# Deleting Data

Delete data with the `DELETE` statement. Be specific with your restrictions to
avoid accidental deletions. For example:

```default
DELETE FROM my_keyspace.users
  WHERE user_id = 123e4567-e89b-12d3-a456-426655440000;
```

Let’s break down the components of this `DELETE` statement:

**Keyspace and Table**

`my_keyspace.users`: This specifies the keyspace and table from which you
want to delete data. In this example, you are deleting data from a table named
`my_table` within the `my_keyspace` keyspace.

**WHERE Clause**
`WHERE user_id = 123e4567-e89b-12d3-a456-426655440000`: This part of
the statement specifies a restriction for filtering the rows to be deleted.

Including the `WHERE` clause with a specific restriction is essential to ensure
that only the rows meeting the restriction will be deleted. This is done to
prevent accidental deletions of the wrong data in the table.

#### NOTE
Similar to `INSERT` and `UPDATE` statements, a `DELETE` operation can be conditional
using ScyllaDB’s
[Lightweight Transaction](https://docs.scylladb.com/manual/stable/features/lwt.html)
IF EXISTS\` clause.

In summary, the `DELETE` statement in ScyllaDB is used to remove existing
data from a table. Always use a `WHERE` clause with a suitable restriction to
target the specific rows you want to delete, and ensure that the restriction is
specific enough to avoid unintended data loss. This approach helps maintain
data integrity in your ScyllaDB tables.

See the details about the [DELETE statement](https://docs.scylladb.com/manual/stable/cql/dml/delete.html)
in the ScyllaDB documentation.