What is the focus of penetration testing?

The focus of penetration testing is primarily to identify strengths and weaknesses in technical security defenses. This type of testing simulates an attack on a system, network, or application to evaluate the security posture. It helps organizations understand how vulnerable their systems are to various types of attacks, revealing potential entry points that could be exploited by malicious actors. By identifying these vulnerabilities, organizations can prioritize and implement necessary security improvements to fortify their defenses.

Other activities related to security, such as ensuring compliance with user policies, preparing staff for incident response, or monitoring external network threats, are important but are not the main objective of penetration testing. Compliance focuses on adherence to established guidelines and regulations, staff preparation is oriented towards handling incidents after they occur, and threat monitoring pertains to ongoing surveillance of potential dangers in the network environment. In contrast, penetration testing is specifically targeted at proactively assessing security vulnerabilities prior to an actual threat being realized.