Mobile App Penetration Testing

Mobile app penetration testing covers five core areas: (1) Binary analysis, reverse engineering the IPA/APK to find hardcoded secrets, API keys, and insecure configurations; (2) Runtime manipulation, using Frida and Objection to bypass SSL pinning, root/jailbreak detection, and biometric authentication; (3) Insecure data storage, auditing SQLite, SharedPreferences, and Keychain for unencrypted sensitive data; (4) API security, intercepting backend API traffic to identify BOLA, broken function level authorization, and data leakage; (5) Platform integration, testing Android Intent injection and iOS URL scheme abuse. All testing is mapped to the OWASP Mobile Top 10 and OWASP MASVS (Mobile Application Security Verification Standard).

Mobile application penetration testing typically costs between £4,500 and £12,000 depending on app complexity, platform count (iOS-only, Android-only, or both), and backend API scope. A standard single-platform mobile app test (iOS or Android) averages £6,000 for 5-7 days of testing covering binary analysis, runtime manipulation, insecure storage, and backend API security. Dual-platform testing (iOS + Android + shared backend APIs) typically costs £9,000-£12,000. Complex apps with extensive features, multiple user roles, or payment processing typically cost £10,000-£12,000+. We provide fixed-price quotes after reviewing your app architecture and feature set.

While mobile developers understand app functionality and can implement security controls, they rarely have the specialized tools and adversarial mindset for security testing. Security testing requires reverse engineering skills (decompiling APK/IPA binaries, reading smali/assembly code), runtime manipulation tools (Frida, Objection for bypassing SSL pinning and root detection), and mobile-specific attack techniques (intent injection, deeplink hijacking, insecure storage exploitation) that developers don't use in normal development workflows. Moreover, developers test that features work correctly; security testers identify how features can be abused. Professional mobile testing finds vulnerabilities developers never considered.

No. Mobile app penetration testing is performed entirely offline on your provided IPA/APK binaries and in controlled test environments. We never interact with production app stores, live user accounts, or production backend servers (unless explicitly authorized for production API testing). Testing has zero impact on your App Store/Google Play listing, ratings, reviews, or live users. We can test pre-release builds before app store submission to catch security issues early, or test production builds in isolated environments. Your App Store Connect/Google Play Console accounts remain completely untouched.

We only need the compiled binary (IPA for iOS, APK for Android). Source code is optional. Our methodology uses reverse engineering to decompile the binary back to readable code (smali for Android, pseudo-code for iOS), which is sufficient for comprehensive security testing. However, if you provide source code ('white box' testing), we can identify more subtle vulnerabilities in code logic and provide more precise remediation guidance with line-by-line code fixes. Most organizations opt for binary-only ('grey box') testing which balances thoroughness with IP protection.

No. Our testing is conducted under strict NDA and confidentiality agreements with explicit scope limitations: (1) We only reverse engineer components necessary for security testing (authentication flows, data storage mechanisms, API communication), (2) We do not reverse engineer proprietary business logic, algorithms, or trade secrets unless they directly relate to identified security vulnerabilities, (3) All findings and reverse-engineered code are confidential and destroyed after testing, (4) Our ethical standards and CREST accreditation require respecting intellectual property rights, and (5) We carry professional indemnity insurance and have legal safeguards protecting your IP. We are testing security, not stealing secrets. Our reputation depends on absolute confidentiality.

Yes. We test both iOS (IPA) and Android (APK) applications. Our methodology covers platform-specific vulnerabilities: for iOS, we test jailbreak detection bypass, keychain security, certificate pinning, and iOS-specific URL scheme vulnerabilities; for Android, we test root detection bypass, SharedPreferences/SQLite storage security, intent injection, and exported component vulnerabilities. Most organisations benefit from testing both platforms as vulnerabilities often differ between iOS and Android implementations of the same app.

We work with you to obtain appropriate testing credentials: (1) Preferred approach: You provide dedicated test accounts with realistic data in a staging/UAT environment that mirrors production, (2) Alternative: We test in production using test accounts with explicit authorization and coordinated testing windows, (3) For apps requiring device binding or two-factor authentication, we coordinate to register our testing devices and obtain necessary authentication tokens. We never use real customer accounts or attempt to access customer data.