Penetration Testing for Financial Services
Financial services organisations face some of the most sophisticated cyber threats and stringent regulatory requirements of any industry. Banks, insurance companies, investment firms, payment processors, and fintech startups are high-value targets for cybercriminals seeking financial data, customer PII, and access to payment systems.
Penetration testing for financial services must address unique challenges including complex legacy systems, interconnected third-party ecosystems, real-time transaction processing, and regulatory requirements from multiple frameworks simultaneously. Financial institutions must comply with PCI DSS, SOC 2, DORA, NIST CSF, and often SWIFT CSP, requiring comprehensive testing programmes that cover web applications, APIs, mobile banking, payment gateways, and internal infrastructure.
Advanced testing such as red teaming and TIBER-EU threat-led pen testing is increasingly required by financial regulators to validate detection and response capabilities against sophisticated threat actors.
SECFORCE
Leading UK offensive security consultancy based in Canary Wharf, delivering CREST-accredited penetration testing and adversary simulation to organisations with the most demanding security requirements.
NCC Group
Global cybersecurity consultancy with CREST, CHECK, and CBEST accreditation, renowned for deep technical research and comprehensive penetration testing services.
Nettitude
CREST, CHECK, and CBEST accredited UK consultancy within Lloyd's Register, delivering premium penetration testing for government and critical infrastructure.
NetSPI
Leading penetration testing firm with the Resolve platform for continuous attack surface management, trusted by nine of the top ten US banks.
Trustwave
Global managed security provider with the elite SpiderLabs penetration testing team and deep PCI DSS compliance expertise.
Bridewell
Fast-growing CREST and CHECK-accredited UK cybersecurity consultancy with deep expertise in critical national infrastructure sectors.
Pentest People
CREST and CHECK-accredited UK penetration testing firm with an innovative SecurePortal platform and transparent pricing for mid-market organizations.
Mandiant
World-renowned cybersecurity firm now part of Google Cloud, delivering threat intelligence-led penetration testing and red teaming informed by front-line incident response experience.
Bishop Fox
Premier US-based offensive security firm known for elite penetration testers, cutting-edge research, and the Cosmos continuous attack surface management platform.
Rapid7
Creators of Metasploit offering enterprise penetration testing integrated with their comprehensive vulnerability management and security operations platform.
Coalfire
Compliance-focused cybersecurity advisory firm and FedRAMP 3PAO specializing in penetration testing that meets stringent regulatory requirements.
WithSecure
Leading European cybersecurity firm offering penetration testing with deep expertise in EU regulatory compliance including GDPR, NIS 2, and TIBER-EU.
Claranet
CREST and CHECK-accredited European managed services provider delivering penetration testing with deep infrastructure and cloud hosting expertise.
HackerOne
World's largest ethical hacker platform with over one million researchers, offering bug bounties and structured penetration testing to the US DoD and Fortune 500.
Integrity360
CREST-accredited pan-European cybersecurity services provider delivering penetration testing and managed security from Dublin with a strong UK and Ireland presence.
Black Hills Information Security
Community-driven penetration testing firm known for free security education, open-source tools, Wild West Hackin' Fest, and practical offensive security services.
SEC Consult
Leading European cybersecurity consultancy from Vienna with a prolific vulnerability research program and deep expertise in IoT and embedded systems security.
CrowdStrike
Global cybersecurity leader leveraging world-class threat intelligence from the Falcon platform to deliver intelligence-led penetration testing and red teaming.
IOActive
Elite boutique security consultancy specializing in IoT, SCADA/ICS, embedded systems, and hardware security research with world-renowned researchers.
Secureworks
Dell Technologies-backed cybersecurity firm with elite Counter Threat Unit intelligence informing enterprise penetration testing and adversary simulation.
Trail of Bits
Elite security research firm specializing in source code review, blockchain auditing, and building industry-standard open-source security tools.
Rhino Security Labs
Cloud security penetration testing specialists known for the Pacu AWS exploitation framework and deep expertise across AWS, Azure, and GCP environments.
Praetorian
Offensive security firm founded by former DoD professionals, offering elite penetration testing and the Chariot continuous attack surface management platform.
Offensive Security
Creators of OSCP, Kali Linux, and Exploit-DB, offering elite penetration testing services from the team that trains the world's ethical hackers.
Bugcrowd
Leading crowdsourced security platform offering managed bug bounty programs and crowd-powered penetration testing with hundreds of thousands of ethical hackers.
Synack
FedRAMP-authorized crowdsourced penetration testing platform combining vetted elite hackers with AI-powered Hydra technology for continuous security testing.
Aon Cyber Solutions
Cybersecurity consulting division of global insurance leader Aon, uniquely combining penetration testing with cyber risk quantification and insurance expertise.
Securin
Vulnerability intelligence-driven penetration testing firm providing contextual security assessments informed by threat actor exploitation data and ransomware tracking.
BreachLock
Cloud-based Penetration Testing as a Service platform combining AI-driven automation with expert manual testing at accessible price points.
Cobalt
Pioneer of Pentest as a Service, delivering fast, platform-based penetration testing with a vetted global community of security researchers.
Financial Services Pen Testing FAQs
What pen testing do financial regulators require?+
Requirements vary by jurisdiction. PCI DSS mandates annual pen testing. DORA requires threat-led pen testing every three years for significant entities. National regulators may impose additional requirements.
How often should banks perform pen testing?+
Major banks typically test continuously throughout the year, with annual comprehensive assessments and quarterly focused tests on critical applications and infrastructure changes.
What is TIBER-EU and do we need it?+
TIBER-EU is a framework for threat intelligence-based ethical red teaming of financial entities. It is required under DORA for significant financial entities and recommended by several national regulators.