What Is Penetration Testing?
Penetration testing services help organisations identify exploitable security weaknesses before attackers do. Unlike automated vulnerability scans, professional penetration testing simulates real-world attack techniques to determine how systems, applications, users, and networks could be compromised.
A penetration test goes beyond listing vulnerabilities. It shows how weaknesses can be combined to gain unauthorised access, escalate privileges, or access sensitive data. This provides organisations with a clear understanding of real risk and helps prioritise remediation efforts effectively.
What Is Adversary Simulation?
Adversary simulation, often referred to as red teaming, mimics the tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs) used by real threat actors. These engagements test not only technical vulnerabilities but also detection, response, and security operations capability.
By simulating realistic attack paths, adversary simulation helps organisations understand how well their defences perform under pressure and where improvements are needed in monitoring, alerting, and incident response.
How Penetration Testing Differs from Vulnerability Scanning
Vulnerability scanning identifies known weaknesses using automated tools. Penetration testing services take this further by validating whether vulnerabilities can actually be exploited and what impact that exploitation could have.
While scans generate large lists of potential issues, penetration testing focuses on exploitable paths and business risk. This results in prioritised findings that security teams can act on immediately.
Benefits of Regular Penetration Testing
Regular penetration testing helps organisations identify exploitable security gaps before attackers do, reduce the likelihood of ransomware and data breaches, strengthen security monitoring and detection capabilities, meet compliance and audit expectations, and improve overall cyber resilience.
Who Needs Penetration Testing?
Penetration testing services are valuable for organisations handling sensitive customer or financial data, businesses operating in regulated industries, companies undergoing digital transformation or cloud migration, enterprises seeking assurance before major system changes, and security teams looking to validate defensive effectiveness.
Common Types of Penetration Testing
CyberStash delivers a range of penetration testing services, including web application penetration testing, network penetration testing, cloud penetration testing, mobile application testing, API security testing, social engineering testing, wireless security testing, and red team or adversary simulation exercises.