TL;DR
Not every penetration testing company knows the cloud inside and out, and that knowledge gap can leave real security holes even after a full engagement. Look for real world experience with AWS, Azure or Google Cloud, good certifications, a clear testing methodology and reports that include actual remediation steps, not just a list of problems. They know your industry, they know your compliance needs, they include retesting, they can back their work with real references. Don’t do business with people promising rock-bottom pricing or assuring you there will be no vulnerabilities.
Most organizations’ attack surfaces have widened with cloud adoption. Within minutes, all sensitive information can be exposed because of one misconfiguration. Many penetration testing firms, however, are still using methods that are developed for traditional on-premise networks. To close the divide, you must choose a cloud provider who has a proven track record of cloud expertise. This guide tells you exactly what to look for.
A cloud penetration testing firm will attempt to hack into your cloud system using real-world attacks, before malicious hackers attempt to do so, with your permission. Typically, this involves discovering weak identity and access management settings, unsecured storage, misconfigured cloud services, and misaligned security solutions between your organization’s internal security and the security solutions you are provided by the cloud platform.
This work is very different from traditional network penetration testing, which generally focuses on physical servers, firewalls, and internal office infrastructure. The model on which the cloud operates is quite different. Identity and access management, shared infrastructure, and automated services are big parts of what they do, so they need a different testing approach and skill set.
A competent provider should have practical experience with the leading cloud platforms, including Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud Platform (GCP) as a lot of organizations use more than one.
Choosing the wrong provider isn’t just a waste of budget. It can have meaningful security gaps in place and at the same time, it can create a false sense of assurance within the organization.
A well-qualified partner benefits your organization by:
| Aspect | Traditional Penetration Testing | Cloud Penetration Testing |
| Focus | Physical servers, firewalls, internal networks | Cloud configurations, identity access, APIs, storage |
| Environment | Fixed, on-premise infrastructure | Dynamic, scalable, and constantly changing |
| Key Risk Area | Network perimeter and internal systems | Misconfigurations and access permissions |
| Responsibility Model | Fully owned and controlled by the organization | Shared between the organization and cloud provider |
| Tools & Skills Needed | Standard network security tools | Cloud-native tools and platform-specific expertise |
| Testing Frequency | Often annual or after major changes | Recommended more frequently, given rapid changes |
Inquire with the provider directly about the amount of hands-on experience they have with AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud. Each platform may offer different services, settings, and default configuration, so may have strengths on one platform and weaknesses on another. Cloud providers operate based on the Shared Responsibility Model: the provider is responsible for the underlying infrastructure; your organization is responsible for the configuration and utilization of the services.
One of the simplest ways to assure a minimum level of skill is through certifications. Seek out certifications like CREST, OSCP, OSCE, CISSP, CEH, and cloud-based certifications, like AWS Security Specialty. While these do not necessarily indicate good work, they demonstrate that the provider has been assessed against a known standard and maintains an up-to-date approach to a changing subject area. Certifications are just one of several considerations and should not be the determining factor when selecting a provider.
Inquire about their methodology and the frameworks they follow like OWASP Testing Guide, NIST guidelines, PTES, or MITRE ATT&CK. These exist for the sake of consistency in testing and thoroughness. Also, it would be helpful to know the percentage of manual versus automated work. While automated tools are helpful for general coverage, an experienced tester is likely to uncover real problems that automated tools will fail to detect.
A provider who has actually worked in your field, such as healthcare, finance, SaaS, manufacturing, or even government, brings one thing automated tools can’t: context. They know what kinds of risks are likely to appear in your particular environment, as well as how the rules affect you and what the limitations are. Often this familiarity comes through in the quality of the findings because the team already knows what to look for and why it is important.
A good report isn’t just a list of problems. It should contain an executive summary geared to leaders, unambiguous risk ratings, and the detail that your engineering team can react to. For each vulnerability, there should be evidence of their possible use, rather than just an assertion. Equally significant, the report ought to offer your team the fix step-by-step so remediation is not a guessing game.
Be sure that the testing conforms to a standard such as ISO 27001, SOC 2, HIPAA, PCI DSS, or GDPR, not that it is “supposed to be” compliant. If the assessment matches what the auditors would be looking for, it can be very helpful to ease the burden during formal assessment and minimize back-and-forth communication afterwards.
It’s a provider’s track record that tells you a lot. Search for genuine client feedback, case studies, industry acknowledgements, and indications of ongoing client associations. A provider with a strong confidence in their work is likely to be able to provide references or track record. If you don’t see any signs of commitment on this side or if they give you any vague answers when you ask them to provide evidence, take note.
Redscan is best known as a managed detection and response provider, with penetration testing offered as an add-on, rather than as a core specialty. They have cloud testing capabilities, but the company’s focus and resources are more suited to continuous monitoring and threat detection. This can mean less specialized depth for organizations that specifically prioritize deep, cloud-native penetration testing, compared to firms built around offensive security alone.
TrustedSec are well known in the offensive security consulting space, providing a full range of services from red teaming, incident response through to security program development. They have well-known consultants in the industry and technically the firm is seen as rigorous. That being said, cloud-specific testing is only a part of a much bigger portfolio, so clients looking for just cloud expertise may find it not the primary focus of the engagement.
Praetorian is primarily working with large enterprises and is known for advanced adversarial simulation and offensive security research. The company has a good technical reputation and has made significant contributions to the security research community . However, their engagement model and pricing tends to be geared towards larger organizations, making them less accessible for small and mid-size businesses.
Compliance-driven security assessments are a popular choice for Coalfire, especially for companies in regulated industries such as finance and health care. They are great at testing against audit and certification requirements and are a go-to for compliance-first engagements. The extent of manual, cloud specific testing will vary from engagement to engagement based on scope and the assigned assessor.
Through public research, Rhino Security Labs has built a strong technical reputation around AWS and cloud-specific research and has contributed to the security community. The testers are known for finding truly novel cloud misconfigurations and attack paths. However, some clients have noted that reporting depth and post-engagement remediation support may be inconsistent across projects.
Astra Security has positioned itself as a budget-friendly option for startups and mid-sized companies with a mix of automated scanning and manual testing at a lower price point. That makes it attractive to teams with smaller budgets or security programs that are earlier in their maturity. The downside is that engagements may rely more on automated tooling than fully manual, enterprise-grade testing approaches.
Cobalt.io is a pentest-as-a-service platform that utilizes a distributed network of freelance testers, assigned per engagement. This method gives companies that conduct frequent, smaller-scope tests faster turnarounds and scheduling flexibility. The tradeoff is that continuity can suffer, as each time a different tester may be assigned, making it more difficult to achieve deep, ongoing familiarity with a client’s environment.
Beyond Key doesn’t have a generic, one-size-fits-all process for cloud security but a deliberate hands-on approach with platform expertise in AWS, Azure and Google Cloud. The team holds industry certifications such as OSCP, CEH, and CISSP, as well as cloud-specific credentials like AWS Security Specialty, giving clients a verified skill baseline behind every engagement. Testing is done using established frameworks such as OWASP, NIST, and MITRE ATT&CK, and is more reliant on manual testing than an automated scan to do the work. The firm has also acquired real-world cross-industry experience in healthcare, finance and SaaS, as well as practical experience with compliance standards like SOC 2, ISO 27001, HIPAA and PCI DSS.
Main features:
Bishop Fox is consistently ranked among the world’s top offensive security firms, attracting the best security talent and performing deep, manual, and rigorous engagements. Their research team has a solid public record of vulnerability discoveries and industry recognition. That kind of depth typically comes at a premium price and requires longer timelines to engage, which could be a consideration for smaller organizations or teams that require a quicker turnaround.
Before signing a contract, confirm that the provider offers:
Don’t base your decision on price when choosing a cloud penetration testing company. That is, balancing expertise, methodology, and a real concern for long-term security outcomes. Use the checklist and questions in this guide to objectively evaluate providers and weed out vendors who can’t clearly and confidently answer them.
Security protecting cloud resources isn’t a project; it’s a duty. The perfect testing partner is the extension of your team, that brings added value beyond the engagement.
