Mastering Pen Testing on iOS and Android Apps with Burp Suite Community Edition: A Comprehensive Guide

Penetration testing is a crucial part of any mobile application's security process. It helps to identify vulnerabilities and potential entry points that attackers may use to gain access to sensitive information or carry out attacks. Burp Suite is a powerful tool that can be used to perform penetration testing on both iOS and Android applications. In this article, we will discuss how to use Burp Suite community edition tool for pen testing on iOS and Android apps.

Step 1: Install Burp Suite Community Edition

The first step is to download and install Burp Suite Community Edition on your machine. Burp Suite is available for both Windows and Mac operating systems. Once you have downloaded the software, follow the installation instructions to install it on your machine.

Step 2: Configure your device for testing

To test an iOS app, you will need to configure your device to use a proxy server. This can be done by following these steps:

*Install a trusted root certificate on your mobile device to enable HTTPS traffic interception.

• Go to Settings > Wi-Fi
• Tap on the network that you are connected to
• Under the HTTP Proxy section, select Manual
• In the Server field, enter the IP address of your computer
• In the Port field, enter the port number that Burp Suite is running on (default is 8080)

To test an Android app, you will need to configure the proxy settings in the device's Wi-Fi settings. This can be done by following these steps:

• Go to Settings > Wi-Fi
• Press and hold the name of the Wi-Fi network you are connected to
• Select Modify network
• Select Show advanced options
• Under the Proxy section, select Manual
• Enter the IP address of your computer in the Proxy hostname field
• Enter the port number that Burp Suite is running on in the Proxy port field (default is 8080)

Step 3: Start Burp Suite and configure proxy settings

Start Burp Suite and configure the proxy settings to listen on the port that you specified in the device's proxy settings. To do this, follow these steps:

• In Burp Suite, go to the Proxy tab
• Select the Options sub-tab
• Under Proxy Listeners, select the interface that you want to listen on (e.g., loopback)
• Click on the Add button to add a new listener
• Enter the port number that you specified in the device's proxy settings (default is 8080)
• Click on the Save button

Step 4: Install the app and intercept traffic

Install the app that you want to test on your device. Once the app is installed, launch it and perform actions within the app to generate traffic. Burp Suite will intercept this traffic and display it in the Proxy tab. To intercept traffic, follow these steps:

• In Burp Suite, go to the Proxy tab
• Select the Intercept sub-tab
• Click on the Intercept is On button to turn on interception
• Perform actions within the app to generate traffic
• Burp Suite will intercept the traffic and display it in the Intercept tab

Step 5: Analyze traffic and identify vulnerabilities

Once you have intercepted traffic, you can analyze it to identify vulnerabilities. Burp Suite offers a range of tools and features that can help you to identify and exploit vulnerabilities. Some of the features and tools that you can use include:

• Scanner: This feature can automatically identify vulnerabilities in the app based on the traffic that you have intercepted.
• Intruder: This tool can be used to perform automated attacks on the app to identify vulnerabilities.
• Repeater: This tool allows you to resend intercepted traffic to the app, making it useful for testing the app's response to different requests.
• Decoder: This tool can be used to decode and encode data that is sent between the app and the server.

Step 6: Identify vulnerabilities and prioritize them

After analyzing the traffic, Burp Suite will provide a list of vulnerabilities found in the app. It's important to prioritize the vulnerabilities according to their severity and the impact they can have on the app's security. Here are some common vulnerabilities to look out for:

• Injection vulnerabilities: These can allow attackers to inject malicious code into the app, bypass authentication mechanisms, or gain access to sensitive data.
• Cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerabilities: These allow attackers to inject malicious scripts into web pages viewed by other users.
• Broken authentication and session management: These can allow attackers to bypass authentication mechanisms or take over user sessions.
• Insecure communication: This can allow attackers to intercept sensitive data transmitted between the app and its server.
• Insufficient cryptography: This can allow attackers to easily decrypt sensitive data stored in the app's database or transmitted between the app and its server.
• Improper error handling: This can allow attackers to obtain sensitive information or perform unauthorized actions by exploiting error messages displayed by the app.

Once the vulnerabilities have been identified and prioritized, the next step is to create a report detailing the findings and recommendations for fixing the vulnerabilities.

Step 7: Create a report

A comprehensive report detailing the vulnerabilities found during the pen testing process is important for communicating the risks and recommended fixes to the development team and stakeholders. The report should include the following sections:

• Executive summary: A high-level overview of the findings and recommendations.
• Scope of testing: A summary of the app and the systems tested.
• Methodology: A description of the pen testing process, including the tools and techniques used.
• Vulnerability details: A detailed list of the vulnerabilities found, including their severity, impact, and recommendations for fixes.
• Conclusion: A summary of the findings and recommendations for fixing the vulnerabilities.

Step 8: Fix the vulnerabilities

The final step is for the development team to address the vulnerabilities identified during the pen testing process. The recommendations provided in the report should be used as a guide for fixing the vulnerabilities. Once the vulnerabilities have been fixed, another round of pen testing should be performed to ensure that the fixes were successful and that no new vulnerabilities have been introduced.

Conclusion:

Pen testing is an essential process for identifying vulnerabilities in iOS and Android apps, and Burp Suite Community Edition is a powerful tool for conducting these tests. By following the steps outlined in this guide, you can effectively use Burp Suite to conduct a thorough pen test of an iOS or Android app, and create a comprehensive report detailing the vulnerabilities found and recommendations for fixing them.

Some of the popular Chrome and Firefox extensions recommended from my side that can be used in conjunction with Burp Suite include:

• FoxyProxy: A proxy management tool that allows you to easily switch between different proxies and proxy configurations.
• Web Developer: A collection of tools for web developers that can be used to inspect and manipulate web pages.
• User-Agent Switcher: Allows you to easily switch between different user agent strings, which can be useful for testing how an app responds to different types of devices and browsers.
• Hackbar: A simple tool for testing SQL injection vulnerabilities.
• Tamper Data: A tool for intercepting and modifying HTTP/HTTPS requests and responses.

By following the steps outlined in this guide and using the recommended extensions, you can identify vulnerabilities and prioritize them for fixing, ultimately improving the overall security of your app. Hope you all liked the article, follow for more. Thank you for reading NAMASTE