Essential Application Shielding Software to Guard Your Data in 2024

In today's world, cell phones are not merely gadgets for communicating or socializing, tasks that would have taken days to weeks in the previous century. These smart devices have evolved into a kind of personal assistant that manages every aspect of our lives, from storing data to online banking and even making payments.

With progress in technology comes an increase in potential risks. Specifically, data breaches, privacy intrusion, and malware attacks are the most common threats as more and more personal information becomes integrated within the digital realm. Beyond the individual level, these security concerns directly impact the sanctity of numerous businesses and enterprise-level confidentiality, as well as the smooth flow of valuable customer data.

Unfortunately, as far as we have come, there's technically no going back. However, adopting security measures such as code signing allows us to shield our data against potential cyberattacks. Specifically, this involves relying on application shielding tools, some of which are discussed below.

What Is An Application Shielding Software

Using application shield software to guard your data means modifying the source code of an application to make it more robust and resilient against alterations from the outside. Relying on such tools decreases the possibility of external intrusion, malware attacks, tampering, etc.

DexGuard and iXGuard

From the creators of ProGuard, Guardsquare introduces a unique data security solution for both Android and iOS. DexGuard (on Android) and iXGuard (on iOS) enable users to secure not only their mobile applications but also SDKs. You can seamlessly integrate these post-processing tools into your workflow by adding them to your CI/CD pipeline.

Both applications are open-source code-shrinking tools that offer polymorphic code obfuscation along with RASP checks to counter static and dynamic analysis, respectively. These applications prevent hackers from reverse engineering by transforming the structure and logic of application code, such as renaming methods, classes, variables, etc.

The two tools add an extra layer of protection by encrypting sensitive information within the applications, such as API keys. Users can also monitor the threat landscape via the developer’s threat monitoring tool called ThreatCast.

Approov

Approov is a data guarding solution developed by Approov Limited. This platform mainly focuses on protecting mobile APIs and servers from unauthorized access by ensuring that only unmodified and authentic instances of an app can communicate with it.

They validate the authenticity of incoming requests from mobile applications by employing techniques such as device attestation and token-based authentication. This is an intelligently different approach than the conventional methods, as the decision-making process is shifted to the cloud rather than the intruder-controlled environment, which inherently lacks the capability to make autonomous decisions.

If the attestation is successful, the application obtains a cryptographic token, providing subsequent proof of authenticity to backend API services. Lastly, the developers incorporated Runtime Secrets Protection within the application which demands precise on-time delivery of secrets for making API calls. This practice minimizes the vulnerability window for potential attacks.

LIAPP

LIAPP is another application shielding software that integrates robust code obfuscation and RASP features within the application. These include root and VM detection, memory protection, anti-tampering capabilities, etc. all of which play a key role in blocking attackers from bypassing the security controls.

The software also generates a report on all the detected threats and the ways they were handled which enhances user reliability. LIAPP is available on both iOS and Android devices, though the former only allows enterprise package support. You can choose from four different packages, where the basic LIAPP Onsite plan starts at $139.99/month and the Business plan starts at $249.99/month.

Appsealing

Appsealing safeguards your data through the implementation of RASP features, robust code obfuscation, and advanced data encryption. The software's goal is to secure the source code and maintain the overall integrity of the application by utilizing anti-debugging and cheat detection tools. Additionally, Appsealing offers real-time insights into hacker attempts, allowing you to monitor and analyze these activities via the provided monitoring dashboard. Available on both iOS and Android platforms, Appsealing offers a 30-day free trial with the monthly package starting from $129/month.

Promon SHIELD

Promon SHIELD brings a viable solution to businesses and developers prioritizing their mobile apps’ confidentiality and integrity. What makes it stand out among many listed application shielding software is its seamless integration within the mobile application that avoids any disruptions to the development workflow.

The platform works on features like root detection, anti-tampering capabilities, code obfuscations, integrity checks, etc. to prevent unauthorized access and protect the crucial code and resources within the application.