Network Penetration Testing for Biotech Companies in Baltimore (MD)

 

Biotech organizations in Baltimore and across Maryland are a prime target for cybercriminals. Threat actors are not just after credit cards – they want clinical trial data, genomic datasets, proprietary formulas, device IP, and PHI flowing between labs, clinics, CROs, and cloud platforms. Attacks such as malware, phishing, password attacks, SQL injection, and ransomware are routinely used to gain a foothold in these networks and exfiltrate or encrypt sensitive research and patient information.

The cost of a data breach keeps climbing. In 2021 the median reported cost per breach reached $4.24M – and those are only the incidents that make it into the statistics. For a Baltimore biotech, a breach can mean regulatory scrutiny, stalled FDA submissions, loss of competitive advantage, and reputational damage with hospital and research partners.

To stay ahead of these risks, organizations need to regularly review, test, and strengthen their cybersecurity program, not just rely on firewalls and antivirus. This is where a focused network penetration test tailored to biotech operations becomes essential.

 

What Is Network Penetration Testing for Biotech?

 

Network penetration testing (net‑pen testing) is a controlled, ethical hacking exercise in which security professionals simulate real-world cyberattacks against your IT environment. For biotech companies in Baltimore, this typically includes:

• Corporate networks connecting offices, labs, manufacturing, and data centers
• Cloud environments used for bioinformatics pipelines, LIMS, ELN, and data analytics
• Remote access for researchers, CROs, and third-party vendors
• Interfaces with hospitals, universities, and research partners

The objective is straightforward: identify vulnerabilities, attempt to exploit them, and show what an attacker could realistically do – from stealing clinical trial data to manipulating lab systems or disrupting production.

For leadership and boards, a penetration test delivers a clear, non-theoretical view of:

• Actual security gaps in your network and cloud configurations
• How far an attacker could move toward crown-jewel biotech assets
• Whether existing controls, monitoring, and incident response work as expected
• How you align with HIPAA, FDA expectations, NIH guidance, and internal IT security policies

 

Network Penetration Testing Experience in Maryland Biotech

 

OCD Tech provides network penetration testing and cybersecurity consulting to organizations in Baltimore and throughout Maryland, including biotech startups, research organizations, clinical labs, medical device manufacturers, and life sciences companies supporting the I‑95 corridor between Baltimore, Bethesda, and Washington DC.

Our team combines hands-on penetration testing expertise with deep experience in IT risk advisory and security assessments for regulated and research-heavy environments. We understand:

• The impact of downtime on lab operations and manufacturing runs
• Complex data flows between LIMS, ELN, ERP, and cloud analytics platforms
• Shared infrastructure with universities, teaching hospitals, and research networks
• Third-party and insider threat risks from vendors and research collaborators

The result is a practical, risk-based penetration test that not only identifies weaknesses, but also provides actionable remediation guidance aligned with biotech operations and regulatory expectations.

 

Our Network Penetration Testing Methodology

 

OCD Tech follows a structured, repeatable methodology for Baltimore biotech network security assessments. Engagements are carefully scoped to protect production systems while still simulating realistic adversary behavior. Typical phases include:

• Passive Reconnaissance – Quietly mapping your external footprint, exposed services, and public information about your biotech infrastructure, partners, and staff.
• Active Reconnaissance – Safely probing identified systems, applications, VPN portals, and cloud endpoints for misconfigurations and vulnerabilities.
• Social Engineering (when in scope) – Testing susceptibility to phishing and credential theft, particularly for researchers, IT admins, and highly privileged users.
• Exploitation – Attempting to exploit identified weaknesses to obtain initial access, always within agreed boundaries.
• Post-Exploitation – Assessing what can be accessed from a compromised system, such as lab servers, research data stores, file shares, and backups.
• Privilege Escalation – Trying to move from a basic user to administrator or domain-level access to simulate real attacker behavior.
• Lateral Movement – Attempting to navigate between network segments (for example, from office networks toward lab or production environments).
• Maintain Access – Demonstrating how an attacker could persist in your environment without being detected, subject to your risk tolerance.
• Covering Tracks – Showing where existing logging, monitoring, and Blue Team capabilities are or are not detecting malicious activity.
• Reporting & Executive Briefing – Delivering a clear, prioritized report plus an executive-level summary that non-technical leadership can act on, including remediation steps and roadmap recommendations.

This approach supports Red Team, Blue Team, and Purple Team style exercises where desired, allowing your internal security operations and IT teams to test and improve their detection and response capabilities against realistic attacks.

 

National Reach with Local Focus

 

While OCD Tech has a strong presence in the Baltimore biotech community, we also provide network penetration testing services across the U.S., including:

• Boston (MA)
• New York City (NY)
• Washington DC
• Philadelphia (PA)
• Dallas (TX)
• Los Angeles (CA)
• Chicago (IL)
• Baltimore (MD)

For biotech companies collaborating across multiple states or managing distributed research and clinical sites, this allows for a coordinated, consistent security testing program across all locations.

 

Contact Our Baltimore Network Penetration Testing Team

 

OCD Tech provides network penetration testing, ethical hacking, and cybersecurity consulting to biotech and life sciences organizations in Baltimore and throughout Maryland. If you want to understand your true exposure, validate your security controls, or support an upcoming audit or regulatory review, we can help.

To discuss a network penetration test tailored to your biotech environment, complete the form below, and a team member will follow up with you shortly.