How to Become a Penetration Tester: A Career Guide
Penetration testing is the practice of finding and exploiting any and all vulnerabilities within a computer system. It’s a crucial task carried out by cyber security experts to fully understand where the weak points are, which could allow attackers to breach defences.
Companies employ penetration testers and ethical hackers to simulate such attacks in order to prevent them in the future. Without comprehensive testing of the cyber security infrastructure in place, it would be impossible to know how it could be improved.
What does a penetration tester do?
A penetration tester carries out authorised attacks on computer systems, networks and internet sites to highlight specific flaws and weak points. They use existing hacking methods to try and access private, sensitive or proprietary information that businesses are expected to keep safe.
There’s also a creative element of the role in which penetration testers develop their cyber security skills to stay one step ahead of the hackers. Devising new techniques to break into systems helps cyber security analysts and other members of the team create defences that will repel attacks.
Penetration tester roles and responsibilities
The penetration tester job description will vary from organisation to organisation, but the most common responsibilities of the role include:
- Conducting security audits
- Planning penetration tests
- Identifying vulnerabilities in systems
- Conducting tests on networks
- Web application penetration testing
- Collecting data and deploying testing methodology
- Making security recommendations
- Exploiting vulnerabilities to simulate attacks
- Reverse engineering malware or spam
- Reviewing code for security vulnerabilities
- Validating security improvements with additional testing
- Writing security assessment reports
- Advising on appropriate incident response
While it is possible to be a generalist within the penetration tester space, working with a variety of systems and infrastructures, many people decide to specialise in one particular area. This may be something to consider as your career progresses, with Windows, Linux and Mac operating systems among the options, as well as supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) control systems.
What is the top salary for a penetration tester?
The average salary for a penetration tester in the UK is £48,847 per year, according to Glassdoor. As you work through your career you can expect to command higher compensation, however, with those in senior roles being paid in the region of £64,000 annually.
Penetration tester jobs also often come with added bonuses, commission or profit sharing. While this usually starts at around £2,000 a year, it can increase to as much as £6,000, especially when it’s performance related.
Which sectors do penetration testers work in?
Traditionally, penetration testers would exclusively work for large companies, security consultancies or risk management organisations. These businesses were seen as having above-average system and network security requirements.
Now, most businesses require high levels of security to protect sensitive data or risk fines, reputational damage and the inability to carry out their operations. The main question for most penetration testers starting out in their careers is whether to work in-house for a company or for an organisation that tests external clients' vulnerabilities.
Should you pursue a career in penetration testing?
If you have the relevant hacking skills, then pursuing a career in penetration testing is an effective way of using them for good. As well as a lucrative salary, you’ll also find that cyber security professionals in this area are in high demand, giving you various options when looking for a role.
The career path of a penetration tester is generally well-defined and you should be able to develop your skills in line with your experience. While becoming a lead penetration tester might be the ultimate goal for some, others become information security managers and even advance into executive roles.
Explore our selection of penetration tester jobs to see where your career might take you next.