What Is Penetration Testing?

This blog post provides an introductory overview of penetration testing, explaining its purpose, common types (network, web application, mobile, social engineering, wireless, physical, and red team assessments), and why it matters for organizational security and compliance. It also describes the typical penetration testing process—pre-engagement scoping, reconnaissance, scanning, exploitation, post-exploitation, and reporting—and emphasizes manual testing and realistic attack simulation to identify and remediate vulnerabilities before they can be exploited.