What is database security?
A database stores information. It is the people who put information into the database so that other people can access it. Sometimes people insert data into the database that is not appropriate for anyone to access. This becomes the root cause of the database security issues. The fact that not everyone should not be able to access all the data placed in the database. Particularly, the personally identifiable information or PII is that inappropriate information in the database. Then the database will require data masking to hide or remove the portions of data. Database security critically refers to the unified measures used to safeguard or secure a database. Thus, it assists to secure database management software from illegitimate use and vicious threats and attacks.
What is essential for database security?
Moreover, database security protects the confidentiality, integrity, and availability (CIA) of the database of any organization. The CIA is however essential for database security. It consists of –
- Confidentiality- It functions to keep the data secretive. So that authorized users can specifically access it. Hence, it is roughly equivalent to privacy.
- Integrity- Integrity however involves maintaining consistency, accuracy as well as trustworthiness. This implies all the data over its entire life circle.
- Availability- Availability of information further refers to ensure the authorized parties access information whenever needed.
Database security however comes at some basic principles of security
- The development of a security plan should occur early in the development of a database.
- Secondly, security must be carefully designed, implemented, and tested.
- The security will depend significantly on the size and nature of the database and its business requirements. Consider these two scenarios: In the first case, a small database containing information that is not confidential is also in need of access by three or four users. In this case, these users can perform anything to the database. Moreover, they will not possess confidentiality either from each other or from the outside. Therefore, there will remain no reason to protect the database. While in the second scenario, a large database containing financial data stands maintained by a professional team. Also formulated to be available to the general public. Here the maintenance of the database by the professional and the general public stands different.
- Different objects can exist with granted permission to access securable differently.
What are the problems you can face without database security?
Symantec estimates in 2015, 500 million identities were exposed. The estimated world population then was 7.4 billion. This translates to 7% of the population of the world being exposed to hackers. Some other security threats and common attacks such as SQL injection, buffer overflow vulnerabilities, Denial of Service attacks, and weak authentication.
- SQL injection- Here, the attacker inserts malicious code into the database program to exploit the vulnerabilities in the application.
- Buffer overflow- It exists when a program attempts to put more data in a buffer than it can hold.
- DOS attack- It is particularly a cyber-attack where the attacker makes a machine or resource unavailable to its intended user. The attacker does this by flooding the machine with a superfluous request to overload the system.
- Weak authentication- This is where the attacker can steal the identity of the legitimate user, gaining access to confidential data.
Why is it important?
By definition, a knowledge breach may be a failure to take care of the confidentiality of knowledge during a database. The exact proportion of harm a knowledge breach inflicts on your enterprise depends on a variety of consequences or factors. Firstly, it helps with your compromised intellectual property such as trade secrets, inventions, proprietary practices. If that property stands stolen or exposed, your competitive advantage could also be difficult or impossible to take care of or recover. Secondly, it prevents damage to your brand reputation.
Customers or clients will not buy your products if they do not trust you to protect the data. Thirdly, business continuity stands promoted. Without a resolved breach, the business will face an issue to continue. Again, fines and penalties for noncompliance with costs of repairing breaches and notifying customers stand maintained. Overall, database security plays a significant part in protecting information in every way. For more information, connect with DIFM.tech.
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