External Infrastructure Penetration Test

Your organisation's internet-facing perimeter is the frontline in its defence against cyber threats. It is the collection of servers, services, and applications that are publicly visible and accessible to anyone in the world—including malicious attackers. This external infrastructure is under constant, automated scanning and targeted attacks, 24/7.

A single misconfigured firewall, an unpatched server, or an exposed administrative login can provide an attacker with the initial foothold they need to breach your entire network. Our External Infrastructure Penetration Test simulates the actions of a real-world attacker to identify and validate these critical vulnerabilities before they are exploited.

Your Digital Front Door: The External Attack Surface

An external penetration test answers a simple but critical question: "If an attacker targeted our organisation from the internet today, what would they find and how could they get in?" We focus on the common entry points and high-impact vulnerabilities that attackers look for first.

• Outdated & Unpatched Systems: The most common entry point for attackers is exploiting known vulnerabilities in public-facing software (e.g., web servers, VPNs, email systems) that has not been updated with the latest security patches.

• Misconfigured Cloud Services: As organisations move to the cloud, misconfigured storage buckets (like Amazon S3), exposed databases, and overly permissive security groups have become a leading cause of major data breaches.

• Weak Credentials & Exposed Login Panels: Attackers use automated tools to scan for exposed administrative interfaces (for remote desktops, firewalls, etc.) and attempt to break in using weak, default, or leaked passwords.

• Information Leakage: Sometimes, servers are configured in a way that leaks sensitive information about the technology you use, your internal network structure, or even employee names and email addresses, which can be used to craft more sophisticated phishing attacks.

Our Methodology: A Real-World Attacker's Approach

Our external penetration testing methodology is a systematic process designed to thoroughly map and test your entire internet-facing perimeter.

1. Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) & Reconnaissance Just like a real attacker, we start with zero knowledge of your infrastructure. We use public sources—such as DNS records, search engines, and social media—to discover your organisation's IP addresses, domains, and potential employee information to build a map of your external footprint.

2. Network Scanning & Service Enumeration Once we have a map, we conduct comprehensive network scans to identify all live hosts and the services running on them (e.g., web servers, mail servers, VPN endpoints). This process reveals exactly what is visible to the outside world.

3. Automated & Manual Vulnerability Analysis We use a combination of industry-leading automated scanners and deep manual analysis to identify potential vulnerabilities in the discovered services. Unlike a simple scan, our experts manually validate every finding to eliminate false positives and understand the real-world risk.

4. Controlled Exploitation Where safe and permitted by the rules of engagement, our certified testers will attempt to exploit high-risk vulnerabilities. This process demonstrates the true impact of a flaw—proving, for example, that a vulnerability could be used to gain unauthorised access to a server or extract sensitive data.

Secure Your Perimeter, Protect Your Business

Your external infrastructure is your first and most important line of defence. A rigorous, independent penetration test provides the assurance you need to know that your digital front door is locked and secure.

Don't wait for an attacker to test your defences for you.

An external penetration test is a foundational component of any security program. Contact us today to schedule a confidential discussion about assessing the security of your internet perimeter.