15.8. Row-Level Security
Row-level security is an exciting feature in Looker Studio that allows you to limit the visibility of data in a report based on the viewer's email address. This feature ensures that users can only see data that is relevant to them, providing a more personalized and secure experience.
Implementing Row-Level Security
To enable row-level security, you need to edit your data source and include a column that contains the email addresses of the users who should have access to specific rows of data. In Looker Studio, you can then apply a filter to the data source, enabling the "Filter by viewer's email" option and selecting the appropriate email column.
When a user logs in and views the report, Looker Studio will match their email address to the rows in the data source and display only the data relevant to them. This feature requires users to be logged in to their Google account, as Google manages the login and security aspect.
Use Cases and Tips
Row-level security can be applied in various scenarios, such as:
- A school teacher sharing exam results with students, where each student can only view their own grades and comments.
- An agency sharing a central report with clients, where clients can see their monthly KPIs based on their email address.
You can even use personalized KPIs as markers or baselines in Looker Studio reports, allowing you to display targets or goals alongside actual data.
Remember that row-level security works on an email-by-email basis, so it may not be compatible with Google Workspace groups. To provide access to multiple users, you may need to duplicate rows and include multiple email addresses, or use data blending to create a cross-join between your data and a list of email addresses.
Row-level security in Looker Studio offers a powerful way to personalize and secure your reports, ensuring that users only see the data that is relevant to them. This feature is particularly useful in situations where you need to share sensitive information with a large audience while maintaining strict access controls.
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