Policies

Policies help control the way files are handled by Barracuda Data Inspector. 

To view existing policies, use the menu at top-left and navigate to Settings > Policies.

A policy determines what action will be taken given a configured set of conditions. Policies can be applied to files belonging to certain groups or users when built-in or custom classifiers are matched by file data.

Exemptions can also be made, so a policy will not apply for selected groups or users.

Policies are applied in order starting with the highest ranked policy (1). See the priority column on the left side of the policy table. This order can be changed. Once a policy action is enacted, no other policies will be tested against that file. (The one exception to this rule is if the policy Action is Ignore classifier. See the Create a New Policy > Action section below.)

There will always be at least one policy, the Default policy. This policy is always enabled and while it can be edited, the name cannot be changed. 

Create a New Policy

To create a new policy, click the Create Policy button at top-right. In the new policy flyout, configure the following:

• Policy name – Name of the new policy.
• Description – Optional. A description can be useful when reviewing policies at a future date.
• Condition – Add classifier, identity and authorship markers. Each one selected shows as a "chip" in that condition field. Add as many as you like by checking the  boxes in the dropdown lists. Remove individual chips by clicking on the X next to it or remove all chips in a field by clicking the X on the far right side of the field.
  
  
  • If Classifier is – In the dropdown list, select as many classifiers as you want to be considered. Classifier groups are:
    • Content classifiers – The policy will apply to files with content matching these classifiers.
      • Choose from Credit Card, Credentials, Passport, License Number, Personal ID, Personal Medical ID, Tax ID, Suspicious, Malicious, or Financial ID.
      • Example: a policy with the Credit Card classifier searches for file content that matches one of the many standard credit card number formats.
    • Sharing classifiers – The policy will apply to files with these permissions.
      • Choose from Public Readable, Public Writable, External Readable, or External Writable.
        • External – Available to any user outside of your organization.
        • Public – There are no restrictions regarding who can access the file.
      • Example: Public Readable means a link to the file can be shared with anyone, and that person can read the file contents (but not make edits).
    • Custom classifiers – These are the classifiers created by you or people in your organization. You can see and edit them here.
    • You can also choose Any (at top of list), which includes all classifiers.
  • And Identity is – Select the groups and/or users the policy can apply to (assuming Authorship and Classifier are also matches.)
    • Example: Classifier = Credit Card, Identity = Group A, Authorship (below) = Owner, Action (below) = Ignore classifier. In this scenario, a file containing credit card information owned (authorship) by a user in group A (identity) is a match for this policy. Therefore, the file classifier will be Ignored (action). 
  • Except – Optional. Select the group or user to which the policy will not apply.
    • Example: See the scenario for the And Identity is example above. Group A = Julie, Dave, and Gina. Except = Users Julie. The policy will apply to anyone in Group A except Julie. If Julie owns the file in question, the policy will not be applied. 
  • And Authorship of file is – The Identity selected above must have the authorship selected here for the policy to be applied. You can select more than one option.
    
    • Choose from Owner, Creator, or Last Modifier. 
    • Continuing with the example used above (Classifier = Credit Card, Identity = Group A, Group A = Julie, Dave, and Gina, Authorship = Owner, Action = Ignore classifier). A file containing credit card data is created by Dave, but he is not the file owner and no other person in Group A owns the file. The policy (Ignoring the configured classifiers) will not be applied because it does not match the Authorship condition. The file can then be acted upon by other policies (possibly Quarantine file, Delete file, etc.)
• Action – This is the action to be taken by Data Inspector if a file meets the above conditions. Options are:
  • Ignore classifier – No action will be taken by this policy, but the file will continue to be checked against other policies.
  • Report file – File will be shown on the Detections > Unresolved tab.
  • Quarantine file – File will be moved to the DI_QUARANTINE folder, which exists at the root level of your company file tree. This folder is created the first time a file is moved to Quarantine.
  • UnShare file – Files will have their sharing permissions and links removed and will be restricted to Private. Only the file owners will then have access.
  • Delete file – Files will be deleted from the user's drive and moved to the Recycle Bin.

Edit a Policy

To make changes to an existing policy, click the three dotson the right side of that policy row. Then click Edit. The policy flyout will open, displaying the configuration options. 

See the above section for details about each field. Once you have made all changes, click the Save button.

The only field that cannot be changed is the Name field of the Default policy.

Change the Order that Policies are Implemented

Policies are applied in order starting with the highest ranked policy, which is policy 1. The priority column on the left side of the Policies table shows the order.

To change the order, click Edit Priority. Then select a policy and drag it up or down to fit your desired order. Once you have all policies in place, click the Save button at top-right.

Other Policy Page Actions

Delete – To delete a policy, click the three dotson the right side of that policy's row. Then click Delete.

Search – Enter all or part of a policy's name in the Search field. All policies with names containing the text you entered will be displayed.