Penetration testing, sometimes referred to as \u201cwhite hat hacking\u201d or \u201cethical hacking,\u201d has become an important \u2013 and popular \u2013 aspect of cybersecurity. This type of testing allows your cybersecurity firm to try to break into your systems to find vulnerabilities. It\u2019s a more proactive approach to cybersecurity<\/a>. When they\u2019re done, your cyber team will deliver a detailed penetration testing report that breaks down everything from what type of testing they did to what needs fixing first to suggestions about how to fix them.<\/p>\n The report can be complex and technical, potentially confusing those who aren\u2019t in technical roles or don\u2019t know how to read the report.<\/p>\n Senior management, IT teams, and risk and compliance team members need to understand the key components of your penetration testing report. Once you grasp the results, or at least know where to look for what matters for your team, you can analyze and mitigate risks to keep your organization and your customers safer in the long run.<\/strong><\/p>\n In this blog, we\u2019ll break down the core components of a penetration testing report and how to determine the appropriate steps to take.<\/p>\n Your penetration testing<\/a> report will likely be hefty, but it will include several components explaining the findings. Your cyber team should write results clearly and understandably so your nontechnical executives know where to start and what changes to make without getting confused by technical jargon. There will also be a technical section for your administrations and IT teams so they can make the recommended changes.<\/p>\n It\u2019s tempting to flip right back to this section or even to the recommendations and risk assessment section when you initially receive your penetration testing report.<\/strong> However, that would be a mistake. You can\u2019t start making changes and updates without knowing if the penetration testing worked correctly. For that, you need to know the overall summary, scope and testing methods employed.<\/p>\n In most penetration testing report templates, you\u2019ll see a section for an executive summary<\/a>. This summary:<\/p>\n It should be short and written so your nontechnical team members can understand it and move forward without confusion.<\/p>\n The scope of work outlines what systems the team tested and information about the methods \u2013 which we cover more below \u2013 used to test those systems. It should include things like the particular domains, software or hardware they tested. This section helps you determine if the testing met your needs, if they excluded any resources that you should know about, and whether certain areas they tested need immediate remediation or can wait.<\/strong><\/p>\n Your firm should outline the exact testing methodology, approach, tools, and techniques that they used to determine your vulnerabilities. Here are a few of the common testing methods some companies use in a penetration test<\/a>:<\/p>\n Within this section of the report, you should answer the following two questions:<\/p>\n Along with the assumptions and limitations, you must also understand the test frequency.<\/strong> Is this the first time you\u2019re doing a penetration test? Or do you conduct it annually or biannually? If you\u2019ve never done a pen test before, you\u2019ll have more results versus one performed more frequently, and you might have more critical or high-risk vulnerabilities.<\/p>\n When the pen tester clearly understands the testing scope and methodology alongside the limits and assumptions made, you can better interpret the findings and recommendations presented in their report. But before you can start making changes, you need to know the actual results.<\/p>\n The overall testing report should also include several narratives, which all tell the story of how your pen-tester engaged with your systems<\/a>. These narratives provide a high-level overview of what your attackers did within each scenario, provide context, and help you absorb what makes their findings significant.<\/p>\n Here are a few common narratives you should find in your report:<\/p>\n Breaking up the results in this way helps your security team understand exactly where the highest risks occur. If there\u2019s a pattern with, say, social engineering, then you know that your team might need more frequent security training. And once you know these narratives, you can also gain a deeper understanding of what is coming next: the vulnerability assessment.<\/p>\n With the vulnerability or security risk assessment, you should receive a breakdown of which vulnerabilities will impact your system the most. Your pen tester will likely use the Common Vulnerability Scoring System<\/a> (CVSS). This system assigns a quantitative value to what you should fix first based on the risk severity level.<\/p>\n However, CVSS cannot see how sensitive a specific system is because it\u2019s focused on protecting data. A good pen tester will have a multifaceted risk-scoring system. While CVSS focuses on protecting data, they might use if-then scenarios to determine environmental risk. For example, an if-then scenario might say, \u201cIf you fix this security problem, then you\u2019ll also wind up fixing these other four problems.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n By thoroughly analyzing the findings and providing a risk assessment or ranking, the pen tester can help your organization prioritize the most critical vulnerabilities first, maximizing the effectiveness of your remediation efforts.<\/p>\n After reviewing your vulnerability assessment, you can move on to the recommendations portion of the penetration testing report.<\/p>\n Here, you will find suggestions for resolving any security issues along with the short-, medium-, and long-term changes. Recommendations could include a patch, reconfiguration or even outlining a zero day, which is an exploit that has not made its way to Microsoft or Google for remediation yet.<\/p>\n Much of your penetration testing results so far have focused on maintaining a balance between being clear for a nontechnical team member and providing information to your technical teams.<\/strong> Two additional reports highlight this balance the most: The nontechnical, risk-based report\u00a0 and the technical report, which is meant for your operational team. The technical section identifies all of the security risks, penetration points, vulnerabilities, concerns, and threats your pen tester ran into alongside the technical aspects of each finding.<\/p>\n While not all firms do, several firms will provide a detailed nontechnical, risk-based report so that your nontechnical team members can quickly understand what poses the most risk to your organization and what can wait until later. While the assessment listed above will provide a high-level overview, this report should be more detailed while avoiding the trappings of becoming too technical. When accompanied by the technical report, your company gains a holistic view of your security vulnerabilities.<\/p>\n Your firm might provide much of the technical section<\/a> in a table format and break down unique and specific advice for each vulnerability. For example, suppose your pen tester broke through a specific router\u2019s security or exposed a weak login in your customer relationship management (CRM) platform that could expose customer\u2019s data. In that case, they should list that in the technical section alongside how to resolve these issues.<\/p>\n The details provided within the technical section not only help your technical teams resolve these issues, but they also help them discover additional vulnerabilities that may have been out of scope for the test. For example, the project’s scope might have been to check single sign-on vulnerabilities, but it might not have been to dive into vendors’ security measures. By discovering potential problems with the CRM login, technical teams might also reevaluate their vendors\u2019 security measures.<\/strong><\/p>\n When the pen tester clearly explains their recommendations for remediation, you can develop a comprehensive plan to strengthen your security posture and mitigate identified risks effectively.<\/p>\n Penetration testing reports provide invaluable insights into your organization\u2019s security posture by identifying vulnerabilities<\/a>, assessing risks, and offering recommendations for remediation. They also play a major role in ensuring compliance with HIPAA, PCI DSS, SOC2, and more.<\/p>\n Understanding the key components of these reports will better equip you and your team to make informed decisions, prioritize remediation efforts, and implement effective strategies to enhance your organization’s overall cybersecurity resilience<\/a>.<\/p>\n \n How to Understand the Scope and Methodology of Your Penetration Testing Report<\/h2>\n
Executive Summary<\/h3>\n
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Scope of Work<\/h3>\n
Testing Methodology and Techniques Employed<\/h3>\n
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Limitations and Assumptions<\/h3>\n
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Key Narratives Your Penetration Testing Report Should Include<\/h2>\n
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Analyzing the Results: Vulnerabilities and Risk Assessment<\/h2>\n
Implementing Recommendations and Remediation Steps<\/h2>\n
Nontechnical, Risk-Based Report<\/h3>\n
Technical Report<\/h3>\n
Your Organization\u2019s Future Security Depends on the Pen Test<\/h2>\n