What is penetration testing? In simple words, it is the process of identifying vulnerabilities in the computer system or network and carrying out simulated attacks on those weaknesses to figure out how strong the systems are to withstand potential threats.
Penetration testing is an essential procedure for organizations or businesses that use computer systems as they can’t afford to data theft of their employees or valuable customers. Here are some reasons why pen testing is so crucial for businesses:
- By conducting pen testing, an organization can learn about the potential chances of a cyberattack and stay vigilant.
- Pen testing gives businesses an overall idea about their cybersecurity posture. They can upgrade their system or implement other measures to safeguard themselves.
- Businesses can renew their registration or license only if they comply with certain system safety standards. Pen testing helps meet such compliance protocols.
- Having a strong cybersecurity policy will help businesses build customer loyalty and have their continued trust.
- Periodical pen testing enables businesses to keep watch of their security posture and enhance it over time in response to evolving threats.
What is the importance of Black Box penetration testing?
Black box penetration testing is a type of penetration testing where the tester initiates it as an outsider with no knowledge of the target system, network or infrastructure.
The purpose of this type of pen testing is to identify how secure a system is against external hackers as the testing is done by simulating a real-world hacker.
Black box pentest is different from grey box and white box testing methods in the following ways.
- Black box pen testing requires no knowledge of the target network while white box or grey box testing requires complete or partial knowledge of the systems respectively.
- Blackbox testing gives a complete picture of the vulnerabilities and security posture of the external facing systems – website, web applications and other public-facing elements. It doesn’t give any data on the internal infrastructure as the white box or grey box does.
- Blackbox pen testing does not give any detailed analysis of the vulnerabilities as the focus is on the general or major vulnerabilities from an external point of view. On the other hand, white box or grey box tests give more details like code reviews or detailed analysis.
- Black box pen test is only applicable for businesses or organizations that have a strong internal system infrastructure and security poster and only need to bother about external threats. For companies that need to get both internal and external resources tested, the grey box method is more useful.
- Black box pen testing is done from a real-world context. Therefore, it is the most effective way to pinpoint the common and emerging vulnerability hotspots that hackers might use to exploit networks and systems. White box or grey box tests are done more from a professional point of view for detailed analysis.
- Black box testing seems to generate more cases of false positives as the tester has no clue of what is the case of the system security. With grey box or white test methods, chances of false positives are less as they have more detailed of knowledge of systems, networks and resources.
Black Box Penetration Testing Techniques
1.Gathering Information:
The process of collecting relevant information about the target systems or network is called reconnaissance. The assigned pen tester collects key details of the client such as IP addresses, domain names etc and identifies the areas where the pen testing will be carried out.
2.Conducting Scans:
The pen tester explores the target systems using various tools. The purpose is to figure out the open ports, live hosts or any other services that can have potential vulnerability and thus they can use them as entry points for conducting the exploitation.
3.Assessing Vulnerabilities:
Next, the pen tester will meticulously check the target spots for any potential weak spots. They use different techniques ranging from automated tools to manual methods to identify and then subsequently evaluate the scope of the vulnerabilities.
4.Testing Web Applications:
In this phase of the black box pen testing, the assigned tester will assess the security posture of the web applications. They will employ methods like cross-site scripting and SQL injections to penetrate through the vulnerable areas. In the absence of a strong defence against threats, the vulnerability will be exploited without causing damage to the client.
5.Penetrating Networks:
pen testers assess the security level of the network by simulating external attacks. During this process, they target all the venues which can be assessed from outside. Routers and firewalls are some of the elements they commonly target.
6.Social Engineering technique:
In this process, the tester will try to do social engineering on uninformed employees of the organization to see how likely they are to reveal sensitive information about the organization. Following this, the employees will be educated about the scenarios to be precautions about future threats.
7.Evaluating Wireless Networks:
An unauthorized user can sometimes exploit the loopholes in the wireless network. To identify this, the pen steer will assess the network and try to carry out simulated attacks to identify the likelihood of threats in those areas.
8. Exploiting Weaknesses:
While trying to gain unauthorized access, the tester exploits identified vulnerabilities. This will help the organization to be informed and thus be precautions about the potential real-world threats.
9.Post-Exploitation Activities:
Hackers may sometimes use malicious code injection methods, for instance, command injections or SQL to enable themselves to get authorized access to the systems for remote code execution or data manipulation.
10.Generating Reports:
The tester will generate a detailed report covering the entire actions they conducted as part of the testing. It will include steps showing how they identified the vulnerabilities; made the assessments and what steps they took to exploit a certain vulnerability. In addition to the report, the tester will provide the client with actionable steps to prevent attacks or improve the security posture.
11.Cleanup and Remediation:
After the testing phase is completed, the tester will assist the client in cleaning up the contaminated files and taking steps to mitigate any types of vulnerabilities that currently exist or enhance postures against future threats.
Benefits of Conducting Black Box Penetration Testing
An increasing number of organizations choose to run black box pen testing at least once a year to ensure that they have a strong security posture in place against threats. Since black box testing simulates real-world threats, the clients get a more realistic picture of the security capacity of their systems. Here are the top black box penetration testing advantages.
Easy identification of real-world threats:
Through black box pentest, an organization can get to learn about the real-world threats that their network, systems and other IT resources can potentially get exposed to.
Unbiased evaluation of the threat:
Since the pen tester has no idea about the security posture of the organization where the pen testing is conducted, it helps them provide an unbiased evaluation of the vulnerabilities.
Pinpointing threats from outside:
Statistics show that a growing number of cyberattacks today are perpetrated from outside. Therefore, pinpointing external threats is essential for an organization to safeguard its networks and systems.
The overall valuation of the security posture:
Although black box pen testing focuses on the external threat scenarios, a detailed report from it provides an overall evaluation of the security posture. This is because external vulnerabilities stem from internal weaknesses.
Objective evaluation across system vendors:
Organizations use networks and systems supplied by different vendors. The pen testers who run the testing have no idea about the vendor and thus help get an objective evaluation of the systems.
Facilitating ongoing improvement:
Ongoing improvements of the systems are essential for organizations to stay immune to emerging threats. Black box pen testing gives insights about such emerging threats and allows for taking precautions.
Limitations of Black Box Penetration Testing
While there are so many benefits to black box pen testing, it is not completely free from disadvantages. Here are some of the common black box penetration testing limitations.
Incomplete System Coverage:
Black box testing offers only a partial coverage of the system. It potentially overlooks vulnerabilities in untested areas. In other words, it does not give an overall security assessment and thus cannot be taken for granted.
Exclusion of Insider Threats:
The black box penetration testing methods ignore insider threats as their focus is on the major outsider threats. As a result, the assessment’s effectiveness in addressing risks emerging from within the organization is limited or not at all.
Potential for False Positives/Negatives:
External pen testing or black box pen testing creates several false positives or false negatives as they approach the tests without any knowledge of what is the real case or situation. When there are too many incidents of false findings, it impacts the accuracy and reliability of the tests and any subsequent action thereafter.
Omits Zero-Day Vulnerabilities:
Zero-day vulnerabilities are flaws with systems or software which are new and thus not known to the vendors. In the black box pen testing method, there is no sufficient mechanism to look into such vulnerabilities or address them.
Limited Insight into Internal Controls:
Black box testing does not offer any data on internal security controls and the potential vulnerabilities hidden within the system’s internal mechanisms. Therefore, it remains incomplete without white box or grey box testing.
Resource-Intensive Nature:
Black box testing can be resource-intensive as it demands a significant amount of time, human resources and effort to conduct. This can lead to a compromise in the efficiency of this method.
Overlooks Logical Vulnerabilities:
Logical vulnerabilities refer to the flaws in the system due to misconfiguration or any other incorrect steps taken by people from the company or organization. In the black box pen testing method, the testers overlook or are not in a position to look into these types of vulnerabilities.
Excessive Reliance on Automated Tools:
The majority of the scanning, testing and evaluation steps are conducted with the help of automated black box penetration testing tools. While this simplifies the overall processes, it leaves out many nuanced vulnerabilities which can only be identified through meticulously manual assessment.
Lacks Contextual Understanding:
A black box pen tester carries out the tests without any contextual information, generates a report and gives it to the client without much addition to the context. In other words, the client cannot take any remedial measures as there are no supporting or contextual findings to support any specific action.
Best Practices in Black Box Penetration Testing
Black box pen testing is an effective pen testing method which allows you to understand your system’s or network’s performance from an outsider’s point of view. The following best practices in black box penetration testing will ensure its maximum efficiency.
Establish clear goals:
Before carrying out the test, make sure to establish your goals before the pen testing team. Help the team to develop a testing strategy that goes in alignment with your organizational objectives.
Consider legal and ethical aspects:
Check if there are any legal or ethical aspects you need to consider in the context of pen testing. It is strongly advised to abide by any such considerations to avoid any future legal or ethical consequences.
Run comprehensive evaluation:
Make sure to have the pen testing done comprehensively covering all your external facing networks, applications and systems. This will help you identify vulnerabilities across these areas and improve the overall security posture.
Maintain operational secrecy:
The purpose of black box pen testing is to simulate real-world threats and thus help an organization address them effectively. So, ensure that the testing is done in secrecy with no employees except the top-level management having any idea about it being done for an accurate assessment.
Incorporate manual testing:
In addition to automated tools, incorporate a sufficient amount of manual testing to avoid overlooking minute vulnerabilities and ensure a more accurate and comprehensive assessment of the systems.
Prioritize critical resources:
Have a priority list of areas where you want the pen testing to be done such as crucial systems, networks or data.The primary objective of any pen testing is to safeguard the essential assets or resources of an organization. Thus, prioritizing what to test and what can be avoided is important.
Record and report:
Make sure to keep a record and report all testing activities and the subsequent findings. These documents will serve as a valuable resource for your future reference or for identifying vulnerabilities of the same nature.
Keep everyone in the loop:
Have frequent communication with your team before, during and after the pen testing. Understand that pen testing alone does not keep you safe. What steps or changes in your online behaviour you take in response to the test findings are what help to safeguard your resources.
Transfer the findings/knowledge:
Make the findings from the black box pen testing accessible to all stakeholders for reference or research. Have the pen testers educate your team about the risk factors, strengths, and collective steps the organization must take to prevent any attacks in the future.
Ensure ongoing improvements:
A black box pen tester carries out the tests without any contextual information, generates a report and gives it to the client without much addition to the context. In other words, the client cannot take any remedial measures as there are no supporting or contextual findings to support any specific action.
Conclusion
Black box pen testing is an essential security practice for organizations to learn about real-world threats and get a realistic assessment of their system’s and network’s defence capability. While it is true that it has both benefits and some clear limitations, the best practices and black box penetration testing methodology described here will help you ensure its maximum efficiency. In today’s context of emerging cyberattacks, organizations must adopt a comprehensive online security strategy incorporating black box pen testing as a key ally.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. Black box pen testing is legal given that you do it with careful consideration of the legal and ethical aspects and after obtaining proper authorization.
The frequency of conducting black box pen testing depends on factors like changes in the system or networks and the evolution of new threats. Ideally, it is recommended to conduct the tests at least once in a year.
It depends. The primary focus in black box pentest is external threats. However, sometimes identifying an external threat can lead you to find some potential internal vulnerabilities.
The duration of black box pen testing varies from organization to organization as each organization has a unique set of networks, systems and IT resources. Generally, it takes one to two weeks for a thorough evaluation.
Although black box pen testing is useful across all industries, specific industries like finance, education and healthcare benefit more from these tests. This is because hackers tend to do more social engineering and hacking attempts across these industries.
