Building 0xbasinasnews: A Cybersecurity News Aggregator for Mobile

As someone deeply interested in cybersecurity, I found myself constantly checking multiple news sources to stay updated on the latest threats, vulnerabilities, and industry developments. This led me to build 0xbasinasnews—a React Native mobile app that aggregates cybersecurity news from five leading sources into a single, beautiful interface.

The Problem

Staying informed in cybersecurity means monitoring multiple sources:

• The Hacker News
• Threatpost
• Security Affairs
• InfoSec Magazine
• Bleeping Computer

Each source has its own website, RSS feed, and update schedule. Manually checking all of them is time-consuming and inefficient. I needed a solution that would bring all this information together in one place, accessible on my mobile device.

The Solution

0xbasinasnews is a React Native app built with Expo that solves this problem by:

• Aggregating multiple RSS feeds from five trusted cybersecurity news sources
• Providing a unified feed with clean, card-based UI
• Enabling offline reading by allowing users to save articles
• Offering a beautiful dark mode with a purplish theme perfect for late-night reading

Key Features

Multiple News Sources

The app fetches articles from five leading cybersecurity news sources, giving you comprehensive coverage of the security landscape in one place. Each article is clearly labeled with its source, so you know where the information is coming from.

Clean Card-Based UI

I designed the interface with readability in mind. Each article is displayed as a card showing:

• Article title and description
• Publication date with relative time (e.g., "2 hours ago")
• Source badge for easy identification
• Like button to save articles
• Link button to open articles in your browser

Save Articles for Offline Reading

One of my favorite features is the ability to save articles. With a simple tap of the heart icon, you can:

• Save articles to read later
• Access saved articles even when offline
• View all saved articles in a dedicated tab
• Remove articles from your saved list when you're done

All data is stored locally using AsyncStorage, ensuring your saved articles are always available, even without an internet connection.

Pull-to-Refresh

Stay up-to-date with the latest news by simply pulling down on the feed. The app fetches fresh articles from all sources, keeping you informed about the latest cybersecurity developments.

Beautiful Dark Mode

The app features a beautiful dark mode with a purplish theme that's easy on the eyes, especially for those late-night security research sessions. The color scheme is carefully chosen to reduce eye strain while maintaining excellent readability.

Technical Implementation

Technology Stack

• React Native: Cross-platform mobile development
• Expo: Simplified development and deployment workflow
• TypeScript: Type-safe code for better reliability
• AsyncStorage: Local data persistence for saved articles
• fast-xml-parser: RSS feed parsing (React Native compatible)

RSS Feed Parsing

The app fetches RSS feeds from each source with:

• 15-second timeout per feed to prevent hanging
• CORS proxy support with automatic fallback for restricted feeds
• HTML cleaning from descriptions for better readability
• Error handling that gracefully handles failed feeds without crashing the app

Performance Optimizations

• Articles are limited to 20 per source to prevent overwhelming the UI
• FlatList is used for efficient rendering of large lists
• Saved article IDs are cached for quick lookup
• CORS proxy fallback ensures reliable feed fetching

User Experience

Viewing News

The main "All News" tab displays articles from all five sources in a unified feed, sorted by publication date. Each article card provides enough information to decide if you want to read more, and tapping the link button opens the full article in your browser.

Saving Articles

Saving an article is as simple as tapping the heart icon. The icon turns red to indicate the article is saved, and you can access it anytime from the "Saved" tab. This feature is particularly useful for:

• Reading articles during your commute (offline)
• Building a personal knowledge base
• Referencing important security news later

Offline Support

All saved articles work completely offline. Once saved, you can read them anytime, anywhere, without needing an internet connection. This makes the app perfect for situations where connectivity is limited.

Challenges and Solutions

RSS Feed Reliability

One challenge was ensuring reliable RSS feed fetching, especially with CORS restrictions. I implemented a CORS proxy with automatic fallback, ensuring the app can fetch feeds even when direct access is blocked.

Error Handling

Network errors are handled gracefully. If a feed fails to load, the app continues to display articles from other sources rather than crashing. This ensures a smooth user experience even when some sources are temporarily unavailable.

Data Storage

Using AsyncStorage for local persistence ensures that saved articles are always available, even after app restarts. The data structure is simple and efficient, storing only the essential information needed to display and access articles.

Future Enhancements

While the app is fully functional, there are always opportunities for improvement:

• Push notifications for breaking security news
• Customizable source selection
• Article search functionality
• Reading time estimates
• Social sharing capabilities

Conclusion

0xbasinasnews has become an essential tool in my daily routine for staying informed about cybersecurity. By aggregating multiple sources into a single, beautiful interface with offline support, it solves a real problem I faced and makes staying up-to-date with security news much more convenient.

The app demonstrates how thoughtful design and careful technical implementation can create a tool that's both powerful and pleasant to use. Whether you're a security professional, researcher, or enthusiast, having all your cybersecurity news in one place makes a significant difference.

You can check out the project on GitHub: https://github.com/0xbasinas/0xbasinasnews