Container and Kubernetes Penetration Testing
We test the cluster the way an attacker who has just landed in one pod would: what that service account can do, what the control plane will answer, and how far a container escape travels. CREST-certified testers, fixed price from £3,680, scoped in 24 hours.
- Unlimited retesting
- No rescheduling or cancellation fees
- Fixed quote within 24 hours
“I would highly recommend EJN Labs to any organisation seeking reliable, detailed, and well-managed penetration testing services, particularly for government or enterprise-level projects.”
Imran SaghirProject Lead, SquareOne“There wasn’t another company we could find that could deliver what we needed in the timeframe we needed. The client loved it, and we got instant ROI from the engagement.”
Dan WilcocksonCo-Founder, CelloriMost container findings begin with a foothold in a single workload, usually through the application running inside it. From there the questions are mechanical: which service account token is mounted, what that token is allowed to do, whether the kubelet answers, and whether the node itself is reachable.
The interesting question is not whether the cluster is hardened. It is what one pod can do.
Escape is the second theme. Privileged containers, host path mounts, host networking and generous capabilities all turn a contained compromise into a node compromise, and a node compromise into a cluster one.
Then the edges. Secrets held as environment variables, images pulled from a registry that does not check who is asking, cloud identity bound to a pod so that the cluster becomes a route into the cloud account, and network policy that was never written so everything can talk to everything.
ISO 27001, SOC 2, PCI DSS and Cyber Essentials Plus audits accept manual penetration test evidence. Scan-only evidence is generally insufficient.
CLUSTER SPECIFICS
What We Actually Test in a Kubernetes Cluster
Ten areas that apply because the workload runs in containers, on top of the standard cloud review. Every finding is verified, reproducible and mapped to CIS Kubernetes benchmarks, CWE and CVSS 3.1.
RBAC and service accounts
What each mounted token can do, over-granted roles and bindings, and the shortest path to cluster administrator.
Control plane exposure
API server authentication, kubelet read and write ports, dashboards, and anything answering without credentials.
Container escape
Privileged containers, host path mounts, host network and process namespaces, and dangerous capabilities.
Pod security
Admission policies, seccomp and AppArmor profiles, read-only root filesystems and non-root execution.
Secrets handling
Secrets in environment variables and images, mounted secrets readable by neighbouring workloads, and external secret stores.
Image supply chain
Registry authentication, unsigned images, mutable tags, base image drift and what the layers contain.
Network policy
East to west traffic between namespaces, default allow behaviour, and service mesh authorisation if you run one.
Ingress and exposed services
Ingress rules, accidental load balancers and node ports, and services reachable from outside the cluster.
Cloud identity binding
Workload identity and role assumption from a pod, metadata service reachability, and the blast radius in the cloud account.
Pipeline and operations
Deployment credentials held in the cluster, kubeconfig sprawl, Helm and operator permissions, and logging that hides the attack.
METHODOLOGY
What a Kubernetes finding looks like
Written the way a finding appears in our reports. The example below is reconstructed from publicly documented research, with hosts, paths and identifiers redacted. We do not republish client findings, named or anonymised.
Service account token in an application pod escalates to cluster administrator
- Affected
- The production cluster namespace hosting [redacted], shared with three other tenants on the same node pool.
- What we found
- The pod mounted a service account bound to a role granting pod creation and secret read across the namespace. From a web shell in that pod we created a pod mounting the host filesystem, read the node credentials and then reached cluster wide secrets.
- Why it matters
- One application vulnerability becomes full control of the cluster, including every other tenant namespace scheduled on the same nodes.
- Fix
- Turn off service account token automounting where it is not used, replace wildcard roles with the verbs actually called, enforce a restricted pod security admission level, and separate tenants across node pools.
Reconstructed from public research: the Kubernetes hardening guidance published by NSA and CISA on role based access control and pod security, and CVE-2018-1002105 for the aggregated API server escalation class.
Kubernetes Penetration Testing: From Scope to Attestation
CREST-aligned methodology built on OWASP Web Security Testing Guide, OWASP ASVS, NIST SP 800-115, and PTES. Each finding maps to all four standards plus your specific compliance regime.
Reconnaissance
Application mapping, technology fingerprinting, content discovery, parameter enumeration, authentication-flow analysis, role-matrix construction.
Vulnerability Assessment
Authenticated and unauthenticated automated scanning across every user role, plus targeted manual checks for known weakness patterns.
Manual Exploitation
Hands-on testing by a CREST-certified pentester. Business-logic exploitation, chained vulnerabilities, privilege escalation, impact validation.
Reporting + Retest
Executive summary, technical report with CVSS scores and reproduction steps, walkthrough call, free retest after remediation, attestation letter.
CREDENTIALS
Verified Accreditations Auditors Accept
Every credential below is independently verifiable. UK procurement teams, FCA supervisors, ISO 27001 / SOC 2 auditors, and cyber insurance underwriters all recognise these standards.
GET YOUR QUOTE
Get a CREST Kubernetes application pen test quote in 24 hours
A fixed-price quote back in one business day, from a named CREST assessor. No sales pipeline, no chasing.
- CREST and IASME accredited. Testing your auditors and clients already recognise.
- Fast-track testing within 24 hours where required. Free retest of every fix included.
- Live findings via your client portal, not a four-week PDF.
- Fixed price from £3,680 for a small, single-scope engagement, agreed up front. Most engagements run £5,240 and up. No day-rate surprises.
Dan WilcocksonCo-Founder, CelloriUnder NDA Further named references available on a scoping call.
- We reply within one business day with a fixed-price quote from a named CREST assessor.
- You approve the scope and we book a start date, usually within 24 hours.
- Live findings land in your client portal as we test, with a free retest of every fix.
Get your fixed pen test quote in 24 hours
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COMPLIANCE READY
Reports Mapped to Every Framework
Findings are explicitly tagged to the relevant control reference. Your audit team submits the report directly without translation work.
ISO 27001:2022
Annex A.8.8 management of technical vulnerabilities plus A.5.15-5.18 and A.8.2-8.5 access control validation.
SOC 2 Type I & II
CC6 logical access, CC7 system operations, CC8 change management evidence.
PCI DSS
Requirement 11.4 application penetration testing across cardholder data environments, including ecommerce penetration testing for online retail platforms.
FCA SYSC
SYSC 4.1.1R, 6.1.1R, 13 mapped to each finding for FCA-regulated firms.
UK GDPR
Article 32 effectiveness testing, customer-data security controls, ICO-acceptable evidence.
Cyber Essentials Plus
Direct certification through our IASME body status, single-vendor delivery.
PRICING
Transparent Kubernetes Penetration Testing Pricing
Pricing depends on the number of builds and roles in scope, how much the estate varies from host to host, and the depth of the configuration review. The day count flexes; the included deliverables stay the same across all engagements.
3 to 4 days
Single user role, basic CRUD application, marketing website with auth. Typically 5-day engagement.
Get a fixed quote4 to 6 days
Multi-role SaaS, business application with payment integration. Typically 8-12 day engagement.
Get a fixed quote6 to 9 days
Multi-tenant platform, complex authorisation matrix, integration-heavy applications. 15-20 day engagement.
Get a fixed quotePart of Technologies We Pen Test. These are examples of the stacks we publish pages for, not a complete list. If yours is not here we still test it. Related pages:
BY SECTOR
Kubernetes Penetration Testing for Your Sector
Sector-specialist scoping for UK businesses with sector-specific compliance regimes and threat models.
Fintech & FCA-Regulated
FCA SYSC, Open Banking FAPI 1.0, PSD2 SCA, payment-flow scrutiny, KYC/AML testing.
Fintech sector pageSaaS Companies
SOC 2 Type I & II evidence, multi-tenant boundaries, role escalation, customer-tenant isolation.
SaaS sector pageLaw Firms
SRA Cyber Standard, privileged data, conveyancing fraud defence, partner-tier procurement.
Law firm sector pageHealthcare
NHS DTAC, DSP Toolkit v6, UK GDPR Article 32, EHR systems, telehealth platforms.
Healthcare sector pageInsurance
FCA / PRA Operational Resilience, cyber underwriting, claims data, broker portals.
Insurance sector pagePublic Sector
CCS / G-Cloud framework, NCSC-aligned, citizen-facing services, PSN-compliance scrutiny.
Public sector pageWHY EJN LABS
What You Get From Kubernetes Penetration Testing
Six concrete differentiators competitors don’t all match.
CREST-Certified Testers, Verifiable
Every test by a CREST-certified pen tester (CRT, CCT APP, CCT INF where applicable). Verify our company status at crest-approved.org.
24-Hour Startup, Where Required
From signed scope to active testing in a single business day for incident response, audit deadlines, or regulator-driven timelines.
Live Findings, Not 4-Week PDFs
Critical issues reported during testing through your client portal. Your team remediates while testing continues.
Audit-Ready Reports
Executive summary plus full technical report with CVSS scores and explicit framework mappings (ISO 27001, SOC 2, PCI DSS, FCA SYSC).
Free Retests, Standard
Verify remediation of every finding before close-out. Letter of attestation for audit submission included. Most competitors charge £1,500-£3,000 per retest.
UK-Based CREST Testers
Every engagement performed by vetted, UK-based CREST-certified testers, matched to your needs, security clearance, and compliance scope.
FAQ
Frequently Asked
Do you need cluster credentials?
We run it both ways. The realistic version starts from a pod with no special rights, which is what an application compromise gives an attacker. A read-only kubeconfig makes the review more complete.
Is Docker without Kubernetes in scope?
Yes. Standalone Docker and Compose estates get the escape, image and secrets checks, without the cluster-specific ones.
Managed clusters: EKS, AKS or GKE?
All three. The cloud identity binding checks matter most on managed clusters, because that is where a pod becomes a cloud principal.
Will testing disrupt the cluster?
We agree what is destructive before we start. Escape attempts and node-level testing usually run in a non-production cluster that mirrors production.
Do you review our manifests?
Yes, where you share them. Manifest review plus live testing catches more than either alone.
How does this relate to the cloud review?
The cloud review covers the account and its identity model. This covers the cluster. Most clients scope them together.
What is included in the price?
Scoping, testing, the executive summary, the technical report, a walkthrough call and free retests until the finding is closed. One scope, one number, no follow-up invoices.
How fast can you start?
Scope to active testing in 24 hours once the scope is agreed, subject to tester availability in your window.
Are your testers CREST certified?
Yes. EJN Labs is a CREST member company and testing is delivered by CREST-qualified testers. The membership is verifiable on the CREST marketplace.
20+ CREST-accredited testing services in one place
Web, mobile, API, cloud, AI, infrastructure, red team. Pick the test that fits your environment.
Get your cluster tested properly
Tell us where it runs and how many namespaces are in scope. You will have a fixed scope and a number within 24 hours.
