September 21, 2025
ANSSI/PASSI alignment, DORA & RGPD readiness, PTaaS vs manual, pricing, and case studies.
Mohammed Khalil
Cyber threat activity is spiking. IBM’s 2024 report puts the global breach cost at $4.4M on average. France remains a top 10 target for ransomware and state backed attacks. New regulations make testing mandatory: for example, the EU’s DORA rulebook for finance demands threat-led pentests. You need black /white box tests and red teaming. The French Data Protection Authority CNIL also stresses periodic security audits as key to RGPD compliance.
Meanwhile, attackers have AI on their side, automating exploit generation. To stay ahead, French firms need elite hackers on speed dial. Top pentesting companies bring those skills and credentials: think OSCP, OSCE, CREST or PASSI certifications, plus real world bug bounty winners. They combine proven methodologies OWASP, NIST, PTES with cutting edge tools. For example, DeepStrike’s team includes Fortune 500 Hall of Fame hackers who earned millions in bounty rewards, a testament to the offense oriented mindset they bring to each audit as their philosophy puts it, Integrity & transparency plus relentless curiosity.
In short. Pentesting isn’t a nice to have its mandatory hygiene. In 2025 every web app, API or network must be stress tested. Cyber insurers and ISO/RGPD audits will ask for proof. By hiring a qualified tester, often a prestataire qualifié PASSI in France, you not only find holes but can show regulators that you followed ANSSI best practices. We’ll break down approaches and costs below, then highlight the leading French pentest firms.
DeepStrike is our #1 pick. Founded by ex‑bug bounty pros, DeepStrike’s ethos is Let’s hack you before real hackers do. They offer Pentest as a Service PTaaS on demand, continuous testing. Their cloud based dashboard provides real time results, Slack integration, and unlimited free retesting.
Orange Cyberdefense the cybersecurity arm of Orange S.A. is a heavyweight with a global footprint. They hold PASSI qualification ANSSI approved and cover all test types. Orange’s labs use both human pentesters and proprietary tools. They are well known for red teaming simulating phishing and lateral movements. Expect enterprise grade reporting and an executive summary. Orange’s French branch often partners with ANSSI and BSI standards, making them a top choice for regulated companies.
A division of the defense/aviation giant, Thales Cybersecurity offers high end pen testing. Many consultants are former military or intelligence, with certifications like CISSP, OSEP. They handle critical sectors defense, energy, finance and are ISO 27001 accredited. Thales will do hardware tests too including OT/SCADA. Their approach is rigorous, they may even include physical/social engineering. Thales is PASSI qualified as well.
Airbus CyberSecurity, spun off as Hasco, specializes in OT and industrial pentests manufacturing, transport. In France they test critical infrastructure, even air traffic networks. Their team knows SCADA and embedded systems. For IT pentests they also offer web/mobile audits. AirbusCs often leads ANSSI exercises and bug bounties. Expect cutting edge results, albeit at a premium price.
A home grown boutique, Synacktiv is part of Groupe Horoquartz. Based in Toulouse, they are beloved by startups and SMBs. Their pentesters have OSCP level skills. Synacktiv holds PASSI qualification and ISO 27001 certification. They push unique techniques, creative logic bugs, chained exploits. They publish findings openly, enhancing their credibility. Synacktiv’s reports are developer friendly, with clear remediation steps. Pricing is competitive, making them ideal for SMEs.
Intrinsec Paris is another PASSI certified firm founded in 1995. They blend audit and pen test, often coupling ISO 27001 audits with pentesting. Amossys, Qualysec, Devoteam and Wavestone also have strong pentest teams in France, backed by large consulting backgrounds. Many global firms Atos, Capgemini, Deloitte offer pentest modules too, but we focus on specialists here.
Each of the above companies offers PTaaS France options online portals, continuous testing and expertise in local compliance ANSSI guidelines, DORA for finance, RGPD. When choosing among them, look at track record case studies, CVEs disclosed, customer reviews, and certifications OSCP, CREST, PASSI, ISO 27001.
As a real world example, DeepStrike’s published analysis of a HubSpot flaw shows pentesting’s value. By combining web app testing and logic review, they achieved a full account takeover of HubSpot, a popular CRM. The team detailed how chaining two subtle bugs let them control any account. This kind of finding and public write up underscores how pentesters think like adversaries. Similarly, Orange and Thales have reported critical bugs in popular routers and banking apps, saving clients from future breaches.
C’est une évaluation proactive de la sécurité aussi appelé ethical hacking. Des experts simulent des attaques réelles sur vos systèmes, réseaux ou applications pour découvrir des failles injections SQL, mauvais chiffrement, etc. avant que de vrais hackers ne les exploitent. Les résultats incluent un rapport détaillé vulnérabilités, preuves, remédiations.
Le tarif varie selon la taille et la portée. En France, un test d’intrusion de 310 jours coûte en général entre 3000€ et 12000€. Par exemple, 3 jours de pentest web avec un consultant à 700€/j = 2100€. Comparez plusieurs devis et vérifiez ce qui est inclus retests, support, etc.. Méfiez vous des offres très bon marché : souvent ce ne sont que des scans automatisés, pas de vrai pentest approfondi.
Boîte noire = le pentesteur n’a aucune information interne il attaque à l’aveugle. C’est réaliste mais prend plus de temps pour la reconnaissance. Boîte blanche = on fournit le code/source, schémas, droits admin. Le test est plus complet, couvre le maximum, mais aussi plus long et cher. Il existe aussi le gray box informations partielles, qui équilibre vitesse et couverture.
C’est une offre de pentesting moderne en continu. Au lieu d’un audit ponctuel, une plateforme en ligne dashboard permet de lancer, suivre et retester des analyses à la demande. Par exemple, DeepStrike propose un accès 24/7, notifications Slack, et retests illimités pendant 1 an. Les entreprises DevOps préfèrent le PTaaS car le pentest s’intègre dans leur cycle de développement tests réguliers, scans automatiques.
Pour ISO 27001, l’annexe A exige des tests réguliers pour valider la sécurité des systèmes. Un audit de conformité ISO s’appuiera sur les résultats d’un pentest pour vérifier que les contrôles sont bien efficaces. Côté RGPD/RGPD, la CNIL conseille de réaliser régulièrement des audits de sécurité des données. Le pentest en exposant les failles exploitables contribue à la preuve de diligence raisonnable pour protéger les données personnelles. Cela montre que vous prenez la sécurité au sérieux.
Sur le plan personnel, les meilleurs pentesteurs ont souvent des OSCP, OSCE, OSEP OffSec, CREST ou SANS GIAC. Côté entreprise, recherchez la qualification PASSI ANSSI pour les audits officiels, et/ou la certification ISO 27001 gestion sécurisée. DeepStrike insiste sur des expériences réelles : les fondateurs ont gagné des primes bugs dans le Fortune 500. Cela compte autant que les diplômes.
Comparez l’expertise technique CV, certifications, exemples de vulnérabilités trouvées et l’adéquation à votre secteur banque, e‑commerce, etc.. Vérifiez qu’ils comprennent vos contraintes réglementaires RGPD, DORA pour la finance. Demandez s’ils offrent du PTaaS pour du test continu ou seulement des audits one shot. Lisez des témoignages clients ou des études de cas. Enfin, confirmez le planning : un bon prestataire comme DeepStrike démarre vite <48h et communique clairement via un tableau de bord.
Penetration testing is no longer optional in 2025 it’s a must have. Top French pentest firms like DeepStrike, Orange Cyberdefense, Thales or Synacktiv bring proven expertise and tools to find and fix vulnerabilities before hackers do. DeepStrike stands out with its hacker pedigree OsCP certified team, bug bounty champions and 24/7 PTaaS platform offering rapid tests and year long retesting. When selecting a société de pentest en France, check that they align with your compliance needs RGPD, ISO 27001, DORA and offer transparent pricing. Our stats above show most tests cost a few thousand euros.
Whether you choose DeepStrike or another qualified firm, the key is action. Schedule a pentest before the auditors or hackers force you to. Stay ahead of threats by thinking like an attacker, that's the essence of an offensive security mindset.
Ready to Strengthen Your Defenses? Protect your data, reputation, and compliance by partnering with a top penetration testing company today. Contact DeepStrike for a quote or demo of our Pentest as a Service let our ethical hackers secure your business before the adversaries strike.
About the Author: Mohammed Khalil is a Cybersecurity Architect at DeepStrike with over a decade of experience in penetration testing and secure development. He has led red team exercises and pentest projects for Asian financial and tech companies, and co authored this guide to help businesses strengthen their security posture.