A penetration test involves the use of a variety of manual and automated techniques to simulate an attack on an organisation's information security arrangements – either from malicious outsiders or your own staff. Undertaking a series of penetration tests will help test your security arrangements and identify improvements. When carried out and reported properly, a penetration test can give you knowledge of nearly all of your technical security weaknesses and provide you with the information and support required to remove or reduce those vulnerabilities. Research has shown that there are also other significant benefits to your organisation through effective penetration testing.