across multiple cloud platforms should choose Data Theorem API Security for its agentless discovery that actually finds shadow APIs without requiring agents deployed to every service. The platform covers the full NIST ID and PR functions,asset inventory, risk assessment, and runtime protection,which means you get both what's running and continuous monitoring of what it's doing, not just point-in-time scanning. Skip this if your APIs are mostly on-premise and behind mature WAF stacks; the value proposition is strongest when you're chasing undocumented endpoints across AWS, Azure, and GCP simultaneously.