Slam the door in the face of the attackers
Penetration Testing (PT) or Pen Testing is the process of performing a near real-time simulation of an attack on the organization’s network, system, application, database, mobile device, and APIs to identify vulnerabilities and demonstrate how these could be exploited in an ethical way. Organizations can benefit from a Pen Test to ensure the implemented security controls are indeed working and effective. Penetration Test is a crucial part of any ongoing threat and Vulnerability Management program. Penetration Testing is enforced by many security standards and regulations to protect the company’s confidential information, client information and intellectual property.
Cyber Attacks are prevalent leading to massive security incidents and breaches, no organization is spared
“80 to 90 percent of all compromises originate from unmanaged devices” – Microsoft Digital Defence Report 2023
Regulated industries such as Banking, Finance, Insurance, Healthcare, Payment cards etc. need to maintain high-security standards to protect their infrastructure and information. One of the ways to demonstrate their robust security posture is to undergo an annual Penetration Test. Non-regulated industries are also catching up with the trend to undergo a Penetration Test. It is the best practice in the industry to perform a Penetration Test by an external and accredited Third Party.
Penetration Tests are generally accompanied by Vulnerability Assessments. A Vulnerability Assessment (VA) is a methodical process that is followed to identify the existing vulnerabilities present in your infrastructure. These vulnerabilities need to be associated with a CVSS score to understand their criticality which will guide an organization to fix them in order from most critical vulnerability to least critical. A VA is followed by a PT that tries to exploit the vulnerabilities ethically only to demonstrate the weaknesses in a well-defined and comprehensive report. Methodology of Penetration Test includes but is not limited to OWASP Top 10 for Web and API, SANS Top 20, NIST 800-15, ISSAF, and OSSTMM.
DEMONSTRATE COMPLIANCE
Performing a Vulnerability Assessment and Penetration Test (VA&PT) resulting in a report is a key requirement that is enforced in many security and privacy frameworks and regulations, ISO/IEC 27001, SOC2, GDPR, HIPAA, and PCI-DSS. An external VAPT is preferred as opposed to an internal one as it can have a conflict of interest.
APPROACHES TO PERFORM PENETRATION TEST
Penetration Test (PT) can be performed on many parts of an IT infrastructure and even collectively.
Network Penetration Test
Application Penetration Test
API Penetration Test
Database Penetration Test
Mobile Penetration Test
Cloud Penetration Test
Wireless Penetration Test
Penetration Tests could be performed manually or could be even automated which requires extensive planning and applying adequate safeguards.
The most common reasons for suffering vulnerabilities
- Missing or delay in applying security patch or hotfix
- Users remain a key vulnerability
- Existence of legacy firmware devices
- Lack of modernization of technology, skills and approach
- Missing out on less common software from the vulnerability scope
- Lack of robust and up-to-date inventory
- Lack of visibility in the use of Third party or open-source components in the deployed software or network
- Lack of threat intel from reliable sources
- Lack of holistic risk assessment on Third Parties offering services and products
“Ransomware operators are also increasingly exploiting vulnerabilities in less common software, making it more difficult to predict and defend against their attacks”
– Microsoft Digital Defence Report 2023
Common Challenges Faced by the Businesses
Perhaps a decade ago, annual VA&PT assessments did the job of identifying the vulnerabilities and weaknesses. But the scale at which the cyber-attacks are being launched, organizations need to gear up for more frequent assessments
- Frequency of assessments: VA&PTs are often restricted to annual exercise. One year is a long time to re-assess something that is critical and can lead to exploits resulting in incidents and breaches
- Lack of Automated Test: Conducting manual assessments frequently can be exhaustive and can consume a lot of time and resources.
- Penetration Test Methodology: Restricting to only a few methodologies may not cover the vast umbrella of vulnerability categories
- Lack of experience and expertise: As it is a near real-time simulation, lack of experience can run into incidents and accidental data exposure or unavailability of resources
- Insurance: Lack of adequate insurance coverage in the contract can impact the organization financially and affect its reputation negatively
- Service Provider security posture: The security posture of the Third Party is often not validated before conducting the assessment. They should be able to demonstrate security compliance by showcasing security certifications
What we do in the VA & PT Phase
“DEFEND INCREASING THREAT SURFACE”
A customized experience to undergo a Penetration Test based on the desired scope and the provision to opt for the methodology.
Penetration Test Methodology
Planning
- Establish the purpose and scope of the test,
- Do the groundwork and obtain management approval
- Documentation
Methodology
- Discovery – Information gathering and scanning of the scoped components Vulnerability Analysis
- Execution – Launch an attack to verify vulnerability and exploit
Reporting
- Document identified vulnerabilities
- Assign risk ratings based on priority
- Guidance to mitigate the discovered vulnerabilities
Benefits associating with Defentrix under Penetration Test
Harden Attack Surface and Achieve Compliance – Proactively identify vulnerabilities and understand the threat landscape to make risk-informed decisions.
- Meet applicable regulatory requirements.
- Reduce the probability of potential threats
- Ensure Business Continuity
Intelligent Insights – Penetration Test report provides exhaustive information on the type of test performed, types of vulnerabilities identified, potential impact if these vulnerabilities are exploited and guidance on remediation
Security Assurance to your clients – You can demonstrate the high standard you adhere to by showcasing the practice of undergoing a Penetration Test by an external Third Party which will add value and build client trust
Periodic Penetration Tests – Engaging with a Third party to perform periodic tests will ascertain the fact that you take security seriously and align with
- Requirements of many standards and frameworks.
- Comply with the security and vulnerability management policies
Save the cost of Incident response and mitigation – Proactively fixing vulnerabilities drastically reduces the chances of a potential vulnerability exploit.
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