Penetration Testing

What is Pen Testing?

Pen testing, or a penetration testing service, is an authorised cyber attack that is simulated by a company to evaluate how secure a system is. It is a type of ethical hacking that can be used to identify vulnerabilities in companies’ online systems and applications which can assist them in securing them further so they are not left susceptible to actual cyber criminal activity.

Penetration testing is one of the most recognised cyber practices for a company to establish the level of security of their network and web applications. At ConnectDS, our dedicated team of security analysts are resourced to use industry recognised methodologies and technologies to identify and exploit vulnerabilities in our client’s systems.

What’s Involved in a Penetration Testing Assessment?

A penetration testing assessment is orchestrated by using a co-ordinated and targeted ethical cyber attacked on client’s IT systems. Our Security Operations Centre (SOC) is in the preferred position of being both neutral and external, which is vital when maintaining objectivity during an exercise like this. With extensive experience in ethical hacking, we take great pride in working to protect our client’s reputations and from the threats that modern businesses face and penetration testing is a fantastic service to utilise in your cyber security efforts.

In a penetration testing assessment, we will gather data and intelligence that is utilised to launch an ethical cyber attack, with a view of gaining and maintaining access to your chosen targeted systems. We often align this type of assessment with our social engineering techniques as it allows us to measure the susceptibility of staff members and assess existing weaknesses through these phishing campaigns.

Once we have gained access to your systems, we can then identify the security vulnerabilities it may have and what type of information actual cyber criminals could potentially exploit from your application/IT system. We will collate all of our findings into a detailed report that identifies the necessary action that must be adopted in the short term to prevent loss of data, finance and reputation. We will also provide insights for proactive measures that can be accepted as an ongoing strategy to help you proactively mitigate the risk of this happening for real.

Why Is Pen Testing Important?

Having a penetration testing service for your business can help you reduce your risk of having valuable information compromised. Not only can it give you insight into how potentially easy it may be for hackers to gain access to your systems, but it will highlight what data can be stolen once they are inside. 

Business reputations have been destroyed in the past due to customer data being compromised or leaked and huge financial loss can occur if this isn’t monitored and resolved. Although your systems may appear secure, is it worth running the risk if they aren’t?