3 Reasons You Should Be Undergoing Regular Penetration Tests
by Sarah Harvey / June 23rd, 2015
Did you now you could avoid a costly data breach by having regular Penetration Testing and Vulnerability Scans? So why don’t we? Every week we hear about an unforgiving hacker who has taken advantage of a security gap to maliciously gain access to tons of irretrievable data, costing them tons of money, and ultimately damaging the reputation of the organization. Not to mention those affected by the stolen data – credit card numbers, social security numbers, patient healthcare information, the list goes on.
Take a real-world approach with your security measures by engaging in a Penetration Test to expose any vulnerabilities in your network’s infrastructure before someone else does. This form of permission-based ethical hacking will ultimately increase the security at your organization.
Still not convinced? Here are three reasons why you should have a regular Penetration Test performed at your organization:
- Avoid the inconvenience of network downtime – Recovering from the aftermath of a data breach can be quite costly. The financial burden associated with paying legal fees, any IT remediation, customer protection programs, loss in sales, and disheartened customers can cost organizations millions of dollars. Being proactive with regular Penetration Testing can help to prevent the financial loss while protecting your reputation and brand.
- Comply with regulatory requirements and avoid fines – Regulatory fines can be steep. Penetration Tests can be helpful in addressing the requirements for regulations such as HIPAA and GLBA, but are required to comply with regulations such as PCI DSS 3.0 and FISMA. The costs associated with these kinds of fines vastly outweigh the costs of undergoing regular Penetration Tests. Be proactive.
- Learn about holes in your security policies – Undergoing a Penetration Test is like practicing for a real-life hacker attack. It is a proactive approach to evaluate the security of an IT infrastructure. The process will uncover and exploit vulnerabilities within your organization that you can properly mitigate before an actual attack happens. Penetration Testing identifies and prioritizes risks.
If you aren’t already undergoing a regular Penetration Test, why not? Start today. For more information on the benefits of Penetration Tests or information about the types of testing we perform, contact us today.
