What Happens During a Red Team Engagement, Step by Step
Published by Synactive Security Team · 5 min read
A red team engagement is designed to answer one question:
Can a real attacker achieve their objective without being detected?
Unlike standard penetration testing, red teaming focuses on people, processes, and technology together.
Step 1 — Define Objectives
Examples include:
- Obtain Domain Admin
- Access sensitive customer data
- Reach financial systems
- Bypass security monitoring
Step 2 — Rules of Engagement
The client and red team define:
- Scope
- Timing
- Allowed techniques
- Emergency contacts
- Safety controls
Step 3 — Reconnaissance
Attackers gather information through:
- Public records
- DNS
- GitHub
- Employee emails
- Internet-facing assets
Step 4 — Initial Access
Possible techniques include:
- Phishing
- Credential attacks
- Exploiting exposed services
- Web application attacks
Step 5 — Internal Movement
Once inside, the team attempts:
- Privilege escalation
- Lateral movement
- Credential dumping
- Active Directory attacks
Step 6 — Objective Completion
Examples:
- Access confidential files
- Obtain sensitive databases
- Reach executive mailboxes
Step 7 — Detection Analysis
The blue team reviews:
- What was detected
- What was missed
- Response timelines
Step 8 — Final Report
Includes:
- Attack timeline
- Detection gaps
- Technical findings
- Business impact
- Remediation roadmap
Conclusion
Red teaming isn't about proving systems are vulnerable.
It's about proving whether your organization can detect and respond to a realistic attack.
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