Assessing the Capability of Android Dynamic Analysis Tools to Combat Anti-Runtime Analysis Techniques

TL;DR

This paper empirically evaluates how well current Android dynamic analysis tools can overcome Anti-Runtime Analysis techniques used by malicious apps, revealing significant gaps in their effectiveness.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive assessment of existing tools against ARA techniques, highlighting their limitations and the need for more robust solutions.

Findings

Current tools struggle to bypass ARA mechanisms

Significant gaps in dynamic analysis effectiveness

Need for improved anti-ARA techniques

Abstract

As the dominant mobile operating system, Android continues to attract a substantial influx of new applications each year. However, this growth is accompanied by increased attention from malicious actors, resulting in a significant rise in security threats to the Android ecosystem. Among these threats, the adoption of Anti-Runtime Analysis (ARA) techniques by malicious applications poses a serious challenge, as it hinders security professionals from effectively analyzing malicious behaviors using dynamic analysis tools. ARA technologies are designed to prevent the dynamic examination of applications, thus complicating efforts to ensure platform security. This paper presents a comprehensive empirical study that assesses the ability of widely-used Android dynamic analysis tools to bypass various ARA techniques. Our findings reveal a critical gap in the effectiveness of existing dynamic analysis tools to counter ARA mechanisms, highlighting an urgent need for more robust solutions. This work provides valuable insights into the limitations of existing tools and highlights the need for improved methods to counteract ARA technologies, thus advancing the field of software security and dynamic analysis.