While many analytics teams seek to validate their mobile apps in the same way they validate their websites, ObservePoint currently focuses on providing robust solutions for web validation and governance. This document outlines the technical and resource-related reasons why a mobile app testing solution is not offered.
Key Technical Challenges
1. SSL Certificate Blockers
Web browsers provide APIs to monitor page activity, such as network requests, even when these requests are run over SSL. This monitoring capability allows validation tools to capture and analyze web traffic easily. However, with mobile apps, this functionality is not as readily available. Mobile app traffic is protected by SSL, making it difficult to intercept for validation purposes. To address this limitation, tools require the installation of custom certificates on devices, which can lead to challenges such as security concerns, complex setup procedures, and potential device compatibility issues. Unlike web applications, mobile apps lack built-in mechanisms for monitoring and validating traffic in the same seamless way, making compliance and testing more complex.
To overcome this, tools often require:
Custom App Builds: Clients may need to generate special versions of their apps with trusted certificates. This adds an extra layer of complexity and workload for development teams, who must maintain these custom builds for testing purposes.
Version Discrepancies: There is a risk that the version of the app being tested with the custom certificate differs from the production version. This can lead to inaccuracies in data, as the behavior of the app in the testing environment may not precisely reflect that of
2. Replay Failures Across Frameworks
Automating user interactions—such as taps, drags, and text input—across mobile apps is unreliable due to the variety of mobile app frameworks (Swift, React Native, Xamarin, etc.). Replay failures are common because:
Framework Incompatibility: Unlike web browsers, which use a standard DOM API, mobile frameworks lack a unified interaction model, making automation at scale unfeasible.
UI Variability: Recorded interactions often fail when the app’s user interface changes or is run on devices with different screen sizes.
3. Simulator Build Requirements
Running apps in simulators such as Appetize requires custom “simulator builds,” which introduces friction between analytics and development teams. These custom builds interrupt development workflows and require additional manual effort.
4. Security Measures
Certain industries—particularly healthcare and finance—implement security measures that prevent tools from intercepting or modifying app network traffic. Vendors such as Appdome and integrated OS security features block tools from running in these environments, making mobile testing even more challenging.
Alternative Solutions
If mobile app testing is a requirement, third-party platforms such as BrowserStack App Automate or Appium provide viable alternatives. These platforms use SDKs integrated directly into app code to report network activity, eliminating the need for SSL proxies. However, integrating such SDKs typically requires more development effort and approval from security teams. Also, ObservePoint can analyze HAR files generated by other systems, allowing for further flexibility in capturing and validating network requests from various sources.
Conclusion
ObservePoint continues to focus on delivering industry-leading web validation and analytics solutions. For customers needing mobile app validation, alternative tools such as BrowserStack or Appium may be suitable. However, our priority remains ensuring the accuracy and performance of your web analytics, allowing you to focus on delivering valuable insights.
For further questions or guidance, please reach out to our support team.