How to prevent weird user inputs from breaking things in queries? - php

Is there a good standard solution to deal with characters like ' and " from being used in user inputs on a web platform?
I'm using php for a webpage and if I have, for example, a search bar which have the following query behind it.
$sql = "select * from aTable where aColumn like '%".$searchedKeyword."%'";
If I search for like Greg's icecream the ' will break the script. Also, I'm guessing if I search for something like 1' or ID>0 my script will have a false effect.
What is the common solution here? Do you usually filter away undesired characters, or is there maybe some method or similiar built-in to php?

You can us PDO and prepared statements to prevent SQL injection.
http://php.net/manual/en/pdo.prepared-statements.php
$searchedKeyword = "mykeyword";
//Database details
$db = 'testdb';
$username = 'username';
$password = 'password';
//Connect to database using PDO (mysql)
try {
$dbh = new PDO('mysql:host=localhost;dbname='.$db, $username, $password);
} catch (PDOException $e) {
var_dump("error: $e");
}
//Prepared SQL with placeholder ":searchedKeyword"
$sql = "select * from aTable where aColumn like '%:searchedKeyword%'";
$sth = $dbh->prepare($sql);
//Bind parameter ":searchedKeyword" to variable $searchedKeyword
$sth->bindParam(':searchedKeyword', $searchedKeyword);
//Execute query
$sth->execute();
//Get results
$result = $sth->fetchAll(); //fetches all results where there's a match

Related

How to avoid ' in the sql query?

I am using MYSQL 5.5. May I know how to avoid ' in the SQL query? Below is my example query:
<?php
$mySelect1 = "'Ahli Majlis'";
$bracket_mySelect1 = "($mySelect1)";
SQL = "SELECT * FROM user where 1 and nama_gelaran in ".$bracket_mySelect1."";
?>
The wrong result I have checked in the console log data is SELECT * FROM user where 1 and nama_gelaran in ('Ahli Majlis')
Actually I want the result is SELECT * FROM user where 1 and nama_gelaran in ('Ahli Majlis')
What I tried, but it doesn't work:
SQL = SELECT * FROM user where 1 and nama_gelaran in ".html_entity_decode(htmlentities($bracket_mySelect1,ENT_QUOTES),ENT_QUOTES); .";
I am unsure how you are executing the queries but it is best practice to use PDO rather then the mysql_ functions. This also improves security and protects against mysql injection.
Below is a sample of how to connect and run a PDO query. I have changed your IN to be = as it looks like you are only passing one value.
$dsn = "mysql:host=localhost;dbname=mydb";
$user = "dbUsername";
$passwd = "dbPassword";
$name = 'Ahli Majlis';
$pdo = new PDO($dsn, $user, $passwd);
$stm = $pdo->query("SELECT * FROM `user` WHERE nama_gelaran = :name");
$stm->bindParam('name', $name);
$user = $stm->fetch();
print_r($user);
' does not come from MySQL unless that is what you INSERTed. It does come from certain PHP functions such as htmlentities. It is '.

Postgresql not binding in prepared statement for SELECT in PHP

<?php
try
{
global $db;
$user = 'postgres';
$password = '*****'; //For security
$db = new PDO('pgsql:host=localhost;dbname=dnd', $user, $password);
$db->setAttribute( PDO::ATTR_ERRMODE, PDO::ERRMODE_EXCEPTION );
}
catch (PDOException $ex)
{
echo 'ERROR!!: ' . $ex->getMessage();
die();
}
$table = htmlspecialchars($_REQUEST['table']);
$idNum = htmlspecialchars($_REQUEST['id']);
try {
//$query = "SELECT * FROM $table WHERE id = $idNum"; This works
//$query = "SELECT * FROM $table WHERE id = :number"; This works
$query = "SELECT * FROM :tableName WHERE id = :number";
$statement = $db->prepare($query);
$statement->bindValue(":tableName", $table, PDO::PARAM_STR);
$statement->bindValue(":number", $idNum, PDO::PARAM_INT);
$statement->execute();
$info = $statement->fetchAll(PDO::FETCH_ASSOC);
} catch (PDOException $excep) {
echo "Opps: " . $excep->getMessage();
die();
}
Okay I'm going crazy here trying to get this to work.
I have a database set up that I need to query from. I receive the query from an AJAX request with the name of the table I want and the id for the item. When I try to query with both variables, the binding does not occur in the prepared statement and instead I get this error code
Opps: SQLSTATE[42601]: Syntax error: 7 ERROR: syntax error at or near "$1" LINE 1: SELECT * FROM $1 WHERE id = 1 ^
When I have just the straight PHP variables it works fine so I know it can work, but when I want to bind multiple it seems to fail and give a variable number as above.
I can also get it to work if I simply have one of the variables bound, such as the second commented out query in the code - this only works tho if I have the variable I want at the end and not if I wanted to lookup the table spot. (I.E.
$query = "SELECT * FROM :tableName WHERE id = $idNum"; does not work)
I need to cleanse the variables to prevent SQL injection, but I can't do that without binding the variables in a prepared statement. Any help would be appreciated!
According to the PHP manual you can't bind a tablename. As you mentioned it, you can replace it by a variable, but you can't replace it with a placeholder.
So the only solution that will work for you is the query you have above:
$query = "SELECT * FROM $table WHERE id = :number"
This will be what you're looking for. If you want to make it safe for injection, you have to find another way. (Regex for example).
Ref: http://us3.php.net/manual/en/book.pdo.php#69304

MySQL query not fetching results (PHP)

I have the following script with an SQL problem which is not working.
<?php
$servername = "localhost";
$username = "root";
$password = "root";
$dbname = "Freepaste";
$conn = mysqli_connect($servername, $username, $password,$dbname);
if (!$conn) {
die("Connection failed: " . mysqli_connect_error());
}
echo "Connected successfully";
$user = $_POST['user'];
$pass = $_POST['pass'];
echo $user." ".$pass;
$stmt = $conn->prepare("SELECT * FROM users where users.username= ? AND users.password = ?");
$stmt->bind_param('ss', $user, $pass);
$stmt->execute();
$result = $stmt->get_result();
printf("Errormessage: %s\n", $mysqli->error);;
if (mysqli_num_rows($result) > 0) {
// output data of each row
while($row = mysqli_fetch_assoc($result)) {
echo "<br>id: " . $row["username"]." Password ".$row["password"]. "<br>";
}
}
else {
echo "<br>0 results <br>";
printf("Errormessage: %s\n", $mysqli->error);
}
mysqli_close($conn);
?>
The statement without the "where" clause gets me all the results, so I know the keys are right. Also, I ran the query in MySQL and it is working fine. I tried adding "" to $user and $pass, still not working. I checked the names in HTML, they are correct too. What am I missing?
Here's the link to the HTML:
http://pastebin.com/CWLuafVq
You are missing the quotes (although you are saying you tried) i think it should have worked. Your query should be:
SELECT * FROM users where users.username='$user' AND users.password='$pass'
Your query is vulnerable to SQL injection and in order to avoid it (and avoid hassle like requiring quotes in SQL statement), you should use PreparedStatement.
For your example, you just need to put single quotes around $user and $pass in the query.
BUT!!!!!! Your query is open to SQL injection. You should change the way you write queries. Use bound parameters instead, then you can almost forget about that issue.
Example:
$stmt = $conn->prepare("SELECT * FROM users where users.username= ? AND users.password = ?");
$stmt->bind_param('ss', $user, $pass);
$stmt->execute();
$result = $stmt->get_result();
See here for more information
As it stands, when your variables are put into the sql query, it ends up looking like this WHERE users.username=goelakash AN.... Without quotes around username and password, mysql is going to think you're comparing two columns.
What your query needs to look like is this.
$sql = "SELECT * FROM users where users.username=\"$user\" AND users.password=\"$pass\"";
Do yourself a huge favor, and put mysqli_error() calls after your calls to mysqli_query(). These will tell you exactly what mysql is crying about.
It is also worth noting that your queries are open to sql injection and you should take a look at prepared statements to mitigate that.
make sure your database password is 'root'? If yes then follow the query string
$sql = "SELECT * FROM users WHERE users.username='$user' AND users.password='$pass'";
just replace it. I think it will work fine :)

PDO prepared statements in functions [duplicate]

This question already has answers here:
How do I loop through a MySQL query via PDO in PHP?
(3 answers)
Closed 9 years ago.
I am currently using MySQL with PHP but am looking to start MySQLi or PDO
I have while loops like:
$sql="select from ... ";
$rs=mysql_query($sql);
while($result=mysql_fetch_array($rs))
{
$sql2="select from table2 where id = $result["tbl1_id"] ";
}
If I put my MySQLi or PDO queries into a function how can I run things like the above? Doing while loops with queries inside the while loops?
Or is if easier to not do the functions at all and just run the prepared statements as normal?
You wouldn't. And to be honest.. Even in the old days you would not do it this way, but like this:
$sql="select from ... ";
$rs=mysql_query($sql);
$ids = array()
while($result=mysql_fetch_array($rs))
{
$ids[] = $result["tbl1_id"];
}
$sql2="select from table2 where id in ".implode(',', $ids) .";
Or even better, you use a join to run the query just once, on all the tables that need to provide info.
In PDO you can do the same thing. Get all the ID's and the execute a query
I usually take the approach of preparing the query and not using a function. Also I am not clear as to what exactly it is that you want. You want to make your queries as quick and efficient as possible so you should not look to run a while look within another while loop.
This is how my PDO queries usually look
My connection:
$host = "localhost";
$db_name = "assignment";
$username = "root";
$password = "";
try {
$connection = new PDO("mysql:host={$host};dbname={$db_name}", $username, $password);
}catch(PDOException $exception){ //to handle connection error
echo "Connection error: " . $exception->getMessage();
}
MY query:
$query = "SELECT * FROM Table";
$stmt = $connection->prepare( $query );
$stmt->execute();
while ($row = $stmt->fetch(PDO::FETCH_ASSOC))
{
extract($row);
}
It's a duplication question like oGeez say, you have to learn how to code PDO in PHP and other before asking question,
this is the answer:
$dbh = new PDO("mysql:host=" . HOST . ";dbname=" . BASE, USER, PASS, array(PDO::MYSQL_ATTR_INIT_COMMAND => "SET NAMES utf8"));
$dbh->setAttribute(PDO::ATTR_ERRMODE, PDO::ERRMODE_EXCEPTION);
$query = 'SELECT * FROM table';
$stmt = $dbh->query($query);
$items = $stmt->fetchAll(PDO::FETCH_OBJ);
foreach($items as $item {
print_r($item);
}
the main reason to put it in a function would be if you use the query in multiple files. i have a web app with many queries and i like to keep them in a separate file so that they're easier to track down if i need to make changes. the main thing is that you 1) have to pass your database as a parameter and 2) return the results
function pdoquery($db, $parameter){
$query = "SELECT * FROM table WHERE column=?";
$stmt = $db->prepare($query);
$stmt->bindValue(1, $parameter, PDO::PARAM_STR); //or PARAM_INT
if (!$stmt->execute()) {
echo "Could not get results: (" . $stmt->errorCode . ") " . $stmt->errorInfo;
exit;
}
else
$result = $stmt->fetch();
$db = null;
return $result;
}
but as others have mentioned, if its only used once, there's no need for a function, and looping through the results is best done outside of the function as well. however, it is possible to do it inside the function if you want to.

Is mysql_real_escape_string() unsafe against hexadecimal encoded data?

We know that all user input must be escape by mysql_real_escape_string() function before executing on mysql in php script. And know that this function insert a \ before any ' or " character in user input. suppose following code:
$_POST['username'] = 'aidan';
$_POST['password'] = "' OR ''='";
// Query database to check if there are any matching users
$query = "SELECT * FROM users WHERE user='".mysql_real_escape_string($_POST['username']."' AND password='".mysql_real_escape_string($_POST['password']."'";
mysql_query($query);
// This means the query sent to MySQL would be:
echo $query;
this code is safe.
But I find out if user enters her inputs with hexadecimal format then mysql_real_escape_string() can not do any thing and user can execute her sql injection easily. in bellow 27204f522027273d27 is same ' OR ''=' but in hex formated and sql execute without problem :
$_POST['username'] = 'aidan';
$_POST['password'] = "27204f522027273d27";
// Query database to check if there are any matching users
$query = "SELECT * FROM users WHERE user='".mysql_real_escape_string($_POST['username']."' AND password='".mysql_real_escape_string($_POST['password']."'";
mysql_query($query);
// This means the query sent to MySQL would be:
echo $query;
But whether this is true and if answer is yes how we can prevent sql injection in this way?
If you are using mysql_real_escape_string(), odds are you would be better served using a prepared statement.
For your specific case, try this code:
/*
Somewhere earlier in your application, you will have to set $dbh
by connecting to your database using code like:
$dbh = new PDO('mysql:host=localhost;dbname=test', $DBuser, $DBpass);
*/
$_POST['username'] = 'aidan';
$_POST['password'] = "' OR ''='";
$user = $_POST['username'];
$password = $_POST['password'];
// Query database to check if there are any matching users
$query = "SELECT * FROM users WHERE user=? AND password=?";
$stmt = $dbh->prepare($query);
$stmt->bindParam(1, $user);
$stmt->bindParam(2, $password);
$stmt->execute();
This does require you to use PDO for your database interaction, but that's a good thing overall. Here's a question discussing the differences between PDO and mysqli statements.
Also see this StackOverflow question which is remarkably similar to yours and the accepted answer, from which I poached some of this answer.

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