10 Common Myths About Penetration Testing Debunked
Vulnerabilities in your computer systems aren’t necessarily problematic until intruders discover and exploit them. If you cultivate a culture of identifying loopholes before threat actors, you can resolve them, so they don’t pose any significant harm. This is the opportunity that penetration testing offers you.
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1. Penetration Testing Is Only for Organizations
There’s a notion that penetration testing is an activity for organizations, not individuals. Understanding the goal of a pentest is key to clarifying this. The end game of the test is to secure data. Organizations aren’t the only ones with sensitive data. Everyday people also have sensitive data such as banking information, credit card details, medical records, etc.
If, as a person, you don’t identify vulnerabilities in your system or account, threat actors will exploit them to access your data and use it against you. They could use it as bait for ransomware attacks where they demand that you pay a lump sum before restoring access to you.
2. Penetration Testing Is Strictly a Proactive Measure
The idea of discovering threats in a system ahead of intruders indicates that penetration testing isa proactive security measure, but that’s not always the case. It can be reactive sometimes, especially when you are investigating a cyberattack.
Following an attack, you may conduct a pentest to gain insights into the nature of the attack to tackle it properly. By discovering how the incident happened, the techniques deployed, and the data targeted, you can prevent it from happening again by closing the gaps.
3. Penetration Testing Is Another Name for Vulnerability Scanning
Since both penetration testing and vulnerability scanning are about identifying threat vectors, people often use them interchangeably, thinking they are the same.
Vulnerability scanning is an automated process ofidentifying established vulnerabilities in a system. You list possible flaws and scan your system to determine their presence and impact on your system. Penetration testing, on the other hand, is about casting your attack nets across your entire system the same way a cybercriminal would, hoping to identify weak links. Unlike vulnerability scanning, you have no predetermined list of threats to look out for, but try everything possible.
4. Penetration Testing Can Be Fully Automated
Automating penetration testing looks good in theory, but it’s farfetched in reality. When you automate a pentest, you conduct vulnerability scanning. The system may not have the capacity to resolve the issues.
Penetration testing requires human input. You have to brainstorm possible ways to identify threats even when it looks like none exists on the surface. You must put your knowledge of ethical hacking to the test, using all available techniques to break into the most secure areas of your network just like a hacker would. And when you identify vulnerabilities, you seek ways to address them, so they no longer exist.
5. Penetration Testing Is Too Expensive
Conducting penetration testing requires both human and technical resources. Whoever is performing the test must be very skilled, and such skills don’t come cheap. They must also have the necessary tools. While these resources may not be easily accessible, they are worth the value they offer in preventing threats.
The cost of investing in penetration testing is nothing compared to the financial damages of cyberattacks. Some datasets are priceless. When threat actors expose them, the repercussions are beyond financial measurement. They can ruin your reputation beyond redemption.
If hackers aim to extort money from you during an attack, they demand large sums which are usually higher than your pentest budget.
6. Penetration Testing Can Only Be Performed by Outsiders
There’s a long-standing myth that penetration testing is most effective when performed by external parties than internal parties. This is because external personnel will be more objective because they have no affiliation with the system.
While objectivity is key in the validity of the test, having an affiliation with a system doesn’t exactly make one unobjective. A penetration test consists of standard procedures and performance metrics. If the tester follows the guidelines, the results are valid.
More so, being familiar with a system can be an advantage as you are privy to tribal knowledge that will help you navigate the system better. The emphasis shouldn’t be on getting an external or internal tester, but on one who has the skills to do a good job.
7. Penetration Testing Should Be Done Once in a While
Some people would rather conduct penetration testing once in a while because they believe the impact of their test is long-term. This is counterproductive considering the volatility of cyberspace.
Cybercriminals are working around the clock looking for vulnerabilities to explore in systems. Having long intervals between your pentest gives them ample time to explore new loopholes you may not know.
You don’t have to conduct a penetration test every other day. The right balance would be to do it regularly, within months. This is adequate, especially when you have other security defenses on the ground to notify you about threat vectors even when you aren’t actively looking for them.
8. Penetration Testing Is All About Finding Technical Vulnerabilities
There’s a misconception that penetration testing focuses on the technical vulnerabilities in systems. This is understandable because the endpoints through which intruders gain access to systems are technical, but there are also some non-technical elements to them.
Take social engineering, for instance. A cybercriminal coulduse social engineering techniquesto lure you into revealing your login credentials and other sensitive information about your account or system. A thorough pentest will explore non-technical areas too to determine your likelihood of falling victim to them.
9. All Penetration Tests Are the Same
There’s a tendency for people to conclude that all penetration tests are the same, especially when they consider costs. One might decide to go for a less expensive testing provider just to save cost, believing that their service is just as good as a costlier one, but that’s not true.
As with most services, penetration testing has different degrees. You can have an extensive test that covers all areas of your network and a non-extensive one that captures a few areas of your network. It’s best to focus on the value you get from the test and not the cost.
10. A Clean Test Means All Is Well
Having a clean test result from your test is a good sign, but that shouldn’t make you complacent about your cybersecurity. As long as your system is operational, it’s vulnerable to new threats. If anything, a clean result should motivate you to double down on your security. Conduct a penetration test regularly to resolve emerging threats and maintain a threat-free system.
Gain Complete Network Visibility With Penetration Testing
Penetration testing gives you unique insights into your network. As a network owner or administrator, you view your network differently from how an intruder views it, making you miss some information they may be privy to. But with the test, it’s possible to view your network from a hacker’s lens, giving you complete visibility of all aspects, including threat vectors that would normally be in your blind spots.
Pen testing can be a costly business: we weigh up the advantages and disadvantages of it so you can come to a decision that’s right for you.
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