IBM Opens New Data Privacy Tool for Testing
Optim Data Privacy Solution uses "masking" technique to protect customer information
This week, IBM showed off its new for SAP at the SAPPHIRE 2008 conference held in Berlin.
The product was designed to give data privacy and management capabilities for SAP environments, particularly during the training, development, and testing processes, the company said in a press release.
It does this using "data masking techniques" to "de-identify" user data. Using the Optim Data Privacy Solution, companies can mask or replace the names, payment information, addresses, and Social Security numbers of users with "fictitious, but contextually accurate substitute data." In this way, test results remain valid and realistic, but user privacy is maintained.
"Optim provides powerful data transformation capabilities to mask personal information, so that companies can use it safely for application testing," said Jim Lee, IMB's director of management for the Optim product line, in the release. "With Optim's capabilities to scale across an enterprise, companies can quickly achieve measurable benefits."
The Optim Data Privacy Solution product is currently undergoing "open client and partner testing," the company said.
"The input from our clients and partners is invaluable to ensure that our solutions provide functionality that continues to deliver business value," said IBM's director of Optim engineering Al Smith in the release.
For more information, visit http://www.optimsolution.com/register.asp?ID=OptimEarlyAccess.