MySQL Reference Manual

General Security Issues and the MySQL Access Privilege System

MySQL has an advanced but non-standard security/privilege system. This section describes how it works.

General Security Guidelines

Anyone using MySQL on a computer connected to the Internet should read this section to avoid the most common security mistakes.

In discussing security, we emphasize the necessity of fully protecting the entire server host (not simply the MySQL server) against all types of applicable attacks: eavesdropping, altering, playback, and denial of service. We do not cover all aspects of availability and fault tolerance here.

MySQL uses security based on Access Control Lists (ACLs) for all connections, queries, and other operations that a user may attempt to perform. There is also some support for SSL-encrypted connections between MySQL clients and servers. Many of the concepts discussed here are not specific to MySQL at all; the same general ideas apply to almost all applications.

When running MySQL, follow these guidelines whenever possible:

• Do not ever give anyone (except the mysql root user) access to the user table in the mysql database! This is critical. The encrypted password is the real password in MySQL. Anyone who knows the password which is listed in the user table and has access to the host listed for the account can easily log in as that user.

• Learn the MySQL access privilege system. The GRANT and REVOKE commands are used for controlling access to MySQL. Do not grant any more privileges ...