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Businesses in the UAE are more vulnerable than ever to cyber attacks, especially with the increasing adoption of technology in the workplace.
Becoming the next big global techno-financial hub has made the UAE a lucrative pie for cybercriminals. And with a rapidly growing number of startups, high-value individuals, and business corporations settling down in the Emirates, the stakes are stupendously high.
A single security breach could cause devastating consequences, including the loss of sensitive data, damage to reputation, and financial losses.
These vulnerabilities make Vulnerability Assessment and Penetration Testing (VAPT) an essential part of cybersecurity for your systems and networks. In this article, we present seven tried and tested steps for building an effective VAPT process that can help you identify and mitigate vulnerabilities in your systems and networks.
A Brief Explanation of the VAPT Process
VAPT is a combination of two types of security testing – Vulnerability Assessment and Penetration Testing.
What is Vulnerability Assessment?
Vulnerability Assessment identifies vulnerabilities, weaknesses, and potential threats in your computing. The process scans your IT ecosystem using automated assessment tools for vulnerabilities and subsequently ranks them according to severity.
The outcome is presented as an assessment report that identifies the vulnerabilities found in your systems and provides recommendations on mitigating them.
What is Penetration Testing?
Penetration Testing is the process of simulating an attack on your IT ecosystem to identify potential security weaknesses in the computing network.
The process involves a team of ethical hackers who attempt to exploit vulnerabilities in your systems to gain unauthorized access.
Penetration Testing aims to identify vulnerabilities that malicious attackers could exploit and provide possible solutions to eliminate them.
Importance of Regular VAPT Assessments
Regular VAPT testing is essential for businesses in the UAE to maintain the security of their computing networks. Here are the three key reasons why regular VAPT assessments are important:
Identify Vulnerabilities
Every computing network is prone to developing vulnerabilities because cybercriminals consistently upgrade their tools and find novel methods to penetrate computing networks.
Regular VAPT assessments can help identify vulnerabilities that malicious attackers could exploit. Identifying these vulnerabilities early can help prevent security breaches and protect your business from potential financial losses and reputational damage.
Regulatory Compliance Management
The UAE is one of the strictest countries in terms of regulatory compliance requirements regarding cybersecurity. Businesses in the UAE must comply with several regulations and standards, especially related to data privacy and internet access management.
Regular VAPT assessments help follow the latest regulatory developments and comply with the latest regulations and standards.
Mitigate and Prevent Risks
Cybersecurity breaches can result in humongous losses, especially for financial companies and data-centric businesses.
VAPT assessments can help identify and mitigate risks that could impact the cybersecurity posture of your business. It functions like a preventive measure that can help reduce the potential for financial losses and reputational damage.
Steps to Build an Effective VAPT Process
Step 1: Defining Scope and Objectives
The first step in the VAPT process is to define the scope of the assessment and set clear objectives.
The process begins by identifying the IT ecosystem and its computing networks intended to be tested. Subsequently, cybersecurity managers can lay down specific objectives of the assessment to give direction to the process.
Defining the scope and objectives of the assessment will help ensure that the assessment is focused and targeted and prevents wastage of time and resources.
Step 2: Information Gathering and Reconnaissance
The second step in VAPT assessment is to gather information about the IT ecosystem and computing networks selected to be tested.
Conducting reconnaissance to identify potential vulnerabilities and weaknesses is the ideal way to begin. This helps ethical hackers understand the layout of the systems and networks and subsequently identify potential entry points for orchestrating the attack.
Collecting relevant data of the targeted networks also helps testers determine the magnitude required to initiate penetration.
Step 3: Vulnerability Scanning and Assessment
The third step is to initiate vulnerability scanning and assessment. The process deploys automated tools to scan the targeted IT ecosystem and computing networks for vulnerabilities.
These tools take a comprehensive approach, determined after reconnaissance, to identify every visible vulnerability irrespective of its threat potential.
The process churns out the outcome reports, which list the vulnerabilities in the targeted systems and networks. The report also recommends possible actions to mitigate the identified vulnerabilities.
Step 4: Penetration Testing and Exploitation
The fourth step is to conduct penetration testing by initiating the exploitation of the identified vulnerabilities. Ethical hackers can orchestrate a simulated attack on the IT ecosystem and computing networks via the vulnerabilities to quantify the potential security weaknesses.
The process will attempt to exploit the vulnerabilities to gain unauthorized access to computing networks and cause data breaches. Penetration testing provides a more nuanced and in-depth analysis of the vulnerabilities and attack vectors found and determines the scale of damage they can possibly cause.
Step 5: Reporting and Documentation of Findings
The fifth step is compiling a report based on the vulnerability assessment and penetration testing findings. The report should include the vulnerabilities found, their severity levels, possible attack routes tested, and recommendations for mitigation and prevention.
The report must also document the methods and tools employed to derive the findings. Reporting and documentation help businesses understand the security posture of their IT ecosystems and evaluate the effectiveness of the existing cybersecurity systems in place.
Step 6: Remediation planning and implementation
The sixth step is to develop a plan to remediate the vulnerabilities and attack vectors reported. Cybersecurity managers need to prioritize the vulnerabilities found based on their severity levels and develop a mitigation plan for each one of them.
The plan should include timelines, resources, tools, and expertise required to remediate the attack vectors. Similarly, cybersecurity managers also need to lay down action plans should a cyberattack similar to the ones orchestrated while penetration testing occurs.
Mitigation processes and exit procedures must be defined to minimise the impact surface and the consequent loss.
Step 7: Post-engagement follow-up and testing
The final step is to conduct post-engagement follow-up and testing. This involves retesting the IT ecosystems and computing networks after the vulnerabilities have been remediated, per the recommendations.
Retesting ensures that vulnerabilities have been properly addressed and eliminated from the targeted systems. Usually, retesting is carried out as a fresh penetration testing and exploitation, which helps in the functional fortification of the IT ecosystem.
Partner with Mechsoft to Build Champion VAPT Strategies
Mechsoft Technologies is one of the leading cybersecurity service in UAE, with a specialized team for VAPT UAE. Our experts bring years of strategic experience and unique skills to offer sophisticated solutions for your VAPT requirements.
We provide comprehensive Cyber security solutions, with dedicated teams for every process, which gives us a distinctive edge in excelling on multiple cybersecurity fronts. Contact us today to run successful VAPT on your IT ecosystems consistently.
