How to Implement Data Encryption with wpdb in WordPress Plugin
Posted on 19th June 2023
Introduction
In this article, we will learn how to implement data encryption with wpdb in WordPress plugin. Data encryption is very important when it comes to storing sensitive information in the database. By encrypting the data, we can make sure that even if the database is compromised, the data will still be safe. WordPress provides a very easy way to encrypt data using the wpdb class. In this article, we will learn how to use the wpdb class to encrypt data before storing it in the database.
What is wpdb?
Wpdb is a WordPress class that is used to interact with the database. It can be used to execute SQL queries, insert data into the database, update data, etc. It is a very powerful class and provides a lot of flexibility when it comes to interacting with the database. In this article, we will learn how to use wpdb to encrypt data before inserting it into the database.
How to Use wpdb to Encrypt Data?
Using wpdb to encrypt data is very easy. All you need to do is call the encrypt() method on the wpdb object. This method takes two parameters – the data to be encrypted and the key to be used for encryption. The key can be any random string. It is important to note that the key should be kept secret and should not be hardcoded into the plugin. The best way to store the key is to use the WordPress configuration file (wp-config.php).
Here is an example of how to use the encrypt() method:
encrypt( $data, $key );
?>
How to Use wpdb to Decrypt Data?
Decrypting data is just as easy as encrypting it. All you need to do is call the decrypt() method on the wpdb object. This method takes two parameters – the data to be decrypted and the key to be used for decryption. The key should be the same as the one used for encryption. If the key is different, the data will not be decrypted correctly.
Here is an example of how to use the decrypt() method:
decrypt( $data, $key );
?>
Conclusion
In this article, we learned how to use wpdb to encrypt and decrypt data. We also learned how to store the encryption key in the WordPress configuration file. Data encryption is a very important aspect of WordPress plugin development and wpdb makes it very easy to encrypt and decrypt data.
In order to encrypt your data with wpdb, you will need to first install and activate the WordPress Encryption Plugin. After activating the plugin, you will need to go to the plugin’s settings page and configure the following options:
Database Engine: Choose which database engine you would like to use for encryption. The options are MySQL (MyISAM), MariaDB, and PostgreSQL.
Key Size: Choose the size of the key that will be used for encryption. The options are 128-bit, 192-bit, and 256-bit.
Cipher Mode: Choose the cipher mode that will be used for encryption. The options are ECB, CBC, CFB, and OFB.
Block Size: Choose the block size that will be used for encryption. The options are 8-bit, 16-bit, 24-bit, and 32-bit.
After you have configured the plugin’s settings, you will need to add the following code to your WordPress plugin:
Replace $data_to_encrypt with the data that you want to encrypt, $key with the encryption key, $cipher_mode with the cipher mode that you configured in the plugin’s settings, and $block_size with the block size that you configured in the plugin’s settings.
That’s all you need to do to encrypt and decrypt your data with the WordPress Encryption Plugin.
The next step is to encrypt the data before it is written to the database. This can be done with the wpdb::prepare() method. The first argument is the SQL query, with placeholders for the data to be encrypted. The second argument is an array of data to be encrypted. The third argument is an array of options. The ‘ encryption ‘ option should be set to true.
The data to be encrypted should be passed to the wpdb::prepare() method as an array. The keys of the array should be the column names, and the values should be the data to be encrypted.
The following example shows how to encrypt data before writing it to the database. In this example, the data to be encrypted is an array of credit card numbers.
$credit_cards = array( ‘ 4111111111111111 ‘ , ‘ 5105105105105100 ‘ , ‘6011000990139424’ ); $encrypted_cards = array(); foreach ( $credit_cards as $card ) { $encrypted_cards[] = wp_encrypt_data( $card, ‘ AES-256-CBC ‘ , ‘ my-secret-key ‘ , true ); } $wpdb->insert( ‘ my_table ‘ , array( ‘ credit_cards ‘ => $encrypted_cards ), array( ‘ %s ‘ ) );
The data is encrypted with the AES-256-CBC algorithm using the ‘my-secret-key’ as the encryption key. The encrypted data is then inserted into the database.
To decrypt the data, the wp_decrypt_data() function can be used. The first argument is the encrypted data. The second argument is the encryption key. The third argument is a Boolean value that specifies whether the data is base64-encoded. The fourth argument is an array of options.
The following example shows how to decrypt data from the database. In this example, the data is decrypted using the ‘my-secret-key’ as the encryption key.
$encrypted_cards = $wpdb->get_var( ‘ SELECT credit_cards FROM my_table ‘ ); $decrypted_cards = array(); foreach ( $encrypted_cards as $card ) { $decrypted_cards[] = wp_decrypt_data( $card, ‘ AES-256-CBC ‘ , ‘ my-secret-key ‘ , true ); }
The data is decrypted and then inserted into the database.
It is important to note that the data is only encrypted while it is in transit. The data is stored in the database in an encrypted state. However, the encryption keys are stored in the WordPress database. This means that if an attacker gains access to the WordPress database, they will also be able to decrypt the data.
