PII handling in AutoSupport data warehouse
Applies to
- AutoSupport data warehouse
- Personally Identifiable Information (PII)
Answer
As part of NetApp’s Privacy Policy, NetApp is now concealing Personally Identifiable Information (PII) that is stored in the AutoSupport data warehouse.
The following elements of PII within AutoSupport telemetry are processed:
Username | encrypted or masked |
---|---|
Email address | always masked |
Personal IP address | encrypted or masked |
Personal MAC address | encrypted |
Physical address | always masked |
- The result is that within AutoSupport the data warehouse, where an item of PII has been identified, it is obfuscated with one of the following patterns:
pii_encrypt
/<encrypted version of the string>/pii_encrypt
pii_mask
/XXXXXX/pii_mask
- There are a very small number of use cases within NetApp that require viewing this information in plaintext:
- Where an element of PII is required for one of those cases, it is encrypted (
pii_encrypt
) - Otherwise, it is masked, irreversibly (
pii_mask
) - This approach allows NetApp to validate and track all requests to access this information, ensuring that its distribution is controlled and destroyed after use
- Where an element of PII is required for one of those cases, it is encrypted (
- The only use case that has been identified so far for requiring the plaintext information is for forensic data breach analysis
Additional Information
May I opt out of having my AutoSupoprt data PII encrypted or masked?
- No
Will I be able to view the plaintext information online using Active IQ Digital Advisor?
- No
Is the data obfuscated (encrypted) on my local NetApp systems?
- No
Can I request the unencrypted information?
- Yes. If you are unable to pull the data from your local system, you may request the data in plaintext by creating a non-technical support case