Common policies

The following in-line DLP policies are commonly used to secure data in uploaded and downloaded files.

Log uploads/downloads

The Allow action functions as an implicit logger, providing visibility into where your sensitive data is going without impacting the end user experience. The following example scans for your enabled Financial Information profile entries when users upload or download data to file sharing apps.

Selector	Operator	Value	Logic	Action
DLP Profile	in	Financial Information	And	Allow
Content Categories	in	File Sharing

Block file types

Block the upload or download of files based on their type.

Dashboard

Selector	Operator	Value	Logic	Action
Upload File Types	in	Microsoft Office Word Document (docx)	And	Block
Download File Types	in	PDF (pdf)

API

curl https://api.cloudflare.com/client/v4/accounts/$ACCOUNT_ID/gateway/rule \
--header "Content-Type: application/json" \
--header "Authorization: Bearer $CLOUDFLARE_API_TOKEN" \
--data '{
  "name": "Block file types",
  "description": "Block the upload or download of files based on their type",
  "enabled": true,
  "action": "block",
  "filters": [
    "http"
  ],
  "traffic": "any(http.upload.file.types[*] in {\"docx\"}) and any(http.download.file.types[*] in {\"pdf\"})",
  "identity": "",
  "device_posture": ""
}'

For more information on what file formats DLP can scan, refer to Supported file types.

Block uploads/downloads for specific users

You can configure access on a per-user or group basis by adding identity-based conditions to your policies. The following example blocks only contractors from uploading/downloading Financial Information to file sharing apps.

Selector	Operator	Value	Logic	Action
DLP Profile	in	Financial Information	And	Block
Content Categories	in	File Sharing	And
User Group Names	in	Contractors

Exclude Android applications

Many Android applications (such as Google Drive) use certificate pinning, which is incompatible with Gateway inspection. If needed, you can create a Do Not Inspect policy so that the app can continue to function on Android:

1. Set up an OS version device posture check that checks for the Android operating system.

2. Create the following HTTP policy in Gateway:

   Selector	Operator	Value	Logic	Action
   Application	in	Google Drive	And	Do Not Inspect
   Passed Device Posture Checks	in	OS Version Android

Android users can now use the app, but the app traffic will bypass DLP scanning.

Exclude specific sites

In your DLP logs, you may find that certain sites are a common source of noise. To exempt these sites from DLP scanning:

1. Create a list of hostnames or URLs.

2. Exclude the list from your DLP policy as shown in the example below:

   Selector	Operator	Value	Logic	Action
   DLP Profile	in	Financial Information	And	Block
   Application	in	Google Drive	And
   Domain	not in list	Do not DLP - SSN