How You Can Effectively Test Cybersecurity?

How You Can Effectively Test Cybersecurity
How You Can Effectively Test Cybersecurity

When you are trying to maintain a technology infrastructure, it can be incredibly difficult doing so in a way which allows you to stay on top of cybersecurity and keep tech operating to the highest possible standard. Even when you have your very own IT department, it can be easy to miss different vulnerabilities and threats that are contained within an IT system. As such, there are a lot of businesses who reach out to third party organizations who are able to effectively test cybersecurity. Some of the most effective ways that these companies do this are discussed in more detail below.

A Cybersecurity Audit

This is a completely comprehensive overview of an entire network where vulnerabilities will be sought out and assessed, ensuring the entire system is compliant with the necessary regulations. Ethical hacking can be used in order to test different systems and work out more effectively whether or not the system is working to its fullest potential. If you are interested in trying to become an ethical hacker, then you should consider learning how to do so using sites such as Plural Sight and getting a CEH certification. You can help a number of different companies by becoming an ethical hacker as you can make sure that their system is working as effectively as possible with little to no vulnerabilities.

A Penetration Test

These are also quite frequently called pen testing, which is a form of ethical hacking. There are a number of different methods of pen testing and the type that a third-party company decide to employ will depend on what the organization they are working with does and what they would like examining for their business. Some of the frequent tests include:

  • Internal tests: These are done in a company’s own environment.
  • External tests: These will involve a hacking network trying to get access to software from outside of the business.
  • Blind tests: This is where the actions of a real hacker will be simulated as IT professionals will attempt to gain access to a business with little to no information about their infrastructure.

A Security Scan

This is where a full scan will be done as a means to try and find misconfigurations within the system (these are incorrect or suboptimal designs that can lead to vulnerabilities). Hackers find these misconfigurations incredibly easy to detect and as such, they need to be picked up and fixed to ensure a computers system is as secure as possible. Some of the most common misconfigurations which will be picked up in security scans include:

  • Default account settings
  • Unpatched systems
  • Insufficient firewalls
  • Unencrypted files
  • Outdated web apps

Conclusion

It is imperative in the face of so many online threats that online infrastructures are kept as airtight and up to date as possible. There are a number of ways that third party businesses can look into cybersecurity and some of the most popular methods are discussed in more detail above.

Mark Funk
Mark Funk is an experienced information security specialist who works with enterprises to mature and improve their enterprise security programs. Previously, he worked as a security news reporter.