Cybersecurity

Continuous Security Testing — A Solution Helium22 Recommends

Cybersecurity is no longer a once-a-year, tick-box exercise. Attackers probe continuously, new weaknesses appear daily, and the applications and infrastructure most organisations depend on change constantly. After reviewing the options available, Helium22 recommends a proven automated vulnerability scanning and penetration-testing platform that gives organisations credible, ongoing assurance rather than a fleeting snapshot.

Our recommendation is grounded in a simple principle: security testing should be as continuous as the threats it defends against. Traditional annual penetration tests still have their place, but they leave long windows where new vulnerabilities go undetected. The solution we recommend closes those windows by combining the depth of expert-led testing with the speed, consistency and repeatability of automation, so weaknesses are found in days rather than discovered by an attacker first.

At its heart, the platform performs deep, automated vulnerability assessment across the full breadth of a modern estate — public-facing websites and web applications, internal systems, cloud services, and the networks that connect them. Rather than simply matching version numbers against a list, it actively and safely interacts with each target to confirm whether a weakness is genuinely exploitable, which is what separates meaningful findings from background noise.

Web application testing that reflects how software is really built

For web applications, the platform provides thorough dynamic application security testing (DAST). It crawls and exercises an application the way a skilled attacker would, submitting crafted inputs and analysing responses to surface issues such as injection flaws, cross-site scripting, authentication and session weaknesses, and misconfigurations. Because it tests the running application rather than the source code, it finds the problems that actually manifest in production.

Crucially, it is built for the way software is written today. Modern single-page applications — those built on JavaScript frameworks that render content dynamically in the browser — defeat older scanners that only read static HTML. The recommended solution drives a real browser engine to crawl and understand these applications properly, so coverage does not quietly collapse the moment an organisation adopts a contemporary front-end framework.

Application programming interfaces (APIs) are now the backbone of web, mobile and integration platforms, and they are a favourite target precisely because they are so often overlooked. The platform tests APIs as a first-class citizen, understanding REST, GraphQL, SOAP and OpenAPI/Swagger definitions so that the endpoints powering an organisation's services are scrutinised as rigorously as its web pages.

Content management systems deserve particular attention because they are ubiquitous and heavily targeted. The solution includes dedicated checks for popular CMS platforms and their plugin ecosystems, where a single outdated component can expose an otherwise well-run site. Helium22 sees CMS weaknesses regularly, and automated, repeatable coverage here is one of the fastest ways to reduce real-world risk.

Reaching the parts other scanners miss

Many valuable findings hide behind a login, or several steps into a complex workflow. The platform includes a purpose-built scripting capability that lets testers model genuine user journeys — logging in, navigating multi-step processes, and reaching authenticated areas — so that the most sensitive functionality is tested rather than skipped. This authenticated, journey-aware approach is what elevates it from a surface scanner to something closer to an automated penetration tester.

Beyond the application layer, the same platform performs infrastructure and network vulnerability assessment across both external and internal environments. External scanning shows an organisation exactly what an attacker on the internet can see and reach, while internal scanning reveals how far an intruder could move once inside — an essential perspective given how many breaches escalate laterally after an initial foothold.

Intelligence, accuracy and confidence

Detection is only as good as the intelligence behind it. The recommended solution is underpinned by a continuously maintained vulnerability intelligence feed that is refreshed throughout the day and covers well over one hundred thousand known issues. This means newly disclosed vulnerabilities are checked for quickly, rather than waiting weeks for a scanner to catch up.

Just as importantly, it does not rely on signatures alone. Using advanced out-of-band and behavioural techniques, the platform can identify previously unknown and zero-day weaknesses by observing how a target actually behaves when probed. For organisations that cannot afford to be a test case for the next widespread exploit, this proactive capability is a significant advantage.

The platform also automates classes of vulnerability that are notoriously difficult to find at scale, such as insecure direct object references, where users can reach data they should not by manipulating identifiers. It complements this with open-source intelligence gathering, building a fuller picture of an organisation's exposed footprint — the forgotten subdomains, services and assets that so often become the way in.

False positives are the quiet killer of security programmes: they waste engineering time and erode trust in the tooling. The solution we recommend addresses this directly by seeking to prove exploitability where it safely can, presenting evidence alongside each finding. When a report says something is vulnerable, teams can act with confidence rather than spending days re-verifying results by hand.

Built to fit how modern teams work

Security works best when it is part of the development process, not bolted on at the end. The platform integrates with common development and delivery pipelines — including Azure DevOps, Jenkins and TeamCity — so that scanning can run automatically as software is built and released. This shift-left approach catches issues early, when they are cheapest and quickest to fix.

Deployment is flexible enough to suit almost any organisation. It can assess external perimeters, internal networks, and cloud environments, and can be run in a hosted model or self-hosted where data-residency or governance requirements demand it. Helium22 values this adaptability, because the right security tool should conform to a client's constraints rather than forcing the client to compromise.

The commercial model is equally sensible. Licensing that allows unlimited scans and unlimited users removes the perverse incentive to test less in order to control costs. Organisations can scan as often as they need, involve as many people as they should, and make security testing a routine habit rather than a rationed event.

Because the approach is technology-agnostic and framework-independent, it works across a diverse and evolving estate without needing to be re-tooled every time a new platform is adopted. That longevity matters: the solution an organisation chooses today should still be protecting it after several years of change.

Compliance, reporting and why Helium22 recommends it

Good security testing also makes compliance easier. The platform supports recognised frameworks and expectations — including OWASP Top Ten coverage, PCI DSS alignment, and the evidence needed to support ISO 27001, GDPR and Cyber Essentials programmes. Its clear, prioritised reporting, complete with practical remediation guidance, gives technical teams a fix list and gives boards and auditors the assurance they require.

In Helium22's assessment, this combination — genuine depth of detection, modern application and API coverage, continuous intelligence, honest and evidence-backed reporting, and flexible, fair commercial terms — makes it one of the most compelling automated security testing solutions available, suitable for organisations of every size. It is the sort of capability that turns cybersecurity from an anxious unknown into something measured, managed and demonstrably improving.

If you would like to understand how this solution could protect your websites, applications, APIs and infrastructure — and how Helium22 can help you deploy it, interpret its findings and act on them — we would be glad to talk it through with you. Contact us to arrange a conversation.

Contact us