Cyber security is a battle that never truly ends. With new and increasingly sophisticated threats emerging all the time, keeping one step ahead of the hackers is challenging. 

Penetration testing is an indispensable tool for organisations seeking to bolster their cyber security posture. However, while the testing process is important, its true value lies in the effectiveness of the reporting that follows. It’s the bridge between the technical findings uncovered during the testing phase and the actionable insights needed to strengthen your organisation’s defences. A comprehensive pentesting report should highlight the discovered vulnerabilities and provide clear recommendations for remediation, prioritised based on the level of risk they pose. This page explores the pivotal role comprehensive penetration testing reporting plays, so your business can maximise the benefits.

Pentesting reporting: what should it include?

Penetration testing (or ‘pentesting’) is the practice of conducting simulated attacks, either by in-house teams or external cyber security contractors, on your organisation’s ICT infrastructure and digital assets to identify vulnerabilities. It’s a proactive measure to assess how your cyber defences will likely hold up in the event of an actual attack, giving a realistic impression of your security posture.

And yet, the true value of the test comes from the subsequent report. For penetration test reports to be effective, they must go into careful detail, meticulously documenting, outlining and explaining the method, results and suggested remediations.

Clear communication lies at the heart of any effective report. While technical details and jargon are essential and have their place, the report will be read by all stakeholders. As such, it must be legible, informative and clear-cut, even to somebody with little understanding of cyber security.

Writing reports with actionable insights requires much more than simply explaining what’s wrong and where the pentesters focused their efforts. Of course, this is a vital part of the document. However, its real power comes from contextualising the weaknesses within your business’s operations and how the vulnerabilities might knock you off-course in terms of achieving your objectives.

Your pentest report should identify the weak points and suggest how exploiting these might impact your operations and data, which is more likely to be taken seriously by organisational leaders.

Penetration testing reporting’s effectiveness extends beyond one single test. Pentesting is a continuous cycle of improvement. Actionable remediations and insights from previous iterations inform how subsequent tests are carried out.

Regular testing and reporting are crucial to maintaining a robust cyber defence. As a result, most pentest reports should reference earlier suggestions, reports and security posture adjustments. For stakeholders, reading each report as they’re issued allows them to keep up with the entire process much more effectively.

What are the benefits of effective pentesting reports?

Data is everything in the modern business world, and things are no different when it comes to penetration testing. Clear and concise reporting facilitates well-informed decisions that are more likely to yield ‘success’ (results that further your business objectives). With a clear pentest report, your leaders and managers are more likely to comprehend the genuine threats and take action to remediate them. For example, they might instigate a roadmap to introduce new features and patch old ones, boosting your cyber resilience one careful, methodical step at a time. This is a much more concentrated and cost-effective approach than trying to address everything everywhere all at once in your cyber defences.

Many people don’t quite grasp the potential threats of cyber adversaries. Cyber security concerns aren’t simply the problem of your ICT department or contractor but resonate throughout your entire organisation. You might have the best cyber defences in the world, but if a staff member opens a suspicious email or clicks on an infected link with a virus your system isn’t prepared for, all those virtual walls become worthless. As such, a clear pentest report helps create a culture of accountability throughout your business, ensuring everyone does their part to keep the enterprise safe.

How can Sentrium help?

Sentrium is your go-to cyber security expert for penetration testing and bolstering your network’s cyber resilience. As a CREST-approved penetration testing specialist, our industry expertise and skillset make us the perfect choice for your penetration testing, including clear, actionable reports that allow you to reinforce your business’s defences. Don’t delay; quote your pentest today to strengthen your cyber walls and ensure you’re prepared for when the real thing inevitably comes knocking.