Press Release
API Penetration Testing
APIs are now an important part of almost every application development project, including web applications and mobile apps. But due to the increased usage of APIs, especially from third-party sources (Google Maps API, Facebook Graph API, LinkedIn REST API, etc.), it’s often challenging for developers to prove their APIs and overall web applications are secure.
It can also be difficult and time-consuming to update APIs over time to patch known vulnerabilities. Further, you may not know if the APIs you’ve deployed were properly tested for security by the original developers.
As a result, APIs constitute one of the largest attack surfaces in most web applications—and also one of the harder classes of vulnerabilities to remediate.
Developers who leverage Pivot Point Security’s API Penetration Testing service can efficiently and effectively demonstrate that their APIs are secure from known/common vulnerabilities, such as Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) vulnerabilities, injection flaws, authentication weaknesses, etc. This level of testing also provides valuable guidance on how to close any security gaps.
Benefits of Doing API Penetration Testing
- The benefits of using APIs to build and operate applications are too good to pass up:
- Cost savings
- Reduction in development time
- Consistent, dependable performance
- Simplified maintenance
The goal of API penetration testing is to maximize the benefits APIs bring while identifying and remediating the significant risks they impose.
What Does API Penetration Testing Do?
API penetration tests validate that the APIs that are exposed are properly secured. Dependent upon their risk and business objective they will include some combination of: automated testing manual testing, code review, code scanning, and security auditing. We believe that the Open Web Application Security Project (OWASP) Application Security Verification Standard (ASVS) is the best way to demonstrate to key stakeholders that a web application/API is secure. The ASVS defines three distinct levels of testing based on risk and provides guidance on 286 application security practices that an application should include.
What You Can Prevent
When a web app is compromised, the results can include data breaches, data exfiltration, fraud, customer account takeovers, compromised control systems, embarrassing performance problems, and exposed application code or business logic. Depending on what data and/or systems are compromised, the financial and reputational damage could be massive, especially in relation to the cost of the testing.
How can I know that a tester/vendor is qualified to test my APIs
API penetration testing and web application penetration testing in general are “part art, part engineering,” which can make it hard to know what to expect and whether you got what you paid for. Some questions to ask testers/vendors include: how long have you been performing API pen tests and how many have you done? Have you done any with clients in my industry and/or with similar applications? What testing standards do you use as a foundation (e.g., OWASP Top 10, OWASP ASVS)? What classes of vulnerabilities will you test for? What is the experience level of the tester(s) you will use? What is your step-by-step methodology? You can also ask for a sample report.
Getting Started
Are you concerned that your APIs are putting your application’s security at risk? If so, reach out! Pivot Point Security has helped many organizations prove their applications are secure and bring peace of mind to developers that they are building secure application
Tell us about yourself, and we’ll prepare a comprehensive game plan to address your network security concerns in the most efficient way possible.
Contact Pivot Point to get started: