Internal vs External Penetration Testing Discussed

Let’s understand difference between internal and external penetration testing with example. Cybersecurity has gained significance as never before. Organizations should test their defense against the up surging digital threats. This is where we benefit using penetration testing also known as pentesting. It is sort of the same as having ethical hackers to identify your security weak points before the bad guys.

However, did you realize there exist various forms of penetration tests? The most widespread two are Internal Pentesting and External Pentesting. So, what are these, and how exactly are they different, and why and why are they important.

Internal vs External Penetration Testing

Upcoming sections mention detailed information about internal and external penetration testing. Let’s read and understand them separately with real-life examples.

What is External Penetration Testing?

External penetration testing is aimed at all that is external to the networking of your organization. Put shortly this is what the web presents to hackers. It consists of such things as:

• Websites
• Web applications
• Server mailing
• F. Public IP addresses
• VPNs and firewalls

This is aimed at determining what an outsider hacker can use to gain access in cases where the hacker has no internal access.

Example:

Think of a hacker on the net attempting to hack a company. They can browse through the company site looking out vulnerabilities or searching to break passwords of employees on a log in page. This is the scenario simulated by an external pentest.

The reason it is important:

• Stops hacking on websites.
• Preventing internet access to non-authorized people.
• Secures your front-end infrastructure.
• Assists in achieving compliance (such as ISO, PCI-DSS, etc).

What is Internal Penetration Testing?

Internal penetration testing examines what will occur within your network. This test presupposes that a hacker has already made his way in, possibly by sending an email (phishing), an aggressive employee, or by USB drive infection.

It includes such systems as:

• Interior servers
• Workstations of the employee
• Website intranet
• Internal databases
• Shared drives and shared folders

Example:

Consider the case when an attacker misleads an employee to open a phishing link. Your connection with that site downloads malware. At this point they are in the network. The purpose of the internal pentesting is to see what harm they may cause at this point reaching the HR files or stealing some financial records.

The Reason Why:

• Insider protection
• Demonstrates the extent to which an attacker can go if he does gain entry
• Aids in locating the weakly secured internal systems
• Puts in focus the dangers of poor passwords or poorly set configurations

That was all about internal vs external penetration testing.

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Difference Between Internal and External Penetration Testing

Why Do We Need Both?

Many companies view cybersecurity as fortification against aimless attacks. True, the external threats are real, but much damage begins internally, as well. The worker could just press a dodgy link or download an infected file without even knowing about it. When you simply conduct testing on the outer walls then you lose the opportunity to find out the next thing.

Automating and having both the internal and external pentesting will give a complete picture. You will be able to respond to such questions as:

• Are hackers allowed to infiltrate through the net?
• How much damage can they cause within our systems in case they do?
• Are our internal systems as secured as they ought to be?

Conclusion

The cyber threats are continuously advancing and hackers also become smarter each day. This is the reason why penetration testing does not constitute a one-time exercise by businesses but must form a regular routine.

With such knowing of the distinctions between interior and exterior pentesting. It would be possible to establish higher defense mechanisms and maintain the upper hand over the attackers. So, you should be aware about internal vs external penetration testing.

Therefore, do not choose one other because you are concerned about the security of your company. Use both to-and-stay-safe all the way inside out.