{"id":77636,"date":"2022-10-04T09:48:14","date_gmt":"2022-10-04T09:48:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.eccouncil.org\/cybersecurity-exchange\/?p=77636"},"modified":"2025-10-22T11:51:58","modified_gmt":"2025-10-22T11:51:58","slug":"pivoting-penetration-testing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/test1.eccouncil.org\/cybersecurity-exchange\/penetration-testing\/pivoting-penetration-testing\/","title":{"rendered":"Pivoting to Access Networks in Penetration Testing\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Penetration testing<\/a> is the process of simulating a cyberattack against a computer system or network to identify and fix vulnerabilities. Pivoting in penetration testing is a technique in which the ethical hackers\u2014also known as white-hat hackers\u2014simulating the attack can move from one system to another.<\/p>

Below, we\u2019ll go over everything you need to know about pivoting in penetration testing, including how it works, the different types of pivoting in penetration testing, and how to become a penetration tester.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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What Is Pivoting in Penetration Testing? <\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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During a cyberattack, the attackers rarely gain entrance to the entire network at once. Instead, attackers often focus on gaining access to a network via a single weak point. This is typically done through techniques such as phishing, malware, or scanning for security holes. Once inside the network, the attackers attempt to conceal themselves while moving to other systems connected to this point of entry.<\/p>

In penetration testing, pivoting is the act of using a compromised system to spread between different computer systems once inside the network, simulating the behavior of a real attacker. This compromised machine is sometimes referred to as the \u201cinstance,\u201d \u201cplant,\u201d or \u201cfoothold.\u201d<\/p>

After obtaining a foothold, penetration testers scan the network for other subnets and machines, looking for the most valuable (and vulnerable) points of attack. For example, an administrator machine may grant the attacker additional privileges and unlock new possible operations. Gaining access to these connected systems is easier from the inside because penetration testers can use the compromised machine\u2019s credentials and try to disguise their behavior as legitimate network traffic.\u202f<\/p>

Pivoting is closely related to the concept of lateral movement in cybersecurity, and the terms are often used interchangeably. However, \u201cpivoting\u201d is most accurately used to refer to the act of moving from host to host, while \u201clateral movement\u201d also includes the act of privilege escalation (gaining access to other users and accounts) on the same machine.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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What Are the Different Types of Pivoting in Penetration Testing? <\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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There are multiple ways for penetration testers to perform pivoting. Below are a few of the most common types of pivoting in penetration testing:<\/p>

Port forwarding:<\/strong> The attacker creates a tunnel between two machines via open TCP\/IP ports, forwarding packages and traffic from one to another. There are multiple forms of port forwarding:<\/p>