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

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:

• Appdome account (create a free Appdome account here)
• A license for Add Release Info
• Mobile App (.ipa for iOS, or .apk or .aab for Android)
• Signing Credentials (see Signing Secure Android apps and Signing Secure iOS apps)

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, 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:
      

      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).

      2. 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.

      3. Open the Fusion Set Detail Summary by clicking the “...” symbol on the far-right corner of the Fusion Set, as shown in Figure 1 above, and get the Fusion Set ID from the Fusion Set Detail Summary (as shown below):

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

      4. 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, Cirlce 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.

         Like all other options in ONEShield™, Add Release Info is turned on by default, as shown below:

         Figure 3: Add Release Info option
         Note: The App Compromise Notification contains an easy to follow default remediation path for the mobile app end user. You can customize this message as required to achieve brand specific support, workflow or other messaging.

      2. How: Toggle (turn ON) Add Release Info, as shown below.

         Figure 3: Add information about the release option

      3. 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

         

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

      4. 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:

   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