SQL4-00-036100 - SQL Server must generate Trace or Audit records when unsuccessful attempts to add privileges/permissions occur - Event ID 171

Information

Failed attempts to change the permissions, privileges, and roles granted to users and roles must be tracked. Without an audit trail, unauthorized attempts to elevate or restrict privileges could go undetected.

In SQL Server, adding permissions is typically done via the GRANT command, or, in the negative, DENY; or with the ALTER SERVER ROLE . . . ADD MEMBER . . ., and/or ALTER ROLE . . . ADD MEMBER . . . commands. Native security functionality may be supplemented with application-specific tables and logic, in which case the following actions on these tables and procedures/triggers/functions are also relevant:
INSERT
UPDATE
EXECUTE

To aid in diagnosis, it is necessary to keep track of failed attempts in addition to the successful ones.

Use of SQL Server Audit is recommended. All features of SQL Server Audit are available in the Enterprise and Developer editions of SQL Server 2014. It is not available at the database level in other editions. For this or legacy reasons, the instance may be using SQL Server Trace for auditing, which remains an acceptable solution for the time being. Note, however, that Microsoft intends to remove most aspects of Trace at some point after SQL Server 2016.

Solution

Where SQL Server Trace is in use, define and enable a trace that captures all auditable events. The script provided in the supplemental file Trace.sql can be used to do this.

Create triggers to raise a custom event on each locally-defined security table that requires tracking of Insert-Update-Delete operations. The examples provided in the supplemental file CustomTraceEvents.sql can serve as the basis for these.

Add blocks of code to Trace.sql for each custom event class (integers in the range 82-91; the same event class may be used for all such triggers) used in these triggers. Execute Trace.sql.

Where SQL Server Audit is in use, design and deploy a SQL Server Audit that captures all auditable events. The script provided in the supplemental file Audit.sql can be used for this.

Alternatively, to add the necessary data capture to an existing server audit specification, run the script:
USE [master];
GO
ALTER SERVER AUDIT SPECIFICATION <server_audit_specification_name> WITH (STATE = OFF);
GO
ALTER SERVER AUDIT SPECIFICATION <server_audit_specification_name>
ADD (DATABASE_OBJECT_OWNERSHIP_CHANGE_GROUP),
ADD (DATABASE_OBJECT_PERMISSION_CHANGE_GROUP),
ADD (DATABASE_OWNERSHIP_CHANGE_GROUP),
ADD (DATABASE_PERMISSION_CHANGE_GROUP),
ADD (DATABASE_ROLE_MEMBER_CHANGE_GROUP),
ADD (SCHEMA_OBJECT_OWNERSHIP_CHANGE_GROUP),
ADD (SCHEMA_OBJECT_PERMISSION_CHANGE_GROUP),
ADD (SERVER_OBJECT_OWNERSHIP_CHANGE_GROUP),
ADD (SERVER_OBJECT_PERMISSION_CHANGE_GROUP),
ADD (SERVER_PERMISSION_CHANGE_GROUP),
ADD (SERVER_ROLE_MEMBER_CHANGE_GROUP)
;
GO
ALTER SERVER AUDIT SPECIFICATION <server_audit_specification_name> WITH (STATE = ON);
GO

Item Details

Audit Name: DISA STIG SQL Server 2014 Instance DB Audit v2r4

Category: AUDIT AND ACCOUNTABILITY

Plugin: MS_SQLDB

Control ID: 80f5c68946805afe0d1906eaf4f4e901e8fc2174d3f12e0a90a76f192f0f6a4c

Detections

Analytics

SQL4-00-036100 - SQL Server must generate Trace or Audit records when unsuccessful attempts to add privileges/permissions occur - Event ID 171

Information

Solution

See Also

Item Details