TechNet Magazine: feature article on Common SQL Server Security Issues and Solutions

The May 2009 TechNet Magazine is now available online, and it's the annual security issue. In there is an article I wrote highlighting 10 common security issues (and solutions) you should worry about if you're not a security-savvy DBA. It covers:

  • Physical security
  • Network security
  • Attach surface minimzation
  • Service accounts
  • Restricting use of administrator privileges
  • Authentication
  • Authorization
  • SQL injection
  • Disaster recovery
  • Auditing

There are also two screencasts of me demonstrating Transparent Data Encryption and SQL Server Audit, both in SQL Server 2008. 

To quote myself from the end of the article:

As far as takeaways from this article are concerned, I want you to realize that there are some steps you need to go through to ensure the data you are storing in SQL Server is as secure as you need it to be. This is especially important when you inherit a SQL Server instance that someone else has been managing. It's just like buying a house from someone—you need to ask if the alarm works, if the yard is fenced in, and who has copies of the keys. Running through the list I've given in this article is a good start, but make sure you dig deeper in areas that are relevant to you.

Check it out at http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/magazine/2009.05.sql.aspx.

Enjoy!

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