Data classification capabilities in Microsoft Compliance Center
In this tutorial, we will learn and understand Data classification capabilities in Microsoft Compliance Center.
Organizations need to know their data to identify important information across the estate and ensure that data handling is in line with compliance requirements. However, admins can enable their organization to know its data through data classification capabilities and tools in the Microsoft 365 compliance center. This can be:
1. Sensitive information types
With Microsoft 365 compliance center, admins can identify and protect sensitive information types. Sensitive information types have set patterns that can be used to identify them. For example, an identification number in a region/country may depend upon a specific pattern, like this:
123-456-789-ABC
Further, Microsoft 365 includes many built-in sensitive information types depending on patterns defined by a regular expression (regex) or a function. However, data classification in Microsoft 365 also supports the ability to create custom sensitive information types to address organization-specific requirements.
2. Trainable classifiers
Trainable classifiers use artificial intelligence and machine learning to intelligently classify your data. They’re most useful in classifying data unique to an organization like specific kinds of contracts, invoices, or customer records. However, this method of classification is more about training a classifier for identifying an item depending on what the item is. Further, there are two types of the classifier are available:
- Pre-trained classifiers – Microsoft has created and pretrained many classifiers that you can start using without training them. These classifiers will appear with the status of Ready to use. Microsoft 365 comes with five pretrained classifiers that detect and classify things like resumes, source code, harassment, profanity, and threat.
- Custom trainable classifiers – Microsoft supports the ability to create and train custom classifiers. They’re most useful when classifying data unique to an organization, like specific kinds of contracts, invoices, or customer records.
However, for getting a custom trainable classifier to accurately identify an item as being in a particular category of content, it must first be presented with many samples of the type of content in the category. This feeding of positive samples is known as seeding and is used to create a prediction model for the classifier.
3. Understand and explore the data
Data classification can involve large numbers of documents and emails. However, to help administrators easily derive insights and understanding, the overview section of the data classification pane in compliance center provides many details at a glance, including:
- Firstly, the number of items classified as sensitive information and which classifications they are.
- Secondly, details on the locations of data depending on sensitivity.
- Thirdly, a summary of actions that users are taking on sensitive content across the organization.
4. Content explorer
The content explorer is available as a tab in the data classification pane of the compliance center. It enables administrators to gain visibility into the content that has been summarized in the overview pane. However, access to content explorer is highly restricted because it makes it possible to read the contents of scanned files. There are two roles that grant access to content explorer:
- Firstly, content explorer list viewer.
- Secondly, content explorer content viewer.
Further, with content explorer, administrators get a current snapshot of individual items that have been classified across the organization. Moreover, it enables administrators to further drill down into items by allowing them to access and review the scanned source content that’s stored in different kinds of locations, such as Exchange, SharePoint, and OneDrive.
5. Activity explorer
Activity explorer provides visibility into what content has been discovered and labeled, and where that content is. Moreover, it makes it possible to monitor what’s being done with labeled content across the organization.
Further, Admins gain visibility into document-level activities like label changes and label downgrades. And, they also use the filters to see all the details for a specific label, including file types, users, and activities. Activity explorer helps you understand what’s being done with labeled content over time. Admins use activity explorer to evaluate if controls already in place are effective. However, there are a few of the activity types that can be analyzed:
- Firstly, file copied to removable media
- Secondly, file copied to network share
- Thirdly, a label applied
- Lastly, a label changed
Reference: Microsoft Documentation