MMORPG Main Maps Saved in DB

Hey peeps, so I'm making my first MMORPG and everything has gone really smoothly. I feel as if I'm quite protected against most hackers (kitty scripters) and I know hacking is inevitable. That is why I cannot decide what to do for this part of the development. Basically, I have created a map maker in my game which I use to make single player and multiplayer maps. The map data is saved onto a really long string that can be read by my map building script. However, I don't know whether I should save the maps internally or externally on the game's database. If I do it externally, I can alter map information without having to integrate an update. But, at the same time, I feel like I'm opening myself up to massive security problems. I would like to mention that the client does NOT communicate with the database but instead to scripts that do it behind the scenes. So, what should I do? :)

Thanks in advance!!