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Security Tools Reference

Complete list of tools required for LLM-driven Android penetration testing.

Quick Status Check

Run this to check which tools are installed:

./scripts/check-tools.sh

Tool Categories

1. Android Debug Bridge (ADB) - REQUIRED

Tool Purpose Install
adb Device communication, shell access, file transfer Android SDK Platform Tools
fastboot Bootloader operations, flashing Android SDK Platform Tools 
# macOS
brew install android-platform-tools

# Linux
sudo apt install android-tools-adb android-tools-fastboot

# Verify
adb version

2. Dynamic Analysis - REQUIRED

Tool Purpose Install
frida Runtime instrumentation, hooking pip install frida-tools
frida-server On-device Frida daemon Download from GitHub
objection Frida-powered mobile exploration pip install objection 
# Install Frida tools
pip install frida-tools

# Install Objection
pip install objection

# Download frida-server for device architecture
# Check arch: adb shell getprop ro.product.cpu.abi
ARCH="x86_64"  # or arm64-v8a, armeabi-v7a
VERSION=$(frida --version)
wget https://github.com/frida/frida/releases/download/${VERSION}/frida-server-${VERSION}-android-${ARCH}.xz
unxz frida-server-${VERSION}-android-${ARCH}.xz

# Push to device
adb push frida-server-* /data/local/tmp/frida-server
adb shell chmod 755 /data/local/tmp/frida-server
adb shell /data/local/tmp/frida-server &

# Verify
frida-ps -U

3. Static Analysis - REQUIRED

Tool Purpose Install
apktool APK decompilation/recompilation brew/apt
jadx DEX to Java decompiler brew/apt
dex2jar DEX to JAR conversion brew/apt
jd-gui JAR/class file viewer Download
androguard Python APK analysis library pip install 
# macOS
brew install apktool jadx dex2jar

# Linux
sudo apt install apktool jadx

# Python library
pip install androguard

# Verify
apktool --version
jadx --version

Automated static and dynamic analysis platform.

Tool Purpose Install
MobSF Automated mobile app security testing Docker/local 
# Docker (Recommended)
docker pull opensecurity/mobile-security-framework-mobsf
docker run -it --rm -p 8000:8000 opensecurity/mobile-security-framework-mobsf

# Local Installation
git clone https://github.com/MobSF/Mobile-Security-Framework-MobSF.git
cd Mobile-Security-Framework-MobSF
./setup.sh
./run.sh

# Access at http://localhost:8000

MobSF Capabilities: - APK/IPA static analysis - Source code review - Malware analysis - CVSS scoring - PDF reports

5. Network/Proxy Tools - REQUIRED FOR MITM

Tool Purpose Install
mitmproxy HTTPS interception proxy pip/brew
Burp Suite Web app security testing Download
OWASP ZAP Open source web scanner brew/apt
nmap Network scanning brew/apt
Wireshark Packet capture/analysis brew/apt 
# mitmproxy
pip install mitmproxy
# or
brew install mitmproxy

# OWASP ZAP
brew install --cask owasp-zap
# or
sudo apt install zaproxy

# nmap
brew install nmap
# or
sudo apt install nmap

# Wireshark
brew install --cask wireshark
# or
sudo apt install wireshark

# Burp Suite (manual download)
# https://portswigger.net/burp/communitydownload

Proxy Setup for Android: 

# Start mitmproxy
mitmproxy -p 8080

# Configure Android proxy
adb shell settings put global http_proxy $(hostname -I | awk '{print $1}'):8080

# Install CA certificate
adb push ~/.mitmproxy/mitmproxy-ca-cert.cer /sdcard/
# Then: Settings > Security > Install from storage

# Clear proxy when done
adb shell settings put global http_proxy :0

Tool Purpose Install
drozer Android security assessment framework pip/Docker
drozer-agent On-device agent APK Download 
# Install drozer
pip install drozer

# Download agent APK
wget https://github.com/WithSecureLabs/drozer/releases/latest/download/drozer-agent.apk

# Install agent on device
adb install drozer-agent.apk

# Start agent, enable server in app, then connect
drozer console connect

# Common commands
dz> run app.package.list -f <keyword>
dz> run app.package.info -a <package>
dz> run app.package.attacksurface <package>
dz> run app.activity.info -a <package>
dz> run app.provider.info -a <package>
dz> run scanner.provider.injection -a <package>

7. Database Tools - REQUIRED

Tool Purpose Install
sqlite3 SQLite database inspection Built-in/brew
sqlcipher Encrypted SQLite support brew/apt
DB Browser for SQLite GUI database viewer brew/apt 
# sqlite3 (usually pre-installed)
sqlite3 --version

# sqlcipher for encrypted databases
brew install sqlcipher
# or
sudo apt install sqlcipher

# DB Browser (GUI)
brew install --cask db-browser-for-sqlite

# Extract and analyze app database
adb shell run-as com.target.app cat databases/app.db > app.db
sqlite3 app.db ".tables"
sqlite3 app.db "SELECT * FROM users;"

8. Exploit Development - OPTIONAL (Pre-installed in Docker)

These tools are included in the standard agentic-sandbox Docker image.

Tool Purpose Install
pwntools CTF/exploit development pip install
radare2 Reverse engineering Built-in (Docker) / brew/apt
ghidra NSA reverse engineering tool Built-in (Docker) / Download
ropper ROP gadget finder pip install 
# In Docker Sandbox, just run:
r2 -v
ghidra-headless -h

For local installation: 

# pwntools
pip install pwntools

# radare2
brew install radare2
# or
sudo apt install radare2

# ropper
pip install ropper

# Ghidra (manual)
# https://ghidra-sre.org/

9. Root Detection Bypass - OPTIONAL

Tool Purpose Install
Magisk Systemless root + MagiskHide Install on device
RootCloak Xposed module for root hiding Xposed repo
Frida scripts Runtime root detection bypass Custom 
# Using Objection for root bypass
objection -g com.target.app explore
com.target.app on (Android: 11) [usb] # android root disable

# Using Frida script
frida -U -f com.target.app -l anti-root.js --no-pause

10. SSL Pinning Bypass - REQUIRED FOR HTTPS APPS

Tool Purpose Install
objection Built-in SSL pinning bypass pip install
Frida scripts Custom SSL bypass Custom 
# Objection SSL bypass
objection -g com.target.app explore
com.target.app on (Android: 11) [usb] # android sslpinning disable

# Frida universal SSL bypass
frida -U -f com.target.app -l universal-ssl-bypass.js --no-pause

Complete Installation Script

#!/bin/bash
# Install all Android pentest tools

# Python tools
pip install frida-tools objection drozer androguard mitmproxy pwntools ropper

# macOS (Homebrew)
brew install android-platform-tools apktool jadx dex2jar nmap
brew install --cask wireshark owasp-zap db-browser-for-sqlite

# MobSF via Docker
docker pull opensecurity/mobile-security-framework-mobsf

echo "Installation complete. Run ./scripts/check-tools.sh to verify."

Tool Verification Matrix

Tool Check Command Expected Output
adb adb version Android Debug Bridge version 1.0.x
frida frida --version 16.x.x
objection objection version objection: x.x.x
apktool apktool --version Apktool v2.x.x
jadx jadx --version jadx 1.x.x
mitmproxy mitmproxy --version Mitmproxy: 10.x.x
nmap nmap --version Nmap version 7.x
drozer drozer version drozer x.x.x
sqlite3 sqlite3 --version 3.x.x

LLM Script Generation Considerations

When the LLM generates scripts, it should:

  1. Check tool availability before using
  2. Use full paths when tools might be in non-standard locations
  3. Fall back to alternatives if primary tool unavailable
  4. Validate target architecture before pushing binaries

Example tool check in generated scripts: 

import shutil

REQUIRED_TOOLS = ['adb', 'frida', 'objection']

def check_tools():
    missing = []
    for tool in REQUIRED_TOOLS:
        if not shutil.which(tool):
            missing.append(tool)
    if missing:
        raise RuntimeError(f"Missing tools: {missing}")

Version Compatibility

Android Version API Level Recommended Tools
Android 14 34 Frida 16+, Objection 1.11+
Android 13 33 Frida 15+, Objection 1.11+
Android 12 31-32 Frida 15+, Objection 1.11+
Android 11 30 Frida 14+, Objection 1.10+
Android 10 29 Frida 12+, Objection 1.9+

References