Mobile applications have become the primary interface for signing transactions, verifying identity, and issuing credentials. As digital asset infrastructure and financial services shift toward mobile‑first delivery, institutions are expected to secure more than just application code. They must safeguard key material, enforce authentication boundaries, and validate credential workflows across devices and cloud infrastructure.
These expectations are especially acute in custody, fintech, payments, and enterprise identity. According to the FDIC’s analysis of mobile payments risk, mobile systems introduce fraud, vendor, and IT exposure concerns that regulators and institutions increasingly monitor. At the same time, biometrics and hardware‑based signing are becoming standard components of secure mobile credential systems.
Platform providers such as Apple and Google have introduced hardware‑backed APIs that enable credential signing to occur entirely within trusted execution environments. Apple’s NFC & Secure Element (SE) platform supports authenticated, device‑level issuance and authorization workflows using Secure Enclave, Secure Element, and NFC hardware.
One of the clearest examples is Apple’s Secure Element and NFC stack embedded in iOS 18.1 and maintained in iOS 18.6. This architecture enables on‑device credential signing with strong hardware‑backed protection.
Secure Element and NFC Signing: Implementation Overview
Since iOS 18.1, Apple has supported credential signing through the Secure Element, a tamper‑resistant chip. Applications authorized through Apple’s entitlement process can register Java Card applets, enforce biometric authentication via Secure Enclave, and transmit cryptographic payloads through the NFC controller.
The signing flow includes:
- A mobile application triggers a credential request
- The user authenticates using Face ID or passcode
- Secure Element generates a cryptographic signature
- NFC transmits the result to an external terminal or service endpoint
Private keys remain inaccessible to the operating system, the application layer, or third‑party services. iOS 18.6 maintains these protections while reinforcing runtime authentication, entitlement control, and hardware‑level isolation.
This architecture already supports transaction approval, credential issuance, identity verification, and mobile login use cases.
Who Implements Secure Element-Based Signing
Secure Element integrations are not handled by hardware vendors or end users. They are implemented by organizations building secure mobile infrastructure, including:
- Wallet providers developing on-device signing flows
- Fintech platforms issuing credentials for payment or transaction authentication
- Identity and credential platforms supporting mobile proofs or DIDs
- CBDC and digital currency infrastructure handling secure user authorization
- Enterprise authentication vendors building passkey or credential-based login
These organizations manage applet provisioning, integrate Secure Element APIs, and coordinate transaction flow between device, cloud, and verification systems.
What Security Reviews Assess
Security reviews do not evaluate the Secure Element hardware itself. Instead, they assess the implementation surrounding it. This includes how credentials are managed, how authentication is enforced, and how signed data is processed or trusted.
Cantina’s Web2 security reviews cover the full execution environment:
1. Credential and Signing Workflows
- Applet structure and permissions
- Signature generation and replay protection
- Key usage enforcement and session scoping
2. Authentication and Runtime Validation
- Secure Enclave integration
- Biometric enforcement flows
- Compromise detection and runtime controls
3. Application Logic and User Interaction
- Credential triggers and fallback behavior
- Interface control and session integrity
- Access authorization and control flow
4. Backend and Infrastructure Systems
- API access control and credential routing
- Transport security for signed payloads
- Session validation and action approval systems
5. Documentation for Governance and Compliance
- Risk scoring and remediation guidance
- Alignment with platform entitlements and security policies
- Review artifacts prepared for vendor management or audit submission
Extending Assurance Beyond the Device
Secure Element enables strong local signing, but the surrounding infrastructure often introduces greater risk. Mobile applications interface with backend APIs, orchestration scripts, admin interfaces, and third-party systems. These elements manage access, propagate credentials, and authorize critical actions.
Security reviews must include:
- Authentication systems across web and mobile
- Cloud access configurations and SaaS integrations
- Automation logic with signing permissions
- Dashboards or admin tools influencing signing behavior
Cantina’s infrastructure-level reviews address these components, ensuring that device-based security is not undermined by surrounding system weaknesses.
Explore Cantina’s Web2 Security Review Services
Mobile Signing Is the Use Case. Secure Infrastructure Is the Requirement.
Hardware-backed signing is an effective tool for credential isolation and transaction assurance, but it is not sufficient on its own. Institutional trust depends on the integrity of the entire system: mobile application logic, backend infrastructure, authentication workflows, and governance controls.
Organizations must verify that signing implementations are correct, auditable, and resilient across multiple environments. Secure Element is one layer of that system. Cantina supports the rest.
Web2 Security Review Outcomes
Organizations engaging Cantina gain:
- Verified signing logic across mobile and cloud workflows
- Documentation aligned to platform policies and regulatory expectations
- Remediation guidance with structured ownership and follow-up
- Visibility into backend, automation, and credential distribution risks
- Preparedness for incidents, revocation, and audit review
Reviews are tailored to reduce risk, support compliance, and enable secure delivery of high-value mobile functionality.
Engagement and Assurance
Cantina conducts security reviews for organizations building or integrating credential signing infrastructure. Whether you are using Secure Element, biometric authorization, or mobile-first identity, we deliver structured assessments that support both technical correctness and institutional accountability.
To scope a review or discuss your mobile architecture, contact Cantina.