Most Popular Android and iOS Hacking Tools | Magisk Hide

The Android operating system dominates the mobile market, with a whopping 72.44% market share. As a result of this success, Android phone adoption is on the rise, and with it, mobile threats are advancing at an alarming rate. Mobile device threats have evolved from small attacks to app-based threats, device-based threats, and network-based threats. Superuser applications such as Magisk hide are emerging as a major threat to android users as they become increasingly vulnerable to such attacks. The Magisk application is a systemless root that allows its users to run their favorite applications without giving them root permissions.??

According to Google, rooting is one of the most important factors in privilege escalation threats. Rooting applications already have been added to PHAs (Potentially Harmful Applications). One example of a rooting application is Magisk Hide. If you have Magisk installed, rooting apps can be harmful for your device. When rooting applications are added to PHAs, the device might end up in a vulnerable condition and could result in privilege escalation.?

What is Rooting?

When you root your mobile phone, it means that you have gained "root access" to the software on your device. Rooting allows you to make changes to the core of the operating system and in turn, the way your device behaves. Rooting may also allow access to features or functions that are not available when your phone is not rooted. The process of rooting, jailbreaking or unlocking can be compared to hacking into a computer and changing its programming.

Rooting can be divided into two; Soft root and hard root. Soft rooting is gaining privileges to manipulate the kernel version of the device. Once the app gains the privileges, it has unlimited access to the file system of the device. Such an app triggers the mobile device security on launch. Hard rooting is gaining privileges by flashing the firmware of the device. This involves a device with a bootloader that is vulnerable or one that can be unlocked. Generally, all rooting involves circumventing the security restrictions put in place by the Android operating system.

In summary, it is the process by which you gain "root" access or privileges to your Android device, allowing you to make system level changes. Rooting is different from unlocking the bootloader in that it gives full root access, whereas unlocking the bootloader only allows you to flash unsigned images. In simpler terms, it allows hackers to gain full access to the device, allowing them to change basically anything they want. When it comes to security, rooting can be potentially dangerous.

Rooting and Hacking: A lethal combo

Rooting allows the hackers complete access and allows them to use applications that require root access, and it can also open the door for malware to gain control of a user's device. Some apps have been known to exploit vulnerabilities in Android to gain root access, which is then used to perform either a brute force attack on the devices encryption, or encrypt the users data so that a ransom can be extorted. Malware can steal users' personal data, send premium text messages, or otherwise do damage to the device and the Android operating system itself. Malware is usually hidden within an application that has been sideloaded, which is not uncommon among inexperienced users.?

Android Developers make root access impossible for regular android users due to security reasons. Rooting by allowing malicious applications to gain access escalates to cyber insecurities. Some of the cyber insecurities that an easily be associated with the use of?Magisk?hide and other rooting Mobile applications are;?

Code Injection by Malware

An attacker uses injection to insert malicious code into a mobile device. This, in turn, alters the device's execution path, allowing the attacker to easily propagate the device and rooting applications to send untrusted data.?

Access to Systems

Spyware using a privilege escalation to get access to system resources unauthorized use of elevated rights or privileges beyond what a regular user is intended or entitled to. Exploitation of a vulnerability that allows for privilege escalation, such as a system bug, misconfiguration, or insufficient access controls. An attacker can successfully circumvent these permissions to monitor your mobile devices?

Encryption Key Access

Access to All Encryption Keys, whereby nothing is safe on the device. Attackers with root access can access all data on the device, including backups, calendars, photos, and other sensitive information.?

What is Magisk Hide and how harmful is it?

At the onset, Magisk was a tool that was created by topjohnwu which enabled developers to root their Android device without leaving a trace. And, in order to achieve that, Magisk made use of Xposed Framework API and Substrate. But, now it has evolved into a tool that can do a lot more than just rooting your device. It can hide root from apps that check for root access, it can hide system modifications, it can force some features on devices that are not officially supported by Google and many other things.

Magisk is an alternative to Chainfire’s SuperSU. The main difference between the two is that Magisk is a systemless root method, and it can be used on Android devices with System-less Based ROMs like LineageOS or OxygenOS. Magisk also brings modules which can be used to alter features and add functionalities without modifying the system partition. This makes it more convenient for users who want to hide root from apps.?

Magisk Hide has proven to be one of the most powerful tools for cybercrime activities in the hands of hackers, and it has shown how dangerous as a tool it can be. Using this app, a hacker can hide the presence of any application or file from any anti-virus or security provider. It also has lots of other features and can bypass any kind of device rooting detection or unlocking as well.?

Magisk is not an official application from Google or from any other company. The developers in their website claim that they are making Magisk with the best intentions to make Android better.

Popularity of Magisk Hide makes it a top 10 security concern?

The reason why rooting and the use of mobile applications such as?Magisk?Hide are so popular in the world of cyber-attacks is because they are extremely difficult to detect either by an expert or by use of a software. An attacker only needs to exploit one of the many privilege escalation vulnerabilities on a user's device to gain access to sensitive information or launch an attack. Attackers can launch their attacks through malicious links, drive-by downloads, and infected apps downloaded from the web and not the in-app?stores, text message/ voicemail phishing and through non-secure Wi-Fi/URLs. The attackers take the advantage of your device vulnerability to exploit and for their malicious gain.?

Since the rooted device is vulnerable to cyber threats, it is not recommended that you use it for tasks that involve banking and transactions. Using mobile banking apps on a rooted device can be extremely dangerous. Cybercriminals can easily sniff your e-mails, send messages to other numbers, snoop on your phone, and obtain personal information such as passwords, credit card information, and usernames in your accounts that you use while banking, socializing, and shopping on your mobile device. They can also install other malicious applications that can track your location, access your mic, cameras and other sensitive information and share with the hackers. Luckily most banks already block devices which have been rooted, and?mobile banking apps will automatically notify you when apps like?Magisk?hide which compromise on your device root are installed. Banks as well warn their customers against transacting or accessing their accounts from a rooted device.?

Mobile Security in defense against Magisks Hide

Reliable mobile security protects you from potentially disastrous security breaches. Employing cybersecurity?experts who are familiar with mobile device threats is a good practice for organizations. It is hard to stop people from rooting mobile devices, but they can make it more difficult, and they can easily detect rooted phones by using the right hardware, software, and industry knowledge. The easiest and best way is to advise people not to use applications like?Magisk?hide which are compromised and also advise them not to root their devices. There are other several ways organizations can adopt; organizations can Use devices with built-in rooting protections, Download apps from trusted sources i.e. from trusted app stores, organizations should advise their staff to be wary of free apps that request unnecessary permissions. Organizations IT experts could also use app hardening techniques; Obfuscation and encryption and as well use real Time Threat Monitoring.