This mobile app security checklist walks through the practical checks worth making on any Android or iOS app before release: local data storage, network communication, authentication and session handling, code and binary protection, and platform interaction. None of it requires deep technical expertise, mostly it comes down to configuration choices that are easy to get right and just as easy to overlook. Whether you’re auditing your own app or learning what to look for, work through each section below and tick off what’s already covered. Anything you’re unsure about links to a fuller explanation.
What This Mobile App Security Checklist Covers
This checklist draws on the same control categories laid out in the OWASP Mobile Application Security Verification Standard (MASVS), the industry standard for mobile app security, condensed here into five practical categories you can work through directly: local data storage, network communication, authentication and session handling, code and binary protection, and platform interaction.
📌 How to use this: Go category by category. Each checkbox is clickable, so you can check items off as you review them. Use the print button below to save or print a clean copy.
🖨️ Print This Checklist
🗄️ Local Data Storage
Sensitive data stored on the device is only as safe as the storage method behind it, and plenty of apps still get this wrong.
- Sensitive data such as tokens, credentials, and personal information uses the platform’s secure storage APIs, not plain preferences or a local database.
- No sensitive data is written to application logs, even in debug builds.
- Local file and directory permissions follow least privilege. See our guide on weak file permissions.
🌐 Network Communication
Traffic leaving the device is the easiest place for an attacker to intercept something useful, especially on a network they control.
- All network traffic uses HTTPS with no cleartext fallback allowed.
- Certificate validation is properly enforced, ideally with certificate pinning on sensitive endpoints. See dangerous SSL validation mistakes.
🔐 Authentication & Session Handling
Biometric unlock and stored sessions are convenient, but only if the underlying token handling is done properly.
- Authentication tokens are stored in the platform keystore or keychain, not in plain preferences or a local database.
- Biometric authentication is tied to a cryptographic key, not just a UI screen that can be bypassed. See our guide on dangerous password practices for the same underlying credential logic.
🛡️ Code & Binary Protection
A mobile app ships to every user’s device, which means an attacker has as much time as they want to take it apart.
- The app has some resistance to basic reverse engineering, such as obfuscation and encrypted string constants for sensitive values. See how hackers reverse engineer apps.
- Runtime tampering and hooking attempts are detected around sensitive operations. Tools like Frida are commonly used to test this, and RASP is the typical defense against it.
📱 Platform Interaction
Permissions and embedded browsers are common places where an otherwise secure app quietly creates an opening.
- The app requests only the permissions it actually needs, not broad access “just in case.”
- Any WebView components disable JavaScript-to-native bridges unless explicitly required, and only load trusted content.
None of these checks require deep security expertise. Most are configuration decisions made once, early in development, and then quietly forgotten as the app grows and new features get added. Working through this list before any major release, or once a year as a matter of habit, catches drift before it turns into a real vulnerability worth worrying about.
This checklist pairs well with our deeper guides on mobile app security. Explore the full Mobile App Security hub for more.