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Securing sensitive data with Oracle VPD – Technical deep dive

Avatar photoCustomer Questions & Answers 7 replies

We understand that Blitz Report supports Oracle VPD for row and column-level security. Can you provide a detailed technical example of the *policy function* used in a highly restrictive scenario, such as limiting access to PII tables for anyone other than the core ‘APPS’ user?

7 replies

  • Support Enginatics

    Certainly. The implementation involves creating a PL/SQL policy function (for example, `xxen_vpd_per_phones_fnc`). This function executes dynamically at query time. Inside this function, you determine the running user’s context.

  • Avatar photoCustomer

    What is the critical piece of code that the function returns to restrict data access if the user is unauthorized?

  • Support Enginatics

    If the security logic determines the user is unauthorized (e.g., `l_user` is not equal to `’APPS’`), the function returns a restrictive predicate such as `’1=2’`. Oracle then dynamically appends this predicate to the user’s query, resulting in zero rows being returned for unauthorized users, effectively hiding all sensitive data.

  • Avatar photoCustomer

    If we implement this strict VPD policy on custom Blitz Report tables to restrict non-‘APPS’ developer access, is there a risk of breaking standard Oracle EBS application functionality?

  • Support Enginatics

    When implementing custom security, Oracle generally advises caution. However, implementing VPD policies specifically on Blitz Report tables to secure developer SQL access is generally considered safe, as it cannot affect the standard EBS application or accidentally hide operational data from it.

  • Avatar photoCustomer

    We need this capability specifically because our technical team uses custom SQL through Blitz Report, which otherwise bypasses standard security views.

  • Support Enginatics

    By leveraging Blitz Report’s compatibility with this standard Oracle functionality, you achieve the necessary data governance. It allows consultants to drop their queries directly into Blitz Report , knowing that the VPD mechanism enforces row and column-level control over sensitive data fields.

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