Penetration Testing for UK Pharma & Life Sciences
CREST-accredited penetration testing for UK biotech companies, pharmaceutical manufacturers, clinical research organisations (CROs) and analytical or diagnostic laboratories. Evidence for UK GDPR Article 32 and buyer or sponsor due diligence across clinical trial portals, laboratory information systems, patient recruitment platforms and research data stores, with participant, investigator, site and sponsor role separation built into every test. Trial-integrity focused.
- Unlimited retesting
- Unlimited pre-retesting
- No hidden fees
“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.”
“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.”
distinct roles we test for privilege separation across a trial or pharmacy platform: participant, investigator, site coordinator, sponsor or CRO monitor, and pharmacist or prescriber.
What UK GDPR, Sponsors & Auditors Expect
UK GDPR Article 32. Health and genetic data generated by clinical trials, laboratories and pharmacy platforms is special category data under UK GDPR. Article 32(1)(d) requires a process for regularly testing, assessing and evaluating the effectiveness of your security measures. It does not name penetration testing as the method, but a test is the most direct evidence that your controls work. See our GDPR penetration testing page. UK GDPR Article 32.
Validated systems and buyer due diligence. Computerised systems in GxP environments, covering good clinical, laboratory and manufacturing practice, are typically validated before go-live. GxP validation and penetration testing are different disciplines and one does not replace the other, but in our experience sponsors, CROs and procurement teams increasingly ask for independent security testing evidence alongside your validation record as part of buyer and vendor due diligence.
NHS-connected pharmacy and prescribing data. Pharma companies running online pharmacy or e-prescribing platforms that connect to NHS systems, or that otherwise handle NHS patient data, may also need to complete the NHS Data Security and Protection Toolkit (DSPT), which keeps an annual penetration test under its IT protection standard. If you do not handle NHS data, DSPT will not apply. See our DSPT penetration testing page.
Who we test for. Biotech and pharmaceutical companies, clinical research organisations (CROs), contract research and manufacturing organisations, and analytical or diagnostic laboratories, plus pharma companies operating online pharmacy or e-prescribing platforms. For patient and participant-facing services see our patient portal and healthcare pages.
SCOPE
What We Test for UK Pharma & Life Sciences
Clinical Trial & eConsent Portals
Participant and site enrolment, patient recruitment screening, and informed consent (eConsent) capture. Randomisation and blinding integrity so unblinding cannot leak treatment allocation, plus participant privacy controls limiting participant-to-participant and investigator-to-participant access.
Investigator & CRO Collaboration Portals
Sponsor, CRO monitor, principal investigator and site-coordinator access to a shared trial portal or collaboration data room. Site and investigator separation, source-data verification workflows, delegation logs and dataset disclosure boundaries.
Laboratory Information Systems & Trial Data Feeds
Laboratory information management systems (LIMS), instrument interfaces and electronic data capture (EDC) feeds. Sample chain-of-custody, result and audit-trail integrity, and research integrity across the boundary between lab instruments and the systems that store their output.
Online Pharmacy & E-Prescribing
Prescription management, e-prescribing workflows and online pharmacy storefronts. Prescriber, pharmacist and patient role boundaries, approval and signature flows, and order and payment integrity.
Research & Genomic Data Platforms
Trial, genomic and real-world evidence datasets hosted on Databricks, Snowflake or similar research data platforms. Dataset access scoping, de-identification effectiveness, and researcher export paths out of the platform.
Cloud Infrastructure for Trial & Lab Data
AWS, Azure and GCP configuration for trial, laboratory and manufacturing data. Encryption at rest, IAM scoping, audit logging and multi-region residency for multi-country trials.
Lab, Manufacturing & Corporate Networks
Segregation between corporate IT, laboratory and manufacturing or process-control networks. Active Directory attacks and the boundary between managed devices and lab or production equipment.
Phishing Defence
Targeted phishing simulation against R&D, regulatory affairs, procurement and finance staff, using pharma-aware lures such as supplier-payment fraud and fake regulatory correspondence.
OUR PROCESS
From Scope to Attestation in 4-6 Weeks
Scoping Call
30-minute technical scoping call. Define attack surface, methodology, rules of engagement, safe testing windows around trial, lab or manufacturing operations, and timeline. Fixed-price quote within 24 hours.
Active Testing
3-15 days of hands-on testing by CREST-certified UK-based pen testers, against non-production environments with synthetic or de-identified trial and participant data wherever possible. Daily status updates.
Reporting
Executive summary plus full technical report with CVSS scores, reproduction steps, screenshots, and specific remediation. 60-minute walkthrough call.
Free Retest
After remediation, we retest at no extra charge. Letter of attestation provided for sponsor or CRO due diligence, NHS DSPT where applicable, or buyer audit.
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 Pharma & Life Sciences 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 £3,500 for a single-role, single-app scope, agreed up front. Most engagements run £5,000 and up. No day-rate surprises.
Dan WilcocksonFounder, 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 Aligned to Every Framework
Findings map to specific control references in each framework, so your audit team submits the report directly without translation work.
UK GDPR
Article 32(1)(d) evidence that you regularly test the effectiveness of your security measures, for special category health and genetic data.
NHS DSPT
Evidence for Guide 9 (IT protection) of the CAF-aligned toolkit, for pharma suppliers that also handle NHS patient data.
ISO 27001
Annex A 8.8 technical vulnerability management, once you declare that control applicable.
Cyber Essentials Plus
An audit, not a penetration test. Often requested by sponsors and NHS buyers alongside independent testing evidence. Certified directly by us as an IASME certification body.
GxP-Validated Systems
Independent security testing evidence that sponsors, CROs and auditors commonly request alongside your validation record, in our experience.
Cyber Insurance
Findings and remediation documented against the questions on your proposal form. Requirements vary by insurer and policy.
PRICING
Indicative Engagement Pricing
Fixed-price quotes confirmed during scoping. Free retest, executive summary, walkthrough call, and letter of attestation included.
Depends on service + scope
External / web / API / mobile single-target engagement. CREST-certified delivery. Around 3 to 5 working days from kickoff to report.
Get a fixed quoteDepends on service + scope
Multi-target combined engagement (web + API + external + AD), or single complex target. Typically 7-10 days.
Get a fixed quoteDepends on service + scope
Full-stack engagement (multiple cloud accounts, hybrid AD, complex web + API + mobile). Typically 12-15+ days.
Get a fixed quoteWHY EJN LABS
What You Get From Pharma & Life Sciences 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
What does a pharma or life sciences test look at that a standard web app test does not?
Participant and site-level role separation (participant, investigator, site coordinator, sponsor or CRO monitor), consent and randomisation or blinding integrity, chain-of-custody for laboratory samples and results, and safe testing windows around live trial, laboratory or manufacturing operations.
Which pharma and life sciences organisations do you test for?
Biotech companies, pharmaceutical manufacturers, clinical research organisations (CROs), contract research and manufacturing organisations, and analytical or diagnostic laboratories, including those running patient recruitment, online pharmacy or e-prescribing platforms.
Do computerised systems in a GxP environment need to be validated before you test them?
Typically yes, in our experience. Computerised systems in GxP environments are usually validated before go-live, and GxP validation and penetration testing are different disciplines, so one does not replace the other. Sponsors, CROs and auditors increasingly ask for independent security testing evidence alongside your validation record as part of buyer and vendor due diligence, and we test after validation sign-off wherever possible.
How do you handle participant, patient and trial data during testing?
We ask for a non-production environment with synthetic or fully de-identified participant and trial data. Health and genetic data is special category data under UK GDPR, so production testing only goes ahead with explicit sponsor or DPO approval and a restricted scope.
Can you test a live trial without unblinding participants or investigators?
Yes. We test the security controls around randomisation and blinding, such as who can query the randomisation system and how access is logged, without accessing or revealing actual treatment allocations. Live unblinding data stays out of scope unless the sponsor explicitly authorises it.
Can you test our Databricks or Snowflake-hosted trial and genomic datasets?
Yes. We review dataset access scoping, row and column-level permissions, the effectiveness of de-identification, and researcher export paths out of the platform. See our Databricks security review and Snowflake security review pages.
Do you support our DSPT submission if our e-prescribing platform touches NHS data?
If your online pharmacy or e-prescribing platform connects to NHS systems or otherwise processes NHS patient data, our reports can include an appendix mapping each finding to the relevant DSPT and CAF outcomes for your submission. See our DSPT penetration testing page. If you do not handle NHS data, DSPT will not apply to your engagement.
What’s in the report?
Executive summary (board-ready), technical report with CVSS 3.1 scores, reproduction steps, screenshots, specific remediation guidance, and a 60-minute walkthrough call. Letter of attestation issued after free retest.
Do you sign NDAs?
Yes. We sign client-supplied NDAs as standard. Engagement data is protected under our ISO 27001 (BSI-audited) information security management system.
How quickly can you start?
From signed scope to active testing in 24 hours where required. Standard pipeline is 3-5 business days from initial scoping call to test start.
Are your testers UK-based and what certifications do they hold?
Every engagement is performed by vetted UK-based CREST-certified testers matched to your engagement based on security clearance, compliance scope, and sector specialism. Testers hold CREST certifications relevant to their discipline (CRT, CCT APP, CCT INF, CCSAM).
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Web, mobile, API, cloud, AI, infrastructure, red team. Pick the test that fits your environment.
Get my Pharma & Life Sciences pen test scope
A CREST-certified pen tester will contact you within one business day with a fixed price aligned to your trial, laboratory or pharmacy platform.
