Penetration Testing | Breaking Cybersecurity News | The Hacker News

So you've decided to set up a vulnerability scanning programme, great. That's one of the best ways to avoid data breaches. How often you should run your scans, though, isn't such a simple question. The answers aren't the same for every type of organization or every type of system you're scanning. This guide will help you understand the questions you should be asking and help you come up with the answers that are right for you. How often should vulnerability scans be run A lot of the advice below depends on what exactly you're scanning. If you're not sure about that yet - check out this comprehensive  vulnerability scanning guide . Once you've decided which systems should be in scope, and what type of scanner you need, you're ready to start scanning. So how often should you ideally be running vulnerability scans? Here are five strategies to consider, and we'll discuss in which scenarios they work best: Change-based Hygiene-based Complian

If you are thinking about performing a penetration test on your organization, you might be interested in learning about the different types of tests available. With that knowledge, you'll be better equipped to define the scope for your project, hire the right expert and, ultimately, achieve your security objectives. What is penetration testing? Penetration testing, commonly referred to as "pen testing," is a technique that simulates real-life attacks on your IT systems to find weaknesses that could be exploited by hackers. Whether to comply with security regulations such as ISO 27001, gain customer and 3rd party trust, or achieve your own peace of mind, penetration testing is an effective method used by modern organizations to strengthen their cyber security posture and prevent data breaches.  Read about the different types of penetration testing to find out which type you can benefit from the most: Network penetration testing As the name suggests, a network penetra

Imagine a world where the software that powers your favorite apps, secures your online transactions, and keeps your digital life could be outsmarted and taken over by a cleverly disguised piece of code. This isn't a plot from the latest cyber-thriller; it's actually been a reality for years now. How this will change – in a positive or negative direction – as artificial intelligence (AI) takes on a larger role in software development is one of the big uncertainties related to this brave new world. In an era where AI promises to revolutionize how we live and work, the conversation about its security implications cannot be sidelined. As we increasingly rely on AI for tasks ranging from mundane to mission-critical, the question is no longer just, "Can AI  boost cybersecurity ?" (sure!), but also "Can AI  be hacked? " (yes!), "Can one use AI  to hack? " (of course!), and "Will AI  produce secure software ?" (well…). This thought leadership article is about the latter. Cydrill  (a

An effective cybersecurity strategy can be challenging to implement correctly and often involves many layers of security. Part of a robust security strategy involves performing what is known as a penetration test (pen test). The penetration test helps to discover vulnerabilities and weaknesses in your security defenses before the bad guys discover these. They can also help validate remedial efforts and solutions put in place to overcome previously discovered security vulnerabilities.  Let's look more closely at the pen test. What is included in a penetration test? How are they performed, and by whom? What steps should be taken after a penetration test? What is a penetration test? 1 — Simulated cyberattack A penetration test is, for all practical purposes, a simulated cyberattack on your business. However, it is carried out by the "good guys." An outside resource often conducts a penetration test, whether a third-party security consulting company or another security entity. Securit

A common misconception among startup founders is that cybercriminals won't waste time on them, because they're not big or well known enough yet. But just because you are small doesn't mean  you're not in the firing line . The size of a startup does not exempt it from cyber-attacks – that's because hackers constantly scan the internet looking for flaws that they can exploit; one slip up, and your business can become front-page news, for the wrong reasons. Fortunately, buyers are also becoming increasingly aware of the importance of cybersecurity and are commonly asking startups about the processes they use to secure their data - meaning cybersecurity is now becoming an important business enabler. So if you're a CTO thinking about ramping up your web or mobile apps' cybersecurity posture, then you are already on the right track, but with so many options, where should you start? To help you get going, we created this guide that covers the following crucial

Over the years,  penetration testing  has had to change and adapt alongside the IT environments and technology that need to be assessed. Broad cybersecurity issues often influence the strategy and growth of pen-testing. In such a fast-paced field, organizations get real value from learning about others' penetration testing experiences, identifying trends, and the role they play in today's threat landscape. While there is much to be gained from a single snapshot, additional value can come from long term data collection and year over year comparisons. We can see whether the effects that recent trends have on pen testing are long term, or simply a temporary shift, and how they affect the continuing evolution of penetration testing. For instance, 2020 saw a massive influx of remote work. Unfortunately, the convenience of working safely from home increased the risk of a breach as countless new attack vectors opened up, both from the way employees connected to networks, as well a

FireEye, one of the largest cybersecurity firms in the world, said on Tuesday it became a victim of a  state-sponsored attack  by a "highly sophisticated threat actor" that stole its arsenal of Red Team penetration testing tools it uses to test the defenses of its customers. The company said it's actively investigating the breach in coordination with the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and other key partners, including Microsoft. It did not identify a specific culprit who might be behind the breach or disclose when the hack exactly took place. However,  The New York Times  and  The Washington Post  reported that the FBI has turned over the investigation to its Russian specialists and that the attack is likely the work of  APT29  (or Cozy Bear) — state-sponsored hackers affiliated with Russia's SVR Foreign Intelligence Service — citing unnamed sources. As of writing, the hacking tools have not been exploited in the wild, nor do they contain zero-day expl

What is the difference between a penetration test and a red team exercise? The common understanding is that a red team exercise is a pen-test on steroids, but what does that mean? While both programs are performed by ethical hackers, whether they are in-house residents or contracted externally, the difference runs deeper. In a nutshell, a pen-test is performed to discover exploitable vulnerabilities and misconfigurations that would potentially serve unethical hackers. They primarily test the effectiveness of security controls and employee security awareness. The purpose of a red team exercise, in addition to discovering exploitable vulnerabilities, is to exercise the operational effectiveness of the security team, the blue team. A red team exercise challenges the blue team's capabilities and supporting technology to detect, respond, and recover from a breach. The objective is to improve their incident management and response procedures. The challenge with pen-testing and red te

Did you ever try extracting any information from any website? Well, if you have then you have surely enacted web scraping functions without even knowing it! To put in simpler terms, Web scraping, or also known as web data extraction, is the process of recouping or sweeping data from web-pages. It is a much faster and easier process of retrieving data without undergoing the time-consuming hassle of manual data extraction methods. Web scraping uses advanced automatic tools to reclaim data from millions and billions of websites. The Basics of Web Scraping First, some common terms you'll need to know: The Crawler: The web crawler or popularly known as a 'spider,' is an automated website scraping tool that skims through the internet for information. The spider usually surfs the internet and follows links, and explores various web pages to gather or "scrape" up any information. The Scraper: A scraper or web scraper is a comprehensive website scraper

"In today's knowledge economy, continual learning is an imperative." — Those words from Aytekin Tank, the founder of JotForm, are particularly important for anyone working in IT or development. With over 1,000 premium courses ( complete list ) from top instructors, StackSkills Unlimited provides endless learning opportunities. Right now, you can grab lifetime membership for $59 . Categories of courses include: Animation and 3D Audio Bundles Business Applications CAD Databases Game Design and Development Graphics and Page Layout Internet and Web Design Multimedia and Video Networking and Security Operating Systems Programming, and Project Management Wondering what these courses cover? Here are five top skills: Ethical Hacking and Penetration Testing Finding the weaknesses in software, websites, and networks is an important task. For this reason, white hat hackers are in demand, with top pros earning over $100k a year. StackSkills Unlimite

Visibility into an environment attack surface is the fundamental cornerstone to sound security decision making. However, the standard process of 3rd party threat assessment as practiced today is both time consuming and expensive. Cynet changes the rules of the game with a free threat assessment offering ( click here to learn more ) based on more than 72 hours of data collection, enabling organizations to benchmark their security posture against their vertical industry peers and take actions accordingly. Cynet Free Threat Assessment (available for organizations with 250 endpoints and above, from North America and Europe) spotlights critical, exposed attack surfaces and provides actionable knowledge of attacks that are currently alive and active in the environment. 1.) Indication of live attacks — active malware, connection to C&C, data exfiltration, access to phishing links, user credential theft attempts, and others: 2.) Host and app attack surfaces — unpatched vulnera