#testingmobileapplications

[incight]

How to Prevent Client-Side Injection Attacks

Mobile applications have become the new on-the-go touchpoints for users to browse the internet for information and execute various other activities. This has made mobile applications the new frontier for cybercriminals to let loose malicious codes and seek critical personal or business data. According to the Ponemon Institute, an IT firm dedicated to security-related research, about 59% of respondents reported an increase in malware attacks. Also, the mobile security report by Check Point Research unearthed the following statistics for 2021:

97% of business enterprises or organizations faced threats from multiple attack vectors

46% of enterprises had one employee download a malicious application

40% of mobile devices globally are vulnerable to cyberattacks

It is only by employing a multi-pronged approach to mobile testing that business enterprises can protect their critical data from cybercriminals. The focus areas for such enterprises ought to include fostering application security, planning a defense strategy, upholding security policies, and securing the database layer and physical devices. This calls for implementing mobile application testing to protect the app from multiple threat vectors, especially injection attacks. Let us discuss how client-side injection attacks can be prevented by rigorously testing mobile applications.

What is an injection attack and its types?

An injection attack is all about introducing or injecting a malicious code into the network, thereby allowing the attacker to fetch information from the database. According to the OWASP, this type of attack is the number one application security risk. Here, the malicious code introduced into the software can change its execution by forcing it to execute certain commands. These attacks can impact the computer infrastructure of the affected business negatively and lead to a denial of service. An injection attack takes place due to the inherent vulnerabilities in the application code that allow users to give invalidated inputs. Examples include Cross-site Scripting (XSS), SQL Injection, Code Injection, Command Injection, CCS Injection, SMTP/IMAP Command Injection, LDAP Injection, Email Header Injection, or Host Header Injection, among others.

Risks of injection type attacks

The potential risks carried by these injection attacks include:

Database getting corrupted

Theft, breach, or loss of data

Theft of information through phishing

Loss of productivity due to system downtime

Loss of consumer trust and brand equity

Strategies to launch injection attacks

Cybercriminals have a host of strategies up their sleeves to launch injection attacks like the ones mentioned below:

Inputting interpreted content directly to give commands to an interpreter.

Creating buffer overflows by entering out-of-range values.

Leaving blank fields to create errors.

Using a man-in-the-middle attack strategy, responses from a web service are modified.

Entering data through Near Field Communication (NFC), Bluetooth, and others.

Ways to detect an injection attack

The ideal and easiest way to detect an injection attack is by running an automated web vulnerability scanner. Similar to a pentest tool, this scanner can readily detect attack vectors and allow businesses to protect their applications. As a tool for mobile app security testing, the scanner helps plug the vulnerabilities before they are exploited by cybercriminals.

How to prevent client-side injection attacks

To prevent client-side injection attacks on web applications, businesses must code the application securely. The various mobile application testing strategies include:

Validation of user inputs is done by creating a list of valid statements. Also, configure inputs by context for user data.

Use statements comprising parameterized queries to differentiate between user input and code. This mobile application testing approach helps the system understand commands and statements separately, instead of mistaking the two.

Use of procedures defined and present in the database and called by the application.

Disallow string concatenation by limiting the use of special characters.

Use the last resort measure to escape all inputs given by the users.  

Minimize the attack area of the application by removing all unnecessary functionalities. If these features had existed, they would have had to be guarded at all times.

Allow privileges that are important for an account, thereby ensuring strict access.  

Conclusion

The sensitive and business-critical information of clients and their end customers’ needs to be protected on several fronts. User input validation as part of mobile application testing should be enforced strictly as users cannot always be expected to enter legitimate data. This can significantly reduce the possibility of injection attacks through the user interface. However, care must be taken to guard against other risks as well, by hiring mobile testing services.

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James Daniel is a software Tech enthusiastic & works at Cigniti Technologies. I'm having a great understanding of today's software testing quality that yields strong results and always happy to create valuable content & share thoughts.

Article Source: dev.to

[vikram739]

The utilitarian value of mobile phones has been mainly due to the plethora of applications that are accessed by users to perform a raft of activities. These may include watching movies, paying utility bills, booking tickets, playing games, reading informative content, and buying merchandise, among others. Does this mean users lap up every application on offer? The answer is an emphatic NO as users look for attributes such as fast loading time, enhanced security, seamless navigability, and many others. Even as businesses are aware of the need to employ mobile testing services and ensure the release of quality applications, the pressure to remain competitive often overrides such considerations.

Statistics show that approximately 68.07 percent of mobile applications never reach 1,000 downloads (Statista). In other words, approximately 67 percent of mobile app developers do not make a profit. So, what is the way out and ensure the apps hit the bull’s eye of customers’ approval? It’s simple – mobile application testing. Let us discuss the types of mobile app testing that every tester should be aware of.

Types of testing mobile applications

The quality of mobile applications is judged on various parameters. And to ensure the applications meet those exacting standards, there are specific types of mobile application testing as given below:

Functional testing: In this type of mobile application testing approach, every function of the application is verified to ensure thatit is working as expected. This is of paramount importance as customers take it as a given that an app should function flawlessly. And should they encounter an issue or error, they will simply uninstall the app without batting an eyelid. The various usage scenarios for functional testing include:

App gets installed and loads in quick time

Users are able to sign up and log into the app seamlessly

Features such as buttons, text boxes, menus, links, or icons function accurately

Push notifications appear at the right interval and are rendered correctly

Users are able to transact or carry out purchases seamlessly

Interruption testing: This type of mobile application testing strategy checks the response of the application when faced with an unexpected interruption. Based on the type or nature of interruption, the application should pause or freeze before returning to its original state. With interruption testing, the ability of the app to handle interruptions without anomaly or failure is checked given that the app needs to operate alongside other device functions. Some of the common interruptions any mobile application may be subjected to are:

An incoming phone call when the application is running

Incoming SMS when the application is running

Battery running low when the application is running

The device is plugged in and charging when the application is running

OS is upgraded when the application is running

Loss and/or restoration of the network when the application is running

Localization testing: This type of mobile application testing methodology tests the app features that are dependent on the geographical location. Most apps contain localized features that are activated when the app is run in a particular location. These features may include enabling transactions in local currency, adherence to local regulations, or enabling different languages, among others. Users mostly prefer apps that have UIs that are compatible with their language, culture, and device.  

Memory leak testing: In a memory leak situation, the app does not return the memory it acquired to function. This leads to the draining of the app’s available memory and interruptions thereof. Such leaks are the result of programming errorsthat need to be identified and remedied. Memory leak testing is conducted by running the application on multiple devices having different memory capabilities.

Usability testing: Here, the mobile testing services check for the app’s user-friendliness in terms of its ease-of-use, intuitiveness, and responsiveness across device configurations. Also known as user experience testing, this is done by actual users or skilled testers running scenarios mimicking typical user behavior.

Performance testing: This type of testing checks how the application performs under different scenarios or conditions. The performance is tested for battery consumption, memory consumption, log-in time, delays, data transfer, speed, and backup recovery, among others.

Security testing: In view of the rising incidences of cybercrime, the security testing of mobile applications has become a critical necessity. Here, testers check whether the application has secured payment gateways, is able to prevent information leaks, and ensure the confidentiality of data.

Conclusion

The above-mentioned types of mobile application testing should be integrated into the development cum testing lifecycle to ensure the application turns out to be robust, functional, secure, user-friendly, and competitive.

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James Daniel is a software Tech enthusiastic & works at Cigniti Technologies. I'm having a great understanding of today's software testing quality that yields strong results and always happy to create valuable content & share thoughts.

Article Source: wattpad.com