Are You Blind to Database-Level Attacks in SAP? Here’s a Fix
Uncover hidden threats with real-time visibility and control at the database layer in your SAP landscape.
Most SAP security strategies focus on the application layer—monitoring user activities, roles, and configurations within the SAP GUI. But there’s a major blind spot that often gets overlooked: the database layer.
Cyber attackers, insiders, or rogue admins can bypass SAP's front door and head straight to the backend—where your most sensitive data lives. And if you’re not watching that space? You may be in trouble.
Problem: Direct Database Access Is a Major Blind Spot and an Auditors concern too!
Let’s break it down. Whether you run SAP on HANA, MS SQL, Oracle, or any other supported database, here are the risks:
Direct DB Access: Users with database credentials can bypass SAP and access tables directly using SQL clients.
Unmonitored Data Extraction: Sensitive tables like PA0001 (HR), BKPF (Financials), or BUT000 (Customer Master) can be read or exported with zero visibility at the SAP level.
Limited Logging: SAP doesn’t log what it doesn’t see. If the data is accessed outside the SAP layer, it won’t show up in STAD, SM20, or any traditional audit logs.
Regulatory Compliance Risks: Regulations like GDPR, SOX, or HIPAA demand full traceability of sensitive data access—something many organizations can’t provide at the database level.
Solution: Database Activity Monitor (DAM) by ThreatSenseAI
ThreatSenseAI’s Database Activity Monitor (DAM) is purpose-built to solve this visibility gap. It gives you deep, real-time monitoring of database-level activity — integrated seamlessly with SAP security insights.
1. Real-Time Monitoring of DB Sessions
DAM captures all database connections—whether from SAP, a SQL editor, or a rogue script. You can instantly see:
Who accessed what
When and how
What queries were run
What changes are done (change logs)
2. AI/ML-Based Behaviour Analysis
Not all queries are threats. DAM uses machine learning to establish baselines for typical access patterns—then flags deviations. For example:
A sudden SELECT * on sensitive tables
An employee accessing HR data they’ve never touched before
Large data exports outside business hours
3. Contextual Correlation with SAP
The real power of ThreatSenseAI lies in correlation. DAM doesn’t just show database activity in isolation. It correlates with SAP logs, user identities, and changes to give you a 360-degree threat picture.
4. Alerting, Blocking, and Automated Response
Configure rules to:
Alert on unauthorized DB access
Kill suspicious DB sessions
Trigger automated workflows in ThreatResponse
Send forensic evidence to compliance teams or create an incident with the detailed log in ITSM application
Here is a Use Case Snapshot:
Scenario: A privileged user runs a direct SQL query to extract salary data from the HANA database using a third-party tool.
Without ThreatSenseAI: No alerts. No logs in SAP. Breach goes unnoticed.
With ThreatSense DAM:
Session is instantly flagged.
AI identifies the activity as abnormal based on the user's profile.
Alert is triggered and the session is terminated automatically.
Full audit trail is saved for review.
Why It Matters
Conclusion
Ignoring the SAP database layer is like locking your front door but leaving your back window wide open. With ThreatSenseAI’s Database Activity Monitor, you finally gain real-time visibility, control, and intelligence across the most sensitive layer of your SAP system.
Want to see DAM in action? Request a demo and discover how secure your SAP backend can really be!