Google Cloud Platform
Penetration Testing

Identify your insecure configurations / exploitable vulnerabilities and get practical recommendations to secure your infrastructure from cyberattacks.

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Why is Google Cloud Penetration Testing Important?

Google Cloud Platform (GCP) follow the shared-responsibility model. They are in charge of the security of the platform, such as hardware and backend infrastructure security, while your organization is in charge of the security of components configured within your environment such as server configurations, user privileges, database access, etc. Cloud environments can be compromised in a variety of ways and misconfigurations can leave you vulnerable to external attackers. This assessment will test your configurations and allow you to determine whether an attack could gain access to sensitive data or critical systems.

How Hackers Can Breach Your GCP

The Google Cloud Platform shares various similarities when it comes to the risks users face in regards to cloud misconfigurations and potential angles of attacks hackers can use to breach your infrastructure. Here are some common methods used by attackers:

Our Google Cloud Cybersecurity Assessment Services

Our experts master Google Cloud penetration tests across a wide variety of infrastructures. Whether it’s for as an infrastructure as a service (IaaS), a platform as a service (PaaS) or a software as a service (SaaS), our specialists have contributed to secure Google Cloud infrastructures of all kinds.

Types of GCP Exploits we Attempt

Our experts will attempt various types of attack scenarios commonly used by attackers to exploit your Google Cloud infrastructure, including:

Escalation controls for all members with access to your environment.
Lack of privilege assessment
Analysis and exploitation of the Kubernetes engine configuration.
Security mechanisms testing.
Best practices analysis: event logs / Stackdriver monitoring, encryption, built-in security tools, etc.
External perimeter assessment testing
Elevation of privileges and abuse between users / projects
Revision of cloud configurations and code of cloud functions
Pivoting between cloud environments. (abuse of multi-cloud approvals)

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Our Penetration Testing Process

Do we need Google's permission to test our Cloud?

Google’s authorization is not required in order to conduct Penetration Tests within the Google Cloud environment.

However, specific guidelines from Google must be respected to ensure that you are targeting the environment for which you are responsible to secure.

How do you test Google Cloud infrastructures?

We have created a set of virtual images including all the necessary tools to perform a penetration test of the Google Cloud environment. This penetration test allows us to validate the security of elements specific to the Google Cloud infrastructure and to test various attack scenarios regularly used by hackers to penetrate through your security measures and exploit vulnerabilities.

Our specialists validate the security of elements specific to Google Cloud, such as:

• Escalation Controls for all members with access to your environment.

• Lack of privilege assessment and attempts to exploit to demonstrate what an attacker might do with this additional access.

• Analysis and exploitation of the Kubernetes engine configuration.

• Security mechanisms testing. (Can we get around your security controls? Can we perform malicious acts or exfiltrate data without being detected?)

• Best practices analysis: event logs / Stackdriver monitoring, encryption, built-in security tools, etc.

• Verifying your external perimeter from the inside to assess what should not be exposed to the public internet?

• Elevation of privileges and abuse between users / projects and organization.

• Revision of cloud configurations and code of cloud functions.

• Pivoting between cloud environments. (abuse of multi-cloud approvals)

What are the deliverables of an Google Cloud penetration test?

At the end of the project, you will be provided with a detailed report that includes all the findings and recommended mitigations. The technical report includes the following:

Executive summary presenting the main observations and recommendations.
Vulnerability matrix prioritised by risk level.
Vulnerabilities details including the following:
- Risk Level based on potential impact and exploitability.
- Fixes & Recommendations to fix the identified vulnerabilities.
- References to external resources to facilitate the implementation of our recommendations.
- Technical details such as screenshots, system traces, logs, etc.
Appendix detailing complementary technical information.
Methodology used during the project. (based on recognized standards)

Depending on your context, you will also be provided with an attestation certifying that penetration tests have been performed by experienced professionals using recognized methodologies and standards. This document will allow you to meet compliance and regulatory reporting requirements efficiently and with minimal overhead.

More details regarding these 5 items you should find in a penetration testing report →

How much does a Google Cloud Pentest cost?

Our Azure pentesting services are customized based on the goal or outcome you want to achieve. Therefore, there is no standard price for a Cloud penetration test.

For each project, we will technically determine your requirements and set the time needed to complete the work. We will then provide a detailed proposal containing the necessary budget for the project and the efforts that will be made by our specialists within the project.

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How often should i conduct a Google Cloud Penetration Test?

It is recommended that you perform a Google Cloud Penetration Test once a year as cyber threats and attack scenarios are constantly evolving. If major changes are made to the infrastructure or if new applications are developed, it is recommended to perform additional tests. This ensures that recent changes did not introduce new vulnerabilities into the environment. Some compliance standards, such as ISO 27001 or PCI DSS, require tests to be performed at a determined frequency to remain compliant. (For example, the PCI-DSS 11.3.x Requirements requires a penetration test to be performed each year or following each major change to the infrastructure)

Do you follow a work methodology?

Our services are based on a complete methodology that we provide with each project proposal. This proposal describes the test steps and all the requirements to perform the test.

Our application penetration test methodology complies with OWASP standards, which is the industry standard for application security.