Penetration testing is used to test the exploitations and vulnerabilities of an organization’s system and to help developers build a secure system that meets the needs. There are several methods of penetration testing available, but it can be difficult to know which to use and everyone needs to be aware of the various types of penetration testing and realize which one is better for them. We will help you become fully aware of this.
What are the various types of penetration tests?
- Network penetration testing: These assist companies in reducing risk and exposure across key infrastructure on your host network and all network devices. A network penetration test is used to detect security flaws in the design, implementation, and management of servers, workstations, and network services.
To scope a network pen test, you’ll need the following information:
-Number of external IPs to be tested and also the number of those that are live
-The number of internal IPs and internal hosts that’ll be tested
-Count of physical places
-The network subnet size (s)
- Web application testing: The goal of an application penetration test is to discover security risks caused by unsafe development methods in software design, coding, and publication.
To scope a web app test, you’ll need the following information:
-Number and variety of web app to be tested
-Number of dynamic and static pages
-Number of user input fields
-Whether test will be authenticated
-Choice between local and remote testing
- Wireless penetration testing: A wireless penetration test seeks to detect misconfigurations of authorized wireless equipment as well as the presence of illegal access points, and helps in the detection of encryption flaws and WPA vulnerabilities.
To scope a wireless pen test, you’ll need the following information:
-The number of wireless networks to be evaluated
-The number of locations of sites
-Whether guest Wi-Fi is included
– The number of unique SSIDs
- Segmentation check: The goal of a segmentation check is to evaluate network builds and configurations to find errors across web and app servers, routers, and firewalls.
- Social engineering: A social engineering assessment’s aim is to identify employees who don’t correctly authenticate people, follow processes, or validate potentially harmful technology. Any of these ways might enable an attacker to abuse the employee and trick them to do something they shouldn’t.
– Employee opened harmful emails.
– Employee allowed unauthorized individuals onto the premises.
– An employee plugged in a random discarded USB to their workstation.
Which type of penetration test should you use?
To begin, select the type of penetration test that focuses on the controls that are most important to you:
- Web application or API = Application Penetration Testing
- People = Social Engineering
- Infrastructure = Network Penetration Testing and Wireless penetration testing
When you’ve decided on the type of test you want and how complete you want the results to be, you’ll need to decide how you want it to be performed.
By making informed selections, you can select a penetration test that matches your company’s goals and budget.
Determine what kind of pen test you require
Tests may be customized for a wide variety of products, demands, and situations. While deciding on the type of penetration test you need, you’ll also have to decide whether you want a white box, black box, or gray box test.
- White box tests: White box testing is a method in which information about target networks or other systems is shared with ethical hackers before an interaction, and it can be used to logic test software for gaps in code and security. White box testing includes path testing, loop testing, and condition testing.
- Black box tests: In contrast, in a black box test, ethical hackers are given no previous information about the environment to be evaluated and must conduct reconnaissance to obtain their own information. Functional testing, non-functional testing, and regression testing are examples of black box testing.
Although a white box test helps to save testing time, a black box test is a more accurate representation of an actual attack type, and is thus preferred by organizations that are trying to replicate the strategy of a genuine enemy.
- Gray box tests: gray box testing is a software testing approach that combines black box testing and white box testing, and it’s a fantastic way to perform high-level functional testing. Gray box testing provides some insight into the internal structure, design, and execution.
Choosing the correct approach to testing is important to success.
Choosing the best pen test provider
When ordering a pen test, look for a company with the requisite knowledge to not only identify a wide range of vulnerabilities, but also provide the assistance you need to repair them.
Here at SecureBug, the first Scandinavian cybersecurity platform, we classify pen testing into two categories: Classic pen test and Next Gen pen test. We can provide innovative penetration testing methods that go beyond normal scanning to find security flaws that others overlook.
SecureBug is a trusted partner for pen testing. Get started with us.
