Invalid and Long Data Values
With data privacy, invalid data is encountered during the normalization process rather than during rule processing. Invalid source value options apply during inbound processing and are used to determine what to do when the source data value is invalid based on the source field definition and also when the source data cannot be normalized to the processing type selected for the data element. Invalid data will occur at outbound normalization when the disguised value cannot be converted back to the target data type.
Invalid Source Value
Invalid source value options apply during inbound processing and specify what to do when the source data value is invalid based on the source field definition or when the source data cannot be normalized to the processing type selected for the data element.
Select the options for the normalized field. These options are mutually exclusive - select one of them.
Initialize the pre-disguise value based on the processing type (default).
This option specifies that if source data is invalid, the data element value will be initialized based on the processing type: blanks for text processing, zeros for number processing, and the initialized value for date processing. When the rule receives this information, it cannot determine whether the value was the original data value or if the value was initialized due to invalid data.
Set the pre-disguise value to the following value (and enter a value).
This option sets the pre-disguise data to a known value for the normalized value. If you choose a unique value that cannot or will not occur in the original data, then the disguise rule processing this data element can check for the known value and take whatever action is desired knowing that the value was due to invalid source data.
Do not disguise, retain the original source value.
The option to retain the original source value prevents the value from being disguised. When the inbound normalization fails due to invalid data, the rule cannot execute. If the field is used as input in a disguise rule where other fields are being disguised, the other fields cannot be disguised, so the disguise failed condition will trigger for those fields.
You can select one or both of the following logging options, but they are not required:
- Log warning messages
When this option is selected, a warning message, including the source value will be written to the Java detail log. If this option is not selected, a count of invalid values will be written to the Java detail log, but no actual source values will be logged.
When the logging option is selected, a checkbox is enabled to specify a warning threshold and a count of the maximum number of warning messages to write. When this threshold is reached, logging values will stop but invalid source values will continue to be counted.
The count of values is reported on a per source field basis, so the logging threshold applies to each field as well.
- Execution threshold
The option to specify an execution threshold is provided to enable you to stop the disguise job from executing if the count of invalid source values exceeds the threshold value specified. Choose a number that is higher than the number of invalid source values you would reasonably expect in the field.
Invalid Disguised Value
This option applies when the disguised value cannot be returned to the target. Select the options for the target field. These options are mutually exclusive - select one of them:
- Initialize the target data based on the data type (default).
- Retain the original source value as the target value; data is not disguised
- Set the target field to the following value (and enter a value).
You can select one or both of the following logging options, but they are not required:
- Log warning messages
When this option is selected, a warning message, including the target value will be written to the Java detail log. If this option is not selected, a count of invalid values will be written to the Java detail log, but no actual target values will be logged.
When the logging option is selected, a checkbox is enabled to specify a warning threshold and a count of the maximum number of warning messages to write. When this threshold is reached, logging values will stop but invalid source values will continue to be counted.
The count of values is reported on a per source field basis, so the logging threshold applies to each field as well.
- Execution threshold
The option to specify an execution threshold is provided to enable you to stop the disguise job from executing if the count of invalid disguised values exceeds the threshold value specified. Choose a number that is higher than the number of invalid disguised values you would reasonably expect in the field.
Long Data Values
The long data value option applies to both inbound and outbound processing. Select the action to take if a long data value is encountered:
- Truncate the long data value; no warning will be logged (default)
Handle as invalid data.
This option specifies what happens when the source data value is longer than the normalized value can accommodate, or the disguised value is longer than the target field can handle. When this option is selected, whatever options have been specified for handling invalid data values will apply.