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6.1.1 Ensure That a MySQL Database Instance Does Not Allow Anyone To Connect With Administrative Privileges (Manual)​

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Description​

It is recommended to set a password for the administrative user (root by default) to prevent unauthorized access to the SQL database instances.

This recommendation is applicable only for MySQL Instances. PostgreSQL does not offer any setting for No Password from the cloud console.

Rationale​

At the time of MySQL Instance creation, not providing an administrative password allows anyone to connect to the SQL database instance with administrative privileges. The root password should be set to ensure only authorized users have these privileges.

Impact​

Connection strings for administrative clients need to be reconfigured to use a password.

Audit​

From Command Line:

  1. List All SQL database instances of type MySQL:
gcloud sql instances list --filter='DATABASE_VERSION:MYSQL* --project <project_id> --format="(NAME,PRIMARY_ADDRESS)"'
  1. For every MySQL instance try to connect using the PRIMARY_ADDRESS, if available:
mysql -u root -h <mysql_instance_ip_address>

The command should return either an error message or a password prompt.

Sample Error message:

ERROR 1045 (28000): Access denied for user 'root'@'<Instance_IP>' (using password: NO)

If a command produces the mysql> prompt, the MySQL instance allows anyone to connect with administrative privileges without needing a password.

note

The No Password setting is exposed only at the time of MySQL instance creation. Once the instance is created, the Google Cloud Platform Console does not expose the set to confirm whether a password for an administrative user is set to a MySQL instance.

Remediation​

From Console:

  1. Go to the Cloud SQL Instances page in the Google Cloud Platform Console using https://console.cloud.google.com/sql/

  2. Select the instance to open its Overview page.

  3. Select Access Control > Users.

  4. Click the More actions icon for the user to be updated.

  5. Select Change password, specify a New password, and click OK.

From Command Line:

  1. Set a password to a MySql instance:
gcloud sql users set-password root --host=<host> --instance=<instance_name> --prompt-for-password
  1. A prompt will appear, requiring the user to enter a password:
Instance Password:
  1. With a successful password configured, the following message should be seen:
Updating Cloud SQL user...done.

References​

https://cloud.google.com/sql/docs/mysql/create-manage-users
https://cloud.google.com/sql/docs/mysql/create-instance