Further Reading: Writing Effective Pentest Reports

Books

Technical Writing for Software Engineers Various authors and resources. While not security-specific, strong technical writing skills are the foundation of effective pentest reports. Recommended resources include Google's technical writing courses (free, available at developers.google.com/tech-writing) and "The Elements of Style" by Strunk and White.

Writing for Busy Readers Todd Rogers and Jessica Lasky-Fink, Dutton, 2023. Research-backed strategies for making written communication more effective. Directly applicable to writing executive summaries that busy leadership will actually read and act upon.

The Art of Network Penetration Testing Royce Davis, Manning Publications, 2020. Contains excellent examples of how to document findings professionally and write reports that drive action. Particularly strong on structuring findings for different audiences.

Penetration Testing: A Hands-On Introduction to Hacking Georgia Weidman, No Starch Press, 2014. Includes practical guidance on report writing as part of the penetration testing process, with examples of finding documentation.

OSCP Exam Report Templates Available from OffSec (offensive-security.com) and community repositories. The official and community-maintained OSCP report templates demonstrate a structured, evidence-based approach to finding documentation that is a good starting point for professional practice.

Standards and Guides

CREST Penetration Test Report Quality Standards Available at crest-approved.org. CREST's standards for report quality, including required finding components, evidence expectations, and formatting guidelines. The benchmark for report quality in CREST-accredited markets.

CVSS v3.1 Specification and Calculator FIRST (Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams), available at first.org/cvss. The complete specification for the Common Vulnerability Scoring System, including the online calculator for generating vector strings and base scores.

CVSS v4.0 Specification FIRST, available at first.org/cvss/v4-0. The latest version of CVSS, introducing supplemental metrics and refined scoring. While adoption is still growing, familiarity with CVSS 4.0 is increasingly expected.

OWASP Vulnerability Remediation Guidance Available at owasp.org. OWASP provides remediation guidance for each vulnerability category in the OWASP Top 10, which can be referenced and customized for client-specific recommendations.

NIST National Vulnerability Database (NVD) Available at nvd.nist.gov. The authoritative source for CVE details, CVSS scores, and vulnerability references. Essential for accurately documenting and scoring known vulnerabilities.

Sample Reports and Templates

Public Pentest Reports Repository Various community-maintained GitHub repositories compile publicly available penetration testing reports. Search for "public pentesting reports" on GitHub to find curated collections. These provide valuable benchmarks for report quality and format.

SANS Sample Pentest Report SANS occasionally publishes sample reports as part of their training materials. These demonstrate the level of detail and quality expected in professional practice.

TCM Security Report Templates Available through TCM Security's PNPT certification preparation materials. These templates reflect modern best practices for report structure, including executive summary guidance and finding templates.

Offensive Security Report Templates Community-maintained templates designed for OSCP exam reports, available on GitHub. While designed for exam submissions, they provide a solid foundation for professional report structure.

Articles and Online Resources

"Writing a Penetration Testing Report" by SANS Reading Room Available at sans.org/reading-room. Multiple white papers on report writing best practices, including finding documentation, risk rating, and executive communication.

PortSwigger Web Security Blog: Vulnerability Write-ups Available at portswigger.net/research. PortSwigger's research blog provides excellent examples of how to document web application vulnerabilities with clarity, technical depth, and reproducible evidence.

"How to Write a Pentest Report That Clients Love" Various blog posts from security firms (search for this title). Multiple practitioners have published their approaches to report writing, providing diverse perspectives on effective communication.

HackerOne Disclosed Reports Available at hackerone.com/hacktivity. Publicly disclosed bug bounty reports demonstrate how top researchers document vulnerabilities concisely and effectively. While not full pentest reports, they provide models for individual finding write-ups.

Tools for Report Writing

Dradis Framework (dradis-ce.com): Open-source collaboration and reporting platform for security assessments. Integrates with common testing tools and generates formatted reports.

PlexTrac (plextrac.com): Commercial platform for managing penetration testing engagements, including findings management, report generation, and remediation tracking.

Ghostwriter (github.com/GhostManager): Open-source reporting tool designed for penetration testing and red team operations. Supports finding templates, evidence management, and report generation.

Serpico (github.com/SerpicoProject): Open-source penetration testing report generation tool that facilitates collaborative report writing with template support.

CherryTree / Obsidian / Notion: Note-taking tools commonly used by penetration testers for real-time documentation during engagements. While not report generators, they support the documentation workflow that feeds report writing.

Professional Development

Toastmasters International (toastmasters.org): Not security-specific, but excellent for developing the presentation skills needed for report delivery debriefs. Many penetration testers credit Toastmasters with improving their ability to communicate technical findings to non-technical audiences.

Writing courses on Coursera/edX: Technical writing courses from universities can significantly improve report quality. Look for courses focused on writing for professional or scientific audiences.