“An Ounce of Prevention, is worth a Pound of cure”
-Benjamin Franklin
UNTESTED WEB APPLICATIONS ARE LIKE UNLOCKED DOORS
Smaller Size, Bigger Target
Cybercriminals often focus on small and mid-sized businesses, believing they may lack the layered defenses of large enterprises.
Don’t Think They Can’t See You
Automated reconnaissance tools constantly scan the internet for vulnerable applications; untested assets stand out to attackers like a beacon.
The Damage Isn’t Done
Once inside, attackers move laterally to access internal systems, escalate privileges, exfiltrate data, or deploy ransomware at will.
Even a single overlooked flaw in a web application can serve as a launchpad for a full-scale compromise.
Six Reasons Why You Should Pentest
Proactive Risk Management
Waiting for a breach before acting is reactive and costly. Penetration testing helps identify vulnerabilities before attackers do, saving your company from potential financial losses, reputational damage, and operational downtime.
Cost Savings Over Time
The average data breach costs organizations millions of dollars in remediation, legal fees, and lost business. Regular pen testing is a fraction of that cost and strengthens your defenses, reducing the likelihood of expensive incidents.
Protecting Critical Assets
Your sensitive data—whether it's customer information, intellectual property, or proprietary business processes—is a prime target. Penetration testing simulates real-world attack scenarios to ensure these critical assets are secure against evolving cyber threats.
Competitive Advantage
In today’s market, clients and partners often choose vendors who can prove their commitment to security. A clean bill of health from a reputable pen test can differentiate you from competitors who haven’t taken similar steps.
Industry Best Practice
Leading security frameworks (NIST, ISO 27001, CIS Controls, OWASP) recommend regular penetration testing as a cornerstone of an effective cybersecurity program. Demonstrating adherence to industry best practices builds trust with customers.
Compliance Readiness
Even if current regulations don’t require it, cybersecurity laws and standards evolve rapidly. Penetration testing ensures your organization is always ready to meet new legal or contractual obligations, reducing the need for rushed remediation later.
Law and Regulation
"Equifax sued by shareholders after 2017 data breach; failure to patch known vulnerability cited."
"Capital One faces client lawsuits following 2019 breach; regulators highlight insufficient cloud security testing."
"Facebook fined $5B by FTC in 2019; poor security practices and weak app testing spotlighted in settlement."
"Target’s 2013 breach leads to shareholder litigation; board accused of neglecting cyber risk oversight duties."
"Uber hit with lawsuits after 2016 breach cover-up; failure to follow industry-standard security testing blamed."
"CrowdStrike faces shareholder lawsuit after global IT outage; alleged inadequate software testing to blame."
"Zoom Video Communications sued by investors alleging data privacy and security issues amid pandemic surge."
"Equifax agrees to $149 million settlement with shareholders following massive data breach exposing personal information."
"Law firm Thompson Coburn and healthcare client sued over data breach exposing sensitive information."
"Bayview Asset Management agrees to $20M settlement following 2021 data breach affecting 5.8 million customers."
"SEC enforcement actions signal increased scrutiny on companies' cybersecurity disclosures."
"Visionworks is facing a class-action lawsuit after a data breach exposed the personal information of 40,000 individuals."
"Berry Dunn agreed to a $7.25 million settlement after a cyberattack exposed client information, with victims eligible for cash claims."
"Green Valley Pecan Company settled a data breach case, offering up to $4,400 to victims whose data was compromised."
"The Holt Group and four other businesses reported breaches affecting over 16,000 individuals, prompting legal scrutiny."
"SolarWinds CISO and CFO named in SEC charges over misleading security risk disclosures post-2020 supply chain attack."
"Drizly’s CEO warned by FTC for neglecting security practices after data breach exposed customer data."
"Former Twitter CISO Peiter Zatko alleges leadership ignored critical security flaws, triggering whistleblower action and Senate inquiry."
"Morgan Stanley fined $60M after failing to properly decommission servers, raising questions about CISO oversight."
"Tech CEO Deepak Jain indicted for fraud over fabricated data center security certifications to secure SEC contracts."
Dream it
"Equifax sued by shareholders after 2017 data breach; failure to patch known vulnerability cited." "Capital One faces client lawsuits following 2019 breach; regulators highlight insufficient cloud security testing." "Facebook fined $5B by FTC in 2019; poor security practices and weak app testing spotlighted in settlement." "Target’s 2013 breach leads to shareholder litigation; board accused of neglecting cyber risk oversight duties." "Uber hit with lawsuits after 2016 breach cover-up; failure to follow industry-standard security testing blamed." "CrowdStrike faces shareholder lawsuit after global IT outage; alleged inadequate software testing to blame." "Zoom Video Communications sued by investors alleging data privacy and security issues amid pandemic surge." "Equifax agrees to $149 million settlement with shareholders following massive data breach exposing personal information." "Law firm Thompson Coburn and healthcare client sued over data breach exposing sensitive information." "Bayview Asset Management agrees to $20M settlement following 2021 data breach affecting 5.8 million customers." "SEC enforcement actions signal increased scrutiny on companies' cybersecurity disclosures." "Visionworks is facing a class-action lawsuit after a data breach exposed the personal information of 40,000 individuals." "Berry Dunn agreed to a $7.25 million settlement after a cyberattack exposed client information, with victims eligible for cash claims." "Green Valley Pecan Company settled a data breach case, offering up to $4,400 to victims whose data was compromised." "The Holt Group and four other businesses reported breaches affecting over 16,000 individuals, prompting legal scrutiny." "SolarWinds CISO and CFO named in SEC charges over misleading security risk disclosures post-2020 supply chain attack." "Drizly’s CEO warned by FTC for neglecting security practices after data breach exposed customer data." "Former Twitter CISO Peiter Zatko alleges leadership ignored critical security flaws, triggering whistleblower action and Senate inquiry." "Morgan Stanley fined $60M after failing to properly decommission servers, raising questions about CISO oversight." "Tech CEO Deepak Jain indicted for fraud over fabricated data center security certifications to secure SEC contracts." Dream it
IT’S THE LAW
Certain industries and businesses are legally obligated to conduct security assessments, including penetration testing, to comply with regulatory frameworks, beyond penetrating testing simply being a best practice.
Companies which avoid penetration testing unwittingly introduce significant risk of liability in the formal of financial and reputational penalties when breached in which client data is stolen, ransomed, or otherwise impacted.
BEYOND THE MANDATORY…
Even if not required for your industry or business by law, penetrating testing is in direct alignment with modern security industry best practices which apply to all companies which have an internet presence.
Even for environments entirely cloud hosted, penetrating testing can discover misconfigurations or other hidden flaws before the criminals do.
