ISO 27001 Penetration Testing: What’s Actually Required?

When preparing for ISO 27001, one of the questions your team will eventually run into is: Does ISO 27001 Require Penetration Testing?

ISO 27001 is not prescriptive about penetration testing. It won’t explicitly say, “you must conduct a pentest.”

Instead, the standard asks you to identify risks, assess them, and apply appropriate controls — then show evidence that you’re doing so. For many organizations, especially those building or operating web applications or cloud infrastructure, penetration testing is a straightforward way to demonstrate that they are managing technical vulnerabilities effectively.

This approach often helps meet controls like:

A.12.6.1 Technical Vulnerability Management
A.18.2.3 Technical Compliance Review
And potentially A.15.2 for managing third-party risk

You are not strictly required to perform penetration testing — but if your risk assessment identifies technical vulnerabilities as a material risk (and it usually does), auditors will expect to see how you addressed it. Penetration testing is simply one of the most recognized and effective ways to do that.

Why Organizations Get a Pentest During ISO 27001 Prep

In practice, most companies pursuing ISO 27001 include a penetration test as part of their technical controls. Not because the standard demands it outright, but because:

It shows you take real-world risk seriously
It helps identify vulnerabilities you may not have found through internal reviews alone
It produces evidence auditors will likely ask for
It helps satisfy overlapping requirements if you’re also working toward SOC 2, PCI, or HIPAA

What Should ISO 27001 Pentesting Actually Look Like?

ISO 27001 doesn’t tell you how to test — but that doesn’t mean any test will do. Asteros approaches ISO 27001-related testing like we do all engagements:

Manual, risk-based testing aligned to PTES (Penetration Testing Execution Standard)
Use of OWASP ASVS for web applications
Network, cloud, or application testing depending on your scope
Clear reports designed to help both auditors and engineers
Real-world risk ratings, steps to reproduce, and actionable remediation guidance

Auditors will care that you’ve tested, but your team will care even more about what the test reveals — and whether they can do anything useful with the results.

What to Expect from the Report

For ISO 27001, the key deliverable isn’t just a list of vulnerabilities — it’s a report that shows:

Your environment was tested by an independent third party
Findings were risk-ranked and prioritized
Remediation steps are documented
The testing was comprehensive and appropriate for your environment

This is what auditors want to see when reviewing evidence for vulnerability management and compliance verification.

Bottom Line

While ISO 27001 doesn’t require a penetration test outright, it strongly implies the need to identify and manage technical risks — and pentesting is one of the clearest ways to do that.

Whether you’re doing it for your auditors, your leadership, or your engineering team, a meaningful penetration test helps make sure your ISO 27001 program isn’t just passing the audit — but actually reducing real risk.

If you’re preparing for ISO 27001 and need a pentest, let’s chat. Fill out the form below to get started.