The top 5 Reasons Penetration Testing Is Essential for Your Business

The prevalence of data breaches in today's business landscape is staggering, with companies of all sizes and types falling victim to cyberattacks. Large corporations like Yahoo, LinkedIn, Twitter, and Daily Motion have all experienced data breaches in recent years, resulting in negative publicity, lawsuits, and loss of trust amongst their customers. However, the threat of cyberattacks is not limited to high-profile companies; businesses of any size are susceptible to attacks, which is why penetration testing is critical to the security of your company.

What is Penetration Testing?

A penetration test is an assessment of a network’s security. When performed by a third party, a pen test involves a certified ethical hacker who attempts to breach either interior or exterior business networks (depending on the type of test performed) to identify potential points of compromise.

Penetration testers are trained to think like hackers, and they use the same methods as their malicious counterparts. The concept is similar to safeguarding your house: To burglar-proof your home, you may take advice from someone with experience breaking into homes. There is a significant difference in trying to prevent an attack versus discovering weaknesses in your security system. What may appear to be secure may actually be vulnerable — finding out is all in the approach. In this blog, we have outlined five compelling reasons to consider investing in pen testing and the benefits your business and employees can expect from it: 

1. Identifying Weaknesses Before Cybercriminals do: 

In today's digital era, data breaches have become a common occurrence. Cybercriminals are always on the lookout for new ways to exploit vulnerabilities in software systems. In fact, ethical hackers discovered over 65,000 vulnerabilities in 2022 alone, indicating a 21% increase year over year. Despite this, many organizations are still of the “why fix something that is not broken” mindset. Weak networks may not look broken on the surface, but they may crack under the slightest pressure.

One of the most significant data breaches in history occurred in 2017 when Equifax, one of the largest credit reporting agencies suffered a massive data breach that exposed the personal information of 147 million individuals. The root cause of this breach was a failure to patch a known design flaw in the Apache Struts software.

Many external breaches could be prevented if organizations perform a penetration test. Pen testing shows you exactly where your security system’s shortcomings lie, and it proactively addresses them before hackers have the chance to infiltrate them. The bottom line is that you cannot fix the problem if you don’t know where it’s broken. Pen testing goes beyond finding security gaps, as it actively tries to exploit them to determine if a hacker could gain access to data. It is like an MRI for your security infrastructure; it looks for problems that may not have developed symptoms yet. Penetration testing is a true test of the effectiveness of your existing protections and clearly reveals where your organization is leaving open doors for cybercriminals to enter.

Penetration testing enables organizations to locate sites of potential attacks within their systems before malicious actors exploit them. By simulating various attack scenarios, including phishing attempts, malware injections, and network intrusions, pen testing provides invaluable insights into your organization's security posture. This precautionary approach helps mitigate the risk of costly data breaches and reputational damage.

2. Compliance Requirements and Regulatory Standards:

Cybercrime is a growing concern for organizations with damages amounting to billions of dollars every day. With such high stakes, regulatory standards and compliance requirements are increasingly being put in place to hold organizations accountable for their security practices. Complying with these regulations is critical and can be achieved through regular penetration testing.

Penetration testing has become a necessary requirement for compliance with regulations such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS), and Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). By conducting regular pen tests, organizations can demonstrate their commitment to regulatory compliance and reduce the likelihood of non-compliance penalties

Regular penetration testing demonstrates your commitment to regulatory cooperation and reduces the likelihood of non-compliance penalties. The consequences of non-compliance can be severe, as was exemplified by the $230 million fine that British Airways received after a data breach under GDPR.

To prevent similar penalties from befalling your own business, it is crucial to maintain a strong security posture and provide evidence of due diligence. Penetration test reports act as evidence that your organization has been maintaining the necessary level of security to meet compliance and regulation standards. By prioritizing regular penetration testing, you can protect your business from costly penalties and reputational damage while ensuring that your customers' data remains safe and secure.

3. Enhancing Cybersecurity Awareness and Preparedness:

Cybersecurity is an ever-changing field, with hackers always finding new ways to exploit software, hardware, and human behavior. This makes it crucial for companies to have a comprehensive understanding of their cybersecurity posture and to take steps to ensure that their data remains secure.

One way to achieve this is through comprehensive penetration testing. Not only does pen testing pinpoint technical vulnerabilities, but it can also raise awareness among your employees about potential cybersecurity threats. By simulating phishing attacks and social engineering techniques, employees can learn to recognize and respond to suspicious activities effectively. This, in turn, can help enhance the overall cybersecurity awareness and preparedness of your workforce.

Imagine a scenario where an employee falls for a simulated phishing attack during a pen test. They can then be directed to training resources that can help them identify and avoid such attacks in the future. This helps inculcate a culture of cybersecurity within the organization and ensures that employees are equipped to deal with cyber threats.

The importance of regular pen tests was highlighted in 2022 when Uber was breached by a teenage hacker associated with LAPSUS$, a well-known ransomware crime gang. The hacker exploited a point of weakness in Uber's security by flooding an unsuspecting employee with MFA push requests until they accepted them. This breach revealed lax governance on admin credentials and MFA management, emphasizing the importance of regular pen tests to identify such vulnerabilities.

Penetration testing not only helps organizations refine their incident response procedures, but it also ensures swift and effective responses in the event of a real cyber incident. By investing in regular pen testing, businesses can significantly enhance their cybersecurity awareness, preparedness, and protection against cyber threats.

4. Safeguarding Customer Trust and Loyalty:

As the digital landscape continues to grow, businesses are being entrusted with sensitive customer data more than ever before. It is imperative that businesses take measures to ensure that they are handling this data securely. A single data breach can cause significant reputational damage and financial repercussions, eroding customer trust and loyalty that may have taken years to build.

Businesses can demonstrate their commitment to safeguarding customer data by investing in penetration testing. Penetration testing prevents the loss of customer data and the subsequent erosion of trust by identifying weakness in a company's systems before they can be exploited by malicious actors. In an era where consumer loyalty hinges on data protection, pen testing becomes an investment in your brand’s image. 

Take a lesson from the Equifax data breach of 2017, which left the credit reporting agency reeling for years. The brand may be forever associated with a devastating security lapse, and the $575 million settlement is a stark reminder of how costly a data breach can be. By investing in pen testing, businesses can avoid these pitfalls and foster long-term customer relationships, instilling confidence in their brand and protecting their reputation.

5. Cost-Effectiveness and Risk Mitigation:

While the initial investment in penetration testing may seem significant, the cost of a data breach far exceeds the expenses associated with security measures. Data breaches can result in substantial financial losses due to regulatory fines, legal fees, remediation costs, and damage to brand reputation.

The typical time needed to detect and stop a data breach is 277 days, according to IBM's Cost of Data Breach 2022 research. The longer sensitive data and harmful software are exposed to malicious hackers before being discovered, the more damage they can do, and the greater the repercussions are. Losses from downtimes, poor network performance, damaged reputation, diminished loyalty, and decrease in customers compound the financial implications associated with cybersecurity breaches and assaults.; your company can continue to feel the repercussions of the breach for many years. According to the research analysis, the average cost of a data breach worldwide in 2022 was $4.35 million, up 12.7% over the average cost in 2020. Restoring normal operations will necessitate heavy financial investments, cutting-edge safety precautions, and several weeks of downtime.

However, correcting the imperfections that a penetration test uncovers before a cyber breach allows for much less downtime and inconvenience for your business. Not to mention, it only costs a small fraction of what a successful breach would. When you pay for security professionals to simulate an attack, your company will not be left cleaning up the damages of a data breach. The simulated attack exposes the same vulnerabilities a real attacker would have. At the conclusion of the test, you will receive a report with recommendations to fix any flaws in your company’s security system. By determining the resilience of your security landscape before it is exploited, pen testing ultimately saves your organization from the devastating consequences of a cyberattack.

Telesystem is Here for Your Cybersecurity Needs

In today's world, cyberattacks are an ever-growing threat that cannot be ignored. These attacks can have devastating consequences for businesses, making it crucial for organizations to have robust cybersecurity measures in place. At Telesystem, we understand the importance of protecting your business from cyber threats, which is why we offer a team of skilled pen testers dedicated to safeguarding your organization.

Penetration testing is an essential aspect of any comprehensive cybersecurity strategy, and our expert team of pen testers can help you identify potential areas of vulnerability and strengthen your defenses. Our services not only help you meet regulatory requirements and mitigate financial risks but also enhance cybersecurity awareness among your employees and build trust with your customers.

Whether you're launching a new product, upgrading your existing systems, or recovering from a cyber-attack, Telesystem's pen testing services can provide you with the information you need to keep your business safe. With our support, you can rest assured that your organization is protected against potential threats, allowing you to focus on growing your business without worrying about the potential of cyberattacks.