diff --git a/lib/ansible/modules/database/mysql/mysql_db.py b/lib/ansible/modules/database/mysql/mysql_db.py
index 38dee608ba5..3983c66639a 100644
--- a/lib/ansible/modules/database/mysql/mysql_db.py
+++ b/lib/ansible/modules/database/mysql/mysql_db.py
@@ -118,7 +118,7 @@ def db_exists(cursor, db):
     return bool(res)
 
 def db_delete(cursor, db):
-    query = "DROP DATABASE `%s`" % db
+    query = "DROP DATABASE %s" % mysql_quote_identifier(db, 'database')
     cursor.execute(query)
     return True
 
@@ -190,12 +190,14 @@ def db_import(module, host, user, password, db_name, target, port, socket=None):
     return rc, stdout, stderr
 
 def db_create(cursor, db, encoding, collation):
+    query_params = dict(enc=encoding, collate=collation)
+    query = ['CREATE DATABASE %s' % mysql_quote_identifier(db, 'database')]
     if encoding:
-        encoding = " CHARACTER SET %s" % encoding
+        query.append("CHARACTER SET %(enc)s")
     if collation:
-        collation = " COLLATE %s" % collation
-    query = "CREATE DATABASE `%s`%s%s" % (db, encoding, collation)
-    res = cursor.execute(query)
+        query.append("COLLATE %(collate)s")
+    query = ' '.join(query)
+    res = cursor.execute(query, query_params)
     return True
 
 def strip_quotes(s):
@@ -360,4 +362,6 @@ def main():
 
 # import module snippets
 from ansible.module_utils.basic import *
-main()
+from ansible.module_utils.database import *
+if __name__ == '__main__':
+    main()
diff --git a/lib/ansible/modules/database/mysql/mysql_user.py b/lib/ansible/modules/database/mysql/mysql_user.py
index aaec05f99f5..3fac5bc2759 100644
--- a/lib/ansible/modules/database/mysql/mysql_user.py
+++ b/lib/ansible/modules/database/mysql/mysql_user.py
@@ -151,6 +151,19 @@ except ImportError:
 else:
     mysqldb_found = True
 
+VALID_PRIVS = frozenset(('CREATE', 'DROP', 'GRANT OPTION', 'LOCK TABLES',
+                         'REFERENCES', 'EVENT', 'ALTER', 'DELETE', 'INDEX',
+                         'INSERT', 'SELECT', 'UPDATE',
+                         'CREATE TEMPORARY TABLES', 'TRIGGER', 'CREATE VIEW',
+                         'SHOW VIEW', 'ALTER ROUTINE', 'CREATE ROUTINE',
+                         'EXECUTE', 'FILE', 'CREATE USER', 'PROCESS', 'RELOAD',
+                         'REPLICATION CLIENT', 'REPLICATION SLAVE',
+                         'SHOW DATABASES', 'SHUTDOWN', 'SUPER', 'ALL',
+                         'ALL PRIVILEGES', 'USAGE',))
+
+class InvalidPrivsError(Exception):
+    pass
+
 # ===========================================
 # MySQL module specific support methods.
 #
@@ -217,7 +230,7 @@ def user_mod(cursor, user, host, password, new_priv, append_privs):
     return changed
 
 def user_delete(cursor, user, host):
-    cursor.execute("DROP USER %s@%s", (user,host))
+    cursor.execute("DROP USER %s@%s", (user, host))
     return True
 
 def privileges_get(cursor, user,host):
@@ -231,7 +244,7 @@ def privileges_get(cursor, user,host):
     The dictionary format is the same as that returned by privileges_unpack() below.
     """
     output = {}
-    cursor.execute("SHOW GRANTS FOR %s@%s", (user,host))
+    cursor.execute("SHOW GRANTS FOR %s@%s", (user, host))
     grants = cursor.fetchall()
 
     def pick(x):
@@ -274,6 +287,9 @@ def privileges_unpack(priv):
             pieces[0] = '.'.join(pieces[0])
 
         output[pieces[0]] = pieces[1].upper().split(',')
+        new_privs = frozenset(output[pieces[0]])
+        if not new_privs.issubset(VALID_PRIVS):
+            raise InvalidPrivsError('Invalid privileges specified: %s' % new_privs.difference(VALID_PRIVS))
 
     if '*.*' not in output:
         output['*.*'] = ['USAGE']
@@ -282,18 +298,24 @@ def privileges_unpack(priv):
 
 def privileges_revoke(cursor, user,host,db_table,grant_option):
     if grant_option:
-        query = "REVOKE GRANT OPTION ON %s FROM '%s'@'%s'" % (db_table,user,host)
-        cursor.execute(query)
-    query = "REVOKE ALL PRIVILEGES ON %s FROM '%s'@'%s'" % (db_table,user,host)
-    cursor.execute(query)
+        query = ["REVOKE GRANT OPTION ON %s" % mysql_quote_identifier(db_table, 'table')]
+        query.append("FROM %s@%s")
+        query = ' '.join(query)
+        cursor.execute(query, (user, host))
+    query = ["REVOKE ALL PRIVILEGES ON %s" % mysql_quote_identifier(db_table, 'table')]
+    query.append("FROM %s@%s")
+    query = ' '.join(query)
+    cursor.execute(query, (user, host))
 
 def privileges_grant(cursor, user,host,db_table,priv):
 
     priv_string = ",".join(filter(lambda x: x != 'GRANT', priv))
-    query = "GRANT %s ON %s TO '%s'@'%s'" % (priv_string,db_table,user,host)
+    query = ["GRANT %s ON %s" % (priv_string, mysql_quote_identifier(db_table, 'table'))]
+    query.append("TO %s@%s")
     if 'GRANT' in priv:
-        query = query + " WITH GRANT OPTION"
-    cursor.execute(query)
+        query.append("WITH GRANT OPTION")
+    query = ' '.join(query)
+    cursor.execute(query, (user, host))
 
 
 def strip_quotes(s):
@@ -425,8 +447,8 @@ def main():
     if priv is not None:
         try:
             priv = privileges_unpack(priv)
-        except:
-            module.fail_json(msg="invalid privileges string")
+        except Exception, e:
+            module.fail_json(msg="invalid privileges string: %s" % str(e))
 
     # Either the caller passes both a username and password with which to connect to
     # mysql, or they pass neither and allow this module to read the credentials from
@@ -459,11 +481,17 @@ def main():
 
     if state == "present":
         if user_exists(cursor, user, host):
-            changed = user_mod(cursor, user, host, password, priv, append_privs)
+            try:
+                changed = user_mod(cursor, user, host, password, priv, append_privs)
+            except SQLParseError, e:
+                module.fail_json(msg=str(e))
         else:
             if password is None:
                 module.fail_json(msg="password parameter required when adding a user")
-            changed = user_add(cursor, user, host, password, priv)
+            try:
+                changed = user_add(cursor, user, host, password, priv)
+            except SQLParseError, e:
+                module.fail_json(msg=str(e))
     elif state == "absent":
         if user_exists(cursor, user, host):
             changed = user_delete(cursor, user, host)
@@ -473,4 +501,6 @@ def main():
 
 # import module snippets
 from ansible.module_utils.basic import *
-main()
+from ansible.module_utils.database import *
+if __name__ == '__main__':
+    main()
diff --git a/lib/ansible/modules/database/mysql/mysql_variables.py b/lib/ansible/modules/database/mysql/mysql_variables.py
index 7353fdd485d..199c5eb6eca 100644
--- a/lib/ansible/modules/database/mysql/mysql_variables.py
+++ b/lib/ansible/modules/database/mysql/mysql_variables.py
@@ -103,7 +103,7 @@ def typedvalue(value):
 
 
 def getvariable(cursor, mysqlvar):
-    cursor.execute("SHOW VARIABLES LIKE '" + mysqlvar + "'")
+    cursor.execute("SHOW VARIABLES LIKE %s", (mysqlvar,))
     mysqlvar_val = cursor.fetchall()
     return mysqlvar_val
 
@@ -116,8 +116,11 @@ def setvariable(cursor, mysqlvar, value):
     should be passed as numeric literals.
 
     """
+    query = ["SET GLOBAL %s" % mysql_quote_identifier(mysqlvar, 'vars') ]
+    query.append(" = %s")
+    query = ' '.join(query)
     try:
-        cursor.execute("SET GLOBAL " + mysqlvar + " = %s", (value,))
+        cursor.execute(query, (value,))
         cursor.fetchall()
         result = True
     except Exception, e:
@@ -242,7 +245,10 @@ def main():
         value_actual = typedvalue(mysqlvar_val[0][1])
         if value_wanted == value_actual:
             module.exit_json(msg="Variable already set to requested value", changed=False)
-        result = setvariable(cursor, mysqlvar, value_wanted)
+        try:
+            result = setvariable(cursor, mysqlvar, value_wanted)
+        except SQLParseError, e:
+            result = str(e)
         if result is True:
             module.exit_json(msg="Variable change succeeded prev_value=%s" % value_actual, changed=True)
         else:
@@ -250,4 +256,5 @@ def main():
 
 # import module snippets
 from ansible.module_utils.basic import *
+from ansible.module_utils.database import *
 main()