Defining custom data masking formats

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Create, manage, and edit custom masking formats. A masking format defines the structure of your data. If you have defined one or more custom masking formats, then you can select a custom format as the data masking type when configuring a masking policy.

When you need to protect sensitive data that doesn't match standard formats like credit card numbers or addresses, custom data formats give you the flexibility to define masking rules for your organization's unique data structures. Whether you have proprietary identifiers, custom codes, specialized numbering systems, or industry-specific data patterns, you can create format definitions that precisely describe the structure of your data and then apply them across multiple masking policies. Custom masking formats eliminate the need for workarounds or custom code, allowing you to implement comprehensive data protection for any type of sensitive information in your organization.

Custom masking formats work seamlessly with IBM® Optim Data Privacy, giving you the flexibility to choose the right masking technique for each use case.

Build data format structures by using the visual format builder that supports:
  • Simple patterns like integers and regular expressions
  • Complex nested structures with multiple subformats
You can define custom data masking formats that use any of the following formats and subformats:
Format Type Description
Concatenation Composite Define as many nested subformats as required to define the custom data format.
Integer Basic An integer value. Define the minimum and maximum values.
RealNumber Basic A real number value. Define the minimum, maximum, and scale.
FixedLengthPaddedInteger Basic A fixed length padded integer value. Define the minimum, maximum, and minimum length.
FixedLengthString Basic A fixed length string value. Define the alphabet to use and the length of the string.
VariableLengthString Basic A variable length string value. Define the alphabet to use, the minimum length, and the maximum length.
RegularExpression Basic A regular expression value. Define the RegEx and the maximum length.
StringSet Basic A set of strings. Define the strings as a comma-separated list, and the value that indicates that the field should be ignored.

After you create a custom format, it becomes a reusable asset in your format library, ensuring consistent masking across all your data protection policies while maintaining the same format and structure as your original data.

Creating a custom masking format

To define a new custom data masking format:

  1. From the navigation menu, click Workflow icon Workflow > Custom formats.
  2. Click Create new format.
  3. Give your new custom format a name and description.
  4. In the Custom format structure section, define the structure of this data format.
    1. By default, Concatenation is selected as the starting format. Select the action menu beside the format to change the format or to define subformats.
    2. For each format and subformat that you select, provide the required data definitions. If necessary, use a composite format to define complex data structures that include nested data formats.
    3. Click Create.

Managing existing custom masking formats

You can view, edit, or delete custom masking formats. To manage custom masking formats:
  1. From the navigation menu, click Workflow icon Workflow > Custom formats.
  2. Locate the custom format that you want to manage. Use the search bar if necessary.
    • To view custom format details, click the name of the custom format. You can see the name of the format and its data type details.
    • To edit a custom format, click the Edit icon Edit icon. Make any required changes to the format definition, then click Save.
    • To delete a custom format, click the Delete icon Delete icon. Deleted custom formats cannot be recovered.

What to do next

After you create a custom masking format, you can use it in a masking policy within your data flow. To apply your custom format:

  1. Create or edit a masking definition in the flow builder.
  2. When you add a masking policy, select Standard policy as the policy type.
  3. Choose Custom as the policy category.
  4. Select your custom masking format from the available formats.
  5. Assign the policy to the appropriate data columns.

For detailed instructions on applying masking policies in a flow, see Applying masking policies.