Test how well your defenders detect and respond to a realistic attack
Purple team, simulated attack and adversary emulation assessments that test your people, process and technology together.
Trusted by companies of all shapes and sizes
What are purple team and adversary emulation assessments?
Where a red team tests whether an attacker can get in, these assessments test how well you detect and respond. A purple team works openly with your defenders, running attacker techniques step by step so detections can be checked and improved on the spot.
Adversary emulation and simulated attack assessments reproduce the documented behaviour of real threat actors, mapped to frameworks such as MITRE ATT&CK, so you can see which techniques your controls catch and which they miss. Detection gaps are recorded in the Rootshell Platform. Our testers stop and ask you first before taking any step further than agreed.
The benefits of purple team and adversary emulation for your business
See which attacker techniques your controls catch and which they miss.
Identify detection gaps
Find the attacker techniques your monitoring and tooling do not see, and the alerts that fire too late to matter.
Proactive defence
Improve detections with your defenders in the room, so fixes are made and checked straight away.
Rehearse your response
Exercise your incident response with realistic activity, so your team has practised before it counts.
Better visibility and control
Map results to MITRE ATT&CK and track detection improvements over time.
Stay compliant
Provide evidence of tested detection and response for customers, boards and regulators.
Stay ahead of threats with our purple team and adversary emulation
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On-demand purple team results at the click of a button
The Rootshell Platform is a neutral, centralised hub for managing vulnerabilities and protecting against threats, providing you with a single source of cyber security truth.
Recognised industry leader in penetration testing as a service (PTaaS)
Comprehensive purple team and adversary emulation tailored to your needs
Elevate your security with a customisable, all-in-one solution tailored to your unique objectives, risk appetite, and budget.
Build your package:
- Penetration Tests
- Managed Vulnerability Scanning (MVS)
- Attack Surface Management (ASM)
- Red Team Assessments
- We help you choose the services that best fit your needs
- Solutions tailored to meet your team’s objectives, risk appetite, and budget
Plus receive your results an data through The Rootshell Platform
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Reasons to work with us
For purple team and adversary emulation, Rootshell combines accredited testers with the Rootshell Platform, so every finding is easy to track and fix.
All your results in one place
Findings, retests and fixes sit in the Rootshell Platform alongside your other testing and scanner results, so progress is easy to track.
Accredited, experienced testers
Delivered by experienced testers. Rootshell is CREST registered, Cyber Scheme accredited, ISO 27001 certified, an IASME Cyber Essentials Plus certification body, and NCSC CHECK scheme accredited.
Recognised standards
Techniques can be mapped to MITRE ATT&CK so detection gaps are easy to see and track.
Clear reports, clear next steps
Clear, prioritised findings with practical fix advice, and retesting to confirm that fixes have worked.
How we deliver it
Scope, objectives and timing are agreed with you first, and your defenders can work alongside the testers.
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Purple team compared with red team
| Purple team | Red team | |
|---|---|---|
| Style | Testers and your defenders work together | Testers work separately, often without warning |
| Main aim | Improve detection and response as you go | Test how well you spot and stop an attack |
| Output | Tuned detections and clear next steps | A picture of how far an attacker could get |
| Best for | Teams building their detection skills | Teams ready for a full test of their defences |
Common questions about purple team and adversary emulation
What is a purple team exercise?
It is a joint exercise where testers simulate attacker behaviour while your defenders watch and tune their detection, so both sides learn at the same time.
What is adversary emulation?
It is testing that follows the methods of known attackers, so you can see how your defences cope with realistic behaviour.
How is it different from a red team?
A red team test is usually kept quiet to test your response. A purple team exercise is open, so you can improve in real time.
Who should be involved?
Your security operations and IT teams, and anyone who owns detection tools.
Last reviewed: 5 November 2026. Written and reviewed by the Rootshell R&D team. Rootshell was founded six years ago and is founder-led, drawing on more than 30 years of industry experience from previous successful businesses. We deliver thousands of testing days every year. CREST registered, Cyber Scheme accredited, ISO 27001 certified, an IASME Cyber Essentials Plus certification body, and NCSC CHECK scheme accredited.
Related testing services
Most clients combine more than one test. These pair well with purple team and adversary emulation.
