Online Platforms Remain Vulnerable To Fundamental Exploits

After multiple years of internet attacks, one would come to expect certain vectors are no longer possible to exploit. Unfortunately, that is not always the case, as SQL injection attacks remain one of the most common threats to website owners. In fact, anything remotely linked to a database is vulnerable to SQL injections.

The Continual Threat of SQL Injections

Although the look and feel of most internet platforms have changed on the outside, things have remained virtually the same under the hood. Or to be more precise, the technology used to share and store content has changed, but the fundamentals problems are still there. This also means that most databases remain vulnerable to specific types of attack.

Fast forward to Q1 of 2016, and it becomes clear SQL injections remain a favorite tool among hackers and internet criminals. With 47% of attacks focusing on SQL injection, this is clearly the market leader.  Pretty much every website could be exploited by SQL unless the site owners take adequate precautions regarding their platform security.

The way this attack vector works is by entering random data into site input fields, such as the backend login and password. Some platforms are open to entering the code into those areas, which can be used to attack the database. Moreover, attacking a website structure and integrity is also possible,

But SQL injections are not the only lingering security threat. XSS and Local File Inclusion are nearly as old as the Internet itself. For some reason, they remain two of the most common threats which can be executed successfully. The recent Akamai report shows how fancy website design does not solve the underlying problems.

Luckily, there are solutions available to thwart all of these potential attacks. SQL injection can be negated by using parameterised database queries, but they are not convenient to use everywhere. Removing XSS exploits requires correct escape syntax usage, which is not convenient either. In the end, there is always a trade-off between security and convenience, and for now, the internet criminals win on all fronts.

Source: Akamai

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