Authored by: PlexTrac Author Posted on: November 2, 2020 Report & Remediate Findings without the Headache PlexTrac Can Do That While the bread and butter of Red Teamers is adversary emulation and attack simulation, the real time suck usually comes in the form of the extensive reporting required to communicate the outcomes of the Red Team’s work. What Red Teams need is a way to streamline the reporting process while also improving the quality and value of the reports themselves so they can focus on what counts: identifying risks and vulnerabilities. Include Writeups and Exhibits Manually writing reports based on Word templates and Excel spreadsheets of findings is a major drag. These programs aren’t designed for cybersecurity or the essential reporting necessary to make the real cybersecurity work valuable to the client. Word doesn’t manage visual information well, and visual information can be a key to effective communication in a report. Whether it’s screenshots or code samples, the manual act of adding them to your report and then getting them to behave in the document are headaches that busy Red Teamers just don’t need. Excel spreadsheets aren’t ideal either as finding databases. Categorizing and searching common findings to use in reports isn’t exactly a breeze. What if there was an easier way to track findings and access them to streamline reporting? PlexTrac can do that … PlexTrac’s solution is second to none when it comes to reporting security findings. Exhibits such as code samples, screenshots, and even videos may be added to any finding. Asset attribution and customizable tags allow total flexibility in categorizing findings. Manage the Chaos of Your Scan Results Effective reporting also requires pulling the data from automated processes and collating them into something meaningful. Red Teamers use a variety of means to cover the attack surface, and distilling all the data from all the places into a set of actionable recommendations can be a chore. What Red Teams need is a way to integrate all the automated results with manual findings so that they can be disseminated into the important objectives featured in the report. PlexTrac can do that … PlexTrac imports results from all major network and app sec scanning tools, providing centralized visibility for your vulnerability management program. Enrich automated findings with data unique to the environment, either manually or through our automated Parser Actions. Tell the Story of Your Engagement Once all the findings are compiled from the various tools and enriched with evidence, they must be presented in a way the organization can use to remediate issues and actually improve their security posture. Not every finding is going to be a top priority and not every member of the audience is going to be a cybersecurity expert. The report has to tell a story of the engagement that communicates the priorities and considers all the audiences. It doesn’t really matter how skilled the Red Teamer is if the report doesn’t effectively explain the results and what to do about them. A solid narrative is key. Unfortunately, just because someone is a world-class pen tester doesn’t necessarily mean they are a natural storyteller or even a decent communicator. To save time and provide consistent reports, Red Teamer’s need an outline to follow and an easy way to make effectively crafted summaries consistent in all reports. PlexTrac can do that … PlexTrac’s executive summary allows you to capture the value of your security engagement or penetration test by providing stakeholders with an effective narrative. Our templating engine makes it easy to include consistently good summaries across all reports, without the hassle of copying and pasting. In Conclusion PlexTrac’s Reporting Module is an essential tool for cybersecurity teams of any size, but it isn’t the only feature that can transform how your organization gets the cybersecurity work done. To learn more about how PlexTrac can streamline cybersecurity operations for programs of any size, drop us a line and we’ll send you a quick reference guide outlining all the available PlexTrac features. PlexTrac Author At PlexTrac, we bring together insights from a diverse range of voices. Our blog features contributions from industry experts, ethical hackers, CTOs, influencers, and PlexTrac team members—all sharing valuable perspectives on cybersecurity, pentesting, and risk management.
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