This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
Scanning and Penetration Testing
Scanning an organization’s environment helps the organization to understand what assets it has, any associated vulnerabilities, and ways to remediate and mitigate those vulnerabilities. Vulnerability scanning can be done with open-source tools such as Network Mapper (Nmap) or commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) solutions such as Rapid7 or Tenable. The purpose of these scans is to examine risks that may affect the organization continuously. It also helps the organization prioritize remediation efforts and track progress.
A vulnerability scan differs from a penetration test (often shortened to pentest) in that vulnerability scans are passive in nature. The scan is looking for open vulnerabilities that could lead to exploitation. With pentesting, the goal is to test an organization’s technology and the safeguards currently in place by attempting to exploit vulnerabilities found during a vulnerability scan. Once a pentest is complete, the results are shared with the stakeholders for remediation or mitigation. Pentests also enable teams to test their incident response plans and make changes as needed before a threat actor enters the scene.