You’ve probably heard of penetration testing, but you may not be entirely sure what it is or why your business needs it. Penetration testing is a type of security assessment that simulates a real-world attack on your systems to identify vulnerabilities. It’s one of the best ways to identify potential weaknesses in your system.
This may apply to a local service, a cloud database, or any other type of technology you use. Your system needs to be able to reveal vulnerabilities to be as secure as it can be. You risk intrusion if you haven’t examined your system design for any weak spots. Therefore, the first key advantage of a penetration test is that it makes your system more secure against hackers.
In this blog post, we’ll give you a brief overview of penetration testing and explain why it’s so important for businesses of all sizes.
What is Penetration Testing?
Penetration testing, also known as pen-testing or white-hat hacking, is a type of security assessment in which auditors attempt to exploit vulnerabilities in a system. The goal of penetration testing is to identify weaknesses that could be exploited by malicious attackers.
A penetration test helps improve your organization’s cybersecurity posture by performing real attacks to simulate what an attacker could do. These attacks will assess the risk of a potential security breach and see how far an attacker could go within your environment.
Good penetration testing should do the following: perform real attacks to test cybersecurity posture, exploit vulnerabilities, report and present findings, and offer guidance and prioritization on items that need to be addressed.
Finding a reputable company to perform these tests is extremely critical. Learn more about how Edge Networks can get you started.
How Can Penetration Testing Improve Your IT?
1. Making Vulnerabilities Visible
A penetration test is one of the best ways to identify potential weaknesses in your system.
This may apply to a local service, a cloud database, or any other type of technology you use. Your system needs to be able to reveal vulnerabilities to be as secure as it can be.
You risk intrusion if you haven’t examined your system design for any weak spots. Therefore, the first key advantage of a penetration test is that it makes your system more secure against hackers.
2. A Genuine Simulation
A penetration test mimics the steps a real hacker might take to access your system.
As a result, it becomes a very realistic test in its construction. Penetration tests have this important advantage because it’s a real way to gauge how secure your system is.
The parameters are the same as what a real hacker would use to try to break into your system.
3. Improve Compliance and Protect Your Data
Data protection is one of the most crucial security components for modern businesses. You risk future serious breaches if your company and customer data are not secure. This is a vital step in your cybersecurity strategy.
An expert hacker shouldn’t be able to access any of your data, according to a penetration test!
Penetration tests can also help your business with data compliance and regulation.
You can use a pen-test to ensure your system’s design complies with all applicable laws and regulations. Penetration testers will highlight these issues if it isn’t.
Then, you’re able to address these issues to guarantee that your company continues to operate in full compliance with all applicable laws.
4. Fortifies Trust In Your Business
Customers will feel more comfortable doing business with you when you demonstrate your integrity in this manner. They’ll think you’re acting more professionally because of your penetration tests.
As a result, customers are likelier to stick with your business or brand because they will feel your processes and systems are rigid and secure.
This is where penetration tests come in handy, as they can help you get more clients. All you need to do is show your customers that you’re working hard to fix any problems and provide the best service possible.
Success With Penetration Testing
Penetration tests can benefit your business and your IT department or team. Whether you use an internal resource or managed IT solutions externally, both need to be made aware of the results of your penetration test. This way, you can ensure that your IT improves as a result of anything your vulnerability tests show.
We hope this blog post has given you a better understanding of what penetration testing is and why it’s so important for businesses. If you have any questions about penetration testing or would like to schedule a test for your business, please don’t hesitate to contact us.
