Definition

Penetration test

A penetration test is an authorized simulated attack in which a security professional tries to break into your systems the way a real adversary would. Rather than just listing weaknesses, the tester chains them together to show what an attacker could actually reach, whether that is customer data, admin access, or an internal network. Engagements vary from black box, where the tester starts with no inside knowledge, to white box, where they get full details up front. The result is a report ranking real, exploitable findings with steps to fix them. Many frameworks, including PCI DSS, expect regular penetration testing.