How to Add Information about the Release in Android & iOS Apps

Last updated November 23, 2023 by Appdome

Learn to Add information about the release in Mobile apps, in mobile CI/CD with a Data-Driven DevSecOps™ build system.

What is the Add Release Info feature?

The Add Release Info feature allows adding useful metadata to the relevant file, either AndroidManifest.xml in android or Info.plist in IOS.

The metadata items being added are:

  • Appdome Release
    The Appdome version number used for fusing the app. This number is split to three parts, which are separated by a “.”.
  • Appdome Build ID
    A string token used for identifying the fused app binary in fusion.appdome.com. For example, this number can be used for finding the app in the support log.

In the example shown below, if the version number is 4.12.1, toggling the Add release Info feature on in an Android environment can add the following lines to the AndroidManifest.xml file:

<meta-data android:name="appdomeRelease" android:value="4.12.1"/>
<meta-data android:name="appdomeBuildID" android:value="f88bff70-795c-11ed-b524-7307160b02c2"/>

 

Why Should I add Release Information?

This feature is part of Appdome Developer Options on Appdome’s no-code mobile app security cyber defense automation platform. The Add Release Info feature simplifies the task of finding out, easily and quickly, what the Appdome Release and Appdome Build ID are.

Prerequisites for Using Add Release Info:

To use Appdome’s mobile app security build system to Add information about the release , you’ll need:

Add information about the release on Mobile apps using Appdome

On Appdome, follow these 3 simple steps to create self-defending Mobile Apps that Add information about the release without an SDK or gateway:

  1. Upload the Mobile App to Appdome.

    1. Upload an app to Appdome’s Mobile App Security Build System

    2. Upload Method: Appdome Console or DEV-API
    3. Mobile App Formats: .ipa for iOS, or .apk or .aab for Android
    4. Add Release Info Compatible With: Obj-C, Java, JS, C#, C++, Swift, Kotlin, Flutter, React Native, Unity, Xamarin, and more
  2. Build the feature: Add Release Info.

    1. Building Add Release Info by using Appdome’s DEV-API:

      1. Create and name the Fusion Set (security template) that will contain the Add Release Info feature as shown below:
      2. fusion set that contains Add Release Info

        Figure 1: Fusion Set that will contain the Add Release Info feature
        Note: Naming the Fusion Set to correspond to the protection(s) selected is for illustration purposes only (not required).

      3. Follow the steps in Sections 2.2.1-2.2.2 of this article, Building the Add Release Info feature via Appdome Console, to add the Add Release Info feature to this Fusion Set.

      4. Open the Fusion Set Detail Summary by clicking the “...” symbol on the far-right corner of the Fusion Set. Copy the Fusion Set ID from the Fusion Set Detail Summary (as shown below):” fusion Set Detail Summary image

        Figure 2: Fusion Set Detail Summary
        Note: Annotating the Fusion Set to identify the protection(s) selected is optional only (not mandatory).

      5. Follow the instructions below to use the Fusion Set ID inside any standard mobile DevOps or CI/CD toolkit like Bitrise, App Center, Jenkins, Travis, Team City, Circle CI or other system:
        1. Build an API for the app – for instructions, see the tasks under Appdome API Reference Guide
        2. Look for sample APIs in Appdome’s GitHub Repository
    2. Building the Add Release Info feature via Appdome Console

      To build the Add Release Info protection by using Appdome Console, follow the instructions below.

      1. Where: Inside the Appdome Console, go to Build > Security Tab > Appdome Dev Options section.
      2. When you select the Add Release Info you'll notice that your Fusion Set you created in step 2.1.1 now bears the icon of the protection category that contains Add Release Info

        Fusion Set applied Add Release Info

        Figure 4: Fusion Set that displays the newly added Add Release Info protection

      3. Click Build My App at the bottom of the Build Workflow (shown in Figure 3).
    Congratulations!  The Add Release Info protection is now added to the mobile app
  3. Certify the Add Release Info feature in Mobile Apps.

    After building Add Release Info, Appdome generates a Certified Secure™ certificate to guarantee that the Add Release Info protection has been added and is protecting the app. To verify that the Add Release Info protection has been added to the mobile app, locate the protection in the Certified Secure™ certificate as shown below: Add Release Info shown in Certificate secure

    Figure 5: Certified Secure™ certificate

    Each Certified Secure™ certificate provides DevOps and DevSecOps organizations the entire workflow summary, audit trail of each build, and proof of protection that Add Release Info has been added to each Mobile app. Certified Secure provides instant and in-line DevSecOps compliance certification that Add Release Info and other mobile app security features are in each build of the mobile app

Using Threat-Events™ for information about the release Intelligence and Control in Mobile Apps

Appdome Threat-Events™ provides consumable in-app mobile app attack intelligence and defense control when information about the release is detected. To consume and use Threat-Events™ for information about the release in Mobile Apps, use AddObserverForName in Notification Center, and the code samples for Threat-Events™ for information about the release shown below.

The specifications and options for Threat-Events™ for information about the release are:

Threat-Event™ Elements Add information about the release Method Detail
Appdome Feature Name Add Release Info
Threat-Event Mode
OFF, IN-APP DEFENSE Appdome detects, defends and notifies user (standard OS dialog) using customizable messaging.
ON, IN-APP DETECTION Appdome detects the attack or threat and passes the event in a standard format to the app for processing (app chooses how and when to enforce).
ON, IN-APP DEFENSE Uses Appdome Enforce mode for any attack or threat and passes the event in a standard format to the app for processing (gather intel on attacks and threats without losing any protection).
Certified Secure™ Threat Event Check x
Visible in ThreatScope™ x
Developer Parameters for Adding information about the release Threat-Event™
Threat-Event NAME
Threat-Event DATA reasonData
Threat-Event CODE reasonCode
Threat-Event REF
Threat-Event SCORE
currentThreatEventScore Current Threat-Event score
threatEventsScore Total Threat-events score
Threat-Event Context Keys
message Message displayed for the user on event
externalID The external ID of the event which can be listened via Threat Events
osVersion OS version of the current device
deviceModel Current device model
deviceManufacturer The manufacturer of the current device
fusedAppToken The task ID of the Appdome fusion of the currently running app
kernelInfo Info about the kernel: system name, node name, release, version and machine.
carrierPlmn PLMN of the device
deviceID Current device ID
reasonCode Reason code of the occured event
buildDate Appdome fusion date of the current application
devicePlatform OS name of the current device
carrierName Carrier name of the current device
updatedOSVersion Is the OS version up to date
deviceBrand Brand of the device
deviceBoard Board of the device
buildUser Build user
buildHost Build host
sdkVersion Sdk version
timeZone Time zone
deviceFaceDown Is the device face down
locationLong Location longitude conditioned by location permission
locationLat Location latitude conditioned by location permission
locationState Location state conditioned by location permission
wifiSsid Wifi SSID
wifiSsidPermissionStatus Wifi SSID permission status

With Threat-Events™ enabled (turned ON), Mobile developers can get detailed attack intelligence and granular defense control in Mobile applications and create amazing user experiences for all mobile end users when information about the release is detected.

The following is a code sample for native Mobile apps, which uses all values in the specification above for Add Release Info:


Using Appdome, there are no development or coding prerequisites to build secured Mobile Apps by using Add Release Info. There is no SDK and no library to code or implement in the app and no gateway to deploy in your network. All protections are built into each app and the resulting app is self-defending and self-protecting.

Releasing and Publishing Mobile Apps with Add Release Info

After successfully securing your app by using Appdome, there are several available options to complete your project, depending on your app lifecycle or workflow. These include:

Related Articles:

If you have any questions, please send them our way at support.appdome.com or via the chat window on the Appdome platform.

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