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What is Penetration Testing and How to Become a Penetration Tester?

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Suppose you own a site or an application; this site may have a payment gateway or even require users to enter information when entering the site. It doesn’t matter if you own a business related to financial markets or buy and sell clothes; today, no network is safe from cyber-attacks. But there must be a way to prevent these attacks; this way is penetration testing, which is the subject of this article.

Now that you are almost familiar with the purpose of penetration testing, it is better to look at the definition of this test. Penetration testing, also known as pen testing, is a simulated virtual attack performed on a computer system to assess its security.

 

Penetration tests typically simulate the types of attacks that can threaten a business. They can check whether a system is robust enough to withstand attacks. With the right scope, a standard penetration test can support your business, identify potential attacks, and ensure your site’s security against attacks. Penetration testers are like hackers who fight on your front.

What are the benefits of penetration testing?

Ideally, software and systems are designed from the outset to eliminate dangerous security flaws. A skilled penetration tester provides insight into how secure a system is. Penetration testing can be a good investment in the long run because it avoids additional costs after being hacked. The following benefits are some of the notable points in penetration testing:

In this test, the weak points of the systems are found.
The strength of different parts of the network is measured.
We are providing qualitative and quantitative examples of the current security situation.

How much access are penetration testers given?

Depending on the objectives of penetration testing, testers are given varying degrees of information about the target system or access to it. A junior penetration tester does not have the same basic information as an expert penetration tester; this is understandable for security reasons.

Of course, in some cases, the penetration testing team initially adopts one approach and adheres to it. Do not add anything new to the testers. At other times, the test team will change their strategy as they become more aware of the system during it testing, and their information will be updated to ensure the network’s state. There are three levels of access in penetration testing, which the employer determines between himself and the it tester before the project:
matte box

The team knows nothing about the internal structure of the target system. It acts like a hacker and checks for any external exploitable weaknesses. A penetration tester with zero information wants to attack the network to find its security hole.

Semi-opaque box

The team has information about one or more sets of licenses and credentials. It also knows about internal data structures, target codes, and algorithms. In this case, pi testers may need a long time to penetrate the system’s internal network.

Transparent box

Penetration testers (or pens) have access to systems and system artifacts, including source code, binaries, containers, and sometimes even the servers that run the system. This approach provides the highest level of confidence in the shortest time.

What are the steps of penetration testing?

To be a professional penetration tester, you need to follow certain steps; these steps can include putting yourself completely in the attacker’s shoes and trying to understand the damage and attack strategy so that you can find out well. How the path of defense and prevention is implemented To do this, testers usually follow a plan that includes the following steps:

ID

Testers collect as much information about the target as possible from public and private sources to understand the attack strategy. Sources include Internet searches, domain registration information retrieval, social engineering, non-intrusion network scanning, etc. This information helps pen testers map the target attack surface and potential vulnerabilities. Detection can vary according to the scope and objectives of it testing. This can be as simple as making a phone call to see a system’s functionality.

Scan

Penetration testers use tools to examine a target website or system for weaknesses, including open services, application security issues, and open source vulnerabilities. Penetration testers use different tools based on what they find during detection and testing. Penetration testers’ tools may even change during execution.

Access

An attacker’s motivations can include stealing, altering, or deleting data. The movement of foreign currency funds damages the reputation of a company. For each test, penetration testers determine the best tools and techniques to gain access to the system, whether through a vulnerability such as SQL injection, malware, social engineering, or something else. Their ultimate goal is to create simulated conditions to damage the system.

What are the types of penetration testing?

A comprehensive approach is essential for optimal risk management. This requires testing all areas on your target network platform. A penetration tester should examine all the possible points of your system and find their flaws; this requires hours to identify and check your site so that it can reflect the result well.

Penetration testing to protect web pages and sites

Web testers examine the effectiveness of security controls and look for hidden vulnerabilities, attack patterns, and other potential security gaps that could compromise a web application. They identify all the issues that can overshadow a site or a web application and use them to create a strong counterattack against possible attacks by attackers in any field. Of course, this is very time-consuming, but be sure that it will be worth it.

Penetration testing to protect mobile applications

Using advanced manual and automated testing, testers look for vulnerabilities in application binaries running on a mobile device. Penetration testers use automated and manual analysis to find vulnerabilities in application binaries on mobile devices.

Vulnerabilities in application binaries can include authentication and authorization issues, client-side trust issues, misconfigured security controls, and cross-platform development framework issues. Server-side vulnerabilities include session management, cryptographic issues, authentication and authorization issues, and other common web service vulnerabilities.

Penetration testing to protect networks

This test identifies common critical security vulnerabilities in a network and external systems. Experts use a checklist that includes test cases for encrypted transport protocols, SSL certificate scope issues, use of administrative services, and more.
Test to find incorrect configurations

Containers derived from Docker often contain vulnerabilities that can be exploited at various scales. Misconfiguration is a common risk to network security.

APIs

Some of the security risks and vulnerabilities that testers look for include: user authentication, data overexposure, resource shortage/rate limiting, and others that can fall into this area and are not covered in this subcategory. API is placed.

CI/CD line

In addition to standard tools that find known vulnerabilities, automated pen-testing tools can be integrated to mimic what a hacker might do to compromise an application’s security. Automated CI/CD pen testing can uncover hidden vulnerabilities and attack patterns not detected by static code scanning.

 

What are the types of penetration testing tools?

Like all professions, penetration testers have tools; an electrician uses a crimping tool, a mechanic uses a wrench, and a penetration tester has tools that can be used to identify security holes. There is no one-size-fits-all pen-testing tool. Instead, different targets require different tools for port scanning, application scanning, Wi-Fi failures, or direct network penetration. Generally, the types of pen testing tools fall into five categories.

How is penetration testing different from automated testing?

Although penetration testing is primarily manual, but penetration testers use automated scanning and testing tools. Penetration testing differs from automated testing because it uses a person’s skills and does not automatically find bugs and security holes.

Penetration testing is not automatic because a person with sufficient expertise in this field manually looks for security holes and various bugs in the field of site security and tries to find them. But they also go beyond tools and use their knowledge of the latest attack techniques to provide testing that goes deeper than vulnerability assessment (i.e., automated testing). In automated testing, we do not observe creativity in the path of thought, but it testers visualize the path hackers follow with their creativity.

Automatic manual test

An automated test can help identify security vulnerabilities. Manual automated testing (a combination of manual penetration and automated testing) is used to complement automated testing in the final stage. Indeed, automated testing is not very creative!

But along with creativity, a penetration tester becomes an impenetrable barrier. Because penetration testers are professionals who think like the adversary, they can analyze data to target their attacks and test systems and websites in ways automated testing solutions based on a scripted routine cannot.

Automatic test

Automated testing produces results faster and requires less expertise than the penetration testing. Automated testing tools automatically track results and can sometimes export them to a centralized reporting platform. Also, the results of penetration testing tests can vary from test to test because the attack object differs from one test to another. In contrast, repeated execution of the automated test on the same system will yield the same results.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of penetration testing?

Is penetration testing as effective as it claims to be? Considering the definition of penetration testing, here are some advantages and disadvantages of the penetration testing technique.

Advantages of penetration testing

This testing finds holes even in other security assurance practices, such as automated tools, configuration and coding standards, architecture analysis, and other vulnerability assessment activities. In other words, this test is very accurate.

Disadvantages of penetration testing

It is intensive and expensive work.
It does not comprehensively prevent bugs and defects from entering the network completely and permanently; in any case, new attack ideas may be formed in enemies’ minds.

Penetration testing steps

The penetration testing process can be divided into five steps.

What are the methods of penetration testing?

Penetration testing has different methods that we will discuss in the following section.

External test

External penetration tests target a company’s assets visible on the Internet, for example, the web application itself, the company’s website, and email and domain name (DNS) servers. The purpose of this test is to obtain valuable data and extract it. This is one of the most common types of it testing.

Internal testing

In an internal test, a tester simulates a malicious attack by accessing an application behind its firewall. In this method, the penetration tester must check different scenarios. A typical starting scenario would be an employee whose credentials were stolen due to a phishing attack, and later, scenarios become more complex. Internal testing is one of the complex types of penetration testing.

blind test

In a blind experiment, an experimenter is given only the target company’s name. This gives security personnel a real-time view of how a real-life, unplanned attack might be conducted. This is one of the most difficult steps after internal testing.

Double-blind test

In a double-blind experiment, security personnel has no prior knowledge of the simulated attack. As in the real world, they will have no time to build up their defenses. At this stage, the security level of the site or program is measured with a simulated attack.

Targeted testing

In this scenario, the tester and the security personnel work together and inform each other of their movements. This valuable training exercise provides the security team with feedback from the hackers’ perspective.

Penetration and firewall testing of web applications

Penetration testing and WAFs are unique yet useful security measures. For most types of penetration testing (excluding blind and double-blind testing), the tester will likely use WAF data, such as logs, to locate and exploit application vulnerabilities. In turn, WAF administrators can benefit from penetration tester data. After testing is complete, WAF configurations can be updated to secure against vulnerabilities discovered in testing.

 

How to become a penetration tester?

As a penetration tester, you will play an active and aggressive role in cyber security by conducting attacks on a company’s existing digital systems. These tests may use various hacking tools and techniques to find network gaps that hackers can exploit. During this process, as a penetration tester, you will record your actions in detail, provide a report of what you have done, and finally calculate your success rate in breaching security protocols.
What are the duties and responsibilities of a penetration tester?

The day-to-day duties of a penetration tester vary depending on the organization. Here are some common duties and responsibilities you might encounter in this role, all taken from actual job listings:

How to become a penetration tester?

You can earn a paycheck by legally hacking security systems as a penetration tester. This could be an exciting career if you are interested in cybersecurity and problem-solving. This section will cover the steps you might take to land your first job as a penetration tester.

1. Develop your penetration testing skills.

Penetration testers need a thorough understanding of information technology (IT) and security systems to test for vulnerabilities. Skills you may find in a penetration tester job description include:

Does penetration testing have special tools?

Today’s penetration testers have many tools to help them do their job. If you’re interested in becoming a penetration tester, it’s helpful to be familiar with one or more of the following tools:

2. Enroll in a course or training program.

One of the best ways to start developing the skills you need as a penetration tester is to enroll in a specialized course or training program. With these programs, you can learn in a more structured environment and build multiple skills simultaneously.

If you’re new to cybersecurity, consider an option like the IBM Cybersecurity Analyst Professional Certification, which includes a full penetration testing and incident response unit. The entire program is online, and easy to learn the skills quickly and effectively.

3. Get a certificate.

Cybersecurity certifications show recruiters and hiring managers that you have the skills to succeed in the industry. In addition to these general cybersecurity certifications, you can also get certified in penetration testing or ethical hacking. Valid certifications to consider include:

You can follow various pieces of training from Coursera to learn better about the tasks and challenges of a pen tester. Coursera has various security projects that you can do and improve your attack power in a secure platform. In addition, you can get your work certificate from Coursera.

Obtaining one of the certificates available on Coursera usually requires passing an exam. In addition to earning credit for your resume, preparing for a penetration testing certification exam can often help you develop your skill set. But remember that it is not only important to get a degree and pass a course in this profession; you need to see and deal with different projects to complete your learning process; you cannot become a generalist just by passing a course Penetration test done. Like her profession, you should think about practice and trial and error to get the result.

4. Practice in real and simulated environments.

Many companies want to hire penetration testers with previous experience. Fortunately, there are ways to start gaining experience outside of the workplace. Many pen testing training programs include practical testing in simulated environments.

Another way to gain experience (and make your resume stand out) is to take HubSpot classes. In some of these programs, companies typically offer cash rewards to independent pen testers and security researchers who find and report security flaws or bugs in their code. This is a great way to test your skills and start networking with other security professionals. You can find a list of prizes on these contest sites on sites like Bugcrowd and HackerOne.

Finally, you’ll find several websites that allow penetration testers to practice and test legitimately through fun, gamified experiences. Here are a few tips to get you started:

5. Start in an entry-level IT position.

Many penetration testers start in entry-level IT and cybersecurity roles before moving on to pen testing. If you want to learn professional penetration testing, start in a role like a network administrator, system administrator, or information security analyst to build your IT skills. Don’t expect to be in charge of NASA projects and pocket the big bucks right from the start; you’ll need to practice and trial and error for a long time as a junior until you get the hang of it.

6. Start your job search.

When you’re ready to start applying for penetration tester jobs, expand your search beyond the usual job sites. While LinkedIn, Indeed, and ZipRecruiter are great resources, you should also check out specialized cybersecurity sites like Dice and CyberSecJobs.com.

In this text, we found out that even though thethoughpenetration testing and relatively few experts in this field, it is better for any business, especially businesses in the currency and financial fields, to get help from a penetration tester. So that they can guarantee their security because if they don’t find their security holes, a hacker can easily identify them and use them in line with their goals.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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