NET COMPLIANCE SOLUTIONS

Penetration Testing - PCI Requirement 11.3

	Net Compliance Solutions Penetration Testing     A network penetration test is a proactive and authorized attempt to compromise network security and access sensitive information by taking advantage of vulnerabilities.   What We Do   Net Compliance Solutions provides penetration testing services of Web Applications at the Network Layer and at the Application Level.  Our Pen Testing services meet the requirements of of the PCI Standards (PCI DSS 11.3) for Merchants and Service Providers which require that a pen test be performed annually.    Why You Should Perform Penetration Testing Network security breaches are costly Security breaches can bring direct financial losses, threaten company reputations and customer loyalties, attract negative press, and trigger significant fines and penalties. A recent edition of the "CSI/FBI Computer Crime and Security Survey" estimated the average cost of a security breach to be $203,000, and the cost of a single serious breach can be significantly higher. It is impossible to safeguard all information, all the time Organizations have traditionally sought to prevent breaches using security barriers, such as access controls, cryptography, IPS, IDS and firewalls. However, the increasing complexity of networks - and the resulting interconnectivity among users - makes it impossible for these barriers to safeguard all information, all the time. New vulnerabilities are discovered each day, and attacks constantly evolve in sophistication and automation. Penetration testing identifies and prioritizes security risks Penetration testing evaluates a network's ability to protect information from unauthorized access. Test results validate the risk posed by specific vulnerabilities, enabling information security professionals to prioritize remediation efforts. As a result, organizations can proactively anticipate and prevent unauthorized access to valuable information assets. When to Perform Penetration Testing Penetration testing should be performed on a regular basis to ensure consistent network security by revealing newly discovered threats. Tests should also be run whenever: new network infrastructure or applications are added; significant upgrades or modifications are applied to infrastructure or applications; new office locations are established, or; security patches are applied. How You Can Benefit from Penetration Testing Intelligently manage vulnerabilities Penetration testing provides detailed information on actual, exploitable security threats. By performing a penetration test, you can identify which vulnerabilities are critical, which are insignificant, and which are false positives. This allows you to intelligently apply patches and allocate security resources when and where they are needed most. Avoid the cost of network downtime Recovering from a security breach can cost millions due to IT remediation efforts, lost employee productivity and lost revenue. Penetration testing allows you to prevent this financial drain by identifying and addressing risks before security breaches occur. Meet regulatory requirements and avoid fines Penetration testing helps to satisfy the auditing/compliance aspects regulations such as GLBA, PCI, HIPAA and Sarbanes-Oxley. The detailed records that penetration tests provide can help to avoid significant fines for non-compliance. Preserve corporate image and customer loyalty Even a single incident of compromised customer data can be costly. Penetration testing helps you avoid data incidents that put your organization's goodwill and reputation at stake. Justify security investments Penetration testing can both evaluate the effectiveness of existing security products and build the case for proposed investments. Satisfy prerequisites for cybersecurity insurance Penetration testing is fast becoming a requirement for obtaining cybersecurity insurance coverage. Vulnerability Assessment and Penetration Testing  Vulnerability Assessment Penetration Testing Penetration testing safely exploits vulnerabilities to eliminate "false positives" and reveal tangible threats. Penetration test results enable IT staff to delineate critical security issues that require immediate attention from those that pose lesser risks.   Vulnerability Assessment Penetration Testing Testing Scope Scans for all potential network vulnerabilities. Identifies vulnerabilities and determines if they can actually be exploited. Vulnerability Relevance Categorizes vulnerabilities based on standardized, theoretical information - not customized to the tested network. Tests vulnerabilities on specific network resources, enabling prioritization of remediation efforts. Usefulness of Test Results Provides false positives, identifying vulnerabilities that cannot be exploited. Exploits vulnerabilities, identifying only those that pose actual threats to network resources. Network Connection Testing Does not address connections between network components. Exploits trust relationships between network components to demonstrate actual attack paths. Remediation Assistance Delivers long lists of vulnerabilities, limiting remediation options to widespread patching. Assesses the potential risks of specific vulnerabilities, allowing users to patch only what is necessary and to test the effectiveness of patches and other mitigation strategies, such as intrusion prevention. Testing of Other Security Investments Does not simulate attacks to test IDS, IPS or other security technologies. Launches real-world attacks to determine if other security investments are functioning properly. Security Risk Assessment Only identifies missing patches, making it impossible to truly assess security risks. Safely mimics the actions of a hackers and worms, providing risk evaluations based on tangible network threats. Penetration Test A penetration test is a method of evaluating the security of a computer system or network by simulating an attack by a malicious user, commonly known as a hacker. The process involves an active analysis of the system for any potential vulnerabilities that may result from poor or improper system configuration, known and/or unknown hardware or software flaws, or operational weaknesseses in process or technical countermeasures. This analysis is carried out from the position of a potential attacker, and can involve active exploitation of security vulnerabilities. Any security issues that are found will be presented to the system owner together with an assessment of their impact and often with a proposal for mitigation or a technical solution. the intent of a penetration test is to determine feasibility of an attack, the amount of business impact of a successful exploit, if discovered. Black box vs. White box Penetration tests can be conducted in several ways. The most common difference is the amount of knowledge of the implementation details of the system being tested that are available to the testers. Black box testing assumes no prior knowledge of the infrastructure to be tested. The testers must first determine the location and extent of the systems before commencing their analysis. At the other end of the spectrum, white box testing provides the testers with complete knowledge of the infrastructure to be tested, often including network diagrams, source code and IP addressing information. There are also several variations in between, often known as gray box tests. Penetration tests may also be described as Full disclosure, partial disclosure or blind tests based on the amount of information provided to the testing party. The relative merits of these approaches are debatable. It is argued that black box testing most closely simulates the actions of an actual malicious user. This ignores the fact that any targeted attack on a system will most probably require some knowledge of the system. typically, an insider may have access to as much information as the system owners. In most cases it is preferable to assume a worst-case scenario and provide the testers with as much information as they require, assuming that any determined attacker would already have acquired this through some other means. In practice, the services offered by penetration testing firms range from a simple scan of an organisation's IP address space for open ports and identification banners to a full audit of source code for an application. NET COMPLIANCE SOLUTIONS media@netcompliancesoultions.com    A Part Of Providence Enterprise Group, LLC