penetration test
termhackingsecurity
Stands for: penetration test
An authorized simulated attack that finds weaknesses before a real attacker does.
A penetration test is offensive security with permission: a scoped, sanctioned attempt to breach a system so the findings can be fixed. Distinct from a vulnerability scan, it chains weaknesses the way an adversary would, and ends in a report, not a compromise.
Also known as: pentest, pen test, pen-testing, ethical hacking