Penetration testing (also known as pen testing or ethical hacking) is a method for gaining assurance in the security of an IT system by attempting to breach some, or all, of that system's security, using the same tools and techniques as an adversary might.
Penetration testing is essentially a controlled form of hacking where the ‘attackers’ act on behalf of the organization to find and test weaknesses that hackers could exploit.
Experienced penetration testers mimic the techniques used by criminals to probe these vulnerabilities – individually or in combinations – without causing damage. This enables you to address the security flaws that leave your organisation vulnerable.