Network Penetration Testing That Validates Your Real-WorldExposure

Vulnerability assessment identifies and categorizes known vulnerabilities using automated scanning tools, while network penetration testing goes further by actively exploiting those vulnerabilities to demonstrate real-world impact. At Security Brigade, VA is predominantly internal-focused while penetration testing is predominantly external-focused. Penetration testing validates whether vulnerabilities are actually exploitable, chains multiple issues into attack paths, and demonstrates what an attacker could achieve, making it significantly more valuable for understanding real risk.

A typical network penetration testing engagement takes 8 to 15 business days depending on the scope, including kickoff, reconnaissance, active testing, multi-layer review, and report delivery. Larger environments with hundreds of hosts, multiple network segments, or Active Directory forests may require extended timelines. Lemon tracks daily progress transparently so you always know exactly where the engagement stands.

No, network penetration testing is conducted with controlled methodology to avoid service disruption. Automated scanning is orchestrated through Lemon with scheduled scan windows, advance notifications, IP controls, and pause/resume capability. Denial-of-service testing or high-risk exploitation attempts are only performed with explicit client authorization and during agreed maintenance windows. Our team has safely tested production environments for ICICI Bank, Larsen and Toubro, and hundreds of other enterprises without incident.

Typical requirements include IP whitelisting for our testing infrastructure, an accurate asset inventory of in-scope hosts and network ranges, network architecture diagrams where available, firewall ruleset documentation for configuration review, and VPN access for internal testing. For Active Directory assessments, a low-privilege domain user account is provided to simulate an insider or post-compromise scenario. All artifacts are managed securely through Lemon with full traceability.

Three structural advantages differentiate Security Brigade. First, ShadowMap provides intelligence-led reconnaissance from Day 1, identifying shadow assets and dark web credentials before testing begins. Second, Lemon, our proprietary audit management platform, ensures consistent methodology across all 27,000+ network scopes using institutional knowledge from nearly two decades of assessments. Third, every finding undergoes L1/L2/L3 expert review, eliminating the quality inconsistency that plagues the penetration testing industry. Additionally, 60 to 70 percent of our business comes from client referrals, the strongest trust signal in cybersecurity.

Yes, internal network penetration testing and Active Directory assessments are a core part of our network security practice. We test for credential harvesting, Kerberoasting, AS-REP roasting, pass-the-hash, pass-the-ticket, Golden and Silver ticket attacks, ADCS template abuse, trust relationship exploitation, and privilege escalation to Domain Administrator. Our team holds CRTP and OSCP certifications specifically relevant to Active Directory attack paths. Multiple engagements have uncovered ADCS vulnerabilities capable of full domain compromise.

Yes, both RBI and SEBI mandate regular network security assessments. RBI's Cyber Security Framework requires banks, NBFCs, payment aggregators, and other regulated entities to conduct periodic vulnerability assessment and penetration testing of their network infrastructure. SEBI's Cyber Security and Cyber Resilience circular requires similar assessments for stock exchanges, depositories, and market intermediaries. Security Brigade is CERT-In empanelled since 2008, which is a prerequisite for auditors conducting these regulatory assessments.

Findings appear in your real-time Lemon dashboard as they are identified during the engagement, not just in the final report. Each vulnerability includes detailed proof-of-concepts, exact exploitation steps, and technology-specific remediation guidance. Multiple rounds of retesting are included so your infrastructure team can verify fixes iteratively. Our consultants also conduct remediation walkthrough sessions with your team or third-party vendors. A formal Security Assessment Certificate is issued once all critical and high findings are resolved.

Yes, our network penetration testing covers hybrid environments that span on-premises data centers, private clouds, and public cloud infrastructure including AWS, Azure, and GCP. We test VPN interconnects, cloud security group configurations, container network policies, and cross-environment trust relationships. For cloud-specific assessments such as AWS configuration reviews or container security testing, we also offer dedicated cloud security assessment services that can be combined with network penetration testing for comprehensive coverage.

Coverage validation is built into our methodology at multiple checkpoints. ShadowMap identifies external assets your team may not have included in the scope. Lemon cross-references client-provided asset inventories against scan results and reconnaissance findings to flag discrepancies. AI-assisted analysis validates that every in-scope host and service has been tested. The L2 reviewer specifically checks for coverage gaps before the engagement can be marked complete. This multi-layered approach ensures no host, service, or network segment is accidentally missed.