Scope and rules of engagement
Rules of engagementLive assessment happens only under two documents signed before any test traffic is sent: a scope agreement and a rules-of-engagement document. Together they answer the questions that decide whether a test is legitimate.
01
A named target list
The in-scope hosts, endpoints and assets, and an explicit out-of-scope list alongside them. If something is not named as in scope, it is out of scope.
02
Testing windows
The hours in which traffic may be sent, agreed with the people who run the estate, so a test does not land in the middle of an unrelated incident.
03
Rate limits and forbidden techniques
The request rate we will stay under and the techniques we will not use — denial of service, destructive actions, and social engineering unless it is separately agreed in writing.
04
An emergency contact and a stop condition
A named person who can stop the assessment, and the condition under which we stop on our own: a service becoming unstable, or any sign that a test is affecting production users.
05
Credentials for authenticated testing
Test accounts the client provides, used only for the engagement and revoked at its close. We do not use, and do not ask for, a real user account.
06
No third party without their consent
We do not test a third party, a shared provider or an inherited asset on the strength of the client relationship alone. Written authorisation from that party is a precondition, not a formality.