BusymateHelper is a full network debugger that runs entirely on your iPhone or iPad — no jailbreak, no Mac to tether to, no developer tooling. Install it, trust one certificate, and you can see every request your device makes.
What it does
BusymateHelper builds a system-wide capture layer using Apple's NEPacketTunnelProvider. That means it sees traffic from every app on the device, not just a browser:
- DNS + TCP, system-wide — every connection your device opens is observed.
- Decrypted HTTPS for the domains you choose — pick which hosts to decrypt (for example
*.example.com); their full request and response bodies become readable, while everything else stays encrypted and untouched. - Live streaming to your dashboard — each request/response pair flows in real time to your dashboard feed, where you can search, inspect, tag, and replay.
It's the same idea as a desktop proxy like Charles or Proxyman, but the capture happens on the device itself — so it works on cellular, in the background, and without any other machine in the loop.
Tip: Want to know how it captures traffic without a jailbreak? See the engineering deep-dive in BusymateHelper architecture.
What you get
Once it's running, every connection shows up two places at once:
- On the device — an in-app Network tab with a searchable request list and per-request detail.
- In the dashboard — a real-time feed for this device, with full inspection, tagging, and breakpoints. Open it at dash.busymate.net and pick your device from the Devices tab.
Start here
Setting up takes a few minutes, once:
- Install & pair — get the app from TestFlight, sign in, and link the device to your dashboard.
- Trust the certificate — install and fully trust the Busymate Root CA so HTTPS bodies can be decrypted.
- Pick a capture mode — a system VPN tunnel, or a Wi-Fi proxy (PAC).
- Choose what gets decrypted — add the domains you care about.
From there you're capturing. Head to Inspect & breakpoints to read and manipulate traffic.