Security Risks that can be avoided in Android App Development

The Android platform for app development is considered as one of the most widely used platforms for application users as well as app developers. There is no doubt in saying that Android‘s popularity is really high as it is open source format as well as flexible enough for Android application development. In the past few years, the digital world has witnessed a drastic shift to mobile applications. This is because the mobile platform provides practical functionality as it is a platform that has been bolstered by several technological advancements that have boosted its range of functions exponentially. In present times, everyone uses mobile phones for everything such as social interactions, personal fitness, entertainment, business transactions. On the other hand, no one can even deny the fact that Android Application Development has revolutionized the way the companies do business.

Have a look at top security threats that every app developer should know -

Google Play Store’s Potential Risks 

We all know that android is an operating source operating system and thus it puts the users at risk of security breaches. Google Play Store is considered as one of the biggest sources of potential threats. According to experts, Google Play is not a well-policed environment as there are risks of apps that contain malware software. When the user downloads mobile apps from Google Play, it is seen that they don’t pay attention to the extent of permission an app. They just accept the permission at the time of downloading and all this put them at higher security risks.

Malicious Software

In present times, approx 95% of Android mobile users are at the risk of affecting some kind of malware as well as malicious software. In other words, there are various devices that are vulnerable to being hacked. As Android is open source and all this leaves the operating system at the risk of over 75,000 security threats. Some of the most common malicious software are Andr/PJApps-C, Andr/Generic-S, Andr/BBridge-A, Andr/DrSheep-A, and Andr/BatterD-A. The main aim of these malicious apps is to send personally identifiable information to a server to hack personal accounts, display ads on the phone, or may involve some sort of illegal activity.

Risks of Android Fragmentation

One of the biggest drawbacks of Android is that it suffers the problem of fragmentation. Fragmentation means that there exists multiple version of Android; no matter you are using the latest devices. However, there are various devices that never updated to the latest Android version. In fact, the Android devices that are not updated are more vulnerable risks due to operating system programming errors. There is a big challenge for mobile app development services as fragmentation creates the unique user experience on different devices and there is a huge security risk. It is also difficult to take security measures as well as educate the users about potential vulnerabilities. This is because there does not present single security solution that will seamlessly fit all of the Android variations.

Granting Permissions to Apps

In this era of digital technology, app developers do not have the clear understanding of what a mobile application actually needs. All this results into irrelevant permission requests but app developers have the tendency to tap the Accept button about the permission an application requests. This is one of the biggest security threats for all operating systems. To function properly, an app should only request for minimal permissions.

Mobile Apps Downloads Outside Google Play

We all know that Google Play has its share of security breaches and thus there exist the risk of being hacked by the malicious software especially when users download apps from unidentified resources rather than official one. Anyone can create the Android app as it is an open source and process of building an Android app is free. Because of this reason, anyone can create the Android app and upload it on the internet. Generally, it is seen that users download apps from unofficial sites to avoid payment. All this can result in downloading the malicious app or that has been modified to automatically install a virus on your Android device.

Malicious software for mobile application development

Android’s security weakness everywhere, in the OS, in mobile apps or in the tools that are coming from different sources that are different from Android platform. All kind of vulnerabilities in the iOS application development possess various security threats so you should have information about that.

Customized Operating System

One of the major security threats that are faced by Android platform is generally caused due to the option of customizing operating system. Often, device manufacturers modify the operating system so that application can function optimally on their device. On the other hand, users also modify the operating system; integrate customization layers but all these cause security gaps.

Build a Secure Environment for Android App Development

If your organization is planning a roll-out of Android apps then you have to develop a strategy to protect users from security threats. You can also hire an Android App Developer that has knowledge of security threats and build an application that can cope with security risks.

Wrapping Up

Android app development services are not free from cyber security threats. So, it is very important for mobile app developers to mitigate security threats. Cyber security has proven its importance so nowadays clients are more interested in secure applications.