In a constantly evolving cyber threats landscape, all sizes of businesses must prioritize security. Penetration testing is an effective way to measure and ensure your organization’s safety. Penetration testing identifies security weaknesses in your IT Infrastructure and resolves them before exploitation by attackers. However, For success choosing the correct penetration tester is essential. This article covers the key factors to selecting a penetration tester for your business.
Key Factors to Consider
It is crucial to understand the critical factors before choosing a penetration tester for your organization. We have compiled nine keys for finding someone who is best at his work.
Experience and Expertise
Always choose a penetration tester with a strong track record and industry experience. A penetration tester must know about various testing methods such as Black Box, Gray box, and White Box testing.
- Black Box: No internal information will be provided to the tester. The Tester needs to think out-of-the-box. Mostly the tester will perform his testing over Internet.
- Gray Box: With limited knowledge, such as login information, will be provided.
- White Box: Full information will be provided to the tester such as, sources code, network topology, internal access.
Certifications and Qualifications
Ensure the penetration tester you choose has the proper certification, such as OSCP and OSCE3. The penetration tester should be at least OSCP(OffSec Certified Professional). The OSCE3(OffSec Certified Expert) holder is the best.
These certifications are currently the gold standard in industries and demonstrate real-world hacking skills required to be OSCP and OSCE3.
Extensive Testing Approach
The penetration tester with the right skills and experience should offer a comprehensive testing approach to cover all aspects based on the testing type. For example, an infrastructure test should include network, wireless, social engineering, and web app testing. A thorough approach will aid in locating weaknesses and offer helpful information for corrective action.
Clear Communication and Report
In the process of conducting proper penetration testing, effective communication is vital. Choose a penetration tester open to providing crystal clear, straightforward, and easily understandable reports. Finding details, risks, impacts, and recommendations for mitigation should be included in the report.
Industry Standards
Choose a penetration that follows industry standards and procedures such as OWASP, NIST, and PTES. This ensures he will do the testing is exhaustive, consistent, and following industry standards. If the test is a red team assessment, the tester needs to follow the MiTTRE framework. Without understanding industry-standard testing procedures, a penetration tester can’t perform comprehensive security testing.
Tailored Testing Strategy
Every business is unique in its security requirements. Make sure to choose a tester who understands your business requirements and can create customized testing plans focusing on your organization’s critical assets. Your chosen penetration tester should collaborate with you to create a personalized testing plan.
Availability and Responsive
The chosen penetration tester should be able to work within your desired timeframe. The penetration tester should be well-responsive to your question and concerns. For a business environment, timely testing and remediation should be maintained.
Cost-Effectiveness
Choose a penetration tester who can offer high-quality services for an affordable price. Some testers charge high as they mainly depend on commercial tools. It is good to have commercial tools for more accurate results. But if the entire test is depend on the paid tools, the cost will be higher. It depends on the skills of the tester. The more manual skills tester will have, the less commercial tools he needs to use.
Look for a penetration tester who is favorable on your limited budget but will still provide the best result.
Post-testing Support
If any issue arises after the test is complete, a good penetration tester will offer post-testing support to resolve the issue. Post-testing support may contain help with remediation and retesting of the identified vulnerabilities. It is important to retest all findings after successful remediation. Make sure he provides you with this support.
Why RedNode is Right Choice
RedNode is the right choice for any size of business looking for comprehensive penetration testing services. The expert team of RedNode is experienced, holding industry-recognized certifications such as OSCP and OSCE3, and is dedicated to providing a tailored approach with a high-quality result. Clear communication, easy-to-understand reports, and highly competitive prices make us stand out. If you are looking for a reliable penetration tester, don’t hesitate to contact us.
