The Different Forms of Penetration Tests
The form of penetration test that you’ll conduct depends on the needs of your client. In
this part of the book, you’ll learn about the different kinds of “pen tests”.
Black Box Tests
In a black box test, you don’t have any information regarding your target. Your first task is
to research about your client’s network. Your client will define the results they need, but
they won’t give you other pieces of data.
The Advantages
Black box tests offer the following advantages:
The tester will start from scratch. Thus, he will act like a malicious hacker who
wants to access a network.
The tester will have higher chances of detecting conflicts in the network.
The tester doesn’t need to be an expert programmer. Unlike other types of pen tests,
black box tests don’t rely on ready-made scripts.
The Disadvantages
The disadvantages of black box tests are:
It can be time-consuming.
It is extremely complex. The tester needs to spend time and effort in designing and
launching an attack.
White Box Tests
These tests are detailed and comprehensive, since the hacker has access to all the
information related to his target. For example, the hacker can use the IP addresses and
source codes of a network as basis for his attack.
This form of test relies heavily on codes and programming skills.
The Advantages
The main advantages of white box testing are:
It makes sure that each module path is working properly.