Auditing DBMSes through Forensic Analysis

The pervasive use of databases for the storage of critical and sensitive information in many organizations has led to an increase in the rate at which databases are exploited in computer crimes. While there are several techniques and tools available for database forensics, they mostly assume apriori database preparation, such as relying on tamper-detection software to already be in place or use of detailed logging. Alternatively, investigators need forensic tools and techniques that work on poorly-configured databases and make no assumptions about the extent of damage in a database. In this paper, we present our database forensics methods, which are capable of examining database content from a database image without using any log or system metadata. We describe how these methods can be used to detect security breaches in untrusted environments where the security threat arose from a privileged user (or someone who has obtained such privileges).