Dealing with the Threat of an SQL Injection Attack
Posted by Joseph Brochin
One of the biggest security issues present in ASP and PHP is the SQL injection. The thing with ASP and PHP is that they have flaws that let web developers make unintentional mistakes in creating SQL queries, leading to vulnerabilities in security. These are easy to fix, but do require some tinkering and research.
Preventing SQL Injections
An effective way to prevent SQL injections is to validate all user inputs thoroughly, identifying meta-characters so you can filter them all out. You must place filters properly so they can remove anything that is not known good data. Utilizing account lockout policies can also help by safeguarding your system from brute-forcing.
Always remember that security validation must be done server-side and never through client-side authentication methods like JavaScript since it can be bypassed by simply turning off JavaScript in the internet browser.
As with numeric input like age, telephone number, credit card number, and so on, values should be processed through special functions to make sure that the entered value only has numbers in it, as well as spaces if necessary. It would do good to limit the number of characters allowed to what is necessary also just to be sure. Do the same with dates, integers, and floats to leave no holes, or just have them in drop-down boxes. If selected through a drop-down box you should still validate the input as a hacker could submit their own html to the server using a text/hidden field instead of a dropdown. Remember that just because your form only lists valid values in a drop-down or radio-group or tick-box, a hacker can still submit any value they want for that field. You should assume that all input fields (regardless of type) can be submitted to the server as if it’s any text value.
For string inputs, on the other hand, it may be necessary to have certain meta-characters allowed. For example, people would have names like O’Neil, so you need to set the apostrophe (single quote) as allowed. In such scenarios, the name should be accepted and perhaps replace the quote with two quotes before putting it into the database just to be safe. It would be helpful to limit the number of characters like with numerical values since an unlimited number of characters can be utilized by someone who is planning to initiate an SQL injection attack.
Threat Management and Damage Control
You can clean up your code as thoroughly and as obsessively as you want, but you will still need assurance. The solution to this problem isn’t free, but is a good long-term investment, especially if your database has very sensitive data like bank account information, contact numbers, email addresses, physical addresses, and so on. In these cases, an SQL injection tool is required to help you with the process.
The best thing you can get is a trusty SQL injection scanner to detect any attacks whenever possible. These are enterprise-level applications available for companies to install onto their servers, so you don’t have to worry much about client-side implications other than making sure that customers can still enter data correctly.
If ever there really was an SQL injection attack, you will have to remove that filth. That is where an SQL injection removal program comes in. Usually available with the SQL injection scanner as a suite, it can be used for damage control so that you can still secure whatever precious data there may be while removing the threat from your system. This is definitely a must-have for emergencies, which makes it a worthwhile investment.
With your SQL injection tool in hand, you can increase security of your website’s database exponentially, thwarting any injection attempts from cracking through. Combining this with careful prevention, you can make sure that data is secure, no matter what. You cannot rely too much on your SQL injection scanner to tell you what’s wrong and your SQL injection removal software to take care of mishaps. Prevention is always better than cure.
For more resources about sql injection tool or even about sql injection removal please review this web page http://www.sqlinjectionscanner.com
Article Source: bb-articles.com
Why Web-site Accessibility is Important for Your Business
Posted by Joseph Brochin
by Angela Rowan
Visitors and potential clients from around the world will decide if they want to do business with your company based on their impressions of your website. With this in mind, you have worked diligently to prepare your site. You have compiled site content which presents the best possible image of your company and developed a professional web design that will make your business stand apart from the crowd. You have done extensive market research and implemented strategic search engine optimization. Maybe you are ready to launch your web site, or perhaps your site has already gone live…but wait… could you unintentionally be limiting your client base - or worse - leaving yourself open for potential legal entanglements?
The United Nations Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities estimates that there are more than 650 million people with disabilities worldwide. With the Internet becoming an indispensable part of daily living, it would stand to reason that millions of disabled people are surfing the Internet. By failing to take into consideration the needs of various groups of users of your website you are unnecessarily limiting the people your site serves. However, ensuring that your website meets the needs of people with various disabilities can be complex.
Web accessibility is obviously a concern for blind and visually impaired users. Blind users may navigate web sites using screen reader software that uses a synthesized voice to read the content of the website through embedded data. However, this technology only works appropriately if the web site it is translating is designed to accommodate it. Users with some limited vision may make use of a screen magnifier. For this to be useful, a website’s content must be readable if magnified, not becoming pixelated or distorted. Colour blind users may have difficulty locating links if they are identifiable only by colour. Deaf and hard of hearing users are unable to access audible content on a site and may require captions or sign language interpretation. Another concern for Deaf users is that often sign language is their first language and written language is their second language. It is important to ensure that your text meets the readability requirements of users for whom English is their second language as well as for users with cognitive or intellectual disabilities. Other things to consider are that flashing effects on websites may cause seizures in epileptic users and that sites with many links placed in close proximity may pose a challenge to visitors with mobility issues.
Your web development design must take into
consideration the needs of all potential users or it may mean lost clients. It also may have legal ramifications.
People with disabilities have the right to have full and equal enjoyment of goods and services. In some cases, businesses have been sued for discriminating against disabled clients by failing to provide accessible websites. The U.S. Nationwide class action against Target Corporation for failing to make its web site accessible to the blind is a prime example. As a result of this suit, in the state of California, website accessibility is now mandatory.
Ensuring that your web content is universally accessible can be complicated and time consuming. A web accessibility consultant can help you to ensure that your website accommodates the needs of all users and meets international accessibility standards. Through user testing and the implementation of various automated tools, a web accessibility expert can perform an audit of your site, identifying and addressing accessibility problems. An expert will be knowledgeable about how to create an environment that is accessible to people with various disabilities and will be experienced in balancing the need to integrate accessibility without limiting the effectiveness of navigating the site for other users.
Angela Rowan is a Web-accessibility Consultant with Zufelt Technology Services. She provides educational services to clients with diverse needs, oral and sign language interpretation, and technical/web content writing.
Article Source: bb-articles.com