Re: PL/SQL Execute permissions

In article <393FA534.BC47351D_at_Unforgetable.com>,   Walter T Rejuney <BlueSax_at_Unforgetable.com> wrote:
> Why do users have the ability to use DBMS_OUTPUT without any DBA
> intervention, but if they try to use DBMS_SYSTEM they don't have
> permission to execute it until the DBA gives explicit permission. I
 know
> there must be other procedures that are like this but this is one
 that I
> recently ran into.
>

dbms_output = harmless package that everyone needs. no inherit security risks in everyone having at it. very safe. very useful.

dbms_system = undocumented package. Full of things I don't want my typical user doing. Like turning on trace in someone elses session. Like setting events in their session. Like writing nastygrams into my alert.log

You'll find the packages granted to public are "safe", "harmless" packages. Packages not granted to public (eg: dbms_pipe) can do things that are "bad" in the wrong hands. With dbms_pipe for example -- if you wrote a program to listen on a pipe and write procedures to put messages into that pipe and granted execute on those procedures to "sue".... think about what could happen if public had execute on dbms_pipe and "bob" wanted to talk to your pipe server -- he could try to get access to YOUR procedure (but he can't, you won't give it to him) or he could use dbms_pipe to talk directly to your pipe server and you would never know the difference.

--
Thomas Kyte (tkyte_at_us.oracle.com) Oracle Service Industries
Howtos and such: http://osi.oracle.com/~tkyte/index.html
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Opinions are mine and do not necessarily reflect those of Oracle Corp


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