Web application penetration testing is the practice of simulating attacks on a system in an attempt to gain access to sensitive data, with the purpose of determining whether a system is secure. These attacks are performed either internally or externally on a system, and they help provide information about the target system, identify vulnerabilities within them, and uncover exploits that could actually compromise the system. It is an essential health check of a system that informs testers whether remediation and security measures are needed.

We adopt the following key steps to performing penetration testing on web applications so that anticipated results can be achieved with respect to Web application security.

1) Planning Phase

During the planning phase, we define the scope, timeline, and testing target, determine the scope of the target environment, and develop the communications procedures. Additionally, application pages are also tested to perform either internal or external testing or both.

We also strictly focus upon the timeline for the whole process. This ensures that the assessment doesn’t drag out and timely security controls can be put into place to strengthen the defence for application.

2) Pre-Attack Phase

In this phase, reconnaissance is carried out which is important for paving the way for the next phase of testing and any other information available publicly that can be used against the organisation.

We perform port scanning, service identification, vulnerability assessment, etc. in this phase of testing.

3) Attack Phase

During the attack phase, we do vulnerability detection, scanning, service identification, and exploit the vulnerabilities found in the last phase.

4) Post-Attack Phase

After the penetration testing is complete, a full detailed report is generated. This report can vary due to the type of application that is pen-tested. Generally, the penetration testing report includes a list of vulnerabilities, an analysis of the finding, proposed remediations, and a conclusion.

 Benefits of Web Application Pen Testing

There are several key benefits to incorporating web application penetration testing into a security program.

• It helps satisfy compliance requirements. Pen testing is explicitly required in some industries, and performing web application pen testing helps meet this requirement.
• It helps assess infrastructure. Infrastructure, like firewalls and DNS servers, is public-facing. Any changes made to the infrastructure can make a system vulnerable. Web application pen testing helps identify real-world attacks that could succeed at accessing these systems.
• It identifies vulnerabilities. Web application pen testing identifies loopholes in applications or vulnerable routes in infrastructure.
• It helps confirm security policies. Web application pen testing assesses existing security policies for any weaknesses. 

Deliverables

At the end of the penetration testing procedure, we provide our customers with a set of reports and recommendations to effectively eliminate the detected breaches:

• Brief description based on the achieved results and findings.
• List of detected system vulnerabilities and their classification according to how easy they are to exploit and how harmful for the system and business they may be.
• List of changes in the system that were implemented during testing.
• Test protocol (including instruments and tools used, parts that were checked and issues found).
• Actionable recommendations to eliminate the revealed security issues.