Best Practices for Mobile App Development

 


Creating trust in today's technologically advanced and computer-driven world is possible via a variety of techniques such as password sharing, zero-knowledge proof, asymmetric keys, end-to-end encryption, and so on.


Furthermore, there are certain generally recognized recommended practices for developing safe mobile applications. In order to guarantee the dependability and integrity of our apps, we at DesignLab adhere to industry-standard mobile app security best practices and use a rigorous security testing approach.


Mobile App Development is booming today


The number of mobile apps now available on the market has reached an all-time high. Evidence of this may be seen in the widespread availability of smartphone applications for anything from shopping to contact management to personal information to relevant projects and upcoming events. Online mobile app distributors such as the Google Play Store, Apple App Store, and Windows Store are among the most popular.


A growing number of multinational corporations and organizations are adopting mobile application technology to improve their interactions with customers and boost staff efficiency. Even companies who have never utilized apps in the past are now attempting to get into this market. 


Mobile App Development is the need for today’s business


Mobile applications have now become a required answer for any business. Most significantly, mobile applications have become an integral part of everyone's daily lives, with some even being used to send critical information.


The issue of whether mobile apps are safe is one that many companies and consumers continue to ignore. 


Mobile applications continue to be the most popular target for harmful behavior. As a result, businesses should take precautions to protect their apps while still reaping the many advantages that these applications offer. 


In this section, we explain a mobile app security checklist that you may use when developing your mobile applications.


8 Things to Consider When Developing Mobile Applications


It is especially important in the era of Bring Your Own Device (BYOD), where workers often combine their professional and personal interests into a single device, that mobile app security problems be addressed. Here are the eight mobile app security best practices to follow in order to build apps that are not vulnerable to hacking:


1. Encryption of the source code


Mobile malware may readily identify flaws and vulnerabilities inside a native mobile application's source code and design since the majority of the code of a native mobile application is on the client-side.


Attackers often use reverse engineering techniques to repackage well-known applications into rogue apps. These applications are then uploaded to third-party app stores with the aim of attracting naïve consumers.


It is possible for your organization's reputation to suffer as a result of such threats. When developing an application, developers should exercise caution and include technologies that can identify and remediate security flaws.


To avoid manipulation and reverse engineering assaults, developers should make certain that their apps are strong enough. It is possible to protect your application from these assaults by encrypting the source code, which will make it unreadable to the attacker.



2. Penetration tests


Testing your application against randomly generated security scenarios before every deployment has shown to be a consistently excellent practice. Mobile application pen testing, in particular, may help you avoid security risks and vulnerabilities. 


System flaws must be identified and closed as soon as possible. Since these vulnerabilities have the potential to develop into significant dangers that provide access to mobile data and functions, they should be addressed immediately.


3. File-level and database encryption – Make provisions for data security


It is built so that unstructured data is saved in the local file system and/or database inside the device storage when it comes to accessing sensitive information via mobile applications. But since data in the sandbox is not properly secured, there is an enormous opportunity for possible flaws to be exploited.


Implementing mobile app data encryption using SQLite Database Encryption Modules or practicing file-level encryption across different platforms are two ways to guarantee security in the sandbox environment.


4. Data in transit should be protected


Security must be provided to ensure that sensitive information sent from the client to the server is not compromised by privacy breaches or data theft. An SSL or VPN tunnel, which guarantees that user data is secured with stringent security measures, is strongly recommended for all online transactions.


5. Use the most recent cryptography techniques available


When it comes to meeting the ever-increasing security standards, even the most widely used encryption algorithms such as MD5 and SHA1 are often found to be inadequate.


In order to keep up with the newest security algorithms, it is critical to utilize current encryption techniques such as AES with 512-bit encryption, 256-bit encryption, and hashing algorithms such as SHA-256 wherever practical. To guarantee flawless security, you should also do manual penetration testing and threat modeling on your apps before releasing them to the public.


6. Authentication to a high degree


Security breaches are caused by a lack of high-level authentication. Developers should build their applications in such a manner that they only accept passwords that are composed of alphanumeric characters and not other characters or symbols.


It is also preferable to make it a requirement for users to change their passwords on a regular basis as a precaution. The use of biometric authentication such as fingerprints or retina scans may help to improve the security of highly sensitive applications.


It would be suggested that users be encouraged to utilize two-factor authentication in order to prevent data breaches.


7. The Backend Should Be Protected


The client-server architecture is used by the vast majority of mobile apps. To protect against malicious attacks on backend servers, it is essential to put in place appropriate security measures.


The majority of developers believe that APIs can only be accessed by the application that has been designed to do so. Because API authentication and transport methods may differ from one mobile platform to another, you should double-check all of your APIs to ensure they are compatible with the platform for which you want to develop.


8. Keep sensitive data on hand as little as possible


It is preferred by developers to store sensitive data in the device's local memory in order to keep it safe from users. Sensitive information should never be stored since doing so may raise the risk of data theft or misuse of the system.


Using encrypted data containers or key chains is preferable if you have no other choice than to store the data. Make sure to include an auto-delete option, which will automatically remove data after a certain amount of time, to further reduce the log size.


Final Thoughts on Mobile App Development


With the growing threat of criminal activity, Mobile App Development security problems have undoubtedly become a top focus for developers. In turn, consumers become cautious about installing untrustworthy applications.


The recommended practices listed above should alleviate your concerns about developing a secure mobile application for your clients.


In order to guarantee the dependability and integrity of our apps, we at DesignLab adhere to industry-standard mobile app security best practices and use a rigorous security testing approach.


The creation of mobile applications should be about innovation and originality while still providing a safe user experience, in our opinion. In order to offer you the safest and dependable mobile apps possible, we have large testing practices and Proficient mobile app development experts on staff.

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