Assessment

Find Security Weaknesses Before Attackers Do

Your security defences need to withstand more than automated scans. Firmus Security’s Vulnerability Assessment and Penetration Testing (VAPT) services combine vulnerability discovery with controlled, real-world attack simulation to identify weaknesses across your digital environment.

From networks and web applications to APIs, cloud environments and other critical assets, we help you understand where your security gaps are, how they could be exploited, and what needs to be fixed first.

What is Vulnerability Assessment and Penetration Testing?

Vulnerability Assessment and Penetration Testing (VAPT) is a security testing process designed to identify and validate vulnerabilities across an organisation’s IT environment.

A Vulnerability Assessment systematically identifies known security weaknesses and helps organisations understand their exposure.

Penetration Testing takes the process further by safely simulating real-world attack techniques to determine whether identified vulnerabilities can actually be exploited and what impact they could have.

Together, VAPT provides a clearer picture of your organisation’s security posture — helping you move beyond simply knowing that a vulnerability exists to understanding what an attacker could potentially do with it.

Why VAPT Matters

A vulnerability on its own does not always tell the full story.

The real concern is whether that weakness can be exploited, what an attacker could access, and how it could affect your organisation.

VAPT helps organisations:

Identify Hidden Security Gaps

Discover vulnerabilities that may not be visible through conventional security monitoring or automated scanning alone.

Validate Real-World Risk

Determine whether identified vulnerabilities can actually be exploited and understand their potential impact.

Reduce Your Attack Surface

Identify weaknesses across systems, applications, networks and infrastructure that could provide attackers with an entry point.

Prioritise Remediation

Focus security resources on vulnerabilities that present the greatest risk to your organisation.

Strengthen Security Defences

Use actionable findings to improve configurations, controls, applications and overall security posture.

Support Compliance Requirements

Provide security testing and reporting to support applicable regulatory, industry and organisational requirements.

Our VAPT Approach

From Discovery to Verified Security

Our approach combines automated technologies, manual testing and security expertise to provide a deeper assessment of your environment.

01 — Scope & Planning

We work with your team to understand your environment, objectives, testing requirements and defined scope.

This establishes the assets, applications, systems and attack surfaces that will be assessed.

02 — Reconnaissance & Discovery

We gather information about the target environment and identify potential entry points, exposed services, technologies and attack surfaces.

03 — Vulnerability Assessment

We conduct vulnerability assessments to identify known weaknesses, misconfigurations and potential security issues across the agreed scope.

04 — Penetration Testing

Our security professionals safely simulate attack techniques to validate vulnerabilities and determine whether they can be exploited.

05 — Risk Analysis

Findings are analysed based on factors such as severity, exploitability, potential business impact and attack paths.

This helps distinguish theoretical weaknesses from vulnerabilities that could represent a meaningful security risk.

06 — Reporting & Recommendations

You receive a detailed report containing identified vulnerabilities, supporting evidence, risk ratings and practical remediation recommendations.

07 — Remediation & Retesting

Following remediation, we can conduct retesting to verify whether identified vulnerabilities have been successfully addressed.

What We Test

Our VAPT services can be tailored to your organisation’s environment and requirements.

Network Infrastructure

Assess internal and external network environments for vulnerabilities, misconfigurations, exposed services and potential attack paths.

Web Applications

Identify vulnerabilities within web applications that could allow attackers to gain unauthorised access, manipulate functionality or access sensitive information.

APIs

Assess API endpoints, authentication, authorisation, input validation and data handling to identify weaknesses that could expose systems or information.

Mobile Applications

Evaluate mobile applications for vulnerabilities affecting application logic, authentication, data storage, communications and other security controls.

Cloud Environments

Assess cloud environments for security weaknesses, configuration issues, identity and access risks and potential attack paths.

External Attack Surface

Evaluate internet-facing assets from an external attacker’s perspective to identify weaknesses that could be exploited without internal access.

Internal Infrastructure

Assess internal environments to understand what an attacker could potentially access after gaining a foothold within the organisation.

Wireless Networks

Identify weaknesses in wireless infrastructure and security configurations that could enable unauthorised access or compromise.

AI/LLM Testing

Identify weaknesses in AI and LLM integrations, including prompt injection risks, insecure data handling, excessive permissions, weak guardrails and integration misconfigurations that could expose sensitive information or enable misuse.

Vulnerability Assessment vs Penetration Testing

Vulnerability AssessmentPenetration Testing
Identifies potential vulnerabilitiesValidates whether vulnerabilities can be exploited
Typically uses automated scanning and analysisCombines tools with manual security testing
Provides visibility into security weaknessesDemonstrates potential real-world attack impact
Helps prioritise vulnerabilitiesHelps understand exploitability and attack paths
Broad coverage of the defined environmentMore targeted and in-depth testing

Why combine both?

A vulnerability scan may tell you “there is a vulnerability.”

Penetration testing helps answer:

“Can an attacker actually exploit it — and what happens if they do?”

Combining both approaches gives organisations a more meaningful understanding of their security exposure.

What You Receive

Automated vulnerability scanners are valuable for identifying known weaknesses — but they don’t tell the entire story.

Modern attackers combine vulnerabilities, misconfigurations, stolen credentials, exposed services and application weaknesses to reach their objectives.

Our VAPT approach goes beyond simply generating scan results.

We focus on understanding how individual weaknesses could potentially be connected and exploited within a real-world attack scenario.

This enables your organisation to focus on the vulnerabilities and attack paths that matter most.

When Should You Conduct VAPT?

VAPT should not be treated as a one-time security exercise.

Consider conducting VAPT:

Before launching a new application

Identify security weaknesses before an application becomes publicly accessible.

After major system changes

Validate that infrastructure, applications or configurations remain secure after significant changes.

During regular security assessments

Maintain visibility into your evolving attack surface.

Following significant vulnerabilities or security incidents

Determine whether your environment may be exposed to similar weaknesses.

Before compliance or regulatory assessments

Support applicable security testing and assurance requirements.

As part of your secure development lifecycle

Integrate security testing into application and infrastructure development.

Who Needs VAPT?

VAPT can benefit organisations that rely on digital infrastructure, applications and connected systems to operate their business.

It is particularly relevant for organisations with:

  • Internet-facing applications and systems

  • Customer-facing web or mobile applications

  • APIs and integrations

  • Critical internal infrastructure

  • Cloud environments

  • Sensitive or regulated data

  • Large and complex IT environments

  • Frequent application or infrastructure changes

  • Regulatory or industry security requirements

Frequently Asked Questions

A vulnerability assessment focuses on identifying and prioritising potential vulnerabilities. Penetration testing goes further by safely attempting to exploit vulnerabilities to validate their real-world impact.

The appropriate frequency depends on your organisation, technology environment, risk profile and applicable requirements. VAPT should also be considered following major infrastructure or application changes.

Testing is planned and controlled to minimise operational disruption. The scope and testing approach are agreed with the organisation before an engagement begins.

The duration depends on factors such as the number of assets, applications, testing scope, complexity and testing objectives. A defined scope assessment can be discussed during the initial engagement.

Yes. A typical VAPT engagement includes reporting on identified vulnerabilities, risk levels, evidence and remediation recommendations, subject to the agreed scope.

Yes. Retesting can be conducted to validate whether previously identified vulnerabilities have been successfully remediated.

No. Any organisation with systems, applications, networks or digital assets exposed to security threats can benefit from security testing. The scope can be tailored according to the organisation’s environment and risk profile.

Explore Our Assessment Services

Let us help you make informed decisions and set your business up for success through our range of assessment services.

Network Penetration Testing

Web Application Penetration Testing

Incident Response (IR)

Source Code Review

Mobile Application Penetration Testing

Security Configuration Review

Social Engineering

Wireless Penetration Testing

Breach and Attack Simulation (BAS)

Compromise Assessment

Intelligence Led Penetration Testing

Network Resiliency Assessment

Red Teaming

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Penetration testing, cyber security strategy, proof-of-value, or just some information? Our domain experts provide bespoke cyber security offerings to solve your digital transformation challenges.