At a time when threats are multiplying, carrying out a security audit has become essential for any organization concerned about protecting its data.
Whether for compliance, prevention or continuous improvement purposes, an audit enables you to assess the level of security of an information system or web application at a given moment.
Here's what you need to know to prepare for an audit and understand the main stages involved.
What is a security audit?
A security audit involves analyzing the architecture, configurations, access and security practices of an information system. The aim is to identify technical or organizational vulnerabilities that could expose the company to risk.
The audit may include an intrusion test (or pentest): a simulated attack carried out under controlled conditions to assess the systems' resistance to a real intrusion attempt.
Different approaches to penetration testing
There are three main approaches to pentesting, each offering a different level of visibility to the auditor:
- Blackbox approach: the auditor has no prior information on the system under test. He/she has to discover vulnerabilities like an external attacker.
- Greybox approach: the auditor has user access or partial information on the system. This simulates an internal attack or an actor having compromised a legitimate account.
- Whitebox approach: the auditor has access to all technical information, including source code and documentation. This enables an exhaustive, in-depth analysis.
To find out more about the differences between these approaches, please consult the article we published on the subject.
How to prepare for a security audit?
Good preparation is essential to guarantee the effectiveness of a security audit. Here are the main steps to anticipate:
Define objectives
First and foremost, you need to define the objectives of the audit: is it to assess the security of a web application? An internal network? A cloud? This definition will help guide the choice of methodology and target resources.
It is also important to determine the criticality level of the systems to be audited, in order to prioritize actions.
Identify the scope
The scope must be clearly established, specifying the IP addresses, domains, applications, test accounts and environments concerned. The more precise the scope, the more relevant the test will be.
However, it's important to bear in mind that the wider the scope, the longer and more costly the security audit will be. It is therefore advisable to concentrate on critical systems or new applications.
Keep teams informed
It is important to inform the technical and security teams of the audit, so as not to block the auditor's actions or cause false positives in the monitoring systems.
As a general rule, we recommend that you leave production systems untouched during the audit, as any changes to a part already audited that could introduce new vulnerabilities will not be taken into account in the final report.
Furthermore, although every precaution is taken to avoid disrupting the normal operation of systems, it is possible that the audit may cause temporary slowdowns or errors. It is therefore important that a technical contact is available to answer the auditor's questions and correct any anomalies.
Make backups
Prior to any penetration test, it is essential to make backups of the systems concerned. Once again, although every precaution is taken to avoid disrupting the normal operation of systems, it is possible that, in rare cases, the exploitation of a vulnerability could cause data loss or service interruptions.
It is therefore important that technical teams are ready to restore systems in the event of a problem.
Provide the necessary access
Depending on the type of audit (blackbox, greybox, whitebox), access and information may be required: user accounts, VPN access, technical documentation, etc. It is advisable to prepare them in advance of the audit to avoid wasting time during the audit.
Prepare a test environment if necessary
We generally recommend carrying out penetration tests on production environments, as they are often more representative of reality. However, if this is not possible, it is advisable to prepare a test environment as close as possible to the production environment.
Scoping meeting
A scoping meeting is often organized between the auditor and the technical teams to discuss objectives, scope, constraints and expectations. This clarifies any grey areas and ensures that everyone is on the same wavelength.
Test authorization
Before the intrusion test begins, you will be asked to sign a test authorization. This document is essential to legally frame the audit and protect both parties. It specifies the scope, objectives, duration and responsibilities of each party.
You'll need to identify the people authorized to sign this document.
After the audit: what to do with the results?
A detailed report is provided at the end of the audit and, at Secureaks, is presented in a videoconference by the lead auditor who carried out the tests.
This report classifies vulnerabilities by level of criticality, provides technical evidence (screenshots, logs, HTTP requests and responses) and proposes concrete recommendations for correcting identified vulnerabilities.
It is crucial to take the time to analyze this report, prioritize corrective actions and, if necessary, plan a verification audit to ensure that the corrections have been effective.
Conclusion
A security audit, and in particular a penetration test, can considerably strengthen an organization's security posture. By choosing the right approach (blackbox, greybox or whitebox) and preparing rigorously, it is possible to derive maximum value from this exercise.
To find out more about the pentesting services offered by Secureaks, or to discuss an audit tailored to your context, please do not hesitate to contact us.
