Network Penetration Testing for Financial Services in New York City (NY)

 

Financial services firms in New York City and across New York State operate in one of the most targeted environments in the world. Banks, hedge funds, private equity, insurance carriers, broker-dealers, and fintechs hold high-value transactional and personal data that attract both organized crime and sophisticated nation‑state actors. Common attacks—ransomware, phishing, credential theft, web application and API attacks, and insider abuse—all share a single objective: unauthorized access to money, trading systems, or confidential information.

The financial impact of a cyber incident in this sector is substantial. The median reported cost of a data breach in 2021 reached $4.24M, and for regulated financial entities in New York, the real cost is often higher once you factor in NYDFS cybersecurity fines, SEC and FINRA scrutiny, litigation, and reputational damage. In this environment, it is not enough to deploy security tools and hope for the best—controls need to be regularly tested, validated, and improved.

Network penetration testing (net‑pen testing) is a controlled, ethical hacking exercise that simulates how a real attacker would attempt to compromise your environment. For financial services organizations, this means testing the resilience of:

• Trading and brokerage networks
• Core banking and payment systems
• Wealth management and client portal infrastructures
• Cloud and hybrid environments used by fintech platforms
• Remote access and vendor connectivity (e.g., market data providers, custodians, and third‑party processors)

The outcome is a clear, prioritized understanding of how an attacker could move through your environment, what they could access, and what must be fixed to align with NYDFS 23 NYCRR 500, SEC and FINRA expectations, SOC 2, PCI DSS, and other regulatory or client requirements.

 

New York Financial Services Network Penetration Testing Experience

 

OCD Tech provides network penetration testing services to financial services companies in New York City and throughout New York. Our team works with organizations ranging from regional and community banks to hedge funds, asset managers, specialty finance firms, and insurance providers. We combine hands‑on penetration testing experience with a practical understanding of regulatory expectations and board‑level risk concerns.

Our work goes beyond “running tools and dumping a report.” Each engagement is designed to help your leadership:

• Identify and validate exploitable vulnerabilities in internal, external, and cloud networks
• Assess real-world business impact on trading, payments, custody, and client-facing services
• Evaluate the effectiveness of existing security controls such as firewalls, EDR, segmentation, and identity management
• Support audits and regulatory examinations by providing evidence of independent IT security assessment and ongoing testing
• Prioritize remediation based on risk, not just the length of a vulnerability list

The result is a targeted, actionable network penetration test that exposes weaknesses before an attacker does and provides clear, technically sound remediation guidance tailored to the financial services environment.

 

Network Penetration Testing Methodology

 

OCD Tech follows a structured, repeatable methodology aligned with industry best practices. For New York financial institutions, this means we test your environment with the same persistence and creativity you would expect from a motivated adversary—without the business disruption.

Our testing approach typically includes:

• Passive Reconnaissance – Quietly gathering information about your organization, internet footprint, and exposed assets without direct interaction, similar to how a patient attacker profiles a target.
• Active Reconnaissance – Safely scanning and probing systems and services to identify potential entry points, misconfigurations, and exposed services.
• Social Engineering – Where in scope, testing how employees respond to targeted phishing or vishing attempts that mimic realistic financial fraud and access‑seeking scenarios.
• Exploitation – Attempting to leverage identified weaknesses to gain unauthorized access to systems, applications, or data, using the same techniques real attackers rely on.
• Post‑Exploitation – Determining the extent of access an attacker could achieve once inside, including exposure of payment data, trading information, or confidential client records.
• Privilege Escalation – Attempting to move from standard user access to administrative or domain‑level control, mirroring an assumed compromise or insider threat scenario.
• Lateral Movement – Testing how easily an attacker could move between systems or environments (e.g., from a compromised workstation to critical banking or trading systems).
• Maintaining Access – Evaluating how an attacker could persist within the network without detection, including use of misconfigurations and trusted paths.
• Covering Tracks – Assessing log coverage and monitoring capabilities by reviewing what evidence of activity would remain for your security or SOC teams.
• Reporting – Delivering a clear, executive‑ready report with technical detail for your IT and security teams, including risk ratings, business impact, and prioritized remediation steps.

This comprehensive methodology provides a realistic, end‑to‑end view of your network security posture and how it stands up against modern financial sector threats.

 

National Reach

 

While we maintain a strong presence in the New York financial services market, OCD Tech provides network penetration testing services to organizations across the United States, including:

• Boston (MA)
• Chicago (IL)
• New York City (NY)
• Los Angeles (CA)
• Dallas (TX)
• Philadelphia (PA)
• Detroit (MI)
• Memphis (TN)

 

Contact Our New York City Network Penetration Testing Consultants

 

OCD Tech provides network penetration testing, IT security assessments, and broader cybersecurity consulting to financial services firms in New York City and across New York. If you would like to discuss how a targeted penetration test can help validate your controls, satisfy regulatory expectations, and reduce real-world cyber risk, please complete the form below. A member of our team will contact you to discuss scope, timeline, and next steps.