CREST- and CHECK-Accredited Penetration Testing Services
GRC Solutions penetration testing services
As a CREST member and a certified NCSC CHECK provider, we meet the strict technical, ethical and operational requirements required to test systems supporting critical and sensitive services.
Our assessments are designed to align with your business priorities, risk profile and compliance obligations, while delivering clear, actionable insight you can trust.
All testing follows established industry frameworks, including SANS, OSSTMM and OWASP, ensuring consistent, defensible and regulator-ready results.
What's included in a penetration testing service?
Penetration testing services should be shaped by what you need to protect, the risks facing your organisation and any compliance obligations you need to meet.
- Web and mobile application testing examines how your software handles real-world attack techniques.
- Cloud security testing assesses misconfigurations and access weaknesses across AWS, Azure and Microsoft 365.
- Infrastructure testing identifies exploitable vulnerabilities across internal and external networks, servers and endpoints.
- Red team assessments go further, simulating realistic attack scenarios across people, processes and technology to test your detection and response capability.
- For operational technology and connected devices, OT/IoT testing addresses the specific security challenges of industrial control systems and the Internet of Things.
- Our AI red teaming service extends this coverage to language models and AI systems.
If you’re unsure which service is right for you, we can help you identify the appropriate scope during an initial discussion.
Follow the links below for more information or call us to speak to one of our experts.
What should you expect from our penetration testing services?
Our penetration testing engagements give you a clear, realistic view of how your systems could be compromised and what to do next.
 | Kick-off and scope confirmation Initial kick-off call to confirm scope and requirements. |
 | Test and exploit We identify potential entry points, carry out controlled exploitation and assess access to sensitive data and critical systems. |
 | Escalate and assess impact We evaluate the potential for privilege escalation and wider business impact. |
 | Report and recommend Results are collated into a clear report with management-level summary and remediation guidance. |
 | Support and assure We help your teams prioritise fixes, reduce risk and demonstrate assurance. |
Penetration testing vs vulnerability scanning
Vulnerability scanning is an automated process. Scanning tools interrogate systems and report known vulnerabilities based on a database of signatures and version information.
Scans are fast, repeatable and cost-effective for maintaining baseline visibility across large environments. However, they cannot determine whether a vulnerability is actually exploitable in your specific configuration and they miss weaknesses that require human judgement to identify, such as business logic flaws, chained exploits or privilege escalation paths that only become apparent once initial access has been gained.
Penetration testing is manual, controlled and context aware. A consultant actively attempts to exploit identified vulnerabilities, assess the effect of a successful breach and evaluate how far an attacker could move through your environment. This provides a realistic picture of your actual risk exposure, not just a list of known issues.
For most organisations, the two approaches are complementary rather than competing.
Regular vulnerability scanning maintains ongoing visibility, while penetration testing provides deeper assurance at key intervals – such as before product launches, following significant infrastructure changes, or to meet regulatory and certification requirements.
CREST- and CHECK-accredited penetration testing
What is CREST-accredited penetration testing?
CREST (the Council of Registered Ethical Security Testers) is an international accreditation and certification body for organisations and/or individuals within the technical information security market. It ensures that accredited companies use the correct policies, processes and procedures to ensure quality of service and protection of client information. These organisations are assessed annually to ensure they meet the necessary standard.
What is CHECK penetration testing?
CHECK is the name for NCSC (National Cyber Security Centre)-approved penetration testing organisations and the methodology they use when testing. CHECK services can only be offered by approved companies with experienced staff who hold NCSC-approved qualifications and use methods recognised by the NCSC.
CHECK was developed for government departments, public-sector bodies and the organisations forming the UK’s critical national infrastructure, for which it’s often mandatory. For private–sector organisations, CHECK approval is an additional indicator of technical rigour and trustworthiness.
Penetration testing for compliance and assurance
ISO 27001
ISO 27001 requires organisations to assess and treat information security risks and to test the effectiveness of their controls. Penetration testing provides evidence that technical controls are functioning as intended and supports the ongoing review requirements of the standard.
The PCI DSS
The PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard) requires penetration testing of systems within and connected to the cardholder data environment, including both network-layer and application-layer testing. Testing must be conducted by a qualified internal resource or independent party, and must be repeated annually and following significant changes.
SOC 2
SOC 2 audits assess the operating effectiveness of controls over security, availability, processing integrity, confidentiality and privacy. Penetration testing provides evidence that security controls are technically effective and supports the trust services criteria required for a SOC 2 Type II report.
NIS Regulations and DORA
The NIS Regulations (Network and Information Systems Regulations 2018) and DORA (the Digital Operational Resilience Act) both include requirements for organisations to test the resilience of their systems and networks. Penetration testing supports compliance with these obligations and provides defensible evidence of technical due diligence.
What our clients receive after testing
Management summary
A plain-English overview of the engagement, the key findings and the overall risk picture – written for non-technical readers including board members, senior management and auditors.
Severity-rated findings
All identified vulnerabilities are rated by severity – critical, high, medium and low – using a consistent scoring methodology. Each finding includes a description of the vulnerability, the evidence gathered, the potential business impact and clear remediation guidance.
Technical detail and evidence
The technical section of the report provides consultants and development teams with the information needed to understand and address each finding, including steps to reproduce, affected components and, where relevant, proof-of-concept evidence.
Retesting
Once remediation work has been completed, we offer retesting to confirm that identified vulnerabilities have been addressed. A remediation verification report can be issued following retesting, providing additional assurance for audit or compliance purposes.
Supporting organisations with trusted security testing
Request a penetration testing quote
Penetration testing resources
What are the Different Types of Penetration Test?
Broken Access Control: The Subtle Risks Still Trending in Web Application Penetration Tests
How to Address AI Security Risks With ISO 27001
Meet the Hacker: How Simulated Phishing Addresses Your Biggest Security Risk
What AWS and Cloudflare Outages Teach Us About Your Cloud Configuration Risks
Penetration Testing for SaaS Providers
Breaking In to Keep Hackers Out: The Essential Work of Penetration Testers
The Top 5 Ways Hackers Could Access Your Property Management Systems
How Penetration Testing Works (And How Cyber Attacks Really Happen)
What the Trivy and LiteLLM Attacks Mean for You
How Long Does a Penetration Test Take?
Frequently asked questions
Penetration testing costs vary depending on the scope and complexity of your environment. Key factors include the number of systems, applications or Cloud services to be tested, the depth of testing required, any compliance-specific reporting obligations and the overall size of the engagement.
Penetration testing pricing is influenced by the type of testing required, the size of your environment, regulatory obligations and the level of assurance needed. For example, CREST and CHECK-accredited testing for regulated systems may require additional governance and reporting. During scoping, we ensure you receive appropriate coverage without unnecessary cost.
For clearly defined environments, we can provide fixed-price penetration testing following a short scoping session. This allows organisations to control costs while ensuring testing remains aligned to risk and compliance needs.
When selecting a penetration testing service provider, it’s important to look for recognised accreditations, experienced consultants, and clear reporting. GRC Solutions is a CREST member and NCSC CHECK provider, giving clients confidence that testing is delivered to trusted standards.
A typical engagement includes scoping, controlled security testing, evidence-based reporting and practical remediation guidance. Retesting is also available to confirm that identified weaknesses have been addressed.
Most penetration testing engagements are completed within a few days to a few weeks, depending on scope and complexity. Timelines are agreed in advance to minimise disruption to business operations.
Testing is carefully planned and carried out in line with agreed rules of engagement to minimise operational impact. Any high-risk activities are discussed and approved in advance.
Yes. Our CREST and CHECK-accredited penetration testing supports requirements for ISO 27001, SOC 2, PCI DSS and regulatory assurance, providing defensible evidence for audits and due diligence.