Blog

Thoughts, perspectives, and industry commentary from the Cobalt team.

Generating Actionable Pentest Results with PtaaS

Pentesting requires companies to do more than simply receive a report at the end of the test.

Modernizing Pentesting

Dec 29, 2021

Est Read Time: 3 min

Types of Security Risks that Threaten Schools

Data security is a high priority across industries. This includes the education sector where confidential files and...

Cybersecurity Insights Modernizing Pentesting

Dec 20, 2021

Est Read Time: 3 min

Top Holiday Gifts for Programmers, Coders, and Engineers

Looking for the next great gift to give a special computer wizard in your life? We’ve got you covered!

Life at Cobalt

Dec 14, 2021

Est Read Time: 4 min

Pentesting vs DAST: What is Your DAST Tool Missing?

The uptick in technology and a digital-first approach to business provides many benefits. However, it also creates...

Cybersecurity Insights Modernizing Pentesting

Dec 3, 2021

Est Read Time: 2 min

Pentester Diaries Ep:10 Journey into Reverse Engineering and Exploit Development

Pentester Diaries Ep.10: Journey into Reverse Engineering and Exploit Development On this episode of Pentest Diaries,...

Pentester Stories Cobalt Core

Nov 30, 2021

Est Read Time: 4 min

What Is Sensitive Data?

With large amounts of data processed each day by IT systems and networks, it’s imperative that organizations know how...

Cybersecurity Insights

Nov 22, 2021

Est Read Time: 3 min

History of Pentest as a Service (PtaaS)

The beginning of computers and technology transformed the world as we know it, creating new opportunities as early as...

Modernizing Pentesting

Nov 17, 2021

Est Read Time: 3 min

From Bug Hunter to Pentester: Exploring the differences between these two careers

In the following blog, I will talk about how I transitioned from a Bug Bounty Hunter to a Pentester. We will be...

Pentester Stories Cobalt Core

Nov 16, 2021

Est Read Time: 8 min

Practical Advice on Good API Design

When designing a good API, always start with requirements. Before writing a single line of documentation, do as much...

Modernizing Pentesting API Pentesting

Nov 14, 2021

Est Read Time: 6 min

Getting Started With Cobalt

Hey everyone, Mike Jang from Cobalt here. I’m a Staff Technical Writer, and I’m announcing the release of our first...

Product Updates

Nov 9, 2021

Est Read Time: 2 min

DevOps Best Practices

The use of the terms ‘DevOps’ and ‘DevSecOps’ are often used interchangeably, with the emphasis on security in...

DevSecOps

Nov 8, 2021

Est Read Time: 2 min

What is Web Application Penetration Testing?

Web application pentesting is the best method of discovering flaws in web applications. Otherwise known as penetration...

Modernizing Pentesting Web Application Pentesting

Nov 2, 2021

Est Read Time: 3 min

Adding clarity in the murky world of vulnerability risk

With a sea of information available to most modern security practitioners, actions need to be based on high quality...

Product Updates

Oct 31, 2021

Est Read Time: 3 min

Winning the Security Budget Fight With Tips From Security Executives

Are you preparing for next year's security budget? Budget negotiations can be pivotal in guaranteeing the right...

Cybersecurity Insights

Oct 27, 2021

Est Read Time: 4 min

Network Pentesting: Security Benefits & Solutions

Cyberattacks have plagued organizations for decades. As the world continues to adjust to the global pandemic, many are...

Modernizing Pentesting

Oct 19, 2021

Est Read Time: 2 min

Importing Findings Into DefectDojo With the Cobalt API

Make sure to check out our Integrations page for more info! At Cobalt, we aim to make security easier. We have covered...

Product Updates Modernizing Pentesting API Pentesting

Oct 14, 2021

Est Read Time: 6 min

Pentester Diaries Ep.9: Talking Certifications with Heath Adams

Pentest Diaries Ep.9: Talking Certifications with Heath Adams Welcome and happy Cybersecurity Awareness Month!

Pentester Stories Cobalt Core

Oct 8, 2021

Est Read Time: 5 min

How Does Penetration Testing Differ from a Vulnerability Assessment?

This article was refreshed in January 2023.

Modernizing Pentesting

Oct 7, 2021

Est Read Time: 4 min

Phishing Awareness Testing Services

Successful phishing campaigns are one of the most common causes of a cyber breach. In fact, over 80% of reported...

NEWS Cybersecurity Services

Oct 4, 2021

Est Read Time: 3 min

PtaaS and Bug Bounty: Which to Choose for Security Testing

Fixing vulnerabilities is an important part of reducing an application’s overall risk to remain well-protected over...

Modernizing Pentesting

Sep 30, 2021

Est Read Time: 4 min

Strengthen Your Security Posture with Cobalt’s Cybersecurity Services

At Cobalt, we keep our customers’ security top of mind. That’s why we are delighted to announce the launch of our...

NEWS Cybersecurity Services

Sep 22, 2021

Est Read Time: 1 min

How to Achieve SOC 2 Type 2 Compliance

Back in May 2020, Cobalt achieved their SOC 2, Type 1 compliance and is excited to say it is now SOC 2 Type 2 compliant...

Compliance

Sep 19, 2021

Est Read Time: 2 min

Pentest Diaries Ep.8: Android Pentesting

Pentest Diaries Ep.8: Android Pentesting Highlights In this edition of Pentest Diaries, we had the opportunity to sit...

Pentester Stories Mobile Application Pentesting

Sep 17, 2021

Est Read Time: 6 min

From CSRF and File Upload to RCE - JAVA

I have come across many interesting vulnerabilities throughout my offensive security career. In this post, I would like...

Cobalt Core Pentester Guides

Sep 16, 2021

Est Read Time: 6 min

Terraform, The Less-Common Commands And Options

This post was originally published on cloudlad.io

Cybersecurity Insights

Sep 14, 2021

Est Read Time: 5 min

Pentesting for the Merger & Acquisition Sector: Cybersecurity Due Diligence

Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) are a main driver of growth for many organizations, with the main objective of...

Cybersecurity Insights

Sep 13, 2021

Est Read Time: 4 min

Introducing Cobalt’s Chief Information Security Officer: Andrew Obadiaru

With 20+ years in the security and technology industry and a history of managing and mitigating risk across changing...

Life at Cobalt

Sep 10, 2021

Est Read Time: 2 min

Cobalt Named to Quartz Inaugural List of Best Companies for Remote Workers

We are excited to announce that today Quartz unveiled its inaugural list of the best companies for remote workers, and...

NEWS

Sep 9, 2021

Est Read Time: 2 min

How Pentesting Differs from Ethical Hacking

Pentesting and ethical hacking consist of two similar, but very different cybersecurity practices.

Cybersecurity Insights

Aug 31, 2021

Est Read Time: 3 min

Get to Know Veera Pennala, Cobalt's Account Executive

Welcome, Veera! Tell us a bit about yourself and where you're based. I’m Veera, an Account Executive at Cobalt. I’m...

Life at Cobalt

Aug 23, 2021

Est Read Time: 2 min

iOS Pentesting 101

It is no secret that mobile devices are on the rise. According to the first-quarter 2021 Nielsen Total Audience Report...

Pentester Guides Mobile Application Pentesting

Aug 20, 2021

Est Read Time: 15 min

DevSecOps: Types Of Testing

‘The ‘Sec’ in DevSecOps can be the Robin to your DevOps Batman — a trusty sidekick providing continuous backup.” -...

DevSecOps

Aug 18, 2021

Est Read Time: 4 min

Inc. Magazine Reveals Annual List of America’s Fastest-Growing Private Companies—the Inc. 5000

We are excited to announce that today, Inc. magazine revealed its annual list of America’s fastest growing private...

NEWS Life at Cobalt

Aug 17, 2021

Est Read Time: 2 min

Cobalt Platform Deep Dive: Customize Your Pentest Reports per Your Needs

All organizations that have undergone a pentest understand the importance of a pentest report. Pentest (PT) reports are...

Product Updates

Aug 16, 2021

Est Read Time: 2 min

Pentester Spotlight: Prateek Gianchandani

Prateek Gianchandani has been a part of the Cobalt Core since 2019. He is one of the 400+ pentesters worldwide who has...

Pentester Stories

Aug 16, 2021

Est Read Time: 7 min

Pentester Diaries Ep7: Tips for Communicating with Customers

Welcome back to Pentester Diaries. In this episode, Cobalt’s Grahame Turner interviews Core pentester Stefan Nicula on...

Pentester Guides

Aug 12, 2021

Est Read Time: 15 min

Q2 Changelog

CX-INTEGRATIONS

Product Updates

Aug 4, 2021

Est Read Time: 1 min

451 Research Takes a Close Look at Cobalt in Latest Report

Analysts at 451 Research are lauded for their data-driven, global insights. For anyone who isn’t familiar with this...

NEWS

Aug 3, 2021

Est Read Time: 2 min

Cobalt joins the German Cyber Security Council e.V.

Organizations around the world are facing an unprecedented volume of cyberattacks, and therefore the security and...

NEWS

Aug 1, 2021

Est Read Time: 1 min

Launch Into Getting to Know the Cobalt Core

3… 2… 1… It takes the force of a multifaceted team to reach a milestone, whether it’s launching a rocket to the moon or...

Cobalt Core

Jul 29, 2021

Est Read Time: 3 min

Importing Pentest Analytics to Google Data Studio with the Cobalt API

Make sure to check out our Integrations page for more info! Last time we talked about how to import data into Google...

Modernizing Pentesting API Pentesting

Jul 26, 2021

Est Read Time: 3 min

Outcomes of Hackathons at Cobalt

This post is the third in a series of three posts about hackathons at Cobalt. Read the first post, Why we do hackathons...

Life at Cobalt

Jul 16, 2021

Est Read Time: 5 min

Average Cost of a Pentest

With so many cyber attacks occurring around the world, cybersecurity continues to grow in importance for companies....

Modernizing Pentesting

Jul 14, 2021

Est Read Time: 3 min

How We Run Hackathons at Cobalt

This post is the second in a series of three posts about hackathons at Cobalt. Read the first one "Why We Do Hackathons...

Life at Cobalt

Jul 13, 2021

Est Read Time: 5 min

Spotlight on Engineering | Encoding Customer Experience

Cobalt’s Customer Experience (CX) is split into three teams aimed at creating delightful experiences for our customers...

Life at Cobalt

Jul 13, 2021

Est Read Time: 3 min

Pentester Spotlight: Dhiraj Mishra

Dhiraj Mishra is one of the 350+ Core pentesters worldwide who has contributed to the over 6000 Cobalt pentests. We had...

Pentester Stories

Jul 11, 2021

Est Read Time: 5 min

Get to Know Marion Sornette, Cobalt's Sr. Customer Success Manager

Welcome, Marion! Tell us a bit about yourself and where you're based. I grew up near Toulouse in the South West of...

Life at Cobalt

Jul 7, 2021

Est Read Time: 1 min

Guide to Preparing Your PHI for a HIPAA Pentest

What is HIPAA Compliance? HIPAA, the Healthcare Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, was signed into law on...

Compliance

Jul 6, 2021

Est Read Time: 4 min

The State of Pentesting 2021: Common Vulnerabilities, Findings, and Why Teams Struggle With Remediation

Each year, we publish The State of Pentesting report to provide a detailed overview of vulnerabilities and identify the...

Modernizing Pentesting

Jun 29, 2021

Est Read Time: 2 min

DevSecOps: A Modern Approach to Security

In the modern world, cybersecurity or lack thereof impacts almost every industry.

DevSecOps

Jun 25, 2021

Est Read Time: 4 min

Pentester Diaries Ep6: The Importance of Report Writing

Welcome back to Pentester Diaries. In this episode, longtime Core member and Cobalt Research Manager, Robert Kugler...

Pentester Guides

Jun 24, 2021

Est Read Time: 18 min

Why We Do Hackathons at Cobalt

Create a culture of innovation At Cobalt, we want to create a culture of innovation. We started off very well in 2013...

Life at Cobalt

Jun 23, 2021

Est Read Time: 2 min

Parameter Tampering Vulnerability Using 3 Different Approaches

With the growing number of online transactions increasing, it is clear that payment security is crucial. I have created...

Pentester Guides

Jun 21, 2021

Est Read Time: 4 min

Pentester Spotlight: Alex Moraga

Alex Moraga has been a part of the Cobalt Core since 2015. Over the course of his seasoned pentesting path, he has...

Pentester Stories

Jun 16, 2021

Est Read Time: 7 min

Announcing SOC 2 Type II Certification: Reinforcing our Commitment to Security

We are delighted to share the news that Cobalt is now SOC 2 Type II certified!

NEWS

Jun 9, 2021

Est Read Time: 2 min

Getting Started with Android Application Security

Security has always been a major concern for businesses, and this concern is even greater when it comes to mobile...

Pentester Guides Mobile Application Pentesting

Jun 7, 2021

Est Read Time: 13 min

Cobalt API: Import Your Findings to Google Sheets

Make sure to check out our Integrations page for more info! Last week we announced the launch of the Cobalt API—a...

Cybersecurity Insights

Jun 6, 2021

Est Read Time: 8 min

What's Included in Pentest as a Service?

Pentest as a Service (PtaaS) brings together the human ingenuity of pentesting with the efficiency of a SaaS product.

Modernizing Pentesting

Jun 4, 2021

Est Read Time: 4 min

Pentester Diaries Ep5: Understanding Severity Ratings

Welcome back to Pentester Diaries, a podcast series that aims to take off the hacker hoodie and have a real...

Pentester Guides

Jun 2, 2021

Est Read Time: 12 min

Cobalt Launches Public API to Further Modernize Pentesting

We are thrilled to announce the launch of the Cobalt API. As of today, customers can easily integrate data on their...

Product Updates API Pentesting

Jun 1, 2021

Est Read Time: 3 min

Mapping Cyberattacks to Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs outlines the theory that human needs exist in a hierarchical structure. The hierarchy...

Cybersecurity Insights

May 28, 2021

Est Read Time: 5 min

How to Write an Effective Pentest Report: Vulnerability Reports

The pentest process is not limited to executing various test cases to identify security vulnerabilities. It is a...

Pentester Guides

May 17, 2021

Est Read Time: 9 min

Pentester Spotlight: Valerio Brussani

Valerio Brussani joined the Cobalt Core, our highly-experienced, geographically-diverse community of pentesters, in...

Pentester Stories

May 17, 2021

Est Read Time: 5 min

What is the Purpose of Pentesting?

The primary purpose of pentesting is to perceive your business through the eyes of an attacker and proactively thwart...

Modernizing Pentesting

May 13, 2021

Est Read Time: 3 min

Cobalt Named to Inc. Magazine’s Annual List of Best Workplaces For 2021

I am thrilled to say that Cobalt has been named to Inc. magazine’s annual list of the Best Workplaces for 2021. The...

NEWS

May 12, 2021

Est Read Time: 1 min

Pentester Diaries Ep4: Beyond Security Hygiene

Welcome back to Pentester Diaries, a podcast series that aims to take off the hacker hoodie and have a real...

Pentester Guides

May 12, 2021

Est Read Time: 15 min

Cobalt Platform Deep Dive: Scoping Pentests Based on Asset Size and Coverage

This blog post is part of an ongoing series in which members of the Cobalt product team provide deep dives into...

Product Updates

May 3, 2021

Est Read Time: 3 min

IaC Pipelines With Terraform And Cloud Build

“Today, most software exists, not to solve a problem, but to interface with other software.” — IO Angell In this blog...

Cybersecurity Insights

May 2, 2021

Est Read Time: 8 min

How to Become HIPAA Compliant

HIPAA compliance remains one of the most well-known compliance frameworks in the digital world and for good reason.

Compliance

Apr 30, 2021

Est Read Time: 7 min

Overview of ISO 27001 Compliance

ISO 27001 certification shows that an organization implemented the necessary security measures to secure its data.

Compliance

Apr 28, 2021

Est Read Time: 5 min

Meet Engineering Halfway: How Pentest as a Service Speeds Up Remediation

Getting your pentests done is half the battle. Arguably the most important step is what comes after — fixing the...

Modernizing Pentesting

Apr 28, 2021

Est Read Time: 3 min

Spotlight on Engineering: Tips From Our Hiring Team on How To Nail Our Interviews

We’ve said it before, we’ll say it again — Cobalt is scaling crazy fast! Over the next year our Engineering team is...

Life at Cobalt

Apr 26, 2021

Est Read Time: 5 min

How to Maintain ISO 27001 Certification

Organizations need to cultivate a culture and Information Security Management Systems (ISMS) to allow compliance with...

Compliance

Apr 23, 2021

Est Read Time: 4 min

Pentester Diaries Ep3: Time Management & Pentest Organization

Welcome back to Pentester Diaries, a podcast series that aims to take off the hacker hoodie and have a real...

Cobalt Core

Apr 21, 2021

Est Read Time: 22 min

How to Identify the Different Types of Malware

Cyberattacks continue to rise, with the level of sophistication of the attacks growing as businesses and organizations...

Cybersecurity Insights

Apr 16, 2021

Est Read Time: 3 min

Guide to Making Your Organization NIST Compliant

With cybercrimes becoming increasingly sophisticated, organizations face a huge risk of data breaches. Most...

Compliance

Apr 14, 2021

Est Read Time: 7 min

Scheduling Pentests in Minutes: How The Cobalt Platform Saves Teams Valuable Time

Here’s a breakdown of the steps security teams have to take to schedule a pentest via traditional vendors. Notice that...

Product Updates

Apr 14, 2021

Est Read Time: 2 min

Pentester Spotlight: Martina Matarí

Martina Matarí joined the Cobalt Core, our highly-experienced, geographically-diverse community of pentesters, in 2020....

Pentester Stories

Apr 8, 2021

Est Read Time: 6 min

Changelog — March 2021

It's been a while since our last Changelog post. We've been hard at work to push some bigger changes to the Cobalt...

Product Updates

Apr 7, 2021

Est Read Time: 1 min

On-Demand, Streamlined, Interactive: SANS Reviews Our Pentest as a Service Platform

Traditional pentesting still raises numerous operational challenges for agile and fast-paced companies. We surveyed 165...

Modernizing Pentesting

Apr 6, 2021

Est Read Time: 2 min

CISOs Assemble: Shaping a Security Strategy

Cybersecurity Insights

Apr 5, 2021

Est Read Time: 4 min

Pentester Diaries Ep2: 2FA Bypass Techniques

Welcome back to Pentester Diaries, a podcast series that aims to take off the hacker hoodie and have a real...

Pentester Stories Cobalt Core

Apr 1, 2021

Est Read Time: 17 min

Understanding the CVSS Base Score: An Essential Guide

A company is only as secure as its software. Any time a business introduces new technology into operations, sensitive...

Cybersecurity Insights

Apr 1, 2021

Est Read Time: 5 min

What is Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC)?

Addressing cyber threats in any organization remains critical. Threats such as ransomware, phishing, and Trojans have...

Compliance

Mar 25, 2021

Est Read Time: 4 min

Cobalt Platform Deep Dive: Pentest Coverage Checklist

This blog post is part of an ongoing series in which members of the Cobalt product team provide deep dives into...

Product Updates DevSecOps

Mar 23, 2021

Est Read Time: 2 min

Cobalt’s Pentest Maturity Model: Which Level Are You?

The modern business world constantly faces digital threats. With companies facing these continuous threats,...

Cybersecurity Insights

Mar 23, 2021

Est Read Time: 3 min

Spotlight on Engineering: A Sneak Peek Into Cobalt's Engineering Teams

Over the past 7 years, Cobalt has evolved from a four-man startup into a provider of a leading Pentest as a Service...

Life at Cobalt

Mar 22, 2021

Est Read Time: 2 min

Anatomy of the Session Management Tests

Note: This article has been created in light of the OWASP standards and descriptions.

Cobalt Core Pentester Guides

Mar 19, 2021

Est Read Time: 6 min

Pentester Diaries Ep1: Understanding Business Logic

We are excited to share the first episode of a new podcast series, Pentester Diaries.

Pentester Guides

Mar 11, 2021

Est Read Time: 22 min

Pentester Spotlight: Andreea Druga

Andreea Druga is a pentester with over six years of experience in the security arena with a master's degree in IT&C...

Pentester Stories

Mar 4, 2021

Est Read Time: 7 min

Got Cookies? Exploring Cookie Based Authentication Vulnerabilities in the Wild

Cookies are a widely used way to enable authentication in many of the applications out there. Over time, there has been...

Pentester Guides

Mar 2, 2021

Est Read Time: 6 min

Pentester's Guide to File Inclusion cover image

A Pentester’s Guide to File Inclusion

Read the Pentester’s Guide to File Inclusion for key insights into this common vulnerability.

Cobalt Core Pentester Guides

Feb 19, 2021

Est Read Time: 4 min

Scope Based Recon Methodology: Exploring Tactics for Smart Recon

Reconnaissance (aka Recon) is an essential process in pentesting, especially Black Box Pentesting, where you don't have...

Pentester Guides

Feb 16, 2021

Est Read Time: 10 min

Business Cost of Cybercrime

Businesses around the world have faced a lot of challenges this past year.

Cybersecurity Insights

Feb 11, 2021

Est Read Time: 8 min

Pentester Spotlight: Jesus Arturo Espinoza Soto

How curiosity led a PHP programmer to web hacking and a collaborative pentest community of technology tinkerers. Jesus...

Pentester Stories

Feb 11, 2021

Est Read Time: 4 min

How to Communicate the Business Impact of Vulnerabilities

You’ve discovered a new vulnerability in your infrastructure. If you’re lucky, it’s something you can handle without...

Cybersecurity Insights

Feb 8, 2021

Est Read Time: 3 min

Pentester’s Guide to WebSocket Pentesting cover image

A Pentester’s Guide to WebSocket Pentesting

What is WebSocket Hijacking? As OWASP states, the HTTP protocol only allows one request/response per TCP connection....

Pentester Guides Web Application Pentesting

Feb 5, 2021

Est Read Time: 4 min

Prevent Whaling Phishing Attacks with Cybersecurity Awareness

Although whale phishing isn’t anything new and existed since the early 90s, the FBI reports an increase in cyberattacks...

Cybersecurity Insights Cybersecurity Services

Jan 29, 2021

Est Read Time: 5 min

Bypassing the protections with MFA Bypass Techniques cover image

Bypassing the Protections — MFA Bypass Techniques for the Win

Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) often known as Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) is an added layer of protection added...

Pentester Guides

Jan 27, 2021

Est Read Time: 6 min

A Pentester’s Guide to Code Injection

Learn about code injection vulnerabilities with the Pentester’s Guide to Code Injection.

Cobalt Core Pentester Guides

Jan 8, 2021

Est Read Time: 3 min

Top Ten Famous Hackers

*This article was refreshed in January 2023. The top hackers in the world come from different backgrounds and...

Cybersecurity Insights

Jan 5, 2021

Est Read Time: 10 min

More resources

Learn pentesting best practices, read answers to our most common questions

and get our technical docs.

resources

customer stories

docs

Join us for a live demo of our pentest for AI and LLMs.

State of Pentesting Report

InfoSec & SOC Services

Services Overview

By Use Case

Solutions Overview

The Responsible AI Imperative

Pentesting in 2025

State of Pentesting Report

InfoSec & SOC Services

Services Overview

By Use Case

Solutions Overview

The Responsible AI Imperative

Pentesting in 2025

Join us for a live demo of our pentest for AI and LLMs.

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