What is Security Testing in Cybersecurity?
With increasing cyberattacks, companies are never free from the risk of security breaches, data tampering, and system hacking. Small and big businesses, no company is ever secure from cyberattacks. Among the most prominent of these incidents are the 2017 Equifax attack, during which data of 147 million people were compromised due to a software vulnerability, and the 2020 SolarWinds incident led to a large-scale compromise of US federal government organizations and private sector organizations. Both examples demonstrate why security testing is a proactive move that finds and helps fix security flaws before being taken advantage of by an organization. Security testing in cybersecurity is described in tremendous detail within this article, such as its various types, methodology, tools, as well as best practices to improve cybersecurity control. What is Security Testing? Security testing in cybersecurity is an activity that identifies and eliminates security weaknesses in software, applications, networks, and IT systems. Security testing is necessary to prevent cyberattacks, become compliant, and gain the confidence of online platforms. Real-Time Example Facebook (Meta) too had a data breach in 2021 when over 533 million of its users’ accounts leaked due to a vulnerability in its contact importer feature. Proper security testing, i.e., penetration testing and API security testing, would have been sufficient to identify and seal the vulnerability before the attackers got a chance to exploit it. Primary Objectives of Security Testing: Security testing employs various methods for mimicking actual attacks, exposing vulnerabilities, and checking effective security controls before deployment. Importance of Security Testing in Cybersecurity Types of Security Testing 1. Vulnerability Scanning 2. Penetration Testing (Pen Testing) 3. Security Auditing 4. Risk Assessment 5. Ethical Hacking 6. Compliance Testing 7. Fuzz Testing 8. Red Team and Blue Team Testing “Also, explore different types of penetration testing.” Latest Penetration Testing Report Download Security Testing Methodologies 1. Static Application Security Testing (SAST): SAST is a white-box technique that examines source code, bytecode, or binaries for security weaknesses before they are executed. Early code analysis assists developers in finding security defects early when it is less expensive to fix but not yet too costly. Example: Adobe employs a SAST tool named Checkmarx by application developers to identify defects in the source code of an application before it is released to the public. Examples of such defects include hardcoding passwords, SQL injection weakness, and buffer overflow, which can be identified without actually running the application. Detection at the initial stages makes it easier to correct, enhancing the security of the software before deployment. 2. Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST): Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST) is a black-box testing methodology employed to examine the security of an application in real-time while executing the application. The method employs simulated cyber attacks to expose web application, API, and network security weaknesses. Example: A website selling products online uses OWASP ZAP, a popular DAST tool, to scan live for vulnerabilities upon launching the website. The tool depends on the automatic detection of vulnerabilities through vulnerability scanning for weaknesses such as cross-site scripting (XSS) and broken authentication. The pre-deployment testing assures that the weaknesses are never addressed until they are attacked by hackers. 3. Interactive Application Security Testing (IAST): IAST is an amalgamation testing method that applies the best attributes of SAST and DAST. It includes real-time monitoring of applications to detect vulnerabilities while monitoring code running and system calls. Example: A fintech developer integrates Contrast Security, an IAST solution, into test and development processes. The solution runs within the application and tracks data flow, configuration, and security vulnerabilities in real-time. It provides developers with real-time feedback to remediate vulnerabilities in real-time without ever compromising the speed of development. 4. Runtime Application Self-Protection (RASP): It is a more recent security solution that detects and terminates an application attack in bypass mode. Provides runtime visibility and response hooks to prevent the risk of having an unwanted impact on the system. Example: A mobile banking application uses Imperva RASP, which identifies and blocks attacks such as SQL injection and remote code execution attempts in real-time. If the malicious attack is being conducted by the attacker to exploit already existing vulnerabilities, then RASP blocks the malicious attack in real time, reducing data breach and fraud risk. Best Practices in Effective Security Testing 1. Integrate Security Testing in the SDLC Security must be applied in the Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC). Shift-left testing, or early life cycle testing, catches defects early maintains the cost of remediation low, and prevents security defects from entering production. Example: Google and Microsoft use security testing at the beginning of the development life cycle, practices that facilitate secure coding, and frequent code audits to eliminate risk before deployment. 2. Perform Regular Testing Cyber attacks also keep changing, and regular security audits are a vital component to look out for. Penetration testing, vulnerability scanning, and compliance auditing need to be carried out best regularly to remain safe. Example: Netflix performs constant security testing with the help of tools such as Chaos Monkey, replicating actual-time attack patterns and helping them determine their system vulnerabilities. 3. Automate Where Possible Faster does its automatic security testing software but cannot recognize advanced threats. Known bugs can be detected rapidly by automated scanners, but zero-day attacks and business logic faults will be captured by human testers. Example: Facebook uses Infer, a static analysis tool, to automate testing for security to identify null pointer exceptions, memory leaks, and security flaws in its applications. 4. Use Multiple Testing Techniques A good security policy must have a series of testing procedures such as SAST, DAST, IAST, and manual pen testing to address all the possible vulnerabilities. Example: Amazon Web Services (AWS) employs automated scanners coupled with manual pen testing in its attempt to safeguard its cloud services against potential cyber-attacks. 5. Ensure Compliance with Industry Standards Organizations must comply with security models such as the NIST Cybersecurity Framework, CIS Controls, ISO 27001, and GDPR. Complying maintains the regulatory needs up to date and has a good
