An attacker makes an attempt against a Web server. The result is that the attack takes the form of URLs. These URLs search for a certain string that identifies an attack against the Web server…

Policy-based detection defines what traffic is permitted or denied according to organizational security rules, not by matching specific strings against known attack patterns.

Signature-based detection works by comparing traffic or request patterns against a database of known attack signatures. When URLs contain specific strings that match a documented attack signature, the IDS/IPS identifies and blocks the attack based on that exact pattern. This is the standard method for detecting known, previously documented attacks and is well-suited for URL-based web attack patterns.

Anomaly-based detection establishes a baseline of normal behavior and flags statistical deviations from that baseline, rather than matching specific known attack strings in URLs.

A honeypot is a decoy system designed to lure attackers and observe their techniques - it is not an IDS/IPS detection method applied to live traffic inspection.