Reading Time: 4 minutesReverse engineering is a process of deconstructing, dissecting, and analyzing a hardware device, software program, or system to understand its inner workings, design, vulnerabilities, and functionality. It also represents a dual-edged sword. While it can be a useful tool for developers, in the hands of malicious actors, reverse engineering is used to uncover and exploit vulnerabilities within applications, often leading to security incidents and data breaches.

In this article, we’ll explore reverse engineering and why it’s increasingly crucial for developers and security experts to fortify applications against such intrusive practices.

Legitimate Uses of Reverse Engineering

While the potential for reverse engineering to be leveraged by hackers and attackers is a real and present danger, it’s also a useful tool that, when applied ethically, can dissect complex systems to reveal operational insights, recover invaluable lost code, and strengthen software against cyber threats. However, these beneficial uses also underscore the importance of employing protective measures to ensure that reverse engineering does not become a vector for vulnerabilities.

📌 Uncovering Proprietary Algorithms 

Developers often turn to reverse engineering to unravel proprietary software, allowing a full examination of its algorithms and data structures. This process is especially useful for understanding and enhancing the special functionalities of a software product.

📌 Recovering Lost Source Code

When source code is lost or inaccessible, reverse engineering can be a savior. By decompiling binary code, developers can retrieve a high-level representation of the original source, making it possible to manage and update previously unreachable code. This technique is also a lifeline for reviving legacy systems that have ceased receiving updates, extending their utility by adapting them to work with current technologies.

📌 Security Vulnerability Discovery 

Security experts use reverse engineering to analyze software for vulnerabilities that attackers can exploit. By dismantling software, experts identify weaknesses in the software, such as buffer overflows, insecure communication protocols, and authentication flaws. They then forward these to the development team for fixing and preventing future attacks.

📌 Malware Analysis 

Cybersecurity experts often employ reverse engineering to dissect and understand malware. This enables them to determine how malicious software operates and its potential attack methods, informing the development of effective defenses against future threats. Once experts have understood it, they develop countermeasures to protect their mobile applications against the malware. Ghidra, a reverse engineering software developed by the National Security Agency, is an example of a tool used to dismantle malware and understand its logic.

📌 Competitive Analysis 

Developers use reverse engineering to conduct competitive analysis on their competitor’s products. This helps them understand the strengths and weaknesses of their rival’s products and meet market gaps that competitors are not satisfying. 

Security Risks Associated With Reverse Engineering

While reverse engineering can be an asset in the right hands, it is equally a tool for vulnerability exploitation when wielded by hackers and attackers with ill intentions. The following information describes the various security risks that arise when reverse engineering is misapplied and gives developers plenty of reasons to safeguard their applications diligently.

⚠️ Exposure of Sensitive Code

One of the primary risks of reverse engineering is the potential exposure of sensitive code. Competitors or hackers can dissect an application to uncover proprietary algorithms or data, which may then be replicated or used to undermine the original product’s integrity.

⚠️ Intellectual Property Theft and Software Piracy

Reverse engineering can lead to the theft of intellectual property. By revealing the inner workings of software design and architecture, it can provide a blueprint for unauthorized parties to duplicate and exploit a company’s hard-earned innovations.

One example of this at play is when Apple suspected Samsung of infringing on its patent. Through reverse engineering, Apple proved to a court that Samsung had copied its patents, leading to legal action and a fine.

⚠️ Creation of Unauthorized Derivatives

Through reverse engineering, illicit developers can create unauthorized derivative works. These can range from knock-off products to modified versions of software that bypass revenue models, such as subscription services, causing financial losses and damaging brand reputation.

⚠️ Security Breaches

Perhaps the most alarming risk is that reverse engineering can be used to discover and exploit security vulnerabilities. This can result in unauthorized access to private data, disruption of services, and other harmful activities that negatively affect user trust and experience.

⚠️ Enabling Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs)

Skilled attackers can use reverse engineering to develop APTs, which are prolonged and targeted cyberattacks that can go undetected for extended periods, causing substantial and sustained damage to an organization’s security infrastructure.

Reverse Engineering Techniques and Methodologies 

Reverse engineering is a bit like digital archaeology — digging through layers of code to unearth how a piece of software ticks. As developers, we often need to get into the nitty-gritty of a program, whether it’s to debug, enhance, or secure it. Here’s a rundown of the common techniques and tools.

• Disassembly —Peeling back the compiled layers to reveal assembly language is a classic move. It’s like translating ancient hieroglyphs into plain English. Tools like Ghidra, Radare2, and IDA Pro are the picks and shovels of this trade, helping to lay bare the logic and flow that drive the application.
• Decompilation — This involves converting binary code into a higher-level language, such as C or C++. Although similar to disassembly, decompilation is much more complex. It aims to recover the original binary code in a high-level programming language close to the source code.
• Code Analysis —Static code analysis is like having a diagnostic run without turning the engine on. We use automated tools for this because they’re faster and more accurate. This method is about preempting problems before they become all-nighters.
• Reverse Debugging — This process allows developers to review the program execution backward in time. It rewinds the program into previous states, making it possible to inspect and preview its history. Often referred to as time travel debugging, this process is essential in diagnosing and fixing complex bugs and understanding the software’s functioning.
• Pattern Recognition — This involves identifying recurring structures, algorithms, and design patterns in an application. Through systematic data analysis, code and behavior experts can spot patterns from reused code components and data structures. They can then modify, secure, or extend the existing software.

🛡 PreEmptive Protects Your Apps Against Reverse Engineering

Reverse engineering is like anything else — whether it’s “good” or “bad” largely depends on how it’s being applied. There are plenty of legitimate reasons why developers would use it. But it could also be wrongly used by hackers, attackers, or competitors who want access to your source code — and they don’t need it. So don’t leave it unprotected for the taking.

PreEmptive’s code security tools lock your code up tight with obfuscation and encryption so prying eyes can’t get a peek. It’s effective, easy to use, and already trusted by thousands of developers worldwide. Want to check it out for yourself? Start your free trial and see how PreEmptive can protect your apps from reverse engineering.

Reading Time: 4 minutes 

Developers and organizations are today faced with the constant threat of malicious actors stealing their software programs. And that’s not just it; threat actors can today use an application’s source code to either make it unavailable, steal sensitive data, or use it for ransom. That’s why organizations must secure sensitive software components and algorithms. One technique they can use is code encryption. Code encryption refers to transforming an application’s source code into an unreadable format (ciphertext) in a process known as cryptography.

⚖️ Code Encryption Versus Data Encryption 

Because data encryption is one of the most recognized types of encryption, many people often confuse code encryption with it. However, the two refer to different things, even though, in essence, they use the same technique (cryptography) for protecting applications. 

As the name implies, data encryption involves protecting or securing data from attackers. It is the process of changing sensitive data from a format that can be read and understood by humans into one that needs deciphering. 

✅ Code Encryption Benefits

Code encryption prevents malicious actors from stealing software’s intellectual property and using reverse engineering. It’s also important for enhancing data security. 

Software Intellectual Property Protection

In a highly competitive software market, competitors will do anything to get ahead of everyone else. It shouldn’t, therefore, be surprising that these individuals would go as far as stealing an application’s intellectual property, which includes its unique algorithms, innovative ideas, and proprietary features.

With code encryption, developers and organizations can prevent intellectual property theft by scrambling the source code into an unreadable format, thereby safeguarding their competitive edge.

Reverse Engineering Prevention

Reverse engineering involves deciphering how an application works by analyzing its source code. While reverse engineering is considered legal if done with the right intention, it can sometimes be used by malicious actors for the wrong reasons, such as creating duplicates for commercial advantage and finding vulnerabilities to exploit.  

Enhancing Data Security

Even though organizations can enhance data security with data encryption, code encryption can also help, especially if the application they are using contains or handles sensitive data. By encrypting the source code, developers ensure that malicious actors can’t access or tamper with the data these applications process. 

⚙️ Code Encryption Techniques and Methods

There are several techniques developers can use to encrypt source code, such as:

Code Obfuscation

Obfuscation refers to making code hard to understand by changing its executables while maintaining its functionality. This process is especially useful for protecting applications from revere engineering by changing the code’s logic. Developers can use either partial or complete obfuscation to protect applications through several methods:

• Rename Obfuscation — This technique involves renaming variables, functions, and classes in the code to hide their original purpose.
• String Encryption — It involves encrypting strings within the code, making it challenging for attackers to identify sensitive information.
• Control Flow Obfuscation — Developers change how an application executes instructions (control flow) to make it less predictable for hackers trying to reverse engineer.
• Transforming the Instruction Pattern — This involves changing the arrangement of machine instructions, which makes it difficult to understand how the code operates.
• Inserting Dummy Code — Without affecting an application’s functionality, developers can add extra snippets of useless code to confuse anyone trying to understand it.
• Removing Unused Metadata — Since metadata can give clues about the origin of the source code, developers can remove it to make it harder for hackers.
• Binary Linking/Merging — This technique involves combining binary files or libraries to create a single executable.

Code Tokenization

Instead of leaving source code as is, developers can break it up into smaller units, symbols, or tokens. After tokenization, these tokens are then encrypted individually to ensure hackers don’t decipher them. 

Cryptographic Algorithms

Using cryptographic algorithms for code encryption involves using well-established mathematical procedures and techniques to scramble source code into an unreadable format for both humans and machines. There are several cryptographic algorithms developers can leverage:

• Symmetric Key Algorithms
• Asymmetric Key Algorithms
• Digital Signature Algorithms
• Hash Functions
• Public Key Infrastructure (PKI)
• Key Exchange Algorithms

Examples of What Happens Without Code Encryption

For developers and organizations that are still skeptical about code encryption and its importance, here are some real-life attacks that could have been prevented with source code encryption:

Electronic Arts (EA) Source Code Breach

In 2021, Electronic Arts (EA) fell victim to hackers who stole one of its most popular source codes, Frostbite, that powers games such as FIFA. According to reports, the source code wasn’t the only thing the hackers accessed — they also obtained 780 GB of data. Confirming the reports, an EA spokesman said that while this was true, the hackers did not access player information, which could have resulted in exposing sensitive data for millions of accounts. 

Nvidia Source Code Theft

In February 2022, hackers were able to breach Nvidia, a chip-making company in the U.S., causing several problems. For one, the hackers accessed source code for the company’s Deep Learning Super Sampling (DLSS) technology used in improving the resolution of low-quality images. The hackers went further and leaked the source code online. They also obtained access to Nvidia’s proprietary hash rate limiter for cryptocurrency mining as well as data belonging to company employees. 

📑 Code Encryption Best Practices and Strategies

While code encryption is essential for software security, organizations must approach it in a way that ensures it is foolproof. 

One way to ensure that code encryption is effective is choosing the right code encryption tools. Developers must understand that while one tool might work for a similar application, they should consider their application’s unique requirements by evaluating factors such as the level of security required, performance, compatibility, etc.

It’s also important to understand that code encryption isn’t just a one-time thing. Organizations must keep checking for new vulnerabilities in their source code that hackers can exploit and, therefore, improve their code encryption methods.  

Lastly, code encryption is just one small piece of the bigger software security. To ensure applications are secure, developers must combine code encryption with other forms of security, such as authentication and access controls.   

🔐 How PreEmptive Can Help

Code encryption isn’t a nice-to-have thing for developers and organizations that want to protect their software applications; it’s a must-have. With Dotfuscator, developers can ensure that source code is secure, not just during development but even after launching the application. Dotfuscator utilizes string encryption — an effective and reliable method of code encryption — to effectively scramble an application’s source code.

Start your free trial with PreEmptive today and protect your apps against reverse engineering and the data breaches it brings.

Reading Time: 4 minutesiOS is well-known for its robust security framework, but vulnerabilities in the operating system still exist. These are flaws or weaknesses in the iOS operating system that attackers can exploit to gain unauthorized access, leak sensitive data, or compromise device security.

iOS security vulnerabilities can lead to unauthorized access to personal information, financial data, and sensitive communications, compromising user privacy and data integrity. On the device security front, such vulnerabilities may allow attackers to take over devices, install malware, or render systems inoperable.

For example, hackers could post users’ photos online or disclose confidential client information or company financials. In a corporate environment, hackers could use a compromised iOS device as an entry point to the wider network, resulting in operational disruptions, data loss, and costly downtime.

In this article, you’ll discover five common iOS vulnerabilities, how users can protect themselves, and how developers can enhance iOS security.

Five Common iOS Vulnerabilities

Common iOS vulnerabilities span a range of issues. Some more common ones that have been relevant recently include remote code execution, privilege escalation, data breaches, application-specific weaknesses, and man-in-the-middle attacks. Let’s look at these one by one.

1. Remote Code Execution   

Remote code execution in iOS allows attackers to execute malicious code and seize control of devices remotely. An attacker can perform this type of attack without any interaction from the victim, potentially gaining unauthorized access to the system, stealing data, or exploiting the device’s resources for malicious activities.

Hackers perform remote code execution attacks by exploiting vulnerabilities in software or systems, such as unpatched security flaws, to run malicious code. Users can protect themselves by:

• Updating: Updating software regularly to patch known vulnerabilities closes security gaps and prevents attackers from exploiting outdated systems.
• Monitoring: Using robust security solutions that include real-time monitoring helps detect and promptly address unusual activity.
• Browsing: Practicing safe browsing habits helps avoid downloading or clicking on suspicious links that could execute such code. It reduces the risk of inadvertently allowing malicious software onto devices.

2. Privilege Escalation

Privilege escalation vulnerabilities are security weaknesses that allow an attacker to gain elevated access to resources that a lower-level application or user shouldn’t be able to access. It lets the attacker perform unauthorized actions, such as accessing confidential data, changing configuration settings, or taking control of the operating system. The hacker wouldn’t be able to do this with lower-level permissions.

Users can protect themselves by actively updating their systems with the latest security patches and employing security tools that monitor for unauthorized attempts. Additionally, they can give each person or program the fewest permissions they need to get their work done.

3. Data Leakage

Data leakage occurs when sensitive information is accidentally exposed or intentionally stolen from a system, potentially leading to unauthorized access and misuse of personal, financial, or business information. It can happen through various means, such as security breaches, software vulnerabilities, or during data transfer between different systems.

Hackers perform data leakage attacks by exploiting weak security systems, phishing, or installing spyware to siphon off sensitive information. Users can protect themselves by: 

• Using strong, unique passwords for different accounts
• Enabling two-factor authentication
• Being cautious about sharing personal information, especially on public or unsecured networks

4. App Vulnerabilities

App vulnerabilities refer to weaknesses or flaws in a mobile application that cybercriminals can exploit to carry out malicious activities, such as stealing data, injecting malware, or disrupting app functionality. These vulnerabilities can stem from inadequate coding practices, failure to update software, or not properly securing data within the app.

Users can protect themselves from app vulnerabilities by: 

• Downloading apps only from trusted sources like the official App Store
• Updating apps to the latest versions regularly
• Reviewing app permissions to ensure they only have access to necessary information

5. Man-in-the-Middle Attacks

Another common iOS security vulnerability is “man-in-the-middle” attacks. These occur when an attacker intercepts communication between two parties, typically over an unsecured Wi-Fi network, to eavesdrop or alter the transmitted data. They could lead to the interception of sensitive data like login credentials, credit card numbers, and personal information.

To protect against this type of attack, users should use secure and encrypted connections and virtual private networks.

Blastpass: A Real-World Example of iOS Vulnerabilities

The so-called Blastpass vulnerability Apple disclosed in September 2023 underscores the ongoing battle against iOS device security threats. It allowed attackers to exploit devices without user interaction, an alarming prospect for any iOS user.

Blastpass leveraged a zero-click exploit, meaning hackers could trigger it without user engagement, a method that is increasingly common among sophisticated cyber threats. Apple has responded with a security patch to mitigate this vulnerability, as detailed in their updates. 

Statistics on zero-click exploits illustrate their rise — the first nine months of 2022 saw nine zero-click attacks, while the same period in 2023 saw 13. For users, the best defense against such exploits is to install Apple’s latest updates promptly.

Mitigating iOS Security Risks for In-house Developers

In-house corporate developers face many challenges in ensuring the security of their organization’s iOS applications. The following best practices provide a brief roadmap for in-house developers aiming to fortify their organizations against potential iOS security vulnerabilities:

• Enforce Mobile App Security Protocols: Implement strict mobile app security protocols, including end-to-end encryption and secure authentication methods. These measures help protect sensitive data and prevent unauthorized access to corporate mobile applications.
• Prevent Data Breaches on iOS: Use data leakage prevention tools that monitor and block the transmission of sensitive information outside the corporate network. Regular security audits and employee training on data handling are also crucial in minimizing risks of data exposure.
• Regularly Address iOS App Vulnerabilities: Use automated tools to scan for vulnerabilities within apps and apply fixes before attackers can exploit them. 
• Stay Updated With iOS Security Updates: Prioritize the integration of the latest iOS security updates into the development cycle. This includes testing for compatibility and functionality to ensure that security enhancements are active and do not disrupt business operations.
• Adhere to iOS Security Best Practices: Use secure coding techniques, regularly review code for potential security issues, and ensure all third-party libraries and software development kits (SDKs) used in the app development are up to date and from reputable sources.

Wrapping Up: Vigilance and Protection in iOS Security

While iOS is known for its security, vulnerabilities persist, posing risks to data and device integrity. To combat these threats, users and developers must be vigilant, adopting best practices and investing in DevSecOps. 

PreEmptive’s suite of products, including Dotfuscator, DashO, JSDefender — and now Defender for iOS — plays a crucial role in this defense strategy. By providing multiple layers of protection through obfuscation and active runtime checks, PreEmptive helps developers safeguard applications against hacking and tampering, ensuring the security of intellectual property, sensitive data, and revenue.