Penetration Test Readiness: Scope, Schedule and Retest Before Audit
Edition 2026-11-03

A penetration test finished the week before the audit leaves no time to fix and retest. This checklist sets the requirement, the boundary, the rules of engagement and the remediation owners before testing begins, so the report and the retest land inside the review period.

Contents

penetration_testing_readiness_checklist.html           The checklist with its guidance, sources and contacts. Open it in any browser or print it.
penetration_testing_readiness_checklist_workbook.csv   The working checklist. Open it in Excel or any spreadsheet and fill in one row per item.
penetration_testing_readiness_obligation_register.csv  One row per testing or reporting obligation, with PCI DSS v4.0.1 cadences filled in.

How to use it. Read the checklist page first. Then open the CSV, assign an owner to each row and record the date each action happens. Update the Status column as the work is recorded. In the evidence column, record an evidence ID or the location of your secure repository, where passwords, recovery keys and the evidence itself are kept. When you are ready to begin, call GDF and a senior examiner will walk through the checklist with you.

Talk to a senior examiner. The initial consultation is free. Call (800) 868-8189 at any hour, or write to info@evestigate.com.

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