Always Encrypted and Always Encrypted with Secure Enclaves in SQL

Always Encrypted and Always Encrypted with secure enclaves are features designed to protect sensitive information, including credit card numbers and national identification numbers (such as U.S. Social Security numbers), in Azure SQL Database, Azure SQL Managed Instance, and SQL Server databases.

Aula: Microsoft Learn – Always Encrypted

You Should Know:

1. Enabling Always Encrypted in SQL Server

To enable Always Encrypted, you need to:

1. Generate a Column Master Key (CMK):

$cert = New-SelfSignedCertificate -Subject "AlwaysEncryptedCert" -CertStoreLocation Cert:\CurrentUser\My -KeyExportPolicy Exportable -Type DocumentEncryptionCert -KeyUsage KeyEncipherment -KeySpec KeyExchange 

2. Create a Column Encryption Key (CEK):

CREATE COLUMN ENCRYPTION KEY [bash] 
WITH VALUES 
( 
COLUMN_MASTER_KEY = [bash], 
ALGORITHM = 'RSA_OAEP', 
ENCRYPTED_VALUE = 0x017... 
); 

3. Encrypt a Column:

ALTER TABLE [bash].[bash] 
ALTER COLUMN [bash] <a href="16">nvarchar</a> COLLATE Latin1_General_BIN2 
ENCRYPTED WITH ( 
ENCRYPTION_TYPE = Deterministic, 
ALGORITHM = 'AEAD_AES_256_CBC_HMAC_SHA_256', 
COLUMN_ENCRYPTION_KEY = [bash] 
); 

2. Querying Encrypted Data

When using secure enclaves, certain operations can be performed without decrypting data:

-- Range comparisons (requires secure enclave) 
SELECT  FROM [bash].[bash] 
WHERE [bash] > '123-45-6789'; 

3. Rotating Keys Securely

To rotate a Column Master Key:

Import-PfxCertificate -FilePath "C:\new_master_key.pfx" -CertStoreLocation Cert:\CurrentUser\My 

Then update the CEK in SQL:

ALTER COLUMN ENCRYPTION KEY [bash] 
ROTATE COLUMN MASTER KEY [bash]; 

4. Linux & Windows Commands for Key Management

• Exporting a Certificate (Linux):

  openssl pkcs12 -export -out master_key.pfx -inkey private.key -in cert.crt 
  

• Importing into Windows Certificate Store:

  Import-PfxCertificate -FilePath "C:\master_key.pfx" -CertStoreLocation Cert:\LocalMachine\My 
  

5. Secure Enclave Configuration

To enable secure enclaves in SQL Server:

ALTER DATABASE SCOPED CONFIGURATION 
SET ENABLE ALWAYS ENCRYPTED WITH SECURE ENCLAVES = ON; 

What Undercode Say

Always Encrypted is a powerful feature for protecting sensitive data at rest and in transit. Secure enclaves extend its capabilities by enabling computations on encrypted data. Key management is critical—ensure proper backup and rotation policies.

For Linux admins, integrating OpenSSL with SQL encryption ensures cross-platform security. Windows admins should leverage PowerShell for automated key deployments.

Expected Output:

-- Sample encrypted query result 
SELECT [bash] FROM [bash].[bash] WHERE [bash] = 'Smith'; 
-- (Returns encrypted data if not decrypted with proper permissions) 

References:

Reported By: Marcelocloud Mvp – Hackers Feeds
Extra Hub: Undercode MoN
Basic Verification: Pass ✅

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