Application Penetration Testing

What Is an Application Penetration Test?

Application penetration testing aims to detect security vulnerabilities and verify security, integrity and availability of computer systems. A successful application penetration test should confirm proper protection of data, a reduction in cyber threats and more.

How Can an Application Pentest Benefit You?

Pinpoint Security Threats

Application penetration testing helps discover security weaknesses in applications before they can be exploited by attackers. By uncovering weaknesses like insecure coding practices or misconfigurations, organizations can remediate issues before they lead to data breaches or other security incidents. This proactive approach allows organizations to address issues such as SQL injection, cross-site scripting (XSS), and other common vulnerabilities.

Assure Compliance and Best Practice

Many industries are subject to regulations that require regular security assessments. Penetration testing helps ensure compliance with standards such as PCI DSS, HIPAA, or GDPR, thereby avoiding potential fines and legal issues. Application penetration testing helps organizations meet these compliance obligations, demonstrating due diligence in protecting data and adhering to best practices for software security.

Improve Security Posture

Regular penetration testing not only identifies weaknesses but also enhances an organization’s overall security posture. It provides insights into the effectiveness of existing security measures and helps in building a culture of security awareness within development teams.

Mitigate Risk

By understanding the security risks associated with their applications, organizations can prioritize remediation efforts and allocate resources effectively. This proactive approach minimizes the potential impact of a successful attack, protecting sensitive data and maintaining customer trust.

There are many factors that would determine the testing methodologies necessary for your application . If you’re curious about what kind of information we’d need to know, we’ve got some FOOD FOR THOUGHT.

If you’d like a more in-depth explanation, feel free to contact us!

Case Studies

here are three examples of companies that experienced significant security incidents due to inadequate application penetration testing, which allowed attackers to exploit vulnerabilities in their software and applications:

Credit Bureau

2017

Incident Details
This company suffered a massive data breach that exposed the personal information of 147 million people, including Social Security numbers, birthdates, and addresses. The attackers exploited a vulnerability in the company’s web application.

Cause
The breach was caused by the failure to patch a known vulnerability in the Apache Struts web application framework (CVE-2017-5638). This company did not conduct adequate penetration testing on its application layer, which would have identified the vulnerability sooner. Despite the availability of a patch, the company failed to apply it for months.

Impact
The breach cost this credit bureau hundreds of millions of dollars in fines, settlements, and reputational damage. It also led to the resignation of key executives and regulatory changes in how companies handle consumer data.


Financial Cooperative

2019

Incident Details
This company is one of the largest financial cooperatives in Canada, suffered a data breach in 2019 that exposed the personal information of 4.2 million members. This included names, addresses, Social Insurance Numbers, and other sensitive data.

Cause
The breach was caused by an insider threat, but it was exacerbated by vulnerabilities in its internal applications, which allowed the unauthorized extraction of data. Inadequate application penetration testing failed to identify these weaknesses in internal security controls, which could have limited or prevented data exfiltration.

Impact
This firm spent over $108 million on recovery efforts, including compensation to affected customers. The breach led to a loss of customer trust and highlighted the need for more robust application testing and monitoring.


Video Conferencing Company

2020

Incident Details
This popular video conferencing platform, experienced several security issues in 2020, including “video-bombing” incidents where unauthorized users disrupted meetings, and vulnerabilities that exposed user data.

Cause
The platforms web and mobile applications contained several vulnerabilities that were not adequately tested through penetration testing or secure coding practices. For instance, the video “bombing” incidents occurred because of weak default security settings, and vulnerabilities in the company encryption protocols left user data exposed.

Impact
This company faced scrutiny from regulators, including the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and had to implement significant security improvements. The company lost user trust but quickly responded by adding better encryption, multi-factor authentication, and other security features.

Conclusion

Inadequate application penetration testing in each of these cases left critical vulnerabilities undetected, allowing attackers to exploit weaknesses in web, mobile, and cloud applications. Thorough and regular penetration testing could have identified these issues before they were exploited, minimizing or preventing the impact of these breaches.