Penetration Tester (Remote – South Africa)

About the role

As a Penetration Tester you will play a key role in delivering high‑quality security assessments for Cognisys’ clients. You will test networks, web applications, APIs, mobile applications and cloud infrastructure using both automated tools and manual techniques.

Key responsibilities

• Conduct penetration testing across network, web, API, mobile and cloud environments.
• Simulate real‑world attack scenarios to evaluate client resilience.
• Use automated tools, manual testing and exploitation techniques to identify and validate vulnerabilities.
• Assess technical security controls and map potential attack paths.
• Analyse vulnerabilities, determine business impact and produce detailed technical reports with remediation recommendations.
• Communicate findings clearly to technical and non‑technical stakeholders and present recommendations directly to clients.
• Collaborate with colleagues to ensure successful delivery of engagements.
• Stay up‑to‑date with emerging threats, tools and offensive security techniques.
• Contribute to the evolution of Cognisys’ penetration testing methodologies.

Required profile

• Passionate, technically capable penetration tester who enjoys understanding systems and creatively bypassing security controls.
• Strong client‑facing communication skills, able to explain complex vulnerabilities and guide remediation.

Required skills

• Penetration testing across networks, web applications, APIs, mobile apps and cloud environments.
• Offensive security methodologies, tools and exploitation techniques.
• Vulnerability scanning combined with manual testing.
• Cloud security assessment (AWS, Azure, GCP).
• Report writing with clear, practical remediation guidance.

What we offer

• 25 days annual leave plus 12 South African public holidays and a paid birthday leave day.
• Individual healthcare insurance and access to a mental‑health and wellbeing platform.
• £2,000 annual training budget for professional development.
• Referral bonus of up to £2,000 per successful hire.