Penenetration Testing Tools

Why is Penetration Testing Necessary to do?

Big companies that store sensitive data, such as banks, certainly don't want their networks to be broken into by irresponsible people who can take over control of the network and can cause huge losses. Therefore, the company invests funds to strengthen its network system. One of the most effective methods is to do a pentest. By doing a pentest, existing security holes can be identified and thus can be corrected as soon as possible. A tester simulates attacks that can be carried out, explains the risks that can occur, and performs system repairs without damaging the company's network infrastructure.

In conducting the pentest, there are several methods that can be used, namely black box, gray box, and white box.

Black Box Testing

In the black box method, the tester or tester is not provided with any information about the system to be tested, be it the infrastructure or the source code used. They are positioned like a hacker who must exploit the system to find security holes that can be hacked. Thus, the tester must try to dig up from the start all the necessary information then carry out an analysis and determine the type of attack to be carried out.

Testers using the black box method should be familiar with both automated scanning tools and manual pentest methodologies. The tester must also have the ability to create a map of the system being tested based on the observations that have been made.

The duration of the test depends on the tester's ability to find and exploit the system. If the tester does not have good skills, the system vulnerabilities cannot be found and repaired.

Grey Box Testing

This is an advanced stage of Black Box. If the pentest with the black box method positions the examiner as a hacker or an outsider, then the gray box method positions the examiner as a user. In this method, the examiner has access and information only as a user.

The purpose of the gray box method is to provide a more efficient security assessment than the black box. Having some information, they can test security systems and simulate attacks. The gray box method also allows testers to conduct more focused testing to exploit vulnerabilities with greater risk.

White Box Testing

In White box testing, the opposite occurs, the tester already knows all the information needed to carry out the pentest. Because it has been given full access, the main challenge of White Box Testing is to research, sort through all the data received and allocate loopholes at each point that are considered potentially hacked. This makes the White Box Testing method take the longest time compared to the two methods above.

White Box penetration testing provides the most comprehensive assessment of the internal and external vulnerabilities of a site. And this makes white box testing the best method for penetration testing.