Software & SaaS Penetration Testing

Updated April 18, 2025

In today’s digital-first world, every business depends on software to operate efficiently, deliver services, and stay competitive. As the number of applications grows, so do the risks, making software a prime target for cybercriminals aiming to exploit vulnerabilities and access sensitive or protected data. With cyber threats escalating and data breaches becoming increasingly costly, proactive security is no longer optional. This is where software penetration testing becomes essential.

Software penetration testing (or “pen testing”) is a critical cybersecurity practice for both users and developers of SaaS (Software-as-a-Service) and custom-built applications. These tests simulate real-world attacks to uncover and remediate security weaknesses before bad actors can exploit them. Whether your organization develops software or integrates it into your business operations, pen testing helps ensure your applications are resilient and compliant with industry security standards.

In this comprehensive guide, you’ll learn the fundamentals of software penetration testing—its purpose, benefits, methodologies, and how it fits into a robust cybersecurity strategy.

The State of SaaS Cybersecurity

As businesses increasingly depend on SaaS (Software-as-a-Service) applications, cybersecurity risks continue to escalate. Each new integration expands the attack surface, creating more opportunities for threat actors to exploit vulnerabilities.

A series of recent reports shed light on the urgent need for enhanced SaaS security:

• According to the Cloud Security Alliance, 55% of organizations have experienced a SaaS-related security incident. These incidents include data breaches, ransomware, malicious applications, insider threats, and corporate espionage.
• Shockingly, most organizations admit their security solutions only protect half of their SaaS apps, leaving substantial gaps in their cybersecurity defenses.
• A study from DataProt reveals that 88% of professional hackers claim they can breach an organization in less than 12 hours.

These figures highlight a critical truth: relying on reactive cybersecurity strategies is insufficient. Proactive measures like regular software penetration testing are essential for identifying weaknesses, verifying controls, and safeguarding sensitive data across your SaaS ecosystem.

What Is Software Penetration Testing?

Software penetration testing is a proactive cybersecurity practice where ethical hackers simulate real-world cyberattacks to uncover vulnerabilities in an application before malicious actors can exploit them. These tests help organizations assess the resilience of their software by identifying flaws in code, configurations, authentication mechanisms, and data handling processes.

Penetration testers—ethical hackers—use the same tools, tactics, and techniques as actual attackers to test how well an application can withstand a breach attempt. The findings from a pen test provide actionable insights for developers and security teams to strengthen defenses and remediate risks.

SaaS Penetration Testing

For organizations that develop or rely on SaaS (Software-as-a-Service) solutions, penetration testing is especially critical. SaaS applications often handle sensitive customer data and integrate with third-party services, increasing the complexity and risk of exposure. SaaS penetration testing focuses on:

• Authentication and access control vulnerabilities
• API and third-party integration risks
• Data storage and encryption weaknesses
• Multi-tenancy concerns in shared environments

Whether your organization builds or uses SaaS platforms for daily operations, regular penetration testing helps ensure security, maintain regulatory compliance, and build customer trust.

Software Penetration Testing for SaaS Users

Today’s organizations rely heavily on cloud-based tools, with many using over 100 SaaS applications to manage everything from collaboration to customer data. Each of these apps can represent a potential entry point for cyber threats. While it’s common to trust your SaaS provider or cloud host for security, doing so without verification leaves your network exposed.

Most businesses conduct initial due diligence when selecting a SaaS product, such as security questionnaires or third-party certifications. However, this often stops after onboarding. Failing to assess the security posture of these applications continuously creates blind spots that threat actors can exploit.

Conducting regular software penetration tests helps maintain visibility and control over the applications operating within your environment. These tests identify misconfigurations, excessive permissions, and other vulnerabilities that may have emerged since the last review, supporting ongoing risk management and compliance.

Software Penetration Testing for SaaS Providers

For SaaS companies, penetration testing is essential for internal security and as a key component of delivering secure, reliable software to customers. These tests validate that applications are secure by design, helping prevent downtime, data breaches, and damage to reputation.

SaaS vendors rely on pen testing to meet regulatory and customer expectations, especially when pursuing SOC 2 Type 2 compliance. This widely recognized cybersecurity framework verifies that an organization’s systems are designed to ensure customer data’s security, confidentiality, and availability.

How Pen Testing Supports SOC 2 Type 2 Compliance

• Verifies secure access controls to prevent unauthorized data exposure.
• Ensures monitoring systems can detect suspicious activity or breaches.
• Confirms incident response readiness to minimize disruption and restore functionality after a cybersecurity event.

While SOC 2 Type 2 is a critical milestone for SaaS providers, any business that stores, transmits, or processes sensitive information should consider regular penetration testing as part of a mature cybersecurity program.

How SaaS Penetration Testing Works: 7 Essential Steps

Whether you’re a SaaS provider building secure platforms or a business using SaaS tools to manage operations, the penetration testing process follows a structured path. Here’s a detailed breakdown of the seven key steps involved in a SaaS penetration test:

Planning and Preparation

The first step involves developing a strategic testing plan. Penetration testers gather intelligence about the target environment, define testing objectives, and determine the scope. A critical aspect of this stage is identifying the type of access testers will have:

• Black Box Testing – Ethical hackers have no prior knowledge of the software. This simulates an external attacker’s perspective.
• Gray Box Testing – Testers are given limited information or credentials, simulating an insider threat or a partially informed attacker.
• White Box Testing – Testers can access source code, infrastructure details, and admin-level permissions. This approach provides the most thorough vulnerability assessment.

Testers may also use social engineering and phishing simulations to uncover additional entry points and vulnerabilities.

2. Scanning and Reconnaissance

Next, testers conduct both automated and manual scans to identify weaknesses. These scans target open ports, exposed services, outdated components, and known vulnerabilities in third-party libraries or open-source dependencies. This step helps testers understand how the SaaS system would respond to different attack vectors.

3. Exploitation and Access

Once potential vulnerabilities are identified, testers attempt to exploit them using advanced tools and real-world attack techniques such as:

• SQL injection
• Cross-site scripting (XSS)
• Malware deployment
• Credential stuffing
• Man-in-the-middle (MitM) attacks
• Phishing or spear-phishing

The goal is to determine if attackers could gain unauthorized access, escalate privileges, or compromise sensitive data.

4. Persistence and Privilege Escalation

After initial access is gained, testers try to maintain access within the system. This phase evaluates how long attackers could remain undetected and how deep they could penetrate. It simulates a real-world breach where threat actors attempt to escalate privileges, move laterally, and exfiltrate data.

5. Cleanup and Restoration

Following the test, ethical hackers clean up any changes or backdoors created during the simulation. The goal is to restore the system to its original state without leaving traces that malicious actors could exploit in the future.

6. Reporting and Remediation

A detailed penetration testing report is delivered, outlining:

• All systems and applications tested
• Tactics and techniques used
• Exploited vulnerabilities and risk ratings
• Successes in accessing or manipulating sensitive data
• Time spent undetected in the environment
• Recommended remediation actions, prioritized by risk severity

This report empowers your internal team and security partner to prioritize and implement fixes effectively.

7. Retesting and Continuous Validation

Penetration testing is not a one-and-done activity. Ongoing testing is essential to maintaining a strong security posture, especially in dynamic SaaS environments where code, integrations, and user behavior evolve constantly. Immediate retesting post-remediation verifies that all issues have been resolved, while scheduled tests support compliance frameworks like SOC 2, FDA, ISO 27001, and HIPAA.

Software Penetration Testing vs. Traditional Software Testing

While both software penetration and traditional software testing play crucial roles in securing applications, they serve distinct purposes and require different skill sets.

Software penetration testing (pen testing) is a simulated cyberattack conducted by ethical hackers to uncover exploitable vulnerabilities in a live environment. The goal is to mimic the techniques and tactics of real-world attackers—such as unauthorized access, data theft, and privilege escalation—to understand how a malicious actor might compromise your software or SaaS application.

Traditional software testing, on the other hand, focuses on validating functionality, usability, and performance. It includes validation of security controls, input/output testing, and ensuring the application behaves as intended under normal and stress conditions. This type of testing helps ensure a smooth user experience and adherence to development specifications.

Integrating Security From the Start

Organizations should consult with cybersecurity experts early in the development process for the best results. Incorporating secure coding and development practices from the start can significantly reduce vulnerabilities and improve outcomes during future pen tests. While you can manage functional testing in-house, software penetration testing is best conducted by third-party experts to ensure objectivity, thoroughness, and compliance with industry standards.

Conclusion

SaaS applications are the backbone of modern business operations and represent a growing cybersecurity risk. Whether you’re a SaaS provider or a user, relying solely on default security settings or initial due diligence is not enough to safeguard your data and systems.

Software penetration testing offers a proactive, strategic defense. It identifies real-world vulnerabilities before cybercriminals exploit them, supports compliance with frameworks like SOC 2 Type 2, and reinforces trust with users and stakeholders. Regular testing, continuous monitoring, and remediation are a cornerstone of a secure-by-design development philosophy.

Investing in SaaS pen testing means investing in business continuity, data integrity, and customer confidence. It’s not just a security best practice—it’s a competitive advantage.