Cybersecurity Assessment for Mobile Applications
Published on : Tuesday 18-02-2020
Shekhar Ashok Pawar throws some light about Mobile applications and why it is really important to perform their cybersecurity assessment.
Industrial Apps that handle specific industrial tasks are now even available for electronic devices running with iOS, Android and Windows mobile operating systems, as well as many available browsers. In simple language, the term “mobile” refers to mobile devices themselves, whereas
“mobility” refers to the manner in which users are engaging with those devices.
According to Gartner report mobile describes mobile technologies and devices that enable customer and prospect mobility. It can include tablets, smartphones, wearables, software, and related components. Additionally, Gartner stated that mobility describes different entities interacting with mobile devices and the context in which those interactions occur. This includes frequency of usage of an app or website, content consumption, web and app searches, use of location services, and much more.
Mobility is really a broad and multi-dimensional term, not to be just referred for mobile devices or mobile apps. It is also talking about a future with no road accidents too, which is possible by connected and self-driving cars. In that case cyber-attack such as hijacking vehicle controls and sensors is biggest risk. Last year, there was a cybersecurity wake-up call in the automotive industry. The focal point of the story was a report on the industry by Synopsys that brought up critical red flags for all organisations operating within the automotive supply chain. In simple words considering connected car’s security, auto manufacturers should begin with the fundamental activities in the vehicle design process itself. Tools like fuzz testing and static code analysis should be standard. It is really needed to have standardisation across all such manufacturers.
In this article, I am trying to put some light about Mobile applications and why it is really important to perform cybersecurity assessment of those. The mobile devices contain a lot of sensitive information and data of users. Thus, meticulous security testing is vital. Every technology has advantages but at other side it has many new risks in our business or even personal life. Mobile application developers need to be cybersecurity aware and they need to follow standard coding practices to implement software which can keep user’s data safer and freer from any vulnerabilities.
Here are top 5 points where I feel Cybersecurity Assessment is must for mobile applications.
1. Data Leak Makes Business Sick
Mostly mobile applications have own native database. Its end users do store a lot of business, professional and sometimes really sensitive information on their mobile devices. These applications running on mobile devices can have extended access to all of the users’ personal information for better and personalised service delivery. Today business’s blood flows through usage of data. If it’s not safeguarded by design, it will cause high risk for business. Also, there are possibilities that in your industry you have BYOD policy. Bring your own device (BYOD) which is also called bring your own technology, bring your own phone, and bring your own personal computer; actually, refers to being allowed to use one's personally owned device, rather than being required to use an officially provided device. Directly or indirectly if your industrial mobile app is communicating with such personal devices or vice versa; it will increase security risks in many ways.
2. Closing Doors and Windows for Hackers
There are many targeted security attacks happening across all kind of industries by cyber- criminals. Maximum times these attacks are possible because there are loopholes present in the source codes of the mobile app. That loophole act as open door or open window to your business’s internal operations, through which the unethical hacker can take full charge of the mobile devices. Once it is successful step, they may run malware on device. They can even rewire the source code of the application and have easy access to the valuable and sensitive user information. Hence security best practices are must while implementing any source code for mobile app.
3. Not your Own App but Third-party APIs can increase Threats
API stands for Application Programming Interfaces. Most of the times there is already written software code which is specialised in doing certain tasks. Many times, it is easy to integrate that as third-party APO and develop your organisation’s application in less time and with reducing cost factor. It is sometimes essential to have usage of third-party API. Now question is, does these APIs are secured? If those are vulnerable to cyber-attacks, then it will counter attack your application. This is important to check many such risks to avoid any future loss.
4. Avoid Cyber-attacks during Live Transactions
There are many possibilities such as Man-In-Middle-Attack, while your mobile application is communicating with other devices or cloud. Most of times, unethical hackers try to do this to harm the applications through the submission of malicious input during the run time functional
flows. Cybercriminals will try to break the applications’ original behaviour or functional flow. It is important to implement preventive measures and cyber-attack recognising alarms kind of logics during design and testing of mobile applications.
5. Prohibiting Malicious Apps
It is human tendency to download games or similar applications on mobile devices. Unknowingly they might be downloading malicious application which was shared by cybercriminals. These apps are also known as Trojan apps. Those are made for retrieving sensitive data or launching serious problems such as altering configuration of the device. It is evident through past cyber-attacks that cybercriminals had used such techniques to even make unauthorised phone calls or messages or chats with the intension of distributing sensitive data. Cybersecurity assessment team’s one of task is also to conduct security testing on their mobile apps to keep the devices as well as end users safe and secured.
Your Organisation’s reputation is most important asset for business. If your clients will come to know about any successful cyberattack happened to your organisation – it will lead to reputation and trust loss in the business world. It is always good to invest in Cybersecurity assessment to secure future and growth of your organisation.
Shekhar Ashok Pawar is CEO of GrassDew IT Solutions Pvt Ltd which is primarily focused on Cybersecurity, IT Consulting & Software Solutions Development Services. With more than 15 years of international experience, he is CISA, CEH, CHFI, MCP, Blockchain Developer, Dip Cyber Laws, CMMi Level 5 ATM & ISO 27001 LA. He did Executive Management (SJMSOM,IIT-Bombay), after Engineering in Electronics & Telecommunications, Mumbai. He is lead contributor to GrassDewPanther @ LinkedIn which is focused on sharing global cyber threats and related news.
