PENETRATION TESTING METHODOLOGIES AND STANDARDS
Organizations are looking to secure their IT infrastructure and fix vulnerabilities, they are also looking for the latest, relevant, and most popular penetration tools and methodologies to fight the new types of cyberattacks.
1. OSSTMM
The Open Source Security Testing Methodology Manual is a complete methodology for penetration and security testing, security analysis and the measurement of operational security towards building the best possible security defenses for your organization.
The OSSTMM methodology enables penetration testers to perform customized testing that fits the technological and specific needs of the organization. A customized assessment gives an overview of the network’s security, along with reliable solutions to make appropriate decisions to secure an organization’s network.
2. OWASP
The Open Web Application Security Project® (OWASP) is a nonprofit foundation that works to improve the security of software. Through community-led open-source software projects.
Below are the security risks reported in the OWASP Top 10 2017 report
- Injection
- Broken Authentication
- Sensitive Data Exposure
- XML External Entities (XEE)
- Broken Access Control
- Security Misconfiguration
- Cross-Site Scripting(XSS)
- Insecure Deserialization
- Using Components With Known Vulnerabilities
- Insufficient Logging And Monitoring
3. NIST
The National Institute of Standards and Technology is a non-regulatory government agency that develops technology, metrics, and standards to drive innovation and economic competitiveness at U.S.-based organizations in the science and technology industry. As part of this effort, NIST produces standards and guidelines to help federal agencies meet the requirements of the Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA). NIST also assists those agencies in protecting their information and information systems through cost-effective programs.
In many cases, complying with NIST guidelines and recommendations will help federal agencies ensure compliance with other regulations, such as HIPAA, FISMA, or SOX. NIST guidelines are often developed to help agencies meet specific regulatory compliance requirements.
4. PTES
The PTES (Penetration Testing Methodologies and Standards) recommends a structured approach to a penetration test. On one side, the PTES guides you through the phases of penetration testing, beginning with communication, information gathering, and threat modeling phases.
PTES provides guidelines to the testers for post-exploitation testing. If required, they can validate the successful fixing of previously identified vulnerabilities. The standard has seven phases that guarantee successful penetration testing with recommendations to rely on.
5. ISSAF
The ISSAF (Information System Security Assessment Framework) is a specialized and structured approach to penetration testing. More importantly, the framework provides advanced methodologies that are personalized to the context. These standards allow a tester to plan and execute every step of the penetration testing process.
ISSAF offers additional information concerning various attack vectors, as well as vulnerability outcome after exploitation. All this information allows testers to plan an advanced attack that guarantees a return on investment while securing systems from cyberattacks.