Introduction
Cyber threats are constantly evolving, and databases remain one of the most targeted assets in organizations. Misconfigurations, excessive privileges, and outdated security settings can expose sensitive data to breaches.
To address these risks, Azure SQL Vulnerability Assessment (VA) provides an automated security scanner that detects vulnerabilities in your Azure SQL Databases, Managed Instances, and SQL Servers on Azure VMs.
This post will cover:
What Azure SQL Vulnerability Assessment is How it helps detect security risks How to run and review security scans Best practices for securing Azure SQL environments
What is Azure SQL Vulnerability Assessment?
Azure SQL Vulnerability Assessment (VA) is a built-in Microsoft Defender for SQL feature that continuously scans for security issues and provides detailed remediation steps.
Scans for misconfigurations, excessive permissions, and weak security settings Evaluates compliance with security standards (GDPR, HIPAA, PCI-DSS, etc.) Provides detailed, actionable remediation recommendations Automates periodic scans and security reporting
By using VA, organizations can proactively strengthen their database security posture and ensure they meet industry compliance requirements.
How Azure SQL Vulnerability Assessment Works
The Vulnerability Assessment process follows a simple scan → analyze → remediate approach:
Scan the database – The system automatically evaluates security settings.
Analyze findings – Results highlight potential risks and compliance gaps.
Remediate issues – Admins receive recommended actions to fix vulnerabilities.
Automate periodic scans – Ensures continuous monitoring and compliance tracking.
How to Run a Vulnerability Assessment in Azure SQL
Enable Defender for SQL
Before using VA, you need to enable Microsoft Defender for SQL:
- Go to Azure Portal → Defender for Cloud
- Click Environment Settings
- Select your Subscription
- Enable Microsoft Defender for SQL
This activates security scanning and threat detection features for Azure SQL.
Enable Vulnerability Assessment in Azure SQL
- Go to Azure SQL Database
- Under Security, click Microsoft Defender for SQL
- Select Vulnerability Assessment → Click Enable
- Choose an Azure Storage Account for saving scan reports
- Click Save
Now, VA is enabled and ready to scan for security vulnerabilities.
Run a Security Scan
Once VA is enabled, manually trigger a scan:
- Go to Azure SQL Database → Microsoft Defender for SQL
- Under Vulnerability Assessment, click Run Scan
- Wait for the scan to complete
- Review assessment results and security findings
Review and Fix Security Vulnerabilities
After the scan, Azure generates a detailed report highlighting security risks such as:
Weak authentication settings Unencrypted database connections Excessive user permissions Misconfigured firewall rules
To view the full assessment report:
- Go to Azure SQL Database → Security → Vulnerability Assessment
- Open the latest scan results
- Review security findings and recommended fixes
- Apply remediation steps to resolve vulnerabilities
Automating Vulnerability Assessments
To schedule automated security scans:
- Go to Azure SQL Vulnerability Assessment
- Click Settings
- Enable Periodic Scanning
- Choose Scan Frequency (Daily, Weekly, or Monthly)
- Click Save
Azure will now automatically scan your SQL database for vulnerabilities and send alerts when new risks are detected.
Best Practices for Using Vulnerability Assessment
Enable VA on all production databases – Ensure every database is continuously scanned. Regularly review security reports – Address vulnerabilities before they become threats. Automate scanning – Run periodic assessments to detect new risks. Limit access to security reports – Use Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) to restrict visibility to authorized admins. Combine VA with Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) – Get real-time attack detection alongside security scanning.
Conclusion
Azure SQL Vulnerability Assessment is an essential security tool that helps organizations detect and fix security risks, improve compliance, and strengthen database security.
Detect misconfigurations and weak security settings Get actionable remediation steps Automate vulnerability scans for continuous protection
Have you enabled Vulnerability Assessment in your Azure SQL environment? Share your experiences and security best practices!
Have yet to enable Vulnerability Assessment for your Azure SQL environment and want more information? Microsoft Docs – Azure SQL Vulnerability Assessment Overview
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