Learn how to protect your mobile app users and your app from social engineering attacks. Discover six ways to improve your app's security and privacy, from code to communication.

Every individual has a certain window of time during the course of a day during which priorities have a major impact on the system of decision-making. Always try to avoid responding to situations that aren't priorities, at least in the short term. For instance, if a fraudster asks for confidential information while you are stuck in traffic and a loved one is in the hospital in critical condition, there is a very good chance that you will provide it, even if you are fully aware of the risk. This is how scammers are able to successfully manipulate our minds and carry out their fraudulent schemes.

How can you design mobile apps that resist social engineering attacks?

Social engineering is a type of cyberattack that exploits human psychology and emotions to manipulate users into revealing sensitive information or performing harmful actions. Mobile apps are especially vulnerable to social engineering attacks, as they often require users to grant permissions, enter credentials, or interact with notifications. How can you design mobile apps that resist social engineering attacks? Here are some tips to help you protect your users and your app from malicious hackers.

1 Educate your users

One of the best ways to prevent social engineering attacks is to educate your users about the common signs and risks of such attacks. You can do this by providing clear and concise information about the app's security features, privacy policies, and data usage. You can also use in-app messages, tutorials, or FAQs to explain how users can verify the app's identity, check the validity of links, and report suspicious activities. By raising your users' awareness and trust, you can reduce the chances of them falling for phishing, spoofing, or baiting schemes.

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Aditya Upadhya

Senior Consultant - CT&E || OSCP || CISSP || AttackIQ
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This is one of the effective ways, but users generally do not read all this information like security features, privacy policies, FAQ, and lengthy articles about awareness. For mobile apps or any application for that matter, the user can be presented with a graphical representation with subtle texts in an innovative manner when starting the app, like a flash screen, which has a different content regarding awareness, in this way you train your brain against such potential events and will reside in your brain muscle memory every time before taking rash decisions to avoid social engineering.

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2 Secure your app's code

Another way to resist social engineering attacks is to secure your app's code from tampering, reverse engineering, or injection. You can do this by using encryption, obfuscation, or minification techniques to protect your app's source code, data, and assets. You can also use code signing, checksums, or certificates to verify your app's integrity and authenticity. By securing your app's code, you can prevent hackers from modifying, copying, or injecting malicious code into your app.

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Abu Saleh Muhammad Zakaria

🇮🇳 Cybersecurity Enthusiast | CEH | Certified by ISC², AWS, Microsoft, Google, Cisco, F5, Fortinet & Palo Alto Networks | IEC 62443 | ISO 27001 LA & LI
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How can you design mobile apps that resist social engineering attacks? - Block Special character in input field. - Implement Strong Password Policy - Use MFA - Use SSL Certificate Pinning - Never code API Secret and API Client ID on the app itself, rather use some other means like Key store or hash it, - Lockdown upon multiple failed login attempt. - Use less permission or use only permission which are required. - Educate users.

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3 Limit your app's permissions

A third way to resist social engineering attacks is to limit your app's permissions to the minimum necessary for its functionality. You can do this by requesting permissions only when they are needed, explaining why they are needed, and allowing users to revoke them at any time. You can also use the least-privileged principle, which means granting your app the lowest level of access possible to perform its tasks. By limiting your app's permissions, you can reduce the exposure of your users' data and devices to potential threats.

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4 Validate your app's inputs and outputs

A fourth way to resist social engineering attacks is to validate your app's inputs and outputs to ensure they are safe and legitimate. You can do this by using input sanitization, output encoding, or validation rules to filter out any malicious or invalid data that users or hackers may enter or receive through your app. You can also use secure communication protocols, such as HTTPS or SSL, to encrypt your app's data in transit. By validating your app's inputs and outputs, you can prevent hackers from exploiting your app's vulnerabilities or intercepting your app's data.

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5 Update your app regularly

A fifth way to resist social engineering attacks is to update your app regularly to fix any bugs, vulnerabilities, or compatibility issues. You can do this by using automated testing, debugging, or scanning tools to identify and resolve any errors or weaknesses in your app's code or performance. You can also use push notifications, pop-ups, or banners to inform your users about the availability and importance of updates and encourage them to install them as soon as possible. By updating your app regularly, you can improve your app's security and reliability and keep your users satisfied and safe.

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6 Test your app's resilience

A sixth way to resist social engineering attacks is to test your app's resilience to various types of attacks and scenarios. You can do this by using penetration testing, ethical hacking, or simulated attacks to assess your app's strengths and weaknesses and discover any potential loopholes or exploits. You can also use user feedback, reviews, or ratings to monitor your app's performance and reputation and address any issues or complaints. By testing your app's resilience, you can measure your app's security and quality and enhance your app's protection and prevention.

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7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?

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Manish Thakar

Information Technology Evangelist and Information Security Professional
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Every individual has a certain window of time during the course of a day during which priorities have a major impact on the system of decision-making. Always try to avoid responding to situations that aren't priorities, at least in the short term. For instance, if a fraudster asks for confidential information while you are stuck in traffic and a loved one is in the hospital in critical condition, there is a very good chance that you will provide it, even if you are fully aware of the risk. This is how scammers are able to successfully manipulate our minds and carry out their fraudulent schemes.

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Chetan Prakash Sharma

Director of RegenApps Clouds Pvt Ltd | Delivering End-to-End Solutions for Digital Transformation, Mobile Apps, Cloud Infrastructure and Security | Driving Business Strategy with Salesforce, AWS and Azure Expertise
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Certainly, your post is a great reminder to prioritize our responses and decisions wisely. Thank you for sharing this valuable insight! 😊👍

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How can you design mobile apps that resist social engineering attacks?

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1 Educate your users

2 Secure your app's code

3 Limit your app's permissions

4 Validate your app's inputs and outputs

5 Update your app regularly

6 Test your app's resilience

7 Here’s what else to consider

Mobile Communications

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How can you design mobile apps that resist social engineering attacks?

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

1 Educate your users

2 Secure your app's code

3 Limit your app's permissions

4 Validate your app's inputs and outputs

5 Update your app regularly

6 Test your app's resilience

7 Here’s what else to consider

Mobile Communications

Rate this article

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