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Real-World SQL Injection Case Studies

SQL injection attacks continue to cause massive data breaches. These case studies highlight the ongoing threat and importance of proper defenses.

MOVEit Transfer Breach (2023)​

One of the most devastating SQL injection attacks in recent history.

The Attack​

  • Vulnerability: CVE-2023-34362 - Critical SQL injection in Progress Software's MOVEit Transfer file transfer solution
  • Attack Vector: Unauthenticated attackers could execute arbitrary SQL commands
  • Attacker: Cl0p ransomware group

Impact​

  • Maximus Healthcare: 11.3 million patient records compromised
  • U.S. Department of Energy: Affected
  • Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles: Breached
  • Data Exposed: PII, Social Security Numbers, financial records, health data

Aftermath​

  • Multiple class-action lawsuits through 2024
  • Estimated costs in hundreds of millions
  • Highlighted supply chain security risks

ResumeLooters Campaign (2023)​

A coordinated attack targeting job recruitment websites.

Details​

  • Period: November-December 2023
  • Method: SQL injection attacks on recruitment sites
  • Impact: 2+ million email addresses and personal data stolen
  • Targets: 65+ websites across multiple countries
    • India: 12 sites
    • Taiwan: 10 sites
    • Thailand: 9 sites
    • Vietnam: 7 sites
    • China: 3 sites

Motivation​

Stolen data was sold on Chinese-speaking Telegram groups, demonstrating the financial incentive behind such attacks.

GambleForce Attacks (2023)​

Sophisticated attacks on multiple sectors.

Details​

  • Period: September-December 2023
  • Targets: Travel, retail, gambling, and government organizations
  • Countries: Australia, Indonesia, Philippines, South Korea
  • Technique: Advanced SQL injection for data exfiltration

TSA Crew Verification System (2024)​

A critical security flaw discovered by researchers.

The Vulnerability​

  • Security researchers found a SQL injection flaw in TSA's crew verification system
  • Potential Impact: Could add fictitious pilots to airline rosters
  • Risk: Bypass of airport security checks

Outcome​

  • Reported and patched before exploitation
  • Highlighted the critical importance of security in government systems

Statistics (2024-2025)​

Current State of SQL Injection​

According to the Verizon 2024 Data Breach Investigations Report:

  • SQL injection and web app attacks: 26% of all data breaches

Vulnerability Distribution​

  • 6.7% of open-source vulnerabilities are SQL injection
  • 10% of closed-source vulnerabilities are SQL injection
  • 20% of organizations are vulnerable when first starting security testing
  • Average vulnerable organization has 30 separate SQL injection locations

CVE Statistics​

  • SQL injection: 14,000+ CVEs (low frequency but high impact)
  • Cross-site scripting: 30,000+ CVEs (high frequency, lower impact)

Notable Historical Attacks​

Heartland Payment Systems (2008)​

  • Data Stolen: 130 million credit card numbers
  • Method: SQL injection into web application
  • Cost: $140 million in settlements

Sony PlayStation Network (2011)​

  • Users Affected: 77 million accounts
  • Data Stolen: Names, addresses, emails, passwords
  • Downtime: 23 days

TalkTalk (2015)​

  • Users Affected: 157,000 customers
  • Data Stolen: Personal and banking details
  • Fine: £400,000 from UK ICO

Lessons Learned​

  1. Patch Management: Many attacks exploit known vulnerabilities
  2. Supply Chain Risk: Third-party software can be an attack vector
  3. Defense in Depth: Single security measures are not enough
  4. Monitoring: Early detection limits damage
  5. Incident Response: Preparation reduces impact

How Oxide SQL Helps​

Oxide SQL eliminates SQL injection vulnerabilities at the source. Every query is automatically parameterized, and no matter what user input contains, it cannot modify the query structure. By making parameterized queries the only way to build queries, Oxide SQL prevents SQL injection by design.

See the builder module rustdoc for examples.

References​