How to Prevent Running on Simulators in Android & IOS Apps

Learn to Prevent running on simulators in Mobile apps, in mobile CI/CD with a Data-Driven DevSecOps™ build system.

What are Simulators?

Simulators are virtualized tools that are used to run software tests on mobile apps inside flexible, software-defined environments.  Hackers use simulators for malicious purposes as part of dynamic analysis efforts, where they run your mobile app in their own controlled environment to learn how your app behaves and interacts with other components or systems while it’s running.

Why Should Developers Prevent Apps from Running on Simulators?

Hackers use simulators to run mobile apps within their own controlled environment so they can mimic, observe, and study how a mobile app functions and behaves while the app is running. This lets them know how a mobile app behaves to help hackers build more effective attacks and attack methods.

For example, using simulators, hackers can observe how an app interacts with the mobile operating system, or study the methods and sequence by which the app connects to and authenticates with its backend. Simulators can also be used to observe how an application app reads/writes to the filesystem (for instance to learn if weak encryption is used, or no encryption at all).

Prerequisites to Using Prevent Running on Simulators:

To use Appdome’s mobile app security build system to Prevent running on simulators , you’ll need:

• Appdome account (create a free Appdome account here)
• A license for Prevent Running on Simulators
• Mobile App (.ipa For iOS device or .apk or .aab For Mobile)
• Signing Credentials (see Signing Secure Android apps and Signing Secure iOS apps)

Prevent running on simulators on Mobile apps using Appdome

On Appdome, follow these 3 simple steps to create self-defending Mobile Apps that Prevent running on simulators 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 device or .apk or .aab
   4. Prevent Running on Simulators Compatible With: Obj-C, C+, Java, JS, C#, C++, Swift, Kotlin, Flutter, React Native, Unity, Xamarin, and more

2. Build the feature: Prevent Running on Simulators.

   1. Building Prevent Running on Simulators by using Appdome’s DEV-API:

      1. Create and name the Fusion Set (security template) that will contain the Prevent Running on Simulators feature as shown below:
      

      Figure 1: Fusion Set that will contain the Prevent Running on Simulators 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 Prevent Running on Simulators feature via Appdome Console, to add the Prevent Running on Simulators 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 Prevent Running on Simulators feature via Appdome Console

      To build the Prevent Running on Simulators protection by using Appdome Console, follow the instructions below.

      1. Where: Inside the Appdome Console, go to Build > Security Tab > ONEShield™ section . Like all other options in ONEShield™, Prevent Running on Simulators is turned on by default, as shown below:

         Figure 3: Prevent Running on Simulators 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. When you select the Prevent Running on Simulators you'll notice that your Fusion Set you created in step 2.1.1 now bears the icon of the protection category that contains Prevent Running on Simulators

         

         Figure 4: Fusion Set that displays the newly added Prevent Running on Simulators protection

      3. Click Build My App at the bottom of the Build Workflow (shown in Figure 3).

   Congratulations!  The Prevent Running on Simulators protection is now added to the mobile app

3. Certify the Prevent Running on Simulators feature in Mobile Apps.

   After building Prevent Running on Simulators, Appdome generates a Certified Secure™ certificate to guarantee that the Prevent Running on Simulators protection has been added and is protecting the app. To verify that the Prevent Running on Simulators 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 Prevent Running on Simulators has been added to each Mobile app. Certified Secure provides instant and in-line DevSecOps compliance certification that Prevent Running on Simulators and other mobile app security features are in each build of the mobile app