What Is Penetration Testing In Software Testing world

Penetration testing (or pen-testing) is a term common to most information security pros, which is defined by (ISC) as, "A method of evaluating external and interior technical security controls by using a methodically organized simulated attack that copies threats from malicious attacks to understand the security flaws in a system and network. "

More tangibly, it signifies the matched, controlled, professional exploitation of network, system and procedure vulnerabilities within any venture IT environment. Also used synonymously to describe the practice of mimicking opponents is the word red-teaming, which often specifies a team of pen-testers working together.

Pen-testing activities can be leveraged with a government agency as a means of revealing shortcomings in its existing efforts to ensure the confidentiality, integrity and available of the environment as well as its data.

When properly performed, pen-testing can be a critical tool in determining and increasing the cybersecurity posture of the business. When NOT properly performed, testers can crash computers, expose sensitive data, damaged crucial production data or cause a host of other adverse effects associated with mimicking the activities of attackers with harmful intent.

Automating the process adds significant value to any information security strategy. However, automation can also act as a form of siren song, often lulling people who are employed in the security sector into a phony sense of security.

Automated security measures such as "patch-and-pray" activities are plainly necessary but can be considered as an approach that suffers from marked un-scalability. As not enough because they are necessary, our automated tools can never quite take the place of a carefully tuned human mind.

The goal of pen-testing is twofold: it can find the items our robotic tools may have skipped and it can confirm our assumptions and understandings of our environments.

The pen-testing debate

While pen-testing may become an indispensable tool in the never-ending struggle between the good folks and the ne'er-do-wells that lurk within the dark recesses of the World Wide Web, the use of pen-testing within an organization represents a multifaceted debate.

So, is penetration testing appropriate for each and every corporation?

Some would say that any organization that has available funds within the information security budget will want to leverage this activity, but more sophisticated considerations arise when making an attempt to define when, how, and just what scope will define these engagements.

The penetration testing investment: For pen-testing to be performed well, the tester's set of skills requires creativity, tenacious drive, and a knack for identifying unexplored perspectives. Once pen-testing goes wrong, bottom level lines are impacted in the form of lost productivity, data leaks or even loss of life (as can be the case when life security equipment is involved).

The pen-testing professional: By selecting certified pen-testers, a corporation demonstrates its commitment to doing business with those who view themselves as professionals and who make every effort to carry out themselves in a professional manner.

Awarding this work to "professional hobbyists, very well while certainly possible (and undoubtedly cheaper), sends a very different message. Accreditation applicable to a professional pen-tester typically include required adherence to a certain code of ethics (such as the (ISC)2 Code of Ethics). Professional qualifications also provide a type of basic minimum predictions of skills and behaviours, including the perils of careless network mapping techniques or the use of industry best practices and assistance.

Granted, credentials on a business card do not guarantee an individual's level of skill or professionalism, but the alternative would scarcely be viewed as sufficient research on the part of an organization seeking to implement a sensible practice of pen-testing.

In the end, pen-testing is usually an indispensable tool and the value should not be minimized. It can even be very dangerous when not performed with proper diligence. It is very important to do it well and minimize the risk.