Demystifying Android Non-SDK APls: Measurement and Understanding

Shishuai Yang, Rui Li, Jiongyi Chen, Wenrui Diao, Shanqing Guo

Abstract

During the Android app development, the SDK is essential, which provides rich APIs to facilitate the implementations of functionalities. However, in the Android framework, there still exist plenty of non-SDK APIs that are not well documented. These non-SDK APIs can be invoked through unconventional ways, such as Java reflection. On the other hand, these APIs are not stable and may be changed or even removed in future Android versions, providing no guarantee for compatibility. From Android 9 (API level 28), Google began to strictly restrict the use of non-SDK APIs, and the corresponding checking mechanism has been integrated into the Android OS.

BibTeX

@inproceedings{Yang-al:ICSE22,
  author    = {Shishuai Yang and
               Rui Li and
               Jiongyi Chen and
               Wenrui Diao and
               Shanqing Guo},
  title     = {Demystifying Android {Non-SDK} {APls:} Measurement and Understanding},
  booktitle = {ICSE},
  pages     = {647--658},
  publisher = {{ACM}},
  year      = {2022},
}

Demystifying Android Non-SDK APls: Measurement and Understanding

Abstract

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