Most smartphone users download and install a number of apps every year. On average, a smartphone has about 80 apps for everything from banking to call cabs, from food deliveries to music and social media platforms. It's now common to use personal devices for work. BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) is a trend that’s being adopted in many organizations.
With so many devices continuously connected to the internet, the cyber threat landscape has grown exponentially. A security breach in even one of these apps can divulge sensitive user data to hackers.
Read on as we explore the importance of mobile app security testing and discuss some of the most popular penetration testing tools, services, and best practices. RedLegg's application security testing services offer you a tried-and-true process to secure your mobile app at any stage during its lifecycle.
Smartphones contain sensitive user data such as personal information, financial details, and login credentials that cyber threat actors want to access for malicious reasons.
A study found that 95% of nearly 6,500 leading mobile applications fail at least one of the seven categories defined by the Open Worldwide Application Security Project (OWASP) Mobile Application Security Verification Standard (MASVS).
According to a 2025 report, over 80 percent of applications have at least one vulnerability.
Here are some of the common vulnerabilities we observe in mobile apps:
Maintaining a secure software development lifecycle (SDLC) is critical. It is essential to conduct vulnerability scanning and penetration testing both before and after app deployment.
Want to learn more about mobile app security?
Check out this article on 5 Foundational Mobile App Security Facts.
Security vulnerabilities are present in over 90% of mobile apps. And the frequency and severity of app data breaches is growing.
Penetration testing during app development, after deployment, and ongoing or continuous monitoring is a necessity today.
Testers use various techniques for mobile app security, including application mapping, simulations of client, network, and server attacks, reverse engineering of code, decryption, and file analysis.
Pen testing tools identify and fix vulnerabilities, protect data, and secure them without compromising functionality. They can detect problems such as unsafe coding practices, hardcoded credentials such as passwords and API keys, and insecure data storage.
Read more in our ultimate guide to Pen Testing:
The Ultimate Pen Testing Breakdown and its Role in Your Security Posture
We've curated a list of 12 reliable and effective penetration testing tools and services for assessing and securing mobile applications at every stage of the development lifecycle.
RedLegg provides a full suite of security solutions, including advisory services, managed security services, application assessments, and penetration testing.
Our mobile application assessments include a functional review, vulnerability analysis, risk analysis, scoping, and threat analysis.
We comply with best practices from various frameworks, such as the Open Source Security Testing Methodology (OSSTM), OWASP, and Penetration Execution Standard (PTES), to reduce the likelihood and impact of a breach.
With RedLegg's mobile application security assessment, you're assured of high-quality results and detailed corrective actions.
Here are some other testing tools to secure mobile apps:
Burp Suite: An app vulnerability scanning platform that's popular with testers—from the company that pioneered Automated OAST (out-of-band application security testing).
Overall, Burp Suite is a great platform to protect against zero-day vulnerabilities.
Zed Attack Proxy: A GitHub 1000 project, Zed Attack Proxy or ZAP is a free-to-use, open source vulnerability scanning app that is actively maintained by tons of volunteers from around the world.
If you're new to testing, ZAP is an excellent place to start, as it provides comprehensive documentation and extensive community support.
Nikto: Nikto is a free-to-use, open source, vulnerability scanning tool.
Nikto is a command line scanner and lacks a GUI interface. A point to note is that even though it's a free tool, you'll have to pay for the data files that contain information about which exploits you have to look for.
Micro Focus: OpenText has recently acquired Micro Focus. The Micro Focus Fortify on Demand (FoD) is an application security testing tool that supports continuous monitoring.
Additionally, Fortify WebInspect, an automated DAST solution, provides complete vulnerability detection.
Apart from these 5 mobile app security testing tools, there are others:
Kiuwan: A SaaS-based static-source-code analytics platform with a distributed engine. It provides seamless security as part of the DevOps process without needing analysis on central servers.
QARK: Quick Android Review Kit, an open source project, is a static-code analysis engine designed to recognize potential vulnerabilities for Java-based Android apps.
Android Debug Bridge: ADB is a command-line tool to communicate with Android devices. You can install or debug apps using a Unix shell.
Codified Security: A static-code analysis tool, it allows pre-release security testing of mobile apps. It supports multiple platforms such as Java, Xamarin, PhoneGap, and more and complies with OWASP, PCI-DSS, and HIPAA regulations.
Drozer: Veracode's application security solution is a unified platform that assesses app security throughout the development cycle and provides developer tools, including API and workflow integrations.
Drop us a line if you'd like to discuss mobile app security testing in more detail and understand the capabilities of these and other tools and services for mobile app penetration testing.
According to recent findings, nearly half of the top 100 enterprise mobile apps have cryptographic flaws—a gap that could expose corporate data to interception or unauthorized access.
A data breach stemming from an unsecured mobile app can trigger costly privacy, legal, reputational, and financial consequences.
So the real question is: How are you validating your code, securing your app, and protecting your data?
Follow best practices to stay ahead of emerging threats and ensure your mobile app's security.
Learn more about mobile and app assessment testing by watching this webinar:
WATCH THE APP ASSESSMENT WEBINAR
Mobile apps are a prime target—whether for data theft, fraud, or privilege escalation. Knowing your app was tested isn’t enough. You need to know how it was tested, what was missed, and what that risk really means to your business.
That’s where RedLegg comes in. Our mobile application penetration testing combines manual and automated methods to reveal vulnerabilities that others overlook. You get a full picture: business logic flaws, insecure storage, weak authentication, and more—mapped to your app’s real-world risk.
We don’t stop at a PDF report. We help you interpret the findings, prioritize remediation, and tighten security throughout your SDLC.
How do you know your network is at risk? Check to see if your application assessment is missing these 7 components: Read here.
Want to know what a mobile attacker would do? Let’s find out—before they do. Start a conversation with RedLegg’s team about mobile app testing that actually protects your users and your brand.
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