Penetration Testing Checklist

Overview

A comprehensive guide for ethical penetration testing, meticulously designed to cover all phases of a penetration test. This step-by-step checklist ensures thorough coverage from preparation to reporting, ideal for both novice and experienced testers.

Table of Contents

1. Pre-Engagement
2. Information Gathering
3. Vulnerability Analysis
4. Exploitation
5. Post-Exploitation
6. Reporting
7. Remediation Verification

1. Pre-Engagement

• Secure Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA).
• Collect comprehensive client and system information.
• Define the scope and rules of engagement clearly.
• Obtain formal, written authorization for testing.
• Conduct a detailed risk assessment.
• Ensure legal compliance for all testing activities.
• Set specific, measurable success criteria.
• Establish emergency contact and response protocols.
• Define data handling and storage protocols.
• Agree on communication channels and reporting frequency with the client.
• Ensure the penetration testing team has the necessary skills and certifications.

2. Information Gathering

• Conduct network and application scans (e.g., Nmap, Nessus).
• Perform web crawling for hidden or dynamic content.
• Identify and enumerate all subdomains.
• Search for common vulnerabilities (e.g., default credentials, unpatched systems).
• Pinpoint potential initial access points.
• Assess opportunities and methods for social engineering.
• Execute a comprehensive DNS analysis.
• Undertake passive information gathering (e.g., Shodan, Censys).
• Utilize Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) techniques.
• Perform Google dorking to find potentially sensitive information.
• Check for information leakage via metadata, HTML comments, etc.

3. Vulnerability Analysis

• Validate and prioritize findings from scans.
• Test for known vulnerabilities and possible exploits.
• Analyze applications for common flaws (SQLi, XSS, etc.).
• Conduct fuzz testing to discover new vulnerabilities.
• Review server and application configurations for misconfigurations.
• Perform manual code reviews where feasible.
• Examine third-party components and libraries.
• Evaluate the security of wireless and cloud services.
• Assess authentication and authorization mechanisms.
• Test for insecure direct object references (IDOR).
• Check for sensitive data exposure (e.g., in URLs, API responses).
• Analyze mobile app binaries if in scope.

4. Exploitation

• Attempt to gain initial access (e.g., through phishing, exploiting known vulnerabilities).
• Perform privilege escalation on compromised systems.
• Explore lateral movements within the network.
• Document each step of the exploitation process meticulously.
• Simulate Advanced Persistent Threat (APT) techniques where authorized.
• Attempt to bypass security controls like WAF, 2FA etc.
• Test for common misconfigurations (e.g., verbose error messages, directory listing).

5. Post-Exploitation

• Identify and access critical data stores.
• Simulate data exfiltration, if within the agreed scope.
• Implement strategies for maintaining access, if necessary.
• Adhere to secure data handling and processing procedures.
• Document all system alterations comprehensively.
• Check for clear-text credentials and sensitive data in memory.
• Analyze the potential impact of identified vulnerabilities.

6. Reporting

• Create a detailed report documenting tools, techniques, and procedures used.
• Include evidence such as screenshots and logs.
• Provide clear, actionable remediation recommendations.
• Assign risk ratings to all identified vulnerabilities.
• Prepare an executive summary for stakeholder review.
• Suggest a timeline for follow-up assessments or retesting.
• Conduct a read-out meeting with the client to discuss key findings.
• Provide a technical report as well as an executive summary.

7. Remediation Verification

• Allow a designated period for the client to remediate identified issues.
• Conduct retests to verify the effectiveness of fixes.
• Document any unresolved security issues.
• Recommend strategies for ongoing monitoring and improvement.
• Advise on the need for security awareness and training programs.
• Propose a schedule for regular future security audits.
• Provide guidance on implementing a vulnerability management program.
• Discuss strategies to improve the security development lifecycle.

Contributing

We welcome and value contributions. Please feel free to submit pull requests or issues for improvements.