Introduction
Databases have become one of the most power pillars within organizations, regardless of size, industry, or geographical location. Databases are used for the sole purpose of storing and retrieving pertinent information, that in many cases deliver a vital blow to operations in any organization, and for this sole reason, hardware and software make database security a paramount feature that must not be overlooked.
Database security issues cover a wide spectrum; however, this paper will discuss database issues as related to database applications mainly using Oracle’s database application. Embedded security features accompany many database applications; however, often times these features are not properly enabled, therefore, security
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The term “hardening” is often used to describe the removal of database vulnerabilities, but the term can also apply to computer systems hardware too. In the relationship to data, hardening there is a three step process that is used to evaluate the degree of hardening applied in hardening or securing a database. The primary stages of hardening a database consist of locking down access to resources, disabling unnecessary functions, and applying the principle of least …show more content…
In her article, The 10 Most Common Database Vulnerabilities, Ericka Chickowski (2010) explains that unnecessary enabled database feature rank number four out of ten, of the most vulnerable exposures of entrance into database breaches. The outbox configuration path for database applications vary from application-to-application thus it is not a one size fits all type configuration path that can be assumed by DBA’s, but a clear understanding of what is necessary versus unwanted must be carved out prior to beginning and installation. Planning and understanding what is desired in the operation of database can reduce risk of zero-day attacks, but it can also simplify database patch management, which leads me to the final element of the three primary database hardening
For an in-depth defence approach, case study provides a series of things that describe about what is working nowadays for a secure data.
With increasing attacks and internal data theft the organizations must strengthen their database security beyond the traditional methods, especially those databases which hold private data. This can be done by developing a security strategy which is a framework of control mechanisms for authentication, authorization, and access control mechanisms to enforce role separation, database auditing, monitoring, network and data encryption, data masking according to the needs and environment in the organization. To develop a high-quality security strategy detailed knowledge and understanding about the database control mechanisms is needed. So the main purpose of this paper is to give a detailed description of security mechanisms which are available till today and build a security strategy according to the needs and environment of the organization. Using the knowledge gained a working prototype which is a security strategy is designed, developed and evaluated for an organization according to the scenario described which contains the challenges or threats and present security mechanisms used in the organization. Finally a security strategy is developed which can help the organization in protecting their information assets and private data from inside and outside attacks.
The evolution and understanding of the importance of information security and risk management originates from the awareness for the potential of IT in business functions and as a business enabler. This was then followed by the realization that the risks brought about by this boundless facilitator must be appropriately understood and addressed. The essence of information security and risk management is to identify low vs. high-risk systems and processes, followed by appropriately addressing those risks.
In taking a wide overview of the computer world today, it is very easy to identify possible security risks. Especially in a connected network of worldwide computers, the limitless stream of bytes and data may invite viruses and hackers into any one single computer. According to PC Magazine Online, “Intel execs say the computer industry is lagging in support of data-security initiatives.”1 The difficulty lies sometimes in predicting areas of security weakness. Sometimes seemingly secure code may be subject to innovative attacks which can compromise security.
A database is a collection of data which is organized and easy for users to find data. Database can record massive amount of data, it can be use for business and organization’s purpose. Every organization should have database security to secure the information of the organization.
DBA deals with all of this by finding user needs, set the database, and test the system. DBA should enable editing any system he or she created. At the same time DBA should ensure the security of the data and guarantee data integrity and backup. Moreover, DBAs should know the database management systems (DBMS) that include the knowledge of Oracle, IBM DB2, and Microsoft SQL server (“Database Administrator,” 2010). Oracle is one of the most important platforms that DBA must know and have experience with. According to Kanaracus “The database experience we look for most of the time is Oracle”, says Tom Hart, executive vice president of the operations and technology group at Veritude. “SQL Server is more of a nice-to-have"
Database security is securing the data on a centralized database against the compromises of their confidentiality, integrity and availability. It is achieved through various information security controls or processes which include Access control, Authentication, Auditing, Integrity controls, backups and Encryption.
(Mullins 1995) Currently, the more sought after relational database products are incorporating more and more complex features and components to simplify procedural logic. Due to the complexity of todays relational database, corporations are changing the established way of dealing with database management personnel. Traditionally, as new features were added to the database, more and more responsibility fell on the DBA. With the emergence of the relational database management system (RDBMS), we are now beginning to see a change in the database administrator's role.(Mullins 1995)
Inconsistently storing organization data creates a lot of issues, a poor database design can cause security, integrity and normalization related issues. Majority of these issues are due to redundancy and weak data integrity and irregular storage, it is an ongoing challenge for every organization and it is important for organization and DBA to build logical, conceptual and efficient design for database. In today’s complex database systems Normalization, Data Integrity and security plays a key role. Normalization as design approach helps to minimize data redundancy and optimizes data structure by systematically and properly placing data in to appropriate groupings, a successful normalize designed follows “First Normalization Flow”, “Second Normalization Flow” and “Third Normalization flow”. Data integrity helps to increase accuracy and consistency of data over its entire life cycle, it also help keep track of database objects and ensure that each object is created, formatted and maintained properly. It is critical aspect of database design which involves “Database Structure Integrity” and “Semantic data Integrity”. Database Security is another high priority and critical issue for every organization, data breaches continue to dominate business and IT, building a secure system is as much important like Normalization and Data Integrity. Secure system helps to protect data from unauthorized users, data masking and data encryption are preferred technology used by DBA to protect data.
In the event a misfortune occurs, DBMS must offer ways to pull through a database so that data is not eternally lost. There are times computers may break down, a fire or other natural disaster may occur, or a user may enter inaccurate information invalidating or making records conflicting
Nowadays, the information is the most treasured asset in an organization, due to it along with the experience represents the input necessary to take appropriate decisions and consequently to have success in the business. Almost all the information and knowledge related with the processes business, goods and services offered by a company, is processed, managed and stored through technology and information systems, thus the security of information has become increasingly important and plays a critical role in the enterprise government.
The fear of the unknown is common among people and being ignorant can be the one factor that causes that fear. Cybercrimes are becoming increasingly common as more people are becoming clever and finding ways to use computers as tools to do the crime. Although there are many challenges in learning the basics of cybersecurity as I am currently facing in my school with classes such as AP Computer Science and cybersecurity, I will be diligent and strive to fulfill my goals.
The ultimate aim of this paper is to discuss the history of Database Management Systems (DBMSs) and in particular the Relational Database Management System (RDBMS) (McManus, 2003). The paper will start with the definition of DBMSs and an explanation of their functions. The paper will then list the various database models in existence today. The next stage will be to dive in to the history of DBMSs starting from the 1960s, when the first database systems made their way into the computing world to modern trends in DBMS development. This history will be explained in three main stages. First, the 1960s navigational databases, which took two main approaches – the Codasyl approach and IBM’s IMS will be discussed and the concepts behind them illuminated. Secondly, the paper will explore the relational model that gained prominence in the 1970s especially after the publication of Edgar Codd’s ground shattering paper on the relational approach. Some significant amount of effort will be spent on the concepts proposed by Edgar Codd and how they were radically different from those employed by navigational databases. Thirdly, the late 1970s and early 1980s Structured Query Language (SQL)-based DBMSs will be discussed at length with the DBMS historical chronology ending with a mention of the most popular RDBMs such as Microsoft SQL Server, Oracle, Sybase, PostgreSQL and MySQL. Finally, the impact of database systems on businesses will be explained in detail.
Security is an important problem in the spread of computer network technology (Zhou & Hu, 2008). Ensuring information security enables the security problem to be addressed. This is through implementation and meeting the information properties of confidentiality, integrity, and availability of records. Guaranteeing the above information properties strengthens user services such as authentication, authorization, accountability and reliability (Alfawaz et al., 2008). Information security therefore is vital in the achievement of information, network,
In our world, people rely heavily on the power of technology every day. Kids are learning how to operate an iPad before they can even say their first word. School assignments have become virtual, making it possible to do anywhere in the world. We can receive information from across the world in less than a second with the touch of a button. Technology is a big part of our lives, and without it life just becomes a lot harder. Just like our phones have such an importance to us in our daily lives, database management systems are the same for businesses. Without this important software, it would be almost impossible for companies to complete simple daily tasks with such ease.