Thread: securing the sql server ?

Hello ppl,
any one can tell me how I can secure linux server with database
postgres for example ?
Im thinking to make a cryptfs file system and to deploy database over
the cryptfs. The problem
here may will be when front end need any data for in/out cpus of the
server will aways
  decrypt/encrypt data and performance will be very low.

I remember a few months ago some one ask similar question about how he
can crypt data that is
stored on database and problem was the key. Key is stored on the same
server if some one
get access can decrypt data.

Any one have some ideas how to make something like crypt bubble and to
store database there ?
Or something else ?

R.

On Mon, Aug 22, 2011 at 3:40 AM, Condor <condor@stz-bg.com> wrote:
> Hello ppl,
> any one can tell me how I can secure linux server with database postgres for
> example ?
> Im thinking to make a cryptfs file system and to deploy database over the
> cryptfs. The problem
> here may will be when front end need any data for in/out cpus of the server
> will aways
>  decrypt/encrypt data and performance will be very low.
>
> I remember a few months ago some one ask similar question about how he can
> crypt data that is
> stored on database and problem was the key. Key is stored on the same server
> if some one
> get access can decrypt data.
>
> Any one have some ideas how to make something like crypt bubble and to store
> database there ?
> Or something else ?

Worrying about security without defining and understanding the threats
you face is a pointless exercise.  If you are worried about physical
loss of the drive, a better defense is to encrypt/decrypt sensitive
data on the client so that the server is not exposed to the key.
Obviously, this has downsides like not being able to index or ad hoc
search the data in question.  So, who are you worried about -- what
are the threats?

merlin

Recently, as a test I created a database using encfs and ran some tests against the same database but unencrypted.

In both cases the data was being stored on a 500 GB external hard drive connected via USB2 to an HP laptop running Linux Fedora 15.

I found that the encrypted database ran 15-20% slower on PostgreSQL 9.0.4 on most queries. 
--
Mike Nolan

On Mon, 22 Aug 2011 09:32:39 -0500, Merlin Moncure wrote:
> On Mon, Aug 22, 2011 at 3:40 AM, Condor <condor@stz-bg.com> wrote:
>> Hello ppl,
>> any one can tell me how I can secure linux server with database
>> postgres for
>> example ?
>> Im thinking to make a cryptfs file system and to deploy database
>> over the
>> cryptfs. The problem
>> here may will be when front end need any data for in/out cpus of the
>> server
>> will aways
>>  decrypt/encrypt data and performance will be very low.
>>
>> I remember a few months ago some one ask similar question about how
>> he can
>> crypt data that is
>> stored on database and problem was the key. Key is stored on the
>> same server
>> if some one
>> get access can decrypt data.
>>
>> Any one have some ideas how to make something like crypt bubble and
>> to store
>> database there ?
>> Or something else ?
>
> Worrying about security without defining and understanding the
> threats
> you face is a pointless exercise.  If you are worried about physical
> loss of the drive, a better defense is to encrypt/decrypt sensitive
> data on the client so that the server is not exposed to the key.
> Obviously, this has downsides like not being able to index or ad hoc
> search the data in question.  So, who are you worried about -- what
> are the threats?
>
> merlin


I did not worry about hackers attack, I worrying how to secure data
if I physical loss hard drives or server. Let's just imagine that you
have
a server and you store on it important data like credit cards, bank
acc,
password, clients names, addresses, social numbers, phone numbers and
some think like that ... very important information. When front end is
secured Im worry if I loss hard drives or server. I think if some one
buy so expensive server is not necessary some one with gun to watching
it.

R.

On 08/22/11 10:34 AM, Condor wrote:
>
> I did not worry about hackers attack, I worrying how to secure data
> if I physical loss hard drives or server.

so when this remote server reboots, where does the encryption key come from?



--
john r pierce                            N 37, W 122
santa cruz ca                         mid-left coast

On Mon, Aug 22, 2011 at 1:40 AM, Condor <condor@stz-bg.com> wrote:
> Hello ppl,
> any one can tell me how I can secure linux server with database postgres for
> example ?

Here are a few steps:
1)  Identify your environment.  Focus on details.  For example, this
might be in a monitored server room where access is required to reach
the physical server.
2)  Identify the security threats of that environment.  In such an
environment you have physical security threats which are handled
through physical security, and network security threats which are
handled through network security.  The software might also have other
security considerations.
3)  Identify a level of risk that is an acceptable tradeoff between
security and usability.
4)  Create a plan along the general lines of that acceptable tradeoff.

> Im thinking to make a cryptfs file system and to deploy database over the
> cryptfs. The problem
> here may will be when front end need any data for in/out cpus of the server
> will aways
>  decrypt/encrypt data and performance will be very low.

And besides what does it buy you?  What are you protecting against?

>
> I remember a few months ago some one ask similar question about how he can
> crypt data that is
> stored on database and problem was the key. Key is stored on the same server
> if some one
> get access can decrypt data.

In general, trying to use cryptography-based security is a bad
tradeoff.  There are times when it is important but then the
cryptographic management needs to be built in at every level.   For
example, the user might have a key which is used to decrypt the actual
storage key.  The thing is that has to be handled app-side, and unless
you really have a good idea of what you are doing and why, chances are
all you will succeed in doing is killing performance.

I have looked at a very few cases where this is not a bad tradeoff.
However those are pretty rare.

Best Wishes,
Chris Travers

On Mon, Aug 22, 2011 at 10:34 AM, Condor <condor@stz-bg.com> wrote:

> I did not worry about hackers attack, I worrying how to secure data
> if I physical loss hard drives or server. Let's just imagine that you have
> a server and you store on it important data like credit cards, bank acc,
> password, clients names, addresses, social numbers, phone numbers and
> some think like that ... very important information. When front end is
> secured Im worry if I loss hard drives or server. I think if some one
> buy so expensive server is not necessary some one with gun to watching it.

The best solution typically is to see how much of the stuff like
credit card numbers you can avoid storing.   Absence of the target is
in fact the best way to keep the target secure.

If yo must store credit card data, then the PCI-DSS requires that
these be stored encrypted with proper key management controls in
place.  The key management controls are the hard part.  Throwing
together something that's PCI-DSS-compliant on the surface looks easy.
 Doing it right is surprisingly hard.  On top of this you have to
think about the fact that key management can become a significant
issue.  When you change keys, think about the level of work that
requires on the part of the database server to decrypt stuff with the
old key and encrypt it all with the new key....

Best Wishes,
Chris Travers

On Mon, 22 Aug 2011 10:54:23 -0700, John R Pierce wrote:
> On 08/22/11 10:34 AM, Condor wrote:
>>
>> I did not worry about hackers attack, I worrying how to secure data
>> if I physical loss hard drives or server.
>
> so when this remote server reboots, where does the encryption key
> come from?
>
>
>
> --
> john r pierce                            N 37, W 122
> santa cruz ca                         mid-left coast


Mount over NFS ?

R.

> so when this remote server reboots, where does the encryption key come
> from?

Why, from a file that resides in /root on the server, of course!  :-)
That's secure, right?

-- Gary Chambers

On Mon, 22 Aug 2011 14:20:00 -0400 (EDT), Gary Chambers wrote:
>> so when this remote server reboots, where does the encryption key
>> come
>> from?
>
> Why, from a file that resides in /root on the server, of course!  :-)
> That's secure, right?
>
> -- Gary Chambers

Isn't necessary to be on the same server. The key can be stored
somewhere
on NFS for example, if you loss the server, they cant access the key
because
server wont have access to local NFS storage.
Another example, can be stored over flash memory and when server is
restarted the monitor guy insert flash memory. It's have so many
variants.
I did not understand what is the point of your comment.


R.