Android Frida Pentesting Skill

A comprehensive guide for dynamic Android application analysis using Frida instrumentation.

Quick Start

Install Frida Tools

pip install frida-tools
pip install frida

Setup Frida Server on Android

Rooted device (one-liner):

adb root; adb connect localhost:6000; sleep 1; adb push frida-server /data/local/tmp/; adb shell "chmod 755 /data/local/tmp/frida-server"; adb shell "/data/local/tmp/frida-server &"

Verify installation:

frida-ps -U  # List all processes
frida-ps -U | grep -i <package_name>  # Find specific app

Basic Hooking Commands

# Spawn app with hooks (hooks before onCreate)
frida -U --no-pause -l script.js -f com.example.app

# Attach to running app
frida -U -n com.example.app -l script.js

# List installed apps
frida-ps -Uai

Frida Gadget (No-Root Option)

When you don't have root access, bundle Frida Gadget inside the APK:

Manual Gadget Integration

1. Unpack APK:

apktool d app.apk -o app_modified

2. Add Gadget files:

• Place

  libfrida-gadget.so

  in

  lib/<abi>/

  (e.g.,

  lib/arm64-v8a/

  )
• Create

  assets/frida-gadget.config

  :

{
  "interaction": { "type": "script", "path": "/sdcard/hook.js" },
  "runtime": { "logFile": "/sdcard/frida-gadget.log" }
}

3. Repack and sign:

apktool b app_modified -o app_gadget.apk
uber-apk-signer -a app_gadget.apk -o out_signed
adb install -r out_signed/app_gadget-aligned-debugSigned.apk

Automated with Objection

objection patchapk -s app.apk \
  -c gadget-config.json \
  -l agent.js \
  --use-aapt2

Common Hooking Patterns

Hook Functions Without Parameters

Java.perform(function () {
  var targetClass = Java.use("com.example.ClassName");
  targetClass.methodName.overload().implementation = function () {
    console.log("[+] methodName called");
    return false; // Return custom value
  };
});

Hook Functions With Parameters

Java.perform(function () {
  var targetClass = Java.use("com.example.ClassName");
  
  targetClass.methodName.overload("java.lang.String", "int").implementation = function (arg1, arg2) {
    console.log("[+] Input arg1: " + arg1);
    console.log("[+] Input arg2: " + arg2);
    
    var result = this.methodName(arg1, arg2);
    console.log("[+] Output: " + result);
    return result;
  };
});

Hook Activity Lifecycle Methods

Java.perform(function () {
  var MainActivity = Java.use("com.example.MainActivity");
  
  MainActivity.onCreate.overload("android.os.Bundle").implementation = function (bundle) {
    console.log("[+] MainActivity.onCreate() called");
    return this.onCreate(bundle);
  };
  
  MainActivity.onStart.overload().implementation = function () {
    console.log("[+] MainActivity.onStart() called");
    return this.onStart();
  };
});

Intercept Decryption Functions

function bytesToString(data) {
  var result = "";
  for (var i = 0; i < data.length; i++) {
    result += String.fromCharCode(data[i]);
  }
  return result;
}

Java.perform(function () {
  var cryptoClass = Java.use("com.example.Crypto");
  
  cryptoClass.decrypt.overload("[B", "[B").implementation = function (key, encrypted) {
    console.log("[+] Key: " + bytesToString(key));
    console.log("[+] Encrypted: " + bytesToString(encrypted));
    
    var decrypted = this.decrypt(key, encrypted);
    console.log("[+] Decrypted: " + bytesToString(decrypted));
    return decrypted;
  };
});

Find and Inspect Object Instances

Java.choose("com.example.ClassName", {
  onMatch: function (instance) {
    console.log("[+] Found instance: " + instance);
    console.log("[+] Private field: " + instance.privateMethod());
  },
  onComplete: function () {
    console.log("[+] Search complete");
  }
});

Prevent App Exit

Java.perform(function () {
  var System = Java.use("java.lang.System");
  
  System.exit.overload("int").implementation = function (code) {
    console.log("[!] App tried to exit with code: " + code);
    // Don't call original - app stays running
    return;
  };
});

Anti-Debugging Bypass

Disable Root Detection

Java.perform(function () {
  var Build = Java.use("android.os.Build");
  var SystemProperties = Java.use("android.os.SystemProperties");
  
  // Fake fingerprint
  Build.FINGERPRINT.get = function() { return "generic/generic/generic"; };
  Build.HARDWARE.get = function() { return "generic"; };
  Build.MODEL.get = function() { return "Android SDK built for x86"; };
  Build.MANUFACTURER.get = function() { return "Google"; };
  
  // Block SystemProperties.get
  SystemProperties.get.overload("java.lang.String").implementation = function (key) {
    if (key.contains("ro.debuggable") || key.contains("ro.secure")) {
      return "0";
    }
    return this.get(key);
  };
});

Block SIGSEGV Handlers

Interceptor.attach(Module.findExportByName("libc.so", "sigaction"), {
  onEnter: function (args) {
    if (args[1] !== null) {
      console.log("[+] sigaction called - blocking anti-debug");
      args[1] = null;
    }
  }
});

DEX Dumping with clsdumper

# Install
pip install clsdumper

# Attach to running app
clsdumper com.example.app

# Spawn with hooks before early loaders
clsdumper com.example.app --spawn

# Use specific strategies
clsdumper com.example.app --strategies fart_dump,oat_extract,memory_scan

# Deep scan (slower, more thorough)
clsdumper com.example.app --deep-scan

# Extract classes to smali
clsdumper com.example.app --extract-classes

JDWP Injection (Debuggable Apps, No Root)

For apps with

android:debuggable="true"

:

# Clone and run
python frida-jdwp-loader.py frida -n com.example.app

# Keep breakpoint suspended for early hooks
python frida-jdwp-loader.py frida -n com.example.app -s

# Load script directly
python frida-jdwp-loader.py frida -n com.example.app -i script -l hook.js

Useful Scripts

See the

scripts/

directory for ready-to-use Frida scripts:

• clear-flag-secure.js

  - Remove FLAG_SECURE to enable screenshots

• basic-hook-template.js

  - Template for common hooking patterns

• setup-frida-server.sh

  - Automated frida-server deployment

Best Practices

1. Spawn vs Attach: Use

   --spawn

   (

   -f

   ) to hook before

   onCreate()

   for early initialization hooks. Use attach for running apps.

2. Multi-strategy DEX dumping: Hardened apps load code from multiple sources. Use clsdumper with default strategies plus

   --spawn

   for maximum coverage.

3. Frida 17+ Java Bridge: If your agent hooks Java, include the Java bridge:

npm install frida-java-bridge
npm run build  # Creates bundled _agent.js

4. Stealth: For Gadget on hardened apps, use obfuscated names and conditional loading to avoid detection.

5. UI Thread Hooks: For window manipulation, schedule on main thread to avoid flicker:

Java.scheduleOnMainThread(function () {
  // UI operations here
});

References

• Frida Documentation
• Frida Gadget
• Objection
• clsdumper
• Frida CodeShare