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Cybersecurity GRC 16 items

Database Security Hardening Review

Reviews security hardening of relational and NoSQL database platforms, covering access control, encryption, auditing, configuration, and patching against CIS Benchmarks.

CIS BenchmarksNIST 800-53PCI DSS

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Access Control

  • Are database accounts individually attributable and provisioned on least privilege? *
  • Are default and sample accounts removed or disabled? *
  • Is administrative access to the database restricted and separated from application accounts? *
  • Is the database bound to internal interfaces and not exposed to the public internet? *

Encryption

  • Is encryption at rest (TDE or volume-level) enabled? *
  • Is TLS enforced for all client-to-database connections? *
  • Are encryption keys managed in a KMS or HSM separate from the data? *
  • Are sensitive columns (PII/PAN) masked, tokenized, or field-encrypted?

Auditing & Monitoring

  • Is database auditing enabled for privileged actions and schema changes? *
  • Are failed logins and access to sensitive objects logged? *
  • Are database logs forwarded to a central SIEM? *
  • Is database activity monitoring (DAM) deployed for critical databases?

Configuration & Patching

  • Is the database configured against a CIS Benchmark or vendor hardening guide? *
  • Are security patches applied on a defined schedule? *
  • Are unnecessary features, stored procedures, and network ports disabled? *
  • Are production backups encrypted and access-controlled?

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