External Penetration Test

Pentest from the Outside

binsec GmbH performs external penetration tests and Internet-facing pentests to identify and assess attack surfaces and vulnerabilities in publicly accessible systems, services and interfaces. An external penetration test simulates the perspective of an attacker attempting to gain access to your infrastructure via the Internet, for example through web applications, APIs or weak passwords.

The methodology for external penetration testing follows a structured approach consisting of multiple phases that build upon each other.

Below are the typical phases of external penetration testing, which we perform depending on customer requirements and the agreed scope.

external Pentest: Reconnaissance & OSINT (Identification of attack surface)

• Evaluation of publicly available data, e.g. domains, subdomains, DNS records and certificates
• Identification of external IP ranges and reachable systems, especially in black-box scenarios without predefined target systems
• Analysis of publicly available information and potential data leaks

external Pentest: Scanning & Enumeration

• Identification of accessible services based on open ports via TCP and UDP
• Detection of services, e.g. web applications, VPN gateways or mail servers, including versions and underlying technologies
• Analysis of interfaces, endpoints and authentication mechanisms

external Pentest: Vulnerability Assessment

• Checking patch levels and software versions for up-to-dateness
• Analysis of access restrictions and authentication mechanisms
• Identification of misconfigurations and deviations from security best practices

external Pentest: Exploitation & Proof-of-Concept (if applicable)

• Development of proof-of-concepts to exploit identified vulnerabilities
• Validation of exploitability within the agreed scope

external Pentest: Post-Exploitation / Privilege Escalation (if applicable)

• Investigation of possible privilege escalation
• Analysis of lateral movement within the infrastructure
• Evaluation of further attack vectors, e.g. data access

Social Engineering / Phishing (optional)

The execution of social engineering or phishing activities is only carried out if these services are explicitly commissioned.

• Execution of simulated phishing campaigns to assess employee awareness
• Analysis of user behavior and potential credential disclosure
• Evaluation of organizational and technical defenses against social engineering attacks