High-profile security breaches have been dominating the cybersecurity world. As cyberattacks are growing in sophistication and complexity, the chances of online businesses falling into the traps of cyber attackers are also increasing rapidly. Having all the required security measures in place does not ensure that the IT infrastructure of the organization is immune to cyber risks. In fact, it prompts the alarming need for advanced security strategies. For a concrete defense mechanism, existing and future strategies should be put to the test regularly. This is why businesses need penetration testing.
To learn about your organization’s network and system vulnerabilities, employ a professional who dedicatedly searches for weaknesses and coordinates with other professionals to patch them. Such roles and responsibilities fall under the role of a penetration tester.
Reasons Why Your Organization Needs a Penetration Tester
For a healthy and secure environment of an organization, it’s important to have committed professionals who can defend the security system against cybercrimes.
1. Uncover vulnerabilities before cybercriminals exploit them
The main reason why businesses need penetration testing is to evaluate the current status of an organization’s existing security controls and measures. A pen-test is the best way to understand how vulnerable a business is and how it can be exploited.
In a pen-test, professionals anticipate and imitate the steps of cyber criminals before they can find any system/network weaknesses. These pen-testers search for vulnerabilities generated because of unprotected codes from applications or software, improper security settings, configuration errors, and other functioning-related shortcomings.
Unlike cyber attackers, penetration testers work in a controlled environment showcasing the potential harm that vulnerability can cause. Organizations generally conduct penetration testing right after the deployment of new security infrastructure or a significant change in security measures/controls. This service helps them identify and patch the loopholes present in new products and security measures.
2. Reduce network downtime
With regular penetration testing, business continuity is easily manageable. Conducting it once or twice a year will ensure that the organization faces a conveniently recoverable system/network downtime. This also enables maximum network. One report from Gartner clearly mentions that the average cost of IT downtime is $5600 per minute.
No business is indeed immune to the corrosive effects of IT downtime. Downtimes are expensive and sometimes hold the key to business survival. To handle them, hire skilled professionals who can advise you on the frequency of penetration testing that your business requires. They can also advise you on the right amount of investments you should be focusing on for different security measures.
3. Initiate a highly efficient security measure
Penetration testing assists in improving the current status of an organization’s security infrastructure. Its assessment helps understand the security gap and the potential impact of cyberattacks on existing security approaches.
Experienced penetration testers coordinate with network security engineers to create a reliable security system. They will also help you budget your future investments regarding cybersecurity solutions.
Ensure that your hired professionals are capable of innovating ways to get to system/network vulnerabilities. They should also know their way out from difficult situations with the use of world-leading methodologies – OWASP, PTES, NIST SP 800-115, and many others. Having such extensive knowledge indicates the competency of the professional.
4. Enable regulatory compliance
Apart from protecting a business from cyber attackers, another concern is to keep security strategies in compliance with security regulations. These regulations are formulated by major security standards, including HIPAA, PCI, GDPR, ISO 27001, and other applicable ones. A non-compliant organization can be fined at times of significant security/data breach.
These regulations require organizations to conduct penetration testing and security audits timely. One such regulatory standard, PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security), directs organizations that deal with loaded transactions to perform annual as well as regular penetration testing after every significant system change.
Employed security professionals should be aware of all the relevant regulations. They ascertain that there would be a balance of automated and manual tools while conducting the test.
5. Protect the company’s reputation and customer trust
Every security incident, especially the compromise of customer data, leads to a negative impact on product/services sales, a tarnished organization image, and loss of customer trust. Penetration testing helps an organization to keep its brand value and customer trust intact. All organizations need better customer acquisition strategies to keep their business afloat. Otherwise, the consequences will be a decreased customer retention rate.
The above-stated reasons are why businesses need penetration testing. Organizations should hire certified penetration testers to ensure that they have hands-on experience in different pen testing methodologies. EC-Council Certified Security Analyst (ECSA) is one such highly professional training program that focuses on multiple technical pen testing skills. This lab-intensive program also helps the professional to gain soft skills like how to write pen-testing reports effectively. It is mapped to the NICE 2.0 framework’s Analyze (AN), and Collect and Operate (CO) specialty area. Along with that, ECSA manages the required combination of automated and manual penetration testing approaches. The program has everything that an organization needs to keep its security infrastructure protected. Register and get trained!
