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Interview question · Application & API Security

Why does the database account's privilege decide how bad an SQL injection becomes, and how do you limit the blast radius?

The same injection bug can leak one table or hand over the server. The difference is decided by grants made long before the bug was written.

mediumNewPreparation tags: Microsoft, Amazon, GoogleUpdated Nov 2026

The same injection bug can leak one table or hand over the server. The difference is decided by grants made long before the bug was written.

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  1. 01 State the assumptions your answer depends on.
  2. 02 Explain the mechanism and choose a control.
  3. 03 Name a condition that would change your decision.

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What if · the follow-ups in this answer

The answer works through 6 follow-ups like an interviewer would

A penetration tester finds a blind SQL injection in a search endpoint of a legacy app that connects to the database as the administrator account.

  1. Why does the database account matter for severity?
  2. What does a read-only, view-limited account limit it to?
  3. What does an administrator account allow?
  4. What do you do immediately?
  5. How would you prevent this elsewhere?
  6. How would you handle the finding?

Each rung has a nudge, a model answer, the principle that carries over and the weak answer to avoid. Premium opens every answer and ladder.

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