Role-matrix coverage
Test every documented role against every protected resource.
Test what a real user with real credentials can do inside your application.
Authenticated penetration testing across every role and tenant boundary — most real breaches start with a low-privilege account, not an unauthenticated exploit.
What's at stake
Most breaches use credentials, not perimeter exploits.
Phished accounts, stolen low-tier credentials, or a disgruntled employee — what matters is what those credentials can reach once inside.
Privilege escalation from viewer to admin, or one tenant reading another's exports, are the findings that matter most — and the ones a perimeter scan will not find.
What we cover
Inside the trust boundary, role by role.
Tenant isolation
Cross-tenant IDORs, exported reports, shared links, webhooks, integrations.
Privilege escalation
Vertical (user → admin) and horizontal (user A → user B) paths.
Function-level access
Hidden admin endpoints, debug routes, role-aware features called by lower roles.
Abuse cases
Anti-automation, financial-logic abuse, referral and free-trial misuse.
SSO and federated identity
Assertion handling, replay, role-claim manipulation, downgrade bypasses.
How we test
Role matrix in, abuse paths out.
- 01
Role matrix review
You provide test accounts for each role and tenant. We confirm coverage on the call.
- 02
Per-role testing
Each role tested against every protected resource. Cross-tenant where applicable.
- 03
Abuse-case modeling
Privilege escalation, hidden admin endpoints, role-aware features called by lower roles.
- 04
Walkthrough + retest
Live finding walkthrough with the engineering team. Retest of reported findings after fixes, included in scope.
Not sure how many roles to include in scope?
A quick scoping call lets us draft a role matrix together and give you a fixed price.
Get a straight answer Typical scenarios
Three patterns we see most often.
Multi-tenant SaaS
Validate that one tenant cannot reach another tenant's resources, exports, or webhooks.
Role-rich product
Owner, admin, member, viewer, billing, support — every role tested against every feature.
Just-shipped feature
A new feature added new permissions and the role matrix has not been re-validated yet.
Adjacent engagements
Most teams pair authenticated testing with one of these.
Web application testing →
Cover the unauthenticated and surface layer of the app too.
API testing →
Test the API role boundaries the SPA depends on.
Compliance pentest →
Map findings to SOC 2, ISO, PCI, HIPAA in one report.
Red team operations →
If you want to test detection of role abuse end-to-end.
Further reading
Background from our team.
FAQ
Authenticated testing — common questions
What is authenticated penetration testing?
A pentest performed with valid credentials across every role you ship. The goal is finding privilege escalation, tenant-isolation gaps, and abuse of role-specific features inside the trust boundary.
Why does authenticated testing matter more than unauthenticated?
Most real breaches use compromised or low-privilege credentials. Authenticated testing surfaces the issues a stolen or phished account could exploit — typically higher-impact than perimeter findings.
How do you handle role provisioning?
You supply a role matrix (or we draft one on the scoping call) and a test account per role and tenant. We test each account against every protected resource.
Do you cover SSO and federated logins?
Yes — assertion handling, replay, role-claim manipulation, session-binding issues, and downgrade or local-login bypasses.
Is this its own engagement or part of web app testing?
Either. Most web app pentests include authenticated testing for documented roles. A standalone engagement goes deeper into role-matrix coverage, abuse cases, and multi-tenant scenarios.
Want a credible answer when a customer, auditor, or your board asks how secure you are?
A quick scoping call with the senior tester who would run your engagement. No slides, no pitch — we look at what you have, tell you what we would test first, and give you a fixed scope, price, and date.