Many businesses believe that simply carrying out a penetration test (pentest) improves their security. This is, for the most part, a misunderstanding. Whilst pentesting benefits can lead to improved security, it’s important for both the tester and the client to understand how the test will support this goal. It is actually the actions that come after the test that improves a business’ security, not the test itself.
In order to fully understand the pentesting benefits, we’ll firstly need to break down what a pentest is and how it works.
What is a Pentest?
A pentest is, essentially, ethical hacking. Professional cyber security experts will use offensive techniques to try and gain access to your business’ network and services, with the aim being to penetrate your internal systems and gain access to confidential information.
Fortunately, a pentester will stop there and provide a report to the business that can then be used to bolster security. A criminal, depending on their motivations, could then carry out a number of damaging actions, ranging from defacing a website to stealing credit card information of customers or ransoming data and systems for monetary gain.
Penetration testing is one of the most efficient ways to identify and address flaws in your cyber security measures.
How does pentesting work?
In a penetration test there are two main situations to test:
Internal – This scenario may simulate a situation where an employee is manipulated to open a malicious file, or is tricked into following a malicious link which could result with the tester gaining network access. With an initial foothold into the network, the tester would then explore the network from within, looking to gain persistent access to the broader network and any sensitive data.
External – Typically this would be an attack against a website or another service that is visible to the internet. A criminal can act with relative anonymity on the internet, meaning any attempts to gain access will go unpunished. These attacks often go undetected as there is little to differentiate an attacker from a normal user. For a real attacker, the chances of being caught are next to zero and the pay-off can be plentiful.
Pentesting can then be further divided based on the goals and requirements of the client.
Black box – This engagement type most closely resembles the situation an attacker may face. The only information they have on the target is that which they have been able to obtain from open sources of intelligence, which are any sources readily available to the public (websites, social media, blogs, etc.).
A black box engagement would start by visiting the company website and scraping social media for information on employees. The attack stage may begin with a phishing campaign, or it may be more targeted to specific individuals, gradually building up the attacker’s understanding of both the people and services in the organisation, figuring out where there are weaknesses to attack.
White box – While the black box test more accurately reflects an attacker’s methodology, it may not be the most cost-effective way to test the network. In a white box test, the client would provide the tester with all the information they would need to access the network. This may be useful to train security operations centres, or to limit the scope of disruption to the business.
Grey box – Somewhere between the two sits the grey box pentest, where limited information is provided, with the aim of balancing costs and potential disruption against a realistic simulation of an attack.
What are the pentesting benefits?
Pentesting should be carried out regularly to assess and reassess your network, especially if new pieces of software have been incorporated into your workflow. The benefits of pentesting include:
- Identifying risks – regular pentesting allows you to evaluate web applications and both internal and external network security. Once identified, proactive steps can be taken to protect both your people and assets.
- Prevent hackers – pentesters will use the same methods that real hackers would use, meaning that you get an accurate assessment of your IT infrastructure without having to suffer an actual attack.
- Avoid costly data breaches – data breaches have proved devastating for businesses across the world. While the monetary damage is an obvious detriment, the damage to an organisation’s reputation can prove far more damaging in the long term.
- Comply with regulations – penetration testing will help demonstrate your due diligence and commitment to information security. Many standards, such as the ISO 27001 and PCI-DSS, will look favourably on regular pentesting.
The penetration testing report
While many businesses have legal obligations to have pentests carried out periodically, businesses should not lose sight of the key deliverable – the pentest report. This report will contain a wealth of information that the recipient can use to improve their security and inform their risk management strategies.
Reports are laid out to make them readable at executive level, with increasing technical detail for IT teams. It provides details ranging from informational findings to misconfigurations and vulnerabilities, thoroughly detailing any exploits that were used throughout the test, and identifying key actions that the business should take to close the exploit path and mitigate any risks.
Bespoke penetration testing with Assure Technical
Nobody wants to think about the threat of cyberattack. Unfortunately, it’s an ever-present issue that could strike at any time, so it’s important to proactively address your cyber security using pentesting.
At Assure Technical, we understand that cyber security can be a little daunting. It’s our goal to keep security simple – we’re cutting out the jargon to deliver honest, professional and upfront cyber security solutions.
