#Study sql on mac how to
#Study sql on mac software

Cybercriminals can then turnaround and sell this personal info on the gloomiest corners of the dark web, to be used for all kinds of illegal purposes. One SQLI attack can net cybercriminals personal information, emails, logins, credit card numbers, and social security numbers for millions of consumers. You've got a huge data breach on your hands. Taking the thought experiment even further, imagine you're the owner of this clothing site. By repeating this process over and over again, a cybercriminal can plumb the depths of the database and steal sensitive information on every customer that's ever shopped at your favorite online clothing site-including you. A cybercriminal can manipulate database queries in such a way that a request for information about a pair of socks returns the credit card number for some unfortunate customer. Now imagine your favorite online shopping website is constructed in a slipshod manner, rife with exploitable SQL vulnerabilities. When you find a sock you like and click on that sock, you're sending a request to the sock database, and the shopping site responds with the information on the sock you clicked. The wonders of technology! Every sock you see exists in a database on some server somewhere. You're shopping for socks and you're looking at a Technicolor world of colorful socks, all available with a click of your mouse. Imagine going to your favorite online clothing site. Put simply, a SQL injection is when criminal hackers enter malicious commands into web forms, like the search field, login field, or URL, of an unsecure website to gain unauthorized access to sensitive and valuable data. This is where SQL injections come into play. But these databases can also contain more sensitive and valuable data like usernames and passwords, credit card information, and social security numbers.

When a user needs to access database information, SQL is used to access and present that data to the user.

These databases contain things like prices and inventory levels for online shopping sites.

#Study sql on mac software

“A SQLI is a type of attack by which cybercriminals exploit software vulnerabilities in web applications for the purpose of stealing, deleting, or modifying data, or gaining administrative control over the systems running the affected applications.” How does a SQL injection work?ĭeveloped in the early 70s, SQL (short for structured query language) is one of the oldest programming languages still in use today for managing online databases. With that, let's take the first step in defending against a SQL injection by educating ourselves on the topic.

#Study sql on mac how to

Small-to-medium sized businesses are especially vulnerable as they are often not familiar with the techniques cybercriminals use in a SQLI attack and, likewise, don't know how to defend against such an attack. One study by the Ponemon Institute on The SQL Injection Threat & Recent Retail Breaches found that 65% of the businesses surveyed were victims of a SQLI-based attack.įrequently targeted web applications include: social media sites, online retailers, and universities. In fact, if you have a website or online business, cybercriminals have likely tried using the SQLI to try and break into your website already. All they have to do is input the URL of the target site and watch the stolen data roll in.Īnd yet SQLI attacks are commonplace and happen every day. Once they've found a suitable target, SQLI attackers can use automated programs to effectively carry out the attack for them. SQLI attacks are so easy, in fact, attackers can find vulnerable websites using advanced Google searches, called Google Dorking. Malwarebytes Labs ranked SQLI as number three in the The Top 5 Dumbest Cyber Threats that Work Anyway, citing the fact that SQLI is a known, predictable attack with easily implemented countermeasures. Target, Yahoo, Zappos, Equifax, Epic Games, TalkTalk, LinkedIn, and Sony Pictures-these companies were all hacked by cybercriminals using SQL injections.Ī SQLI is a type of attack by which cybercriminals exploit software vulnerabilities in web applications for the purpose of stealing, deleting, or modifying data, or gaining administrative control over the systems running the affected applications.Ĭybersecurity researchers regard the SQLI as one of the least sophisticated, easy-to-defend-against cyberthreats. You may not know what a SQL injection (SQLI) attack is or how it works, but you definitely know about the victims.