Beginners Guide to Analyse Database Data Using SQL

This blog will walk you through ways to analyse database systems using SQL. Tune in.

These days, there are multiple ways to analyse database management systems and the data within. At the same time, not everyone may be aware of the basic SQL clauses that can assist you in basic analyse database tasks. Let’s dive into them.

Basic Analyse Database Queries

There are multiple basic analyse database SQL queries that you can peruse for your specific use case.

Filtering Data with WHERE

The first thing you can do is run analyse database SQL queries to filter only the data you need like SELECT `name`, `email` FROM `users` WHERE [some condition];

This analyse database SQL query will only return results in the name column from the users table instead of returning every row in the table. Also, it will keep in mind that the position shouldn’t be NULL:

Sorting Data with ORDER BY

Another SQL clause/query to watch when performing analyse database operations would be the ORDER BY clause that lets us organize results based on a specific column. A query like SELECT `name`, `position` FROM `employees` ORDER BY `id` DESC; would sort the names and positions of employees based on an ID value, then return them in a descending order.

Aggregating Data with GROUP BY

Another thing we can do to better analyse database data is to aggregate data sets using GROUP BY or another type of SQL query. GROUP BY helps us summarize data from a specific table, so an SQL query like SELECT `position`, COUNT(*) AS `employee_count` FROM `employees` GROUP BY `position` would return the number of employees in a specific position.

Using HAVING for Conditions on Aggregates

Finally, we can also use HAVING to filter grouped data based on specific conditions (e.g. where records exist, etc.): for example, we can count the amount of products along with the count of how many times each product appears in a table like so:

SELECT `product`, COUNT(*) AS `product_count` FROM `products` GROUP BY `product_id` HAVING COUNT(*) > 0;

Beyond Basic Analyse Database Operations

Besides these things, there are many other things you can do to further analyse database and the data within. If you’re analyzing data breaches, for example, you’d have queries that:

1. Analyse passwords
2. Analyse email addresses and email domains
3. Analyse registration or login dates
4. Analyse other information.

This SQL query would count how many users are using each password provided that passwords are stored in plain text:

SELECT password, COUNT(*) AS password_count FROM users GROUP BY password ORDER BY password_count DESC LIMIT 10;

To analyse database of email addresses and domains, you could use an SQL query like so:

SELECT SUBSTRING_INDEX(email, ‘@’, -1) AS domain, COUNT(*) AS user_count FROM users GROUP BY domain ORDER BY user_count DESC;

To analyse database of registration or login dates, use an SQL query like the one below:

SELECT DATE(registration_date) AS registration_day, COUNT(*) AS registrations FROM users GROUP BY registration_day ORDER BY registration_day DESC;

Besides those queries, don’t forget about data security either. in the age of AI, data security becomes more and more paramount and you will never know if your data has been stolen until you scan for yourself on data breach search engines like BreachDirectory.com.

Data breach search engines like BreachDirectory.com will help you see if your data has been stolen in any data breach and also help you perform a wide variety of investigative activities on email addresses, usernames, Blockchain or IP addresses, or other data:

Take the BreachDirectory API for a spin as well: similarly to the data breach search engine, the BreachDirectory API will let you implement data inside of BreachDirectory into your own application or website.

Summary

Beginners aiming to analyse database or specific data sets using SQL can peruse a variety of SQL clauses and setups. Those SQL clauses include basic data filtration clauses like WHERE, data sorting clauses like ORDER BY or aggregation clauses like GROUP BY. Otherwise, we may also use HAVING for conditions on aggregate data.

Other than analyse database queries, don’t forget that some SQL queries may be useful to analyse data breach data as well, including queries suitable for password or email address analysis or queries suitable to analyse database of other kinds. 

FAQ

What are the Best SQL Queries to Analyse Database of Information?

Some of the best SQL queries to analyse information include SQL queries with the WHERE clause, data sorting clauses like ORDER BY or aggregation clauses like GROUP BY. We may also make use of HAVING to set conditions on aggregate data.

Can You Use SQL Queries to Analyse Database As an Information Security Analyst?

Yes, sure! An information security analyst analysing information may analyse stolen data (email addresses or passwords, registration or login dates in data breaches, etc.) as well as other data.

Why Should I Use BreachDirectory.com or the BreachDirectory API?

Consider using data breach search engines like BreachDirectory.com because such data breach search engines allow you to search through multiple data classes (usernames, email or IP addresses, KEV/CVE values, Blockchain addresses, YCombinator or other data) to see if your data has been exposed in a data breach as well as lets you implement the data they have into your own application or website through the BreachDirectory API.