Securing APIs is a critical cybersecurity challenge in 2025 as they are the backbone of modern applications and a prime target for attackers.
API penetration testing is no longer an optional check; it’s a necessity for finding business logic flaws, authorization bypasses, and other complex vulnerabilities that automated tools can’t detect.
The best companies in this space blend elite human expertise with advanced, intelligent platforms to provide thorough and continuous security validation.
Why API Penetration Testing Is Crucial In 2025
APIs are often the weakest link in an organization’s security posture. They are complex, constantly evolving, and frequently expose sensitive data.
Unlike web applications with a graphical user interface, APIs are a direct line to backend logic and data, making them a high-value target.
In 2025, the rise of serverless architectures, microservices, and AI-driven applications has only increased the attack surface, making it essential to have a specialized team that can identify and exploit API-specific vulnerabilities like those in the OWASP API Security Top 10.
How We Choose The API Penetration Testing Companies
Our selection of the top API penetration testing companies is based on a blend of expertise, technology, and service delivery:
- Experience & Expertise (E-E): We prioritize companies with a deep understanding of API-specific attack vectors and methodologies.
- Authoritativeness & Trustworthiness (A-T): We considered market leadership and a proven track record of finding critical vulnerabilities in real-world environments.
- Feature-Richness: We looked for companies that offer a blend of:
- Human-Led Testing: The core of a true penetration test.
- Automated Scanning: To quickly find common vulnerabilities.
- Continuous Testing: A model for ongoing security, not just a one-off test.
- Actionable Reporting: Clear, prioritized reports with remediation advice.
Best API Penetration Testing Companies Comparison (2025)
1. Salt Security
Salt Security offers an AI-driven API security platform that provides continuous discovery and protection.
While it isn’t a traditional pen-testing company, its platform continuously monitors API traffic to automatically detect and alert on vulnerabilities and malicious behavior, including those related to business logic.
This makes it a great complement to a manual pen-test.
Best For:
Companies that want continuous, real-time API security monitoring and protection.
Why You Want to Buy It:
Salt’s platform provides unparalleled visibility into your API ecosystem and helps you find vulnerabilities automatically before they can be exploited.
It is the perfect solution for teams that need to continuously manage their API attack surface.
| Feature | Yes/No | Specification |
| Human-Led Testing | ❌ No | AI-driven platform. |
| Automated Scanning | ✅ Yes | Continuous API traffic analysis. |
| Continuous Testing | ✅ Yes | Provides continuous protection. |
| Actionable Reporting | ✅ Yes | Alerts on discovered vulnerabilities. |
Try Salt Security here → Salt Security Official Website2. RedBot Security
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RedBot Security is a specialist in penetration testing with a focus on a hands-on, deep-dive methodology.
Their senior-level security engineers perform manual API testing that goes beyond automated scanning to uncover complex vulnerabilities and business logic flaws.
They offer a customized approach tailored to a company’s unique infrastructure and risks.
Best For:
Organizations that require a deep, hands-on, and highly customized API penetration test from a boutique firm with elite expertise.
Why You Want to Buy It:
RedBot’s focus on manual, expert-led testing ensures that they find vulnerabilities that automated tools and less-experienced testers would miss.
Their reports are highly detailed and provide actionable, strategic recommendations.
| Feature | Yes/No | Specification |
| Human-Led Testing | ✅ Yes | Manual testing by senior-level engineers. |
| Automated Scanning | ✅ Yes | Used to supplement manual testing. |
| Continuous Testing | ✅ Yes | Offers a continuous PTaaS model. |
| Actionable Reporting | ✅ Yes | Customized reports with detailed remediation guidance. |
Try RedBot Security here → RedBot Security Official Website3. Rhino Security Labs
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Rhino Security Labs is a well-respected offensive security company known for its expertise in cloud and red team operations.
Their API penetration testing services are a core part of their offerings, leveraging their extensive knowledge of real-world attack techniques.
They focus on finding exploitable vulnerabilities by mimicking the actions of a sophisticated threat actor.
Best For:
Companies with complex cloud environments that need an API penetration test from a team with a strong red team and cloud security background.
Why You Want to Buy It:
Rhino’s red team mindset allows them to go beyond standard checklists and uncover multi-stage attack paths that chain together API vulnerabilities with other infrastructure weaknesses.
| Feature | Yes/No | Specification |
| Human-Led Testing | ✅ Yes | Performed by experienced red team members. |
| Automated Scanning | ✅ Yes | Integrated into their methodology. |
| Continuous Testing | ❌ No | Primarily a project-based engagement. |
| Actionable Reporting | ✅ Yes | Provides clear, prioritized findings. |
Try Rhino Security Labs here → Rhino Security Labs Official Website4. NetSPI
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NetSPI is a leading provider of enterprise penetration testing services.
Their API penetration testing is a key service, leveraging their proprietary Resolve™ platform and a team of over 300 in-house testers.
They provide a transparent, programmatic approach to testing, with real-time updates and clear reporting on a unified platform.
Best For:
Large, complex organizations that need a highly repeatable, enterprise-grade API penetration testing program with clear visibility and reporting.
Why You Want to Buy It:
NetSPI’s combination of a robust platform and a large, skilled team ensures consistent quality and scalability.
The Resolve™ platform makes it easy to track vulnerabilities and manage the entire engagement, from scoping to remediation.
| Feature | Yes/No | Specification |
| Human-Led Testing | ✅ Yes | Performed by over 300 in-house testers. |
| Automated Scanning | ✅ Yes | Integrated into their testing methodology. |
| Continuous Testing | ✅ Yes | Offered via their CTEM program. |
| Actionable Reporting | ✅ Yes | Real-time reporting on the Resolve™ platform. |
Try NetSPI here → NetSPI Official Website5. BreachLock
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BreachLock offers a Continuous Penetration Testing model that includes API testing.
Their approach combines an AI-powered platform with a global team of certified ethical hackers.
The platform automates asset discovery and initial scanning, while the human testers focus on validating and exploiting complex vulnerabilities, providing a highly efficient and scalable solution.
Best For:
Companies that need an agile and scalable API pen-testing solution that provides continuous security validation and integrates with existing DevSecOps workflows.
Why You Want to Buy It:
BreachLock’s hybrid model provides the speed of automation with the depth of human expertise.
Their continuous testing and transparent platform make it easy to manage your security posture in a fast-paced development environment.
| Feature | Yes/No | Specification |
| Human-Led Testing | ✅ Yes | Provided by a global team of ethical hackers. |
| Automated Scanning | ✅ Yes | AI-powered platform for discovery and scanning. |
| Continuous Testing | ✅ Yes | Offers a continuous PTaaS model. |
| Actionable Reporting | ✅ Yes | Real-time reporting via their unified platform. |
Try BreachLock here → BreachLock Official Website6. Cobalt
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Cobalt is the pioneer of Penetration Testing as a Service (PTaaS).
Their platform connects you with a global community of highly vetted ethical hackers for on-demand API penetration tests.
The platform streamlines the entire process, from scoping and scheduling to real-time collaboration with testers and getting instant access to findings.
Best For:
DevSecOps teams that need to integrate on-demand API pen-testing into their development lifecycle with seamless, real-time collaboration.
Why You Want to Buy It:
Cobalt’s PTaaS model solves the traditional pain points of pen-testing with its speed and transparency. It allows for quick, repeatable tests that can be scheduled to align with your release cycles.
| Feature | Yes/No | Specification |
| Human-Led Testing | ✅ Yes | Access to a vetted community of testers. |
| Automated Scanning | ✅ Yes | Automation for asset discovery and workflow. |
| Continuous Testing | ✅ Yes | PTaaS model supports continuous engagements. |
| Actionable Reporting | ✅ Yes | Real-time findings and collaborative reports. |
Try Cobalt here → Cobalt Official Website7. Synack
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Synack offers a crowdsourced security platform that provides on-demand API penetration testing.
Their Synack Red Team (SRT), a global network of elite security researchers, works on a pay-for-results basis.
The platform uses AI to handle initial scanning and reconnaissance, allowing the human testers to focus on finding complex, high-impact vulnerabilities.
Best For:
Companies that need a scalable, on-demand pen-testing solution with access to a global pool of elite security researchers.
Why You Want to Buy It:
Synack’s crowdsourced model provides a level of diversity and expertise that a traditional single team can’t match.
Their platform manages the entire engagement, from asset discovery to reporting, making it a highly efficient solution for continuous security validation.
| Feature | Yes/No | Specification |
| Human-Led Testing | ✅ Yes | Access to the Synack Red Team (SRT). |
| Automated Scanning | ✅ Yes | AI-driven platform for vulnerability discovery. |
| Continuous Testing | ✅ Yes | Platform supports continuous security testing. |
| Actionable Reporting | ✅ Yes | Clear, prioritized findings and re-testing. |
Try Synack here → Synack Official Website8. Pentera
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Pentera is an automated security validation platform that simulates real-world attacks.
While it primarily focuses on automated penetration testing, its platform is designed to mimic the actions of a human attacker, including exploiting vulnerabilities in APIs.
This allows for continuous, automated security validation and can quickly identify exploitable weaknesses in your APIs.
Best For:
Organizations that want to continuously and automatically validate the security of their APIs and other IT assets without relying on a manual, project-based approach.
Why You Want to Buy It:
Pentera automates the entire pen-testing process, providing a scalable and repeatable way to ensure your security controls are working effectively. It helps eliminate security gaps in between manual tests.
| Feature | Yes/No | Specification |
| Human-Led Testing | ❌ No | Fully automated platform. |
| Automated Scanning | ✅ Yes | Automated security validation. |
| Continuous Testing | ✅ Yes | Platform is designed for continuous validation. |
| Actionable Reporting | ✅ Yes | Provides clear, prioritized findings. |
Try Pentera here → Pentera Official Website9. Secureworks
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Secureworks’ penetration testing services are backed by its elite Counter Threat Unit (CTU) Research Team.
Their testers leverage proprietary threat intelligence to simulate real-world attacks on APIs.
They go beyond simple vulnerability scanning to demonstrate how an attacker would chain together multiple flaws to compromise an API.
Best For:
Large, global enterprises that need a highly experienced, intelligence-driven API penetration testing team.
Why You Want to Buy It:
Secureworks’ a-la-carte service gives you access to a team with unmatched threat intelligence.
Their reports are customized for both technical and leadership audiences, making it easy to understand and act on the findings.
| Feature | Yes/No | Specification |
| Human-Led Testing | ✅ Yes | Performed by the elite CTU team. |
| Automated Scanning | ✅ Yes | Leverages proprietary scanning technology. |
| Continuous Testing | ✅ Yes | Ongoing engagement model for continuous validation. |
| Actionable Reporting | ✅ Yes | Provides strategic and technical recommendations. |
Try Secureworks here → Secureworks Official Website10. Rapid7
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Rapid7’s penetration testing services are a core part of its security portfolio.
Their testers have deep expertise and a unique connection to the Metasploit Project, which helps them find and exploit the latest API vulnerabilities.
Rapid7’s goal is to provide a strategic assessment that helps you mature your security program over time, not just a one-off report.
Best For:
Companies that want to integrate API penetration testing with a broader vulnerability management and security program.
Why You Want to Buy It:
Rapid7’s pen-testing is backed by their extensive threat intelligence and a team that actively contributes to the hacker community.
This ensures they find the latest, most dangerous vulnerabilities, and their reports are comprehensive and geared toward strategic improvement.
| Feature | Yes/No | Specification |
| Human-Led Testing | ✅ Yes | Testers have unparalleled access to attacker intelligence. |
| Automated Scanning | ✅ Yes | Leverages InsightAppSec for DAST and IAST. |
| Continuous Testing | ✅ Yes | Continuous red team service is available. |
| Actionable Reporting | ✅ Yes | Comprehensive reports with strategic recommendations. |
Try Rapid7 here → Rapid7 Official WebsiteConclusion
In 2025, API penetration testing is a non-negotiable part of a robust security program.
The API Penetration Testing Companies on this list offer a range of solutions to fit different needs, from one-off, expert-led engagements to continuous, automated platforms.
For teams that want an agile, on-demand solution, Cobalt and Synack are excellent choices with their PTaaS and crowdsourced models.
For large enterprises requiring a methodical, enterprise-grade program, NetSPI and Secureworks provide unmatched expertise.
For those seeking continuous security validation, Salt Security and Pentera offer powerful automated platforms that can complement human testing.
Ultimately, the best choice depends on your organization’s specific needs, but all these companies will provide the expertise needed to secure your most critical assets.