Penetration Testing

“A method of testing where testers target individual binary components or the application as a whole to determine whether intra or intercomponent vulnerabilities can be exploited to compromise the application, its data, or its environment resources.” – NIST CSRC

We strongly believe that our unique combination of competencies make us a good candidate to deliver any project.

Ideally, software and systems were designed from the start with the aim of eliminating dangerous security flaws. A pen test (also called ethical hacking) provides insight into how well that aim was achieved. Pen testing can help an organization:

Find weaknesses in systems
Determine the robustness of controls
Support compliance with data privacy and security regulations (e.g., PCI DSS, HIPAA, GDPR, etc.)
Provide qualitative and quantitative examples of current security posture and budget priorities for management

Why is Pen Testing important?

The rate of distributed denial-of-service, phishing and ransomware attacks is dramatically increasing, putting all internet-based companies at risk. Considering how reliant businesses are on technology, the consequences of a successful cyber attack have never been greater. A ransomware attack, for instance, could block a company from accessing the data, devices, networks and servers it relies on to conduct business. Such an attack could result in millions of dollars of lost revenue. Pen testing uses the hacker perspective to identify and mitigate cybersecurity risks before they are exploited. This helps IT leaders implement informed security upgrades that minimize the possibility of successful attacks.

What Is the Difference Between Vulnerability Scans and Pen Tests?

Vulnerability scanners are automated tools that examine an environment, and upon completion, create a report of the vulnerabilities uncovered. These scanners often list these vulnerabilities using CVE identifiers that provide information on known weaknesses. Scanners can uncover thousands of vulnerabilities, so there may be enough severe vulnerabilities that further prioritization is needed. Additionally, these scores do not account for the circumstances of each individual IT environment. This is where penetration tests come in.

While vulnerability scans provide a valuable picture of what potential security weaknesses are present, penetration tests can add additional context by seeing if the vulnerabilities could be leveraged to gain access within your environment. Pen tests can also help prioritize remediation plans based on what poses the most risk.