Penetration testing services helps businesses stay ahead of hackers and maintain data security.

You may have come across the expression “it takes a thief to catch a thief”, which means that the most effective way to catch a dishonest person is to be familiar with their tactics. By familiarising yourself with their underhanded strategies, you will be in a better position to identify them, thus protecting both yourself and your assets. The same principle is true when it comes to businesses protecting their networks from cyber-hackers – an effective approach for this is to think like a hacker, understand their game, and then work at staying one step ahead of them. Businesses can achieve this goal by undergoing routine penetration testing of their IT networks, which provides them with valuable insight into the methodologies a hacker might utilise to gain unauthorised access into their system, thus allowing organisations to take preventative action, keeping their networks secure.

Penetration testing services identify network weaknesses

Also known as ethical hacking, the pen testing process sees a team of IT specialists attempt to gain unauthorised access into a business’s IT network, as a reconnaissance exercise to determine precisely how the system could be hacked, the scope of damage that could be caused, what information is at risk, and what could be done with that information.

Following this, the pentest team will then prepare a report for the company which clearly outlines existing weaknesses within their systems, what a hacker could do with this information, and what action the organisation should be taking to secure their network.

Businesses that undergo pen testing services stand to gain several benefits, including:

• Ensuring the business stays ahead of the hackers: Hackers are continually refining their techniques, in order to gain unauthorised access into IT networks. It only takes a single successful breach to bring the security of an entire IT network into question, and the time, effort, and cost of mitigating a successful breach is often significant. Through commissioning a proactive, routine pentesting approach, businesses will not only be able to keep hackers out of their networks, but they will also not have to worry about incurring the huge costs associated with rectifying a data breach.
• Minimising downtime through the development of a stable IT network: Routine pentests are conducive to business stability and continuity. Through this service, businesses will be reassured that their IT networks are as secure as possible, and that any network changes that may introduce a potential weak spot are quickly identified and rectified.
• Comply with applicable compliance obligations: Routine penetration testing helps businesses meet a variety of compliance obligations, such as those outlined in the ISO 27001 Information Security Standards. To maintain ISO 27001 compliance, businesses are required to conduct periodic security reviews of their IT networks, to assess that they are continually meeting their compliance obligations.
• Allows businesses to evaluate the strength of their existing networks: Many organisations may be unclear about how effective their IT networks would be against hackers, and want to know precisely how their information security practices would hold up against a cyber-attack. A penetration testing service provides organisations with firsthand insight into how their network security holds up, where their potential weak spots are, and what the company should be doing to ensure their information security processes are second to none.

Pen testing services are just one aspect of a larger information security plan

Penetration testing services are an effective, straight-forward method for businesses to understand how their IT networks would fare against a cyber-attack. However, for companies looking to strengthen their information security processes, there are many other actions they can take, in addition to pentesting, from certifying to the internationally recognised ISO 27001 Standards, which helps companies develop and maintain an Information Security Management System. Through ISO 27001 certification, businesses can develop straight-forward strategies for maintaining the CIA – Confidentiality, Availability, Integrity – data triad.

Also, businesses will benefit from developing an IT Change Management Plan, which helps a company successfully manage change within their information security networks, ensuring downtime is minimised. Also, Compliance as a Service can help companies keep up with their compliance obligations, meet consumer demands regarding data privacy and security, and protect their overall operations.

Our specialist consultants are here to help

After reading this blog you may have some questions about the penetration testing process, the different types of ethical hacking services available to companies, how long the process typically takes, and so on. Please contact our specialist consultants today by filling out this online Contact Us form, or by phoning them on 1300 802 163, for a short, no-obligation consultation. Simply tell them a bit about your businesses IT networks, and they can explain to you some of the ways your data might be at risk, and how a pentest will help keep your systems secure.

Following this, they can arrange for our information security specialists to work closely with your company to conduct a test, thus ensuring your networks remain secure, your reputation is upheld, and downtime is minimised. Doesn’t that sound like a simple solution to this ‘test’?

Please click here to read more about the scope of penetration testing services Anitech offers.