Data security and control is an issue of vital importance for most companies, especially in the post-covid era. New ways of working, such as teleworking or a hybrid model, have made company data more risky. And here tools like Google Vault come into play . If you want to know what the Google vault is, we recommend that you read the following post.
What is Google Vault?
As we have already introduced, Google Vault is a tool designed to improve the security of business data . And this is achieved by allowing control over the information stored in Google Workspace: the company can keep, block, search and export data of its users. It’s all based on the “Google Vault eDiscovery” – Google’s advanced electronic discovery.
Therefore, it is a tool included in Google’s cloud business platform, Google Workspace . As we will explain later, this application is only included in the most advanced Workspace plans .
What is Google Vault for?
The Google Vault app is used to control the data that circulates in the collaborative environment in the cloud of the company. In this case, the Google Workspace. In this way, it serves to carry out actions of:
- Electronic discovery
- Information control
- Access control and account auditing.
- Audit reports
What information can the administrator get from Google Vault?
Google Vault access is limited to the administrator of the Google Workspace account . In this way you can obtain information from Google Workspace applications such as Gmail, Drive or Google Chat.
What Google Workspace (G Suite) apps can the administrator get information from ?
1. Gmail
One of the main applications that Google Vault can get information from is Gmail. In this way, Google Vault can help you manage data retention, apply locks, and search and export data such as:
Gmail messages or Google Groups
First 250 pages of message text.
Text files with extensions such as .pdf, .xslx, and .docx.
2. Drive
On the other hand, you can also manage the conservation, application of locks and search and export, of Google Drive data. Specifically, you can manage:
Both files from Drive users’ drives, as well as shared drives from your organization.
Text files such as pdf or docx, and jpg.
Google tools, such as Google Docs, Sheets, Slides, Forms, Draw, and Sites.
Google Jamboard files that have been saved to users’ drives.
In the event that links to other files are being included in Google Documents , the latter will not be automatically included in the retention, retention and search results rules. Also, if the file has been created by users who belong to an external organization , they will not be bound by your rules either.
3. Google Chat
If your team is using Google Chat to communicate both internally and externally, Google Vault will be a good choice for enforcing retention, retention, and search and export rules for chat data .
In order to get this data, the Chat history must be activated . Only in this way will Vault be able to preserve, search, and export direct, group, and room messages. To be able to activate or deactivate the Chat history, you must go to the Google Administrator Panel (Applications> Google Workspace> Google Chat> Chat History).
The data that can be obtained from this application are the following:
Message attachments: only if these files are attached directly in the chat (they are not links to files or pdfs stored in Drive). In this case, the name of the file and its owner are indexed. The supported file types are varied: .pdf, .xlsx and .docx, among many others.
User messages: in the case of external users, only those data that are subject to the rules of your organization will be saved . Therefore, no data that comes from messages received or sent in rooms belonging to an external organization will be stored.
4. Google Meet
Google Meet also allows you to retain, retain, and export some of your generated data to Vault. However, these are subject to Drive’s retention, retention, and export rules . Among them we find:
Google Meet recordings.
The interactions recorded on Google Meet, such as chats, questions and answers, or surveys.
5. Google Voice
Finally, you can also get data from Google Voice, but in order to do so, the organization must have Voice Standard or Premier licenses. In addition, users must have their own telephone number that allows sending and receiving text messages. The data that can be kept, retained, searched and exported in Vault are:
Text messages
Voice messages and transcripts
Call logs
What plans is Google Vault included in?
Vault licenses are included in different Google Workspace licenses
Included in:
- Business Plus
- Enterprise
- Enterprise Essentials (verified domains only)
- Education Fundamentals and Plus
- G Suite Business
- Google Vault Price
In the event that you do not have these Workspace plans, they can be purchased in a complementary way with Frontline and G Suite Basic. The Google Vault price will appear in your admin console. In addition, you will have a free 30-day demo.
