Navigating the Landscape of Cyber Security with Expert Guidance.
25+
Year Experience
Black box penetration testing
Black box penetration testing on the other hand, offers no prior information to the tester. Mimicking the approach of an external attacker, the tester begins from scratch, attempting to breach the system starting from initial access to exploitation.
Vulnerability Assessment and Penetration Testing
Types of penetration Testing
White box penetration testing
White box penetration testing involves providing the tester with full access to network and system details, such as network maps and credentials. This transparency aims to streamline the testing process, saving time and reducing costs.
Grey box penetration testing
Grey box penetration testing , involves, provides the tester with limited information, typically login credentials. This middle-ground approach offers insights into the potential access and damage a privileged user could inflict, balancing between the comprehensive access of white box testing and the minimal information of black box testing.
Black box penetration testing
Black box penetration testing on the other hand, offers no prior information to the tester. Mimicking the approach of an external attacker, the tester begins from scratch, attempting to breach the system starting from initial access to exploitation.
Benefits of a penetration testing include
Identifying Security Weaknesses
It’s crucial to be aware of potential vulnerabilities before malicious actors can exploit them. This proactive approach not only safeguards sensitive data but also enhances brand trust and reputation.
Compliance with Regulations
Regular pentesting helps organizations adhere to global security standards such as PCI-DSS, HIPAA, and GDPR.
Evaluating Security Policies
Testing allows businesses to verify the effectiveness of their existing security measures and make necessary adjustments.
Pentesting Pre-requisites
- Software and Data Integrity Failures
- Identification and Authentication Failures
- Security Logging and Monitoring Failures
- Security Misconfiguration
- Server-Side Request Forgery
- Broken Access Control
- Cryptographic Failures
- Injection
- Insecure Design
- Security Misconfiguration
- Vulnerable and Outdated Components
Phase of the Penetration Testing
Planning Phase
During this phase, the scope, timeline, and personnel are defined. Agreement on scope between the organization and the service provider is crucial. Considerations include which application pages to test and whether to conduct internal, external, or both types of testing. Setting a timeline ensures timely implementation of security controls.
Pre-Attack Phase
Reconnaissance is conducted, gathering Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) and other publicly available information. Port scanning, service identification, and vulnerability assessment are performed using tools like Nmap, Shodan, and Google Dorks. Social engineering attacks exploit weak internal security, often leveraging information from social media.
Attack Phase
Penetration testers exploit vulnerabilities identified in the pre-attack phase. They map attack vectors and attempt to compromise the web application's internal structure. Techniques may include social engineering, physical security breaching, web application exploits, and phishing attacks targeting employees or executives.
Generic Pre-requisite required for pentesting
Scope Definition
Clarify the scope of the test. Understand which specific web applications, URLs, or functionalities are included and excluded from the assessment.
Access and Authorization
Request access to the web application or system that needs testing. Ensure have appropriate authorization to conduct penetration testing activities.
User Roles and Permissions
Obtain information about different user roles and their associated permissions within the web application. This helps in testing access controls and authorization mechanisms.
Testing Environment Details
Request details about the testing environment, including the type of infrastructure (e.g., cloud-based, on-premises), technology stack (e.g., programming languages, frameworks, databases), and any specific configurations.
Credentials and Authentication Methods
Gather information about authentication mechanisms used by the application, such as username/password, multi-factor authentication, or Single Sign-On (SSO). Request test accounts or credentials for testing purposes.
Testing Constraints
Inquire about any limitations or constraints regarding testing, such as blackout periods, performance impact considerations, or sensitive data handling requirements.
Time Frame
- Web Application and Mobile Pentesting: 15-20 business days
- Website: 5-10 business days
Time Frame for fixing bugs
- Critical Issue: 5 business days
- High Issue: 15 business days
- Low Issue: 25 business days
- Informational Issue: According to business use case
Website and Web Application pentesting
Burp Suite
A comprehensive platform for web application security testing, including scanning, crawling, and manual testing
OWASP ZAP (Zed Attack Proxy)
An open-source web application security scanner that helps in finding vulnerabilities in web applications.
Nmap (Network Mapper)
A network scanning tool used for discovering hosts and services on a network.
SQLMap
A tool specifically designed for detecting and exploiting SQL injection vulnerabilities in web applications. It automates the process of identifying SQL injection flaws and extracting database information.
Metasploit Framework
A penetration testing tool that helps in developing and executing exploit code against target systems. It includes a large database of exploits and payloads for various vulnerabilities.
Nikto
An open-source web server scanner that performs comprehensive tests against web servers for multiple items, including dangerous files/CGIs, outdated server software, and other security issues.
Nessus
Nessus is a widely used vulnerability assessment tool developed by Tenable. It is designed to identify vulnerabilities, misconfigurations, and security issues across a wide range of systems, including networks, servers, endpoints, and web applications.
DirBuster
A tool used to discover hidden directories and files on a web server by brute-forcing common directory and file names.
Mobile Application pentesting:
Mobile Security Framework (MobSF)
An open-source mobile application security testing framework that supports Android and iOS platforms. It performs static and dynamic analysis, code review, and provides a wide range of testing capabilities.
Drozer
An Android security assessment and penetration testing framework that helps in finding security vulnerabilities in Android applications and devices.
APKTool
A tool for reverse engineering Android APK files. It decompiles APK files into smali code, allowing security researchers to analyze the inner workings of Android apps and identify potential vulnerabilities.
Frida
A dynamic instrumentation toolkit that allows security researchers to inject JavaScript into running mobile applications. It can be used for dynamic analysis, runtime manipulation, and hooking of function calls.
Xcode Instruments
For iOS app testing, Xcode provides Instruments, a tool for performance analysis, memory usage profiling, and debugging.
Cydia Substrate
A framework for jailbroken iOS devices that allows the injection of code into iOS applications at runtime. It's commonly used for dynamic analysis and runtime manipulation of iOS apps.