Snusbase: How to Check Leaked Data

Have you ever wanted an online search engine that tells you if your databases are leaked to the public or not? Snusbase will do exactly that. Security researchers, ethical hackers, and IT professionals often use it to check for compromised credentials and assess data security risks. Snusbase lets you query breached data using email addresses, usernames, and IP addresses to check if any of their private or confidential information has been exposed to the public or unintended eyes.

Today at PythonCentral, let us guide you to the basics of Snusbase, how it works, its API usage in Python, and ethical considerations when you handle leaked data. Get. Set. Learn!

What is Snusbase

Snusbase is a repository containing a collection of most of the publicly leaked databases that contain compromised credentials, which could include:

Emails and passwords
Usernames
IP addresses
Phone numbers

This data gathered from this repository is used for security audits, penetration testing, and threat intelligence purposes. Ethical use of Snusbase ensures compliance with privacy laws and responsible data handling.

How to Access Snusbase API

To interact with Snusbase programmatically, you can use its REST API. For doing so, you will need an API key. You can get the API key by registering on the Snusbase platform.

Install Required Python Libraries

Some of you might have guessed already, we are about to use Pip, to install the required libraries.

pip install requests

Sample Query for Snusbase API

import requests

API_KEY = "your_api_key_here"
BASE_URL = "https://api.snusbase.com/v3/"

def search_breach(query):
headers = {"Authorization": f"Bearer {API_KEY}"}
payload = {"query": query}
response = requests.post(BASE_URL, json=payload, headers=headers)
return response.json()

# Example usage
result = search_breach("[email protected]")
print(result)

How to Interpret the API Response

When querying the Snusbase API, the response will typically contain:

Database name: Identifies the breached source.
Email/Usernames: Exposed credentials.
Hashed or plaintext passwords: Depending on the breach.
Additional metadata: Such as IP addresses, domains, and timestamps.

Here is a sample API response in JSON format:

{
"breach": "ExampleBreach 2016",
"email": "[email protected]",
"password": "hashed_password",
"ip": "192.168.1.1"
}

Using Snusbase for Security Audits

If you work in the cybersecurity industry, you can use this repository to:

Check if company emails are compromised
Monitor leaked credentials in known data breaches
Verify password security practices
Conduct threat intelligence research

Real World Examples

Here is a sample script, to automate security checks.

emails_to_check = ["[email protected]", "[email protected]"]
for email in emails_to_check:
result = search_breach(email)
print(f"Results for {email}: {result}")

Ethical Considerations and Legal Compliance

While Snusbase is a useful tool for security research, improper use can lead to privacy violations and legal consequences. Always adhere to these guidelines:

Ethical hacking guidelines: Use Snusbase only for security audits and research.
GDPR and data privacy laws: Ensure compliance with data protection regulations.
User consent: Obtain permission before querying third-party data.

Snusbase Alternatives

For users looking for other legal and ethical alternatives, consider any of these alternatives:

Have I Been Pwned (HIBP): This is a free service for checking compromised credentials.
DeHashed: Advanced breach database lookup.
BreachAlarm: Password breach monitoring service.

Wrapping Up

Snusbase is a powerful tool for security professionals, researchers, and even learners to analyse leaked data and protect user credentials. By integrating the Snusbase API into Python applications, you can automate breach detection, monitor security risks, and strengthen their cybersecurity posture.

By utilizing this search engine responsibly, developers and security researchers like you can enhance your threat detection capabilities and prevent unauthorized access to sensitive data.