Data masking is a way of securing sensitive data during the development or testing phases of a database development project. It is often performed as a security or compliance measure that protects important information. By masking valid production data, you can provide a copy of the data that is “scrambled” but still represents your production environment.

To mask data

1. Select File > New > Data Comparison Job and if prompted, select a project.
2. Provide a name of the job in the Name field and then drag and drop datasources from the Data Source Explorer to the Data Comparison Source and Data Comparison Target boxes.
3. In the Options tab, ensure that Automatically Synchronize is selected and read the description shown for that option.
4. In the Mapping tab, select a row corresponding to a matching database pair in the Database Mapping box, and then select Yes retrieve the objects in this pair.
   
5. In the Table Mapping box, click View Column Mapping.
   
6. Click on the Data Masking Rule option for a column and select one of the following:
   • Use Default. The default masking rule as set in the Database Mapping box.
   • None. No masking is applied.
   • Randomize. Replaces characters with other random characters.
   • Shuffle. Reorders the values in different rows; for example, in a First Name column, Bob, Ted, and Alice can change to Alice, Bob, and Ted.
7. Close the window.
8. Continue to experiment with selection and settings until you are comfortable with masking options.
9. Click File > Save to save the job.
10. Click the Run Job icon.
    
    The Database Results tab shows the masked data.