Beware the Hidden Costs of Pen Testing

Penetration testing helps organisations ensure IT systems are secure, but it should never be treated as a one-size-fits-all exercise. The article notes that traditional pen tests can be rigid, time‑consuming and costly, delivering results that may not meet every organisation’s needs.

It highlights several hidden costs, including administrative overheads to schedule tests and inventory assets, scoping complexity that can lead to scope creep, and indirect costs from disruption during testing and potential remediation or re‑testing. It also discusses budget management challenges, such as choosing between fixed‑cost pricing and time‑and‑materials models, and quotes Network Assured on the difficulty of benchmarking pen testing costs because every test is unique.

To counter these issues, the piece argues for a services‑based approach, such as Pen-testing‑as‑a‑Service (PTaaS), with examples like Outpost24’s CyberFlex that offer continuous coverage and cost visibility. According to the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre, pen testing can be comparable to a financial audit, underlining the need for a carefully scoped and cost‑effective strategy.