Providing security in a database system

• US 7,260,849 B1
• Filed: 07/02/2001
• Issued: 08/21/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 07/02/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Teradata US, Inc. (Teradata Corporation)
• Original Assignee: NCR Corporation
• Inventors: Frazier, John D., Reed, Michael L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Zand; Kambiz
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nalven; Andrew L
• Application Number:
  US09/897,628
• Time in Patent Office: 2,241 Days
• Field of Search: 707/9, 713/200, 709/226
• US Class Current: 726/28
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6227 where protection concerns the structure of data, e.g. records, types, queries

Abstract

A method and apparatus to provide security for data in a database system includes providing a secure user-defined data type (UDT) that has security features. The secure UDT defines security information, which in one arrangement is in the form of a list of identifiers of authorized users or other entities. Each data instance according to the secure UDT stored in tables of the database system is associated with such an access list. Thus, in response to a query, the security information is accessed to determine whether the user or other entity that issued the query has rights to access the data. Access is then allowed or denied based on the security information.

Claims

1. A database system comprising:

one or more storage modules to store data instances according to a secure user-defined data type, the secure user-defined data type defining security information and one or more security functions; and

a controller adapted to receive a Structured Query Language query originated by a source for one of the data instances, the controller adapted to determine if the source is authorized to access the one data instance based on the security information,

the controller adapted to further invoke the one or more security functions to process the one data instance.