Mobile Application Security

Mobile application security focuses on the security posture of mobile applications running on platforms such as Android and iOS on phones and tablets. It’s also important for a growing range of software applications designed to operate on wearable, IoT and embedded software platforms.

In 2023, consumers downloaded 257 billion mobile apps to their connected devices and over half of all internet traffic originated from mobile devices. Manufacturing, logistics, healthcare, and retail companies also increasingly rely on mobile apps for monitoring environmental conditions, equipment and performance. Mobile application security is critical to protecting data, processes and business resiliency.

Unlike security for enterprise applications, however, mobile application security is multilayered, with maze-like interdependencies between the application, platform, operating system and interfaces. Mobile applications operate outside of secured networks accessed by trusted devices and users, making them more vulnerable. They’re also easy to compromise. An experienced tester can crack most mobile apps in 15 minutes. Even if the app itself is secure, a committed cyber adversary will exploit any exposed mobile interface, like the platform, calls to the OS or background operations. That’s why implementing mobile application security requires specific expertise and different tools for assessing the mobile attack surface, testing and secure coding.

In the 2022 Gartner Software Engineering Leaders Role Survey, 75% of software engineering leaders stated that application security skills are a pain point in their organizations. Building mobile application security skills raises awareness about the impact of vulnerabilities and empowers developers in security best practices. They must understand cyber risk and stay current with the mobile threat landscape—which changes quickly.

Use Secure Coding Techniques
Secure coding is more than writing, compiling, and releasing code. It also encompasses a secure development environment built on secure hardware, software, services and providers. Automation also is an invaluable asset, and tools like Chef, Puppet and Kubernetes make it easier to automatically secure the environment. Stick with best practices such as code minification and obfuscation, avoiding shortcuts, automated scanning and code review, avoiding components with known vulnerabilities, and logging and monitoring. Collect metrics and enforce thresholds to keep them within an acceptable range.

Test Everything
Mobile apps offer a rich attack surface, making thorough security testing essential. Mobile application security testing should mimic potential attacks to ensure security controls function correctly and uncover any critical vulnerabilities. During the build stage, testing should verify the accuracy of code, operating system configurations, databases, and other back-end components. Utilizing static, dynamic, and interactive application security testing (SAST/DAST/IAST) tools provides a realistic assessment of the app’s resilience. A layered approach with automated tools, guided by the OWASP Mobile Application Security Testing Guide (MASTG), helps ensure a secure app.