Penetration Testing - Software Engineering
Last Updated :
20 Jun, 2024
In this guide, we'll explore the fundamentals of penetration testing, its importance in cybersecurity, and how it fits into the software development lifecycle (SDLC). From network security to web application security, we'll be going into various aspects of pen testing, equipping you with the knowledge to safeguard your software against cyber threats.
What is penetration testing?
Penetration testing, or pen testing, is like a practice cyber attack conducted on your computer systems to find and fix any weak spots before real attackers can exploit them. It focuses on web application security, where testers try to breach parts like APIs and servers to uncover vulnerabilities such as code injection risks from unfiltered inputs. The results help adjust web application firewall (WAF) settings and fix any weaknesses found to boost overall security.
History of the Penetration Test
In 1965 security concerns rose, because many thought that communication lines could be penetrated and the attacker/hacker might be able to get the data that is being exchanged between one person to another person. In an annual joint conference of 1967 various computer experts stated this point that communication lines can be penetrated.
In the 1980s, the rise of personal computers and the internet led to an increased need for network security testing. In the 1990s, the field of penetration testing continued to evolve, with a greater focus on automated testing and the use of commercial tools. The growth of e-commerce and the increasing reliance on the internet for business led to a greater need for web application security testing.
Today, penetration testing is an integral part of cybersecurity, with organizations of all sizes and in all industries conducting regular testing to identify and mitigate vulnerabilities in their systems. The penetration testing process is continuously evolving to adapt to new technologies and threat scenarios.
Penetration testing stages
The pen testing process has five stages.
Penetration Testing Stages1. Planning and Reconnaissance
- This stage involves defining the scope and objectives of the penetration test. It's crucial to understand what systems or networks will be tested and what testing methods will be employed.
- During reconnaissance, information about the target system is gathered. This includes details like network names, domain records, and any publicly available information about the organization's infrastructure.
2. Scanning
- In this phase, various tools and techniques are used to understand how the target application responds to intrusion attempts.
- Static analysis involves inspecting the application's code without executing it. This helps identify potential vulnerabilities based on code structure and logic.
- Dynamic analysis involves inspecting the application's behavior while it's running. This provides real-time insights into how the application responds to different inputs and interactions.
3. Gaining Access
- Once vulnerabilities are identified in the scanning phase, this stage focuses on exploiting those vulnerabilities to gain unauthorized access to the target system.
- Common techniques include exploiting flaws like SQL injection or cross-site scripting to gain control over the application or system.
4. Maintaining Access
- After gaining initial access, the goal is to establish a persistent presence within the system. This mimics the behavior of real attackers who aim to maintain access over an extended period.
- Techniques like establishing backdoors, escalating privileges, and maintaining persistence are employed to ensure continued access to the system.
5. Analysis
- Once the penetration test is complete, the results are compiled into a detailed report.
- This report includes information about the vulnerabilities that were successfully exploited, any sensitive data accessed, and the duration of undetected access.
- Security personnel analyze this information to understand the effectiveness of existing security measures and to prioritize remediation efforts.
Penetration testing methods
Here are the main Penetration testing methods follows:
Penetration testing methodsExternal Testing
This test targets a company's online assets, like its website, web applications, email systems, and domain name servers (DNS). The goal is to break in and steal valuable data, just like a real hacker would.
Purpose: This method helps organizations understand their vulnerabilities from an external threat perspective, highlighting weaknesses that malicious actors could exploit. It enables proactive mitigation of risks before they are exploited by real attackers.
Internal Testing
Here, a tester who has access to the company's internal systems simulates an attack from within. This could be like an employee's account being hacked through a phishing attack, even if the employee themselves isn't doing anything wrong.
Purpose: The aim is to evaluate the effectiveness of internal security controls and detection mechanisms. By simulating an insider threat scenario, organizations can identify weaknesses in their internal security posture and improve measures to prevent unauthorized access.
Blind Testing
In this test, the tester only knows the name of the company. This simulates a real attack, showing how the company's security team responds in real time without prior knowledge of the test.
Purpose: This approach tests the organization's incident response capabilities and readiness to handle unexpected attacks. It helps assess how effectively security teams detect, respond to, and mitigate security breaches without advance notice, reflecting real-world attack scenarios.
Double-Blind Testing
This is like a surprise drill. The security team doesn't know about the test in advance, so they can't prepare. This shows how well they can handle unexpected attacks.
Purpose: The objective is to evaluate the organization's overall security posture, including the effectiveness of monitoring and response mechanisms under realistic conditions. It provides insights into the organization's ability to detect and mitigate security threats without prior preparation or knowledge of the simulated attack.
Targeted Testing
Both the tester and the company's security team know about the test and work together. This is a training exercise where the security team gets live feedback from the tester, learning how to improve their defenses.
Purpose: This method serves as a controlled exercise to train and validate the response capabilities of the security team. It allows for real-time feedback from the tester, facilitating continuous improvement of security measures and incident response protocols based on identified vulnerabilities and weaknesses.
Types of Penetration Testing
Black Box Penetration Testing:- In this Method attacker does not know the target as it exactly simulates an actual cyber attack where an actual black hat hacker attacks. This testing takes time as the attacker does not know the system so he gathers them. This method is used to find existing vulnerabilities in the system and to simulate how far a hacker can go into the system without any info about the system.
Grey Box Penetration Testing:- In this method, the attacker is provided with a bit more information about the target like network configurations, subnets, or a specific IP to test, Attacker has a basic idea of how the machine is to which he/she is going to perform an attack, they may also be provided with low-level login credentials or access to the system which helps them in having a clear approach, This saves time of Reconnaissance the target.
White Box Penetration Testing:- We can say that in this testing method attackers have developer-level knowledge about the system which also includes an assessment of source code, Ethical hackers have full access to the system more in-depth than black box testing. It is used to find out potential threats to the system due to bad programming, misconfigurations, or lack of any defensive measures.
Penetration testing and web application firewalls
- Penetration testing utilizes WAF data such as logs, except in blind and double blind tests, to identify and exploit application weaknesses.
- WAF administrators use pen testing results to update configurations and enhance protection against vulnerabilities discovered during testing.
- Penetration testing satisfies compliance requirements for security audits like PCI DSS and SOC 2.
- Standards like PCI-DSS 6.6 mandate a certified WAF, but pen testing remains crucial for improving WAF configurations and overall security.
Advantages of the Penetration test
- The penetration test can be done to find the vulnerability which may serve as a weakness for the system.
- It is also done to identify the risks from the vulnerabilities.
- It can help determine the impact of an attack and the likelihood of it happening.
- It can help assess the effectiveness of security controls.
- It can help prioritize remediation efforts.
- It can ensure that the system is secure.
- It can be used to test the security of any system, no matter how large or small.
- It can be used to find vulnerabilities in systems that have not yet been exploited.
- It can be used to assess the effectiveness of security controls in place.
- It can be used to educate employees about security risks.
Disadvantages of the Penetration test
- The penetration test which is not done properly can expose data that might be sensitive and more.
- The penetration tester has to be trusted, otherwise, the security measures taken can backfire.
- It is difficult to find a qualified penetration tester.
- Penetration testing is expensive.
- It can be disruptive to business operations.
- It may not identify all security vulnerabilities.
- It may give false positives (incorrectly identifying a vulnerability).
- It may give false negatives (failing to identify a vulnerability).
- It may require specialized skills and knowledge.
- The results may be difficult to interpret.
- After the penetration test is completed, the system is vulnerable to attack.
Rules of Penetration testing Process
Some rules have to be followed when conducting the penetration test like the methodology that should be used, the start and the end dates, the goals of the penetration test, and more. To make the penetration test possible, there should be a mutual agreement between both the customer and the representative. These are some of the things which are commonly present in rules which are as follows:-
- There will be a non-disclosure agreement where there will be written permission to hack. This non-disclosure agreement will have to be signed by both parties.
- There should be a start and end date for penetration testing.
- What methodology should be used for conducting the penetration test?
- There should be the goals of the penetration test.
- Nmap: It is a network exploration tool and security scanner. It can be used to identify hosts and services on a network, as well as security issues.
- Nessus: It is a vulnerability scanner. It can be used to find vulnerabilities in systems and applications.
- Wireshark: It is a packet analyzer. It can be used to capture and analyze network traffic.
- Burp Suite: It is a web application security testing tool. It can be used to find security issues in web applications.
Conclusion
In conclusion, penetration testing is essential for identifying and addressing security vulnerabilities by simulating real-world cyber attacks. This process involves various testing methods, such as external, internal, blind, double-blind, and targeted tests, using tools like Nmap, Nessus, Wireshark, and Burp Suite. Through these efforts, organizations can strengthen their cybersecurity defenses, ensuring their systems are well-protected against potential threats.
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