🛡️ SQL Injection Cybersecurity Simulator

An educational console application built with pure C# + SQL that demonstrates SQL injection vulnerabilities and defense mechanisms for learning purposes.

⚠️ FOR EDUCATIONAL USE ONLY - DO NOT USE AGAINST REAL SYSTEMS

🎯 Project Overview

This simulator provides a safe, controlled environment to:

• Learn how SQL injection vulnerabilities work
• Understand the impact of improper input handling
• Practice implementing secure coding techniques
• Analyze attack patterns and defense mechanisms
• Generate comprehensive security reports

📂 Project Structure

SQLInjectionSimulator/
├── Program.cs                      # Main application entry point
├── SQLInjectionSimulator.csproj    # Project configuration
├── appsettings.json                # Application configuration
├── copilot-instruction.md          # Comprehensive development guide
├── Database/
│   ├── schema.sql                  # Database table definitions
│   └── seed.sql                    # Initial test data
├── Modules/
│   ├── UserManager.cs              # Secure user management
│   ├── LoginSimulator.cs           # Attack simulation
│   ├── InjectionTester.cs          # Vulnerability demonstration
│   ├── DefenseEngine.cs            # Threat detection & analysis
│   └── Reporter.cs                 # Security reporting & analytics
└── README.md                       # This file

🚀 Quick Start

Prerequisites

• .NET 8.0 SDK
• SQL Server LocalDB (included with Visual Studio)
• Windows OS (for LocalDB support)

Installation & Setup

1. Clone or download the project

   git clone <repository-url>
   cd SQLInjectionSimulator

2. Restore NuGet packages

   dotnet restore

3. Initialize the database

   # Execute the SQL scripts in order:
   # 1. Run Database/schema.sql in SQL Server Management Studio or VS Code
   # 2. Run Database/seed.sql to populate with test data

4. Run the application

   dotnet run

5. Choose option 6 from the main menu to create test users if needed

🎮 How to Use

Main Menu Options

1. 🎯 Run Full Security Simulation

   • Executes a comprehensive simulation with normal and malicious attempts
   • Generates real-time security analysis
   • Produces detailed reports

2. 🔬 Demonstrate SQL Injection Vulnerabilities

   • Shows side-by-side comparison of vulnerable vs secure code
   • Educational test suite with various attack patterns

3. 🧪 Run Custom Attack Tests

   • Interactive testing with custom payloads
   • Real-time vulnerability analysis

4. 📊 Show Real-time Security Dashboard

   • Live monitoring of security events
   • Activity trends and threat indicators

5. 📈 Generate Comprehensive Security Report

   • Detailed analysis of security events
   • Export capabilities (CSV, JSON)

Educational Features

• Safe Learning Environment: All attacks are contained within the simulator
• Comparative Analysis: See vulnerable vs secure implementations side-by-side
• Pattern Recognition: Learn to identify common attack signatures
• Defense Mechanisms: Understand how proper security measures work

🔒 Security Features Demonstrated

Attack Patterns Covered

• Boolean-based injection: ' OR '1'='1
• Comment injection: admin'--
• Union-based attacks: ' UNION SELECT username, password FROM users--
• Time-based blind injection: '; WAITFOR DELAY '00:00:05'--
• Error-based injection: ' AND (SELECT COUNT(*) FROM sysobjects) > 0--
• Destructive commands: '; DROP TABLE Users--

Defense Techniques Implemented

• ✅ Parameterized Queries using SqlCommand.Parameters
• ✅ Input Validation with pattern detection
• ✅ Least Privilege database access
• ✅ Real-time Monitoring and alerting
• ✅ Brute Force Detection with IP blocking
• ✅ Comprehensive Logging for audit trails

📊 Sample Output

🛡️ SQL INJECTION CYBERSECURITY SIMULATOR - SECURITY REPORT
================================================================================
Report Generated: 2024-01-15 14:30:22
Analysis Period: 1.0 hours (2024-01-15 13:30 to 2024-01-15 14:30)

📊 SECURITY OVERVIEW
--------------------------------------------------
Total Login Attempts: 30
├── Successful Logins: 8 (26.7%)
├── Failed Attempts: 22 (73.3%)
└── Injection Attempts: 12 (40.0%)

🔍 THREAT DETECTION
--------------------------------------------------
Security Alerts: 15
├── Critical: 3 🔴
├── High: 5 🟠
├── Medium: 4 🟡
└── Low: 3 🟢

Detection Effectiveness: 95.2%

🧪 Educational Scenarios

Scenario 1: Basic Authentication Bypass

// VULNERABLE (DON'T DO THIS):
string query = $"SELECT * FROM Users WHERE Username = '{username}' AND Password = '{password}'";

// Input: username = "admin' OR '1'='1'--"
// Result: Bypasses authentication

// SECURE (CORRECT APPROACH):
string query = "SELECT * FROM Users WHERE Username = @username AND Password = @password";
command.Parameters.AddWithValue("@username", username);
command.Parameters.AddWithValue("@password", password);

Scenario 2: Data Extraction Attack

-- Attacker input: ' UNION SELECT username, password FROM users--
-- Resulting query attempts to extract sensitive data
-- Secure implementation prevents this with parameterization

📈 Reporting & Analytics

The simulator generates comprehensive reports including:

• Attack attempt statistics
• Top attack patterns and frequencies
• Source IP analysis
• Security alert summaries
• Performance metrics
• Actionable security recommendations

Reports can be exported to:

• CSV format for spreadsheet analysis
• JSON format for programmatic processing
• Console output for immediate review

🛠️ Technical Implementation

Database Schema

• Users: Secure user accounts with BCrypt password hashing
• LoginAttempts: Comprehensive logging of all authentication attempts
• Alerts: Security event tracking with severity levels

Security Analysis Engine

• Pattern-based injection detection
• Behavioral analysis for brute force attacks
• Real-time threat scoring
• Automated alert generation

Performance Considerations

• Efficient database indexing
• Connection pooling
• Asynchronous operations
• Memory-conscious reporting

🎓 Learning Outcomes

After using this simulator, you will understand:

1. SQL Injection Mechanics

   • How malicious input alters database queries
   • Common attack vectors and payloads
   • Business impact of successful attacks

2. Secure Development Practices

   • Parameterized query implementation
   • Input validation strategies
   • Error handling best practices

3. Security Architecture

   • Defense-in-depth principles
   • Monitoring and alerting systems
   • Incident response procedures

4. Risk Assessment

   • Vulnerability impact analysis
   • Threat pattern recognition
   • Security metric interpretation

⚠️ Important Disclaimers

Educational Use Only

This tool is designed exclusively for educational purposes:

• Learning secure coding practices
• Understanding vulnerability concepts
• Training security professionals
• Supporting cybersecurity education

Prohibited Uses

DO NOT use this simulator to:

• Attack real systems or applications
• Test security without explicit permission
• Harm individuals, organizations, or systems
• Violate any laws or regulations

Responsible Disclosure

If you discover real vulnerabilities during your learning:

• Report them through proper channels
• Follow responsible disclosure practices
• Protect sensitive information
• Respect affected organizations

🤝 Contributing

This is an educational project. If you'd like to contribute:

1. Ensure all contributions maintain the educational focus
2. Add comprehensive documentation for new features
3. Include security considerations in all code
4. Follow the existing code structure and patterns

📚 Additional Resources

• OWASP SQL Injection Prevention Cheat Sheet
• Microsoft Security Development Lifecycle
• NIST Cybersecurity Framework
• CWE-89: SQL Injection

📝 License

This educational project is provided as-is for learning purposes. Please use responsibly and ethically.

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Remember: The best defense against SQL injection is to never concatenate user input directly into SQL queries. Always use parameterized queries and validate all inputs! 🛡️