How to Implement App-Specific Android Bindings Using AI
This Knowledge Base article describes how to use Appdome’s AI/ML in your CI/CD pipeline to continuously deliver plugins that Implement Android Bindings in Android apps.
What Are App-Specific Android Bindings?
App-Specific Android Bindings enable seamless integration between an app’s external libraries, third-party frameworks, and security protections. These bindings dynamically link the app’s core functionalities to security mechanisms at runtime, ensuring that protections remain active and effective across different Android environments. Attackers often exploit unprotected bindings to bypass security controls, inject malicious code, or manipulate app logic through runtime modifications. Without robust binding protections, mobile apps are vulnerable to reverse engineering, static and dynamic analysis, and sophisticated tampering methods. Strengthening Android bindings is essential for ensuring app security, safeguarding sensitive data, and maintaining compliance with industry regulations like PCI DSS and GDPR.
How Appdome Protects Android Apps With App-Specific Android Bindings?
Appdome’s dynamic App-Specific Android Bindings plugin automates the secure binding of critical app functions, external libraries, and security frameworks at runtime. This protection obfuscates runtime integrations, preventing attackers from analyzing or modifying security mechanisms through external environments. Appdome provides automatic and custom binding schemes, allowing developers to select which binaries and symbols to protect. By preventing unauthorized code execution and tampering, this protection ensures app resilience against reverse engineering and runtime manipulation.
Appdome will receive input that indicates which binaries and which code flows within the binary to bind.
This means the Appdome user will be presented with a list of binaries within the app and will have the option to select which binaries should be protected.
In addition, the user can select the binding scheme:
- Automatic Binding Scheme – Protects common & generic functions.
- Custom Binding Scheme – The Appdome user selects a list of symbols or manually inputs the names of the symbols to bind.
This protection provides a solution for:
- Apps requiring broader binding coverage to counter advanced attackers who have intimate knowledge of the app.
- Performance-heavy apps that need a tailor-made solution to prevent performance issues (e.g., mobile games).
Prerequisites for Using Appdome's App-Specific Android Bindings Plugins:
To use Appdome’s mobile app security build system to Implement Android Bindings , you’ll need:
- Appdome account (create a free Appdome account here)
- A license for App-Specific Android Bindings
- Mobile App (.apk or .aab for Android)
- Signing Credentials (see Signing Secure Android apps and Signing Secure iOS apps)
How to Implement Implement Android Bindings in Android Apps Using Appdome
On Appdome, follow these 3 simple steps to create self-defending Android Apps that Implement Android Bindings without an SDK or gateway:
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Designate the Mobile App to be protected.
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Upload an app via the Appdome Mobile Defense platform GUI or via Appdome’s DEV-API or CI/CD Plugins.
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Android Formats: .apk or .aab
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App-Specific Android Bindings is compatible with: Java, JS, C++, C#, Kotlin, Flutter, React Native, Unity, Xamarin, Cordova and other Android apps.
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Select the defense: App-Specific Android Bindings.
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Follow the steps in Sections 2.2-2.2.2 of this article to add the App-Specific Android Bindings feature to your Fusion Set via the Appdome Console.
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When you select the App-Specific Android Bindings you'll notice that the Fusion Set you created in step 2.1 now bears the icon of the protection category that contains App-Specific Android Bindings.
Figure 2: Fusion Set that displays the newly added App-Specific Android Bindings protection
Note: Annotating the Fusion Set to identify the protection(s) selected is optional only (not mandatory). -
Open the Fusion Set Detail Summary by clicking the “...” symbol on the far-right corner of the Fusion Set. Copy the Fusion Set ID from the Fusion Set Detail Summary (as shown below):
Figure 3: Fusion Set Detail Summary
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Follow the instructions below to use the Fusion Set ID inside any standard mobile DevOps or CI/CD toolkit like Bitrise, Jenkins, Travis, Team City, Circle CI or other system:
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Refer to the Appdome API Reference Guide for API building instructions.
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Look for sample APIs in Appdome’s GitHub Repository.
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Create and name the Fusion Set (security template) that will contain the App-Specific Android Bindings feature as shown below:Figure 1: Fusion Set that will contain the App-Specific Android Bindings feature
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Add the App-Specific Android Bindings feature to your security template.
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Navigate to Build > Anti Fraud tab > Mobile Cheat Prevention section in the Appdome Console.
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Toggle OnApp-Specific Android Bindings.
(a) Choose to monitor this attack vector by checking the Threat Events checkbox associated with App-Specific Android Bindings as shown below.
(b) To receive mobile Threat Monitoring, check the ThreatScope™ box as shown below. For more details, see our knowledge base article on ThreatScope™ Mobile XDR.Figure 4: Selecting Implement Android Bindings
Note: The Appdome Platform displays the Mobile Operation Systems supported by each defense in real-time. For more details, see our OS Support Policy KB. -
Select the Threat-Event™ in-app mobile Threat Defense and Intelligence policy for App-Specific Android Bindings:
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Threat-Events™ OFF > In-App Defense
If the Threat-Events™ setting is not selected. Appdome will detect and defend the user and app by enforcing Android Bindings.
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Threat-Events™ ON > In-App Detection
When this setting is used, Appdome detects binding manipulation and passes Appdome’s Threat-Event™ attack intelligence to the app’s business logic for processing, enforcement, and user notification. For more information on consuming and using Appdome Threat-Events™ in the app, see section Using Threat-Events™ to Implement App-Specific Android Bindings Intelligence and Control in Mobile Apps.
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Threat-Events™ ON > In-App Defense
When this setting is used, Appdome detects and defends against Android Bindings (same as Appdome Enforce) and passes Appdome’s Threat-Event™ attack intelligence to the app’s business logic for processing. For more information on consuming and using Appdome Threat-Events™ in the app, see section Using Threat-Events™ for Implement App-Specific Android Bindings Intelligence and Control in Mobile Apps.
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Configure the User Experience Options for App-Specific Android Bindings:
With Threat-Events™ OFF, Appdome provides several user experience options for mobile brands and developers.- App Compromise Notification: Customize the pop-up or toast Appdome uses to notify the user when a threat is present while using the protected mobile app.
- Short message Option. This is available for mobile devices that allow a banner notification for security events.
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Localized Message Option. Allows Appdome users to support global languages in security notifications.
Figure 5: Default User Experience Options for Appdome’s Android Bindings
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App-Specific Android Bindings Threat Code™. Appdome uses AI/ML to generate a unique code each time App-Specific Android Bindings is triggered by an active threat on the mobile device. Use the code in Appdome Threat Resolution Center™ to help end users identify, find and resolve active threats on the personal mobile devices.
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Congratulations! The App-Specific Android Bindings protection is now added to the mobile app -
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Certify the App-Specific Android Bindings feature in Android Apps
After building App-Specific Android Bindings, Appdome generates a Certified Secure™ certificate to guarantee that the App-Specific Android Bindings protection has been added and is protecting the app. To verify that the App-Specific Android Bindings protection has been added to the mobile app, locate the protection in the Certified Secure™ certificate as shown below:
Figure 6: Certified Secure™ certificate
Each Certified Secure™ certificate provides DevOps and DevSecOps organizations the entire workflow summary, audit trail of each build, and proof of protection that App-Specific Android Bindings has been added to each Android app. Certified Secure provides instant and in-line DevSecOps compliance certification that App-Specific Android Bindings and other mobile app security features are in each build of the mobile app.
Using Threat-Events™ for Android Bindings Intelligence and Control in Android Apps
Appdome Threat-Events™ provides consumable in-app mobile app attack intelligence and defense control when Android Bindings are detected. To consume and use Threat-Events™ for Android Bindings in Android Apps, use registerReceiver in the Application OnCreate, and the code samples for Threat-Events™ for Android Bindings shown below.
The specifications and options for Threat-Events™ for Android Bindings are:
Threat-Event™ Elements | Implement Android Bindings Method Detail |
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Appdome Feature Name | App-Specific Android Bindings |
Threat-Event Mode | |
OFF, IN-APP DEFENSE | Appdome detects, defends and notifies user (standard OS dialog) using customizable messaging. |
ON, IN-APP DETECTION | Appdome detects the attack or threat and passes the event in a standard format to the app for processing (app chooses how and when to enforce). |
ON, IN-APP DEFENSE | Uses Appdome Enforce mode for any attack or threat and passes the event in a standard format to the app for processing (gather intel on attacks and threats without losing any protection). |
Certified Secure™ Threat Event Check | |
Visible in ThreatScope™ | |
Developer Parameters for Implementing Android Bindings Threat-Event™ | |
Threat-Event NAME | AppIntegrityError |
Threat-Event DATA | reasonData |
Threat-Event CODE | reasonCode |
Threat-Event REF | 6801 |
Threat-Event SCORE | |
currentThreatEventScore | Current Threat-Event score |
threatEventsScore | Total Threat-events score |
Threat-Event Context Keys | |
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message | Message displayed for the user on event |
failSafeEnforce | Timed enforcement against the identified threat |
externalID | The external ID of the event which can be listened via Threat Events |
osVersion | OS version of the current device |
deviceModel | Current device model |
deviceManufacturer | The manufacturer of the current device |
fusedAppToken | The task ID of the Appdome fusion of the currently running app |
kernelInfo | Info about the kernel: system name, node name, release, version and machine. |
carrierPlmn | PLMN of the device. Only available for Android devices. |
deviceID | Current device ID |
reasonCode | Reason code of the occurred event |
buildDate | Appdome fusion date of the current application |
devicePlatform | OS name of the current device |
carrierName | Carrier name of the current device. Only available for Android. |
updatedOSVersion | Is the OS version up to date |
deviceBrand | Brand of the device |
deviceBoard | Board of the device |
buildUser | Build user |
buildHost | Build host |
sdkVersion | Sdk version |
timeZone | Time zone |
deviceFaceDown | Is the device face down |
locationLong | Location longitude conditioned by location permission |
locationLat | Location latitude conditioned by location permission |
locationState | Location state conditioned by location permission |
wifiSsid | Wifi SSID |
wifiSsidPermissionStatus | Wifi SSID permission status |
threatCode | The last six characters of the threat code specify the OS, allowing the Threat Resolution Center to address the attack on the affected device. |
AntampIntegrityErrorMessage | Error message |
data | Data related to the security event |
certificateSHA1 | Failed certificate |
With Threat-Events™ enabled (turned ON), Android developers can get detailed attack intelligence and granular defense control in Android applications and create amazing user experiences for all mobile end users when Android Bindings are detected.
The following is a code sample for native Android apps, which uses all values in the specification above for App-Specific Android Bindings:
Important! Replace all placeholder instances of <Context Key> with the specific name of your threat event context key across all language examples. This is crucial to ensure your code functions correctly with the intended event data. For example, The <Context Key> could be the message, externalID, OS Version, reason code, etc.
xxxxxxxxxx
IntentFilter intentFilter = new IntentFilter();
intentFilter.addAction("AppIntegrityError");
BroadcastReceiver threatEventReceiver = new BroadcastReceiver() {
public void onReceive(Context context, Intent intent) {
String message = intent.getStringExtra("message"); // Message shown to the user
String reasonData = intent.getStringExtra("reasonData"); // Threat detection cause
String reasonCode = intent.getStringExtra("reasonCode"); // Event reason code
// Current threat event score
String currentThreatEventScore = intent.getStringExtra("currentThreatEventScore");
// Total threat events score
String threatEventsScore = intent.getStringExtra("threatEventsScore");
// Replace '<Context Key>' with your specific event context key
// String variable = intent.getStringExtra("<Context Key>");
// Your logic goes here (Send data to Splunk/Dynatrace/Show Popup...)
}
};
if (Build.VERSION.SDK_INT >= Build.VERSION_CODES.TIRAMISU) {
registerReceiver(threatEventReceiver, intentFilter, Context.RECEIVER_NOT_EXPORTED);
} else {
registerReceiver(threatEventReceiver, intentFilter);
}
Using Appdome, there are no development or coding prerequisites to build secured Android Apps by using App-Specific Android Bindings. There is no SDK and no library to code or implement in the app and no gateway to deploy in your network. All protections are built into each app and the resulting app is self-defending and self-protecting.
Releasing and Publishing Mobile Apps with App-Specific Android Bindings
After successfully securing your app by using Appdome, there are several available options to complete your project, depending on your app lifecycle or workflow. These include:
- Customizing, Configuring & Branding Secure Mobile Apps.
- Deploying/Publishing Secure mobile apps to Public or Private app stores.
- Releasing Secured Android & iOS Apps built on Appdome.
Related Articles:
- How to Build Binding Obfuscation in iOS Apps Using AI
- How to use Appdome Anti-Tampering in iOS Apps
- How to Prevent Binary Modification in Android & iOS apps
How Do I Learn More?
If you have any questions, please send them our way at support.appdome.com or via the chat window on the Appdome platform.
Thank you!
Thanks for visiting Appdome! Our mission is to secure every app on the planet by making mobile app security easy. We hope we’re living up to the mission with your project.