API Hacking Toolkit to Reverse Engineer Your Mobile App Security

Fraudsters shift their tactics towards the weak entry points of online businesses. Attackers use emulators, simulators, and direct HTTP requests to launch automated attacks and extract sensitive data through APIs including those used to power mobile apps.

1. Your App

In order to reverse engineer your app security, a bot builder will use various tools to conduct endpoint discovery and request profiling information.

2. Man-In-The-Middle Proxy

Tools such as Charles, Fiddler, Anyproxy are used to launch man-in-the-middle attacks to request identification.

3. API Dev Tool

Bot builders also use API DevTools, like Postman or Insomnia, to request identification.

4. Mobile Emulator or Simulator

Extracting Android APK files or iOS IPA files or mobile emulators (Genymotion or Bluestacks) are used for advanced API detection.

5. Integrated Development Environment

IDEs, like VS Code, are used to build and test attack scripts.

6. Cloud Infrastructure

Bot backend infrastructure is hosted on the cloud through a service such as Vultr.

7. Residential Proxy

Residential proxy networks, like Bright Data (formerly Luminati), distribute requests in a manner that blends in with legitimate human traffic so the bot builder can evade detection.