A Deep Dive into Mobile Application Penetration Testing

Mobile applications and services are critical components of our daily life, both at home and at work. As a result, they are attractive targets for hostile actors looking for sensitive information. Cyberattacks increased by 38% in 2022 compared to the previous year, while the number of new mobile malware types increased by 54% in 2019.

A test report indicates that 84% of applications could not determine if their source code had been tainted with malicious code, leaving them open to a wide range of assaults. Only 15.7% of programs had any type of repackaging detection in place, making them the exception rather than the rule.

With these, we know how vulnerable a mobile can be to cyberattacks, and how it can impact the privacy of individuals. In this blog, we will dive into the dept of mobile application penetration testing as it secures the application with robust techniques. Keep reading and learning!

What is Mobile Application Penetration Testing?

Penetration testing for mobile applications is used to identify security flaws in mobile applications to defend them from attack. The Apple App Store and Google Play both have approximately 6 million mobile apps. Organizations require tested mobile security across all app components.

Decades of experience, exceptional customer service, flexible scheduling, and lightning-fast return time are all prerequisites for successful mobile app pen testing. These important components enable a threat-based approach, extensive testing with numerous analysis kinds, and support in resolving and validating any issues uncovered.

What are the Perks of Performing Pen Testing for Mobile Applications?

Mobile app security testing is an ongoing activity that benefits both the app development company and the app user. We’ll look at the top benefits of mobile security testing here:

1. Avoid Future Assaults

Running your app through a simulated assault is the greatest approach to assess its security strength. With an expert-level pen test, you can foresee potential future scenarios and prevent risks, as well as discover and fix code problems before hackers exploit them. Conducting frequent mobile pen testing will aid in the long-term safety and longevity of your app.

2. Prevent Monetary Loss

A data breach may cause considerable financial harm to a company in a variety of ways. If hackers get your personal information, they may demand payment in the form of ransomware. This may be prevented if the mobile app is subject to vulnerability and penetration testing before release. As a result, investing in security is better than falling victim to hackers or attacks.

3. Increased ROI on IT investments

It is critical first to protect the asset to ensure data security. Mobile app pen testing searches and addresses underlying dangers in the asset. With timely vulnerability assessments, an organization may prioritize which vulnerabilities to target first depending on the damage they might do to a system. This may also assist a company in gaining new clients and consumers.

What Should You Test in a Mobile Application?

Below are the things a penetration testing company checks to secure a mobile application:

1. Authorization and Authentication:

• Examine the techniques for authenticating users, such as password security, biometrics, and two-factor authentication (2FA).
• Verify that users can only access the areas of the app that they are permitted to by testing role-based access control.
• Investigate how sessions are maintained and secured, searching for flaws such as session fixation, hijacking, and timeout difficulties.

2. Data Protection:

• Examine how sensitive data is stored on the device and communicated to backend systems. Avoid, insecure data storage, such as plaintext storage or inadequate encryption.
• Look for input validation flaws that might lead to data injection attacks such as SQL injection or remote code execution.
• Examine the program to ensure that it does not mistakenly reveal sensitive information to unauthorized users via logs, error messages, or other unintended routes.

3. Communication and Networking:

• Use proper encryption methods (e.g., TLS/SSL) to ensure that data is delivered securely between the mobile app and the server.
• Examine APIs for common web vulnerabilities such as Cross-Site Scripting (XSS), Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF), and unsecured API endpoints.
• Examine your network for potential network-based attacks such as DNS spoofing, network spy, and unsecured Wi-Fi connections.

How Does QualySec Technologies Perform Mobile Application Penetration Testing?

Pre-Assessment

The testing team specifies the scope and objectives of the penetration test during the pre-assessment phase. They collaborate with the app’s owner or developer to understand the app’s goals, functions, and possible dangers. This step involves preparation and logistics, such as defining the testing environment, establishing rules of engagement, and getting any necessary approvals and credentials to execute the test.

Information Gathering

The testing company advocates taking a simplified method to begin the mobile app penetration testing procedure. Begin by using the supplied link to submit an inquiry, which will put you in touch with knowledgeable cybersecurity specialists.

They will walk you through the process of completing a pre-assessment questionnaire, which covers both technical and non-technical elements of your desired mobile application. Testers arrange a virtual presentation meeting to explain the evaluation approach, tools, timing, and expected expenses.

Following that, they set up the signing of a nondisclosure agreement (NDA) and service agreement to ensure strict data protection. Once all necessary information has been gathered, the penetration testing will begin, ensuring the security of your mobile app.

Penetration Testing

The testing team actively seeks to attack vulnerabilities and security flaws in the mobile app during the penetration testing process. This phase consists of a series of simulated assaults and evaluations to detect flaws. Testers can rate the app’s authentication procedures, data storage, data transport, session management, and connection with external services. Source code analysis, dynamic analysis, reverse engineering, manual testing, and automation testing are all common penetration testing methodologies a tester uses.

Analysis

Each finding’s severity is assessed individually, and those with higher ratings have a greater technical and commercial effect with fewer dependencies.

Likelihood Determination: 

The assessment team rates the likelihood of exploitation for each vulnerability based on the following factors:

• The prospective danger source’s motive and capabilities
• The vulnerability’s features
• Countermeasures’ existence and effectiveness
• If physical access to a device and/or a jailbreak are required.

Impact Analysis: 

The assessment team studies and assesses the impact of the exploit on the company and its customers in terms of confidentiality, integrity, and availability for each vulnerability that may be effectively exploited.

Severity Determination: 

The pen testing company gives severity ratings based on internal knowledge as well as widely used rating systems such as the Open Web Application Security Project (OWASP) and the Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS). The severity of each discovery is determined independently of the severity of other findings. Vulnerabilities with a higher severity rating have a bigger technical and business effect and are less reliant on other flaws.

1. Reporting

Only if the security tester’s findings are properly recorded will they be useful to the customer. A good pentest report should include, but is not limited to, the following information: 

• A concise description
• A scope and context description (e.g., targeted systems)
• Techniques employed information sources (either supplied by the customer or uncovered during the pentest)
• Prioritized results (for example, vulnerabilities organized using the DREAD categorization)
• Comprehensive results tips for repairing each flaw

There are several pentest report templates accessible on the Internet: Click here to find the best one!

2. Remediation

The last stage is dealing with the identified vulnerabilities and shortcomings. The mobile app developer or owner implements the report’s recommendations and works on remediation measures to improve the app’s security. This step may also include retesting to ensure that the discovered vulnerabilities are resolved and the app is more secure. The objective is to make the app less vulnerable to security risks while still protecting user data.

3. Consulting & Support

The testing team frequently gives a consultation call to ensure that found vulnerabilities are successfully remedied. During this session, the security specialists review the results and offer advice on how to address and resolve the issues. This hands-on support is crucial for your development team to implement the necessary modifications as quickly as possible.

4. Certification 

Penetration testing companies provide a letter of attestation as well as a security certificate to ensure the security measures used. These documents confirm that your application has been thoroughly tested and that all relevant security measures are in place.