Mobile app security refers to the measures that are taken to secure applications from external threats, such as digital fraud and malware. With digital fraud being increasingly big business, how do mobile app development companies reduce the risk that critical personal and financial information is protected?
Software developers have a range of tools at their disposal to help them develop secure mobile applications. App development puts security at the heart of the whole development process with thorough testing and verification to ensure that apps are as secure as possible.
Common security challenges for mobile apps
There is a range of common security challenges that bespoke software development companies face when creating mobile apps. These include storing or unintentionally leaking sensitive information that could be accessed by other applications or on the user’s phone.
Poor authorisation and authentication checks can be bypassed by malicious applications or other users. Some data encryption methods have understood vulnerabilities and can easily be broken. Poorly developed apps might use one of these methods or might even forgo encryption altogether.
All of these issues can be exploited in a number of ways such as a malicious application on a user’s device or by an attacker who is using the same Wi-Fi network as the app user. This is increasingly important to be aware of with the roll-out of citywide and organisation free Wi-Fi services.
With so much personal information stored both on apps and on our smartphones, security breaches can be costly. If they happen on your company app it can destroy the trust of your users and even cause reputational damage to your brand.
The importance of mobile app testing
Mobile app security testing helps to ensure that the deployed app has no security blind spots that could make it vulnerable. It begins with a thorough understanding of the app’s purpose and the range of data that it handles. From there on it will undergo a range of different analyses as well as real-world testing that will mimic how a malicious user might target the app.
Testing will include interacting with the app and understanding how it receives, stores and then transmits data. It takes a holistic approach, that ensures that all the security controls in an application work as intended. It will also look at any potential issues that arise as a result of implementation. The testing process will take into account both code and configuration issues to ensure that any potential issues are discovered before it goes lives. It will also look at potential new threats and challenges that may not currently be anticipated.
Mobile app development that puts security first
InTeck is one of the UK’s leading mobile app development companies and security is at the heart of our developmentprocess. To find out more about our approach to mobile app development security and how we can create a secure and user-friendly app that adds value to your business, call 0800 3685220 or email info@inteckltd.co.uk today.