diff --git a/docs/changelog/7.x.x.txt b/docs/changelog/7.x.x.txt
index f492dd2c4..6f6db6acc 100644
--- a/docs/changelog/7.x.x.txt
+++ b/docs/changelog/7.x.x.txt
@@ -22,6 +22,7 @@
 7.4.20
  - fix: Assets with no committed versions may be left as orphans when parent is purged
  - fix: Tag cloud limited was to 50 least commonly used tags
+ - Use UTF8 for database connection when connecting to MySQL
 
 7.4.19
  - fix: Import Package does nothing when re-importing trashed package
diff --git a/lib/WebGUI/SQL.pm b/lib/WebGUI/SQL.pm
index bf82d1442..9ca83554d 100644
--- a/lib/WebGUI/SQL.pm
+++ b/lib/WebGUI/SQL.pm
@@ -319,7 +319,13 @@ sub connect {
 	my $pass    = shift;
     my $params  = shift;
 
-	my $dbh = DBI->connect($dsn,$user,$pass,{RaiseError=>0,AutoCommit=>1 });
+    my $driver;
+    if ($dsn =~ /^dbi:(\w+):/i) {
+        $driver = $1;
+    }
+    my $dbh = DBI->connect($dsn,$user,$pass,{RaiseError => 0, AutoCommit => 1,
+        $driver eq 'mysql' ? (mysql_enable_utf8 => 1) : (),
+    });
 
 	unless (defined $dbh) {
 		$session->errorHandler->error("Couldn't connect to database: $dsn");