<!-- Copyright (c) 2026 defconxt. All rights reserved. -->
<!-- Licensed under AGPL-3.0 — see LICENSE file for details. -->
<!-- NERF is a trademark of defconxt. -->
---
name: implementing-mobile-security-testing
description: >-
  Perform security testing of mobile applications on iOS and Android platforms
  covering static analysis, dynamic analysis, network interception, local
  storage inspection, and binary reverse engineering.
domain: cybersecurity
subdomain: security-testing
tags:
  - mobile-security
  - android
  - ios
  - owasp-mobile
  - reverse-engineering
  - dynamic-analysis
version: "1.0"
author: defconxt
license: AGPL-3.0
metadata:
  mitre-attack: ["T1437", "T1417", "T1409"]
  tools: ["python3", "frida", "objection", "jadx", "mobsf", "apktool"]
---

# Implementing Mobile Security Testing

## Overview

Mobile security testing evaluates application security across the OWASP Mobile
Top 10 including insecure data storage, weak authentication, insufficient
transport layer security, and client-side injection. Testing covers both
static analysis of application binaries and dynamic runtime analysis.

## Prerequisites

| Requirement | Details |
|---|---|
| Test devices or emulators (rooted Android, jailbroken iOS) | Required |
| Mobile testing tools | Frida, objection, MobSF, jadx |
| Proxy setup | Burp Suite with mobile CA certificate installed |
| Application binary (APK/IPA) with test accounts | Required |

## Key Concepts

- **Static analysis (SAST)**: Decompile and review application code
- **Dynamic analysis (DAST)**: Runtime behavior monitoring and manipulation
- **SSL pinning bypass**: Circumvent certificate pinning for traffic inspection
- **Root/jailbreak detection bypass**: Evade device integrity checks
- **Local storage analysis**: Inspect SharedPreferences, Keychain, SQLite

## Workflow

### Step 1: Static Analysis

```bash
# Decompile Android APK
apktool d target.apk -o decompiled/
jadx -d jadx_output/ target.apk

# Search for hardcoded secrets
grep -rn "api_key\|secret\|password\|token" jadx_output/sources/

# Analyze with MobSF
docker run -p 8000:8000 opensecurity/mobile-security-framework-mobsf
# Upload APK/IPA to http://localhost:8000
```

### Step 2: Dynamic Analysis with Frida

```python
import frida

def on_message(message: dict, data: bytes | None) -> None:
    """Handle Frida instrumentation messages."""
    print(f"[*] {message}")

SSL_BYPASS_SCRIPT = """
Java.perform(function() {
    var TrustManager = Java.registerClass({
        name: 'com.custom.TrustManager',
        implements: [javax.net.ssl.X509TrustManager],
        methods: {
            checkClientTrusted: function(chain, authType) {},
            checkServerTrusted: function(chain, authType) {},
            getAcceptedIssuers: function() { return []; }
        }
    });
    var SSLContext = javax.net.ssl.SSLContext.getInstance("TLS");
    SSLContext.init(null, [TrustManager.$new()], null);
});
"""

device = frida.get_usb_device()
pid = device.spawn(["com.target.app"])
session = device.attach(pid)
script = session.create_script(SSL_BYPASS_SCRIPT)
script.on("message", on_message)
script.load()
device.resume(pid)
```

### Step 3: Local Storage Inspection

```bash
# Android — inspect local databases and preferences
adb shell run-as com.target.app ls /data/data/com.target.app/
adb shell run-as com.target.app cat /data/data/com.target.app/shared_prefs/*.xml

# Check for sensitive data in SQLite databases
adb pull /data/data/com.target.app/databases/app.db
sqlite3 app.db ".tables"
sqlite3 app.db "SELECT * FROM credentials;"
```

### Step 4: Report Findings

```bash
node agent.js analyze --apk target.apk --checks all
node agent.js runtime --package com.target.app --bypass-ssl
node agent.js report --findings mobile_findings.json --standard owasp-mobile
```

## Detection

```yaml
title: Mobile Security Testing Detection
id: a1640aa3-ecf1-45f8-b973-b23802359aab
status: experimental
description: Detects suspicious activity related to implementing mobile security testing techniques in security testing context
logsource:
  category: process_creation
  product: windows
detection:
  selection:
    CommandLine: "*implementing*mobile*"
  condition: selection
level: medium
tags:
  - attack.t1437
  - attack.t1417
  - attack.t1409
  - attack.discovery
falsepositives:
  - Authorized security testing tools during scheduled assessment windows
```


**Detection Opportunities**

| Indicator | Source | Detection Logic |
|---|---|---|
| Mobile Security Testing Detection | windows/process_creation | Sigma rule (medium) |
| ATT&CK Coverage | MITRE ATT&CK | T1437, T1417, T1409 |

## Verification

- [ ] OWASP Mobile Top 10 fully covered
- [ ] Static analysis completed on decompiled source
- [ ] Dynamic analysis with SSL pinning bypass
- [ ] Local storage inspected for sensitive data
- [ ] Network traffic analyzed through proxy

## References

- [OWASP Mobile Security Testing Guide](https://owasp.org/www-project-mobile-security-testing-guide/)
- [OWASP Mobile Top 10](https://owasp.org/www-project-mobile-top-10/)
- [Frida Documentation](https://frida.re/docs/)
