TeamSHATTER

My Favorite 2011 TeamSHATTER posts

It’s the end of another exciting year and teamShatter.com is now almost 2 years old. I thought it would be fun to look back and sum up the most exciting posts of 2011. Being a techy, I personally like the posts that go into detail and provide guidance on specific technical issues, but TeamSHATTER is more than just for database security geeks. We also feature industry insight and commentary. Here are the posts this year from TeamSHATTER members that I think really stand out and provide great value to readers.

Network Encryption in Modern Relational Database Management Systems

This post is the most viewed post on teamShatter.com. Anybody who wants to get a quick primer on what network encryption options are provided by Oracle 11gR2, Microsoft SQL Server 2008, and Sybase 15 should take a look. The post is a quick primer on what options are available and how to configure them.  It also shows some before and after packet dumps.

TeamSHATTER’s Analysis Of The October 2011 Oracle CPU

Every quarter Oracle releases a Critical Patch Update to fix various serious security issues in its products. TeamSHATTER promptly analyses each CPU and gives actionable insight on each of the database vulnerabilities that have been fixed. We have received great feedback on these posts and this will certainly be an ongoing feature of the site.

Keeping Privileged Users Under Control In Oracle Database

Traditionally RDBMS systems give privileged users like DBA’s fully control of the database as well as content. This is and has been a big issue relative to separation of duties controls. In this post, Esteban Fayo, our #1 Oracle security expert provides valuable insight about the options available in the Oracle database to control insider access.

Is Oracle Misleading Its Database Customers With CPUs?

This was our most controversial post of the year. In the post TeamSHATTER takes a critical look at how Oracle rates the severity of vulnerabilities fixed in their CPU’s. The post certainly ruffled some feathers, but anybody who is in the business of administering Oracle products and prioritizing patches should take a look.

What It Would Look Like If “Brackets” Were Done For Higher Education Breaches

I love March Madness.  Everybody gets excited about their Alma Mater,  brackets get passed around the office, and we all cheer for the underdogs. However, how protected is your Alumni information? Check it out, this post is tongue in cheek, but with some serious undertones.

 2011 is almost over, so let’s see what 2012 will bring. Hopefully database security improves and organizations do a better job of protecting our sensitive data.  In closing I’d like to wish all of the members of our community a happy, healthy, successful and secure New Year.