Penetration Testing

Penetration testing, or pentesting, is an independent and objective security assessment which simulates real world attacks on an IT system be it a web application, mobile application, internal network or external network. The aim is to proactively identify vulnerabilities and weaknesses ahead of your attacker.

In the past few years cloud penetration testing has become increasingly in-demand, whereby the cloud system’s strength and weaknesses are evaluated, with the ultimate goal of strengthening the cloud’s overall security posture. Cloud penetration testing aids in detecting threats, risks, weak points and any possible gaps. The impact and effects of exploitable vulnerabilities, can be devastating to organisations.

At Cybergate we utilise the same penetration testing tools and techniques as real-world hackers do to offer comprehensive security assessments. These assessments are tailored to your environment and organisational needs, clearly highlighting the security shortcomings whilst providing actionable remediation advice to improve your overall security posture.

A pen test by Cybergate can be performed on any of the below and by exploiting multiple attack verticals.

Why do organisations need pen testing?

Organisations need to fully understand the effectiveness of its defence systems and gaps, if any, in its systems, both the public facing and the internal ones. Understanding the extent of the access and damage that can be inflicted by malicious attackers. The needs can be summarised as follows:

To honour a Regulatory requirement
To Determine the business risks and how they can possibly affect you
To Analyse the performance of IT defences
To evaluate your posture with regard to IT security
To Prevent business damage proactively
To Assess the assault readiness of the IT team.

Be proactive. Build cyber and therefore business resilience to operate smoothly.

Benefits of pen testing

The organisation will benefit from pen tests by being, at all times, aware of possible vulnerabilities. The robustness and effectiveness of existing systems including defence systems can be identified.

When addressing gaps and vulnerabilities identified in pen tests, risk is mitigated and business continuity achieved. Stopping business operations, due to security breaches produce a wholesome list of negative impacts such as loss of customers, reputational damage, fines and licence freezing.

Would you like to learn more about Penetration Testing? Get in Touch.

Pentest Methodology Phases

The Cybergate penetration testing methodology for websites and web applications is made up of the following phases:

Pre-engagement Assessment: We collaborate with you to understand your cyber security requirements and goals. This exercise will ultimately define the penetration testing services required and the duration of the engagement(s) along with assets which are in scope.
Penetration Test Execution: In this phase your dedicated consultant will perform the actual test by utilising the same penetration testing tools and techniques malicious actors use whilst following our structured and comprehensive pentesting methodology for that specific type of pentest.
Reporting Phase: You will be presented with a report detailing the vulnerabilities discovered and how they were exploited along with actionable and tailored remediations.

An End-to-end approach

Cybergate does not offer penetration testing in isolation. By combining pen tests, to phishing simulations and cyber security awareness training, we help clients implement a robust cyber security strategy which encapsulates threat identification, risk assessments, internal governance, policy and compliance, namely ISO and PCI DSS.

web application penetration test cybergate your cyber security partner

Website and Web Application Penetration Testing

Your website is the face of your company! Web Applications (Web Apps) have become a necessity for organisations across the globe to establish their online presence and offer services internationally. It is therefore paramount that these technologies are thoroughly security-tested against the latest web attacks to ensure that the Confidentiality, Integrity and Availability of the data processed by them is not in jeopardy.

Cybergate’s Web Application Penetration Testing methodology is based on OWASP’s Application Security Verification Standard (ASVS) with a focus on the OWASP Top 10 vulnerabilities. Protect your website by ensuring that vulnerabilities are discovered before they’re exploited by cyber criminals.

External Infrastructure Penetration Testing

Publicly accessible IT systems at the perimeter are a necessity to provide services to customers and to remotely administer internal resources (eg: VPN and SSH). These systems provide a gateway between the internal company and the outside world, drastically increasing the attack surface and opening doors to hackers.

Cybergate’s External Infrastructure Penetration Test (Network Pentesting) provides a comprehensive security assessment of your external landscape be it on-premise, i.e. hosted by you, or in the cloud. Not only will this assessment identify potential issues that your organisation’s exposed services could introduce, but also reveals superfluous ones which can be removed to drastically reduce the attack surface, leaving only the necessary services for your business to function.

Reach out to us to close all your doors to hackers.

internal infrastructure penetration test cybergate your cyber security partner

external infrastructure penetration test cybergate your cyber security partner 4

Internal Infrastructure Penetration Testing

Internal networks contain the crown jewels of the company. Disgruntled or rogue members of staff could pose a serious security risk due to the elevated privileges these members are implicitly trusted with. Whilst securing the perimeter is an invaluable exercise, the protection of internal systems from an assumed compromise perspective is just as valuable.

Cybergate’s Internal Infrastructure Penetration Test provides a comprehensive mapping and security assessment of your internal landscape. The level of segregation of the internal network is assessed to ensure that access to internal resources is granted on a need-to-have basis. The internal network pentest will also identify potential issues that your organisation’s services could introduce to insider threats and reveal superfluous ones which can be removed to drastically reduce the attack surface, leaving only the necessary services for your members of staff to do their work.

Mobile Application Penetration Testing

Organisations are leveraging mobile (Android & iOS) applications to provide services at the palm of everyone’s hands. From transferring money to interacting on social network platforms, mobile apps are constantly entrusted with sensitive and personal information such as user and financial data. This makes them an ideal target.

Cybergate’s Mobile Application Penetration Testing methodology is based on OWASP’s Mobile Application Security Verification Standard (MASVS) with a focus on the OWASP Top 10 vulnerabilities. Protect your mobile application by ensuring that vulnerabilities are discovered before they’re exploited by cyber criminals.

mobile application penetration test cybergate your cyber security partner

FAQs

Why do I need a pentest?

A penetration test ensures that your organisation and its digital assets are secure from cyber attacks and data breaches. Regular pentests also demonstrate to your business partners and clients that you are concerned about the security of their personal and corporate data and hold this in high regard. Most cyber security regulations and compliance requirements also mandate pentesting.

When is it suggested to carry out a pen-test?

As a general rule, a penetration test should be performed in the following situations:

Just before a product, website, mobile application, or infrastructure reaches the production stage;
When there are significant changes, such as an infrastructure or application upgrade or modification, or the installation of new components; and
At the very least once a year.

Most cyber security regulations, such as PCI DSS, ISO 27001, and SOC2, are in line with these guidelines.

How long does it take to perform a pen-test?

The length of a penetration test engagement is determined by the number of systems tested, the type of testing performed, and the complexity of the assessed asset. A website with an authenticated area and multiple user roles, for example, would take longer to assess than one without. Similarly, a network with a few machines will take longer than one with tens of machines. The average testing time for a typical engagement is 3-7 days.

Does Cybergate provide pen tests to regulated and licensed organisations?

Yes, we regularly help regulated and licenced organisations such as Banks, Trading Platforms, and Insurance companies with their information and cyber security practices.

How much does a pen test cost?

The cost of a penetration test is directly proportional to the amount of effort and time required to assess the cyber security resilience of the asset(s) in scope.

What is the difference between a thorough vulnerability assessment and a penetration test?

A vulnerability scan is primarily an automated process in which a tool (vulnerability scanner) is launched at the target and the results are manually verified to eliminate false positives. A pentest is largely conducted by hand and is as close to a real-world attack by a black-hat hacker as possible. A penetration test may also include automated tools and scripts, the majority of which are proprietary, but these are mostly used to automate simple tasks and identify low-hanging fruit.

If all the organisation’s infrastructure is stored on the cloud - do we still need a pen test?

Cloud infrastructures (such as those based on Microsoft Azure, Amazon Web Services or Google Cloud Platform) vary in implementation paradigms. If a serverless architecture is used, an organization will need a cloud security assessment as well as an external infrastructure pentest if it has publicly accessible endpoints. External and internal infrastructure pentests are recommended if the cloud infrastructure contains Virtual Machines and is not based on the serverless architecture.