CURRENT_USER(), CURRENT_USER()

Returns the user name and host name combination for the MySQL account that the server used to authenticate the current client. This account determines your access privileges. The return value is a string in the utf8 character set.

The value of CURRENT_USER() can differ from the value of USER()

mysql> SELECT USER();
    -> 'davida@localhost'
mysql> SELECT * FROM mysql.user;
ERROR 1044: Access denied for user ''@'localhost' to database 'mysql'
mysql> SELECT CURRENT_USER();
    -> '@localhost'

The example illustrates that although the client specified a user name of davida(as indicated by the value of USER() function), the server authenticated the client using an anonymous user account(as seen by the empty user name part of the CURRENT_USER() value). One way this might occur is that there is no account listed in the grant tables for davida.

Within a stored program or view, CURRENT_USER() returns the account for the user who defined the object (as given by its DEFINER value) unless defined with the SQL SECURITY INVOKER characteristic. In the latter case, CURRENT_USER() returns the object's invoker.

Triggers and events have on option to define the SQL SECURITY characteristic, so for these objects, CURRENT_USER() returns the account for the user who defined the object. To return the invoker, use USER() or SESSION_USER().

The following statements support use of the CURRENT_USER() function to take the place of the name (and, possibly, a host for) an affected user or a definer; in such cases, CURRENT_USER() is expanded where and as needed: