An external network penetration test assesses your network for vulnerabilities and security issues in servers, hosts, devices and network services. External penetration testing will:

  • Identify and assess all Internet-facing assets a criminal hacker could use as potential entry points into your network.
  • Evaluate the effectiveness of your firewalls and other intrusion-prevention systems.
  • Establish whether an unauthorised user with the same level of access as your customers and suppliers can access your systems via the external network.

Clients will receive information about the identified vulnerabilities in a format that allows them to assess their relative business risk and remediation cost. This information can be used to resolve the vulnerabilities in line with the network owner’s budget and risk appetite.

Did you know?

  • 96% of external network engagements identify at least one vulnerability.
  • User credentials and other confidential information can be obtained in 21% of engagements.
  • Weak passwords allowed internal network authentication to 20.8% of testers.

Breaking into external systems (those that communicate with the Internet) can be relatively simple if they have not been properly patched and secured against the latest threats.

Once an external attacker has gained access to your network, they can access sensitive data, modify data, cause the system to operate abnormally or crash the system.

Is an external network penetration test right for you?

If you are responsible for your external network, you should ask yourself:

  • Are my systems fully patched and properly configured?
  • Are any systems or applications secured with weak or default passwords?
  • Have I accounted for all the services exposed to the Internet?
  • Could malware be present on my system?
  • Is every device secured by a correctly configured firewall?
  • Is my confidential information properly segregated or secured?

The benefits of an external network penetration test

Our penetration tests will help you:

  • Gain real-world insight into your vulnerabilities.
  • Identify any patches that need to be installed.
  • Reconfigure software, firewalls and operating systems.
  • Identify needs for encryption or more secure protocols.
  • Find the most vulnerable route through which an attack can be made.
  • Find loopholes that an attacker could use to steal sensitive data.

Our external network penetration testing methodology

Our CREST-accredited penetration testers follow an established methodology based primarily upon the Open-Source Security Testing Methodology Manual (OSSTMM). This approach emulates attackers’ techniques using many of the same readily available tools.

  1. Scoping – Before a test, our account management team will discuss the requirements for your network/infrastructure assessment to define the scope of the test.
  2. Reconnaissance – IT Governance will enumerate your network assets and identify any holes in your systems where malicious actors could break in.
  3. Assessment – Using the information identified in the reconnaissance phase, we test the identified hosts for potential vulnerabilities.
  4. Reporting – The results will be thoroughly analysed by an IT Governance certified tester. A full report will be prepared that sets out the scope of the test and the methodology used, along with the risks identified. This will provide your organisation with the ability to produce an accurate threat and risk assessment.
  5. Re-test – We can provide access to our testers and the raw test data to support and expedite remediation. We can also retest your systems so that you can be sure all the issues have been successfully resolved.