Your SQL Server database is the lifeblood of your company. Its critical financial, medical, personal or other sensitive information is stored in it. If your database is compromised you can lose clients and customers, face lawsuits and fines, and go out of business. And even if you prevent data loss related to external attacks with firewalls, intrusion prevention systems (IPS) and edge security devices like next-generation firewalls (NGFW), there are several internal threats that may cause you to fail compliance audits or even be accused of negligence by regulators.
The Most Common Reasons Why Databases Are Breached Include:
- Misconfigured permissions
- Unrestricted/undocumented user accounts
- Lack of FIM
- Weak passwords
- Unpatched vulnerabilities
The First Three Reasons Are Caused By People And The Next Two By Technology. All Of Them Can Be Prevented If You Follow A Few Rules:
- Document your IT infrastructure, describe all servers and applications in detail, and keep these details up-to-date. This will help you stop unauthorized use of accounts and resources before it happens see who has access to what, know which servers have security weaknesses that need to be fixed, and ensure compliance with data protection regulations such as HIPAA or PCI DSS. In short, documentation is critical for managing privileged accounts.
- Users’ access using least privilege principles. Limit user’s access to what they need to do their job and nothing more.
- Monitor privileged activity, such as changes in permissions or new accounts. Any suspicious activity should be investigated immediately.
- Make a regular backup of your database. This is an essential part of preventing data loss because it allows you to check the integrity of your database after any changes have been made, identify unauthorized changes that may have been introduced by hackers or insiders , and restore your database from backups if necessary .
- Keep your software up-to-date with current patches. Remember that much vulnerability can affect databases as well as applications running on top of them, for example the recent Apache Struts 2 vulnerability has enabled cybercriminals to take control of servers – including Ransomware attacks.
As you can see, keeping your system secure is not that difficult, but it does require proactive monitoring and the right tools. If you are looking for an easy way to document your IT infrastructure, keep track of changes in permissions, control user access to databases and servers, and monitor all privileged activity in your environment so that you don’t have to worry about compliance with security policies or industry regulations, there is good news—you now have a trial version of Solar Winds Database Security solution at hand! This free 14-day trial includes functionality previously available only through our most expensive products:
This trial version is limited only by a number of agents deployed (up to 10). If you’d like to try it out, please drop me a line at [email protected] and I will send you the download link for a trial version of Solar Winds Database Security.
FAQs:
Q: I’ve already purchased a license for Solar Winds Database Security, can I use it with a trial version of Orion Platform?
A: No, you will need to uninstall the trial version and purchase a license key. The limitations in functionality described above apply only to the free 14-day trial.
Q: Where should I go for installation instructions if I want to try out this product?
A: You can find instructions on how to download and install the trial here. Installation instructions are also included in the downloaded installer package. If you have any other questions about your evaluation process, please contact our technical support at [email protected] or 866-528-0577. We are available from 8 am to 5 pm Central Time on weekdays.
Conclusion:
As a result, we strongly recommend that you evaluate Database Security from Solar Winds, which will give you full control over your databases and servers with one simple console. You can download a free 14-day trial here. Your SQL Server database is the lifeblood of your company. Its critical financial, medical, personal or other sensitive information is stored in it. If your database is compromised you can lose clients and customers, face lawsuits and fines, and go out of business. And even if you prevent data loss related to external attacks with firewalls, intrusion prevention systems (IPS) and edge security devices like next-generation firewalls (NGFW), there are several internal threats that may cause you to fail compliance audits or even be accused of negligence by regulators.
