By now, you likely know about network assessments and how they can help you evaluate your network as a whole. You might have also heard about penetration testing. However, the wide variation between different penetration testing services can make the specifics of the service ambiguous.
To simplify penetration testing, here's an overview of what to expect, what results will indicate, and who these services are best for.
Network penetration testing is a type of white hat hacking, or ethical hacking. It is designed to simulate how real-world cybercriminals might try to breach your network. Through these simulated attacks, cybersecurity professionals can uncover gaps in your cybersecurity protections.
When you're looking at different penetration testing companies, it's important to note that these services can vary quite a bit. Some services consist of simplistic scans with a penetration testing tool, which won't give you any actionable insights to remediate issues found.
Penetration testers should provide you with dissected, actionable insights to help you bolster your strategy. That's why finding a reputable service provider is key in optimizing your cybersecurity.
Penetration testing services might be for you if you have a large-to-medium-sized company, if you deal with sensitive data, or if you're required by industry regulations to have them performed on a semi-regular basis to achieve compliance.
Industries best suited to this service include:
These are the most common industries that need penetration testing and robust cybersecurity protections, due to the legally-protected data they deal with. Hackers know personally identifiable health, legal, and financial data are valuable enough for businesses to give into their demands in the event of an attack.
Even if you're not within these industries, if you handle sensitive information, your business could be at risk of a devastating attack. That's why experts recommend getting ahead of hackers by investing in ethical hacking services.
There are five main types of penetration tests available. These include internal and external penetration tests, purple team, assumed breach, payload & delivery, and red team testing.
External and internal penetration testing are designed to use the latest cyber attack techniques to evaluate potential vulnerabilities that could lead to data breaches.
Purple team testing is when external cybersecurity professionals simulate hackers (red team) trying to breach your network. During these simulations, they work in tandem with your internal IT team (blue team) to identify security gaps.
Assumed breach testing is when your penetration test provider uses "compromised" credentials you provide them with to try to bypass antivirus or Endpoint Detection & Response (EDR) tools.
This puts your existing security systems to the test, simulating an attack where hackers have already stolen key credentials to see how easily they can move around using them.
Payload & delivery testing mimics the scenario in which one of your users accidentally downloads malware by clicking on a malicious link or attachment. It is designed to see how your antivirus and EDR tools respond to the threat.
This is a common way hackers inject malware into business networks, since social engineering has become more sophisticated and hard to spot.
Red team testing is the most advanced form of penetration test. This is when cybersecurity experts try to breach your network by any means necessary, using all available resources and tactics in the offense.
Penetration testing is a crucial way to test your IT security strategy. This is a great option if you work with a managed IT provider, as it will test out the tools and practices they've implemented.
These tests should be completed every couple of years to ensure your network remains secure. Cybercrime advances rapidly, so you should follow suit by continuously monitoring and testing your cybersecurity tools.
Once you've had a penetration test completed by a separate entity, these results can be handed off to be interpreted by your managed IT provider. A good provider will have the resources to analyze findings from your chosen penetration testing service.
Then, they should present their recommendation and get to work implementing necessary changes.
Cybersecurity doesn't have to be a stressful undertaking. A managed security provider is a great resource not only for finding quality penetration testing vendors, but for optimizing and securing your network from a holistic standpoint.
If you're interested in penetration testing, click the button below to speak to an IT professional about different cybersecurity services that might be a good fit for you.