Customer story | Compliance for Confluence
How ViNotion strengthened Confluence data security and reduced manual compliance work
Working with sensitive information for government and highly regulated clients, ViNotion needed a more consistent way to classify content and control access in Confluence.
With Compliance for Confluence, the company connected information classification to automated page restrictions, supporting its ISO 27001 processes while reducing the need for manual security decisions.
Key outcomes
- 4 weeksEstimated annual audit-preparation time saved*
- Automated access controlsPage restrictions linked to information classification
- Cloud migrationReplaced its previous on-premises approach with a Cloud-based solution
*The four-week saving is an AppFox estimate, not an independently measured ViNotion result.
Supporting information security at a growing technology company
ViNotion is a Netherlands-based technology company developing computer vision and AI solutions for industries including defense, mobility and manufacturing.
Its customers include government organizations and businesses operating in highly regulated environments, where protecting confidential information is essential.
With a lean operations team managing everything from engineering and project delivery to customer support, ViNotion needed security controls that could work consistently across its Confluence documentation without adding unnecessary administrative work.
Protecting sensitive information without adding more work for employees
ViNotion had long relied on Confluence for documentation and collaboration. But as the company grew and worked with increasingly sensitive information, managing who could access different types of content became more important.
Its Confluence spaces contained everything from personal customer information to confidential analytical results. Some documents needed to remain accessible only to specific employees, particularly when working with government organizations and customers in regulated industries.
At the same time, ViNotion needed to support its ISO 27001 information security management processes and replace its previous on-premises approach as it moved to Cloud.
The challenge wasn’t simply to introduce stricter security controls. It was to make those controls consistent and easy for employees to follow without creating more manual work.
The team faced three connected challenges.
Inconsistent information classification
With different types of sensitive information stored across Confluence, ViNotion needed a standard way for employees to identify how confidential each document was and apply the appropriate information security requirements.
Manual access restrictions
Determining who should be able to view or edit individual pages required employees and administrators to interpret security policies and manage permissions. This added work and increased the possibility of mistakes.
Balancing security requirements with usability
ViNotion needed to support its ISO 27001 processes while keeping Confluence practical for everyday users. Its move to Cloud also meant finding a suitable alternative to its previous on-premises approach, without introducing unnecessary complexity or cost.
“We needed to know who could access what, when, and why – but we didn’t want to burden users with more decisions or manual processes.”
Operations Manager, ViNotion
Making information classification and access control work together
After evaluating several options, ViNotion selected Compliance for Confluence for its combination of security controls, ease of use and cost-effectiveness.
Rather than expecting employees to make separate decisions about a document’s sensitivity and its access permissions, the company could connect these steps through defined classification levels and automated restrictions.
This gave ViNotion a more consistent way to protect sensitive information within the Confluence environment its teams already used.
Standardize information classification
ViNotion introduced classification levels to identify the sensitivity of information stored in Confluence.
By using classifications such as Internal, Confidential and Restricted, teams could follow a common approach to identifying information that required additional protection.
Clear classifications also helped employees understand how different types of content should be handled, making it easier to follow internal security requirements without repeatedly interpreting policy.
Challenge addressed
Inconsistent information classification
With different types of sensitive information stored across Confluence, ViNotion needed a standard way to identify and manage confidential content.
Apply access restrictions automatically
By linking classification levels to page restriction schemes, ViNotion could automatically apply access controls based on a document’s sensitivity.
This meant employees no longer needed to manually determine who could view or edit every page. Instead, configured rules could apply the appropriate restrictions according to the classification selected.
For Security Officers and administrators, this reduced repetitive permissions management while making information-handling practices more consistent.
Challenge addressed
Manual access restrictions
Determining access permissions for individual pages created additional work and opportunities for mistakes.
Make information security part of everyday work
Compliance for Confluence also made it easier for technical and non-technical employees to participate in information security processes.
Its straightforward classification interface helped users understand what was expected, while ViNotion incorporated classification guidance into employee onboarding.
The product also provided a Cloud-based approach to information classification and access control as ViNotion moved away from its previous on-premises solution.
Challenge addressed
Balancing security requirements with usability
ViNotion needed to strengthen information controls without creating unnecessary administrative work or making Confluence more difficult to use.
ViNotion introduced classification levels to identify the sensitivity of information stored in Confluence.
By using classifications such as Internal, Confidential and Restricted, teams could follow a common approach to identifying information that required additional protection.
Clear classifications also helped employees understand how different types of content should be handled, making it easier to follow internal security requirements without repeatedly interpreting policy.
Challenge addressed
Inconsistent information classification
With different types of sensitive information stored across Confluence, ViNotion needed a standard way to identify and manage confidential content.
By linking classification levels to page restriction schemes, ViNotion could automatically apply access controls based on a document’s sensitivity.
This meant employees no longer needed to manually determine who could view or edit every page. Instead, configured rules could apply the appropriate restrictions according to the classification selected.
For Security Officers and administrators, this reduced repetitive permissions management while making information-handling practices more consistent.
Challenge addressed
Manual access restrictions
Determining access permissions for individual pages created additional work and opportunities for mistakes.
Compliance for Confluence also made it easier for technical and non-technical employees to participate in information security processes.
Its straightforward classification interface helped users understand what was expected, while ViNotion incorporated classification guidance into employee onboarding.
The product also provided a Cloud-based approach to information classification and access control as ViNotion moved away from its previous on-premises solution.
Challenge addressed
Balancing security requirements with usability
ViNotion needed to strengthen information controls without creating unnecessary administrative work or making Confluence more difficult to use.
Together, these changes helped ViNotion make information classification and access protection more consistent, while reducing the manual decisions required to manage confidential content.
Stronger information controls with less manual administration
With Compliance for Confluence embedded in its documentation processes, ViNotion gained a more structured approach to protecting sensitive information.
Classification levels provided a common way to identify confidential content, while automated restrictions helped enforce access requirements without relying on employees to manage permissions individually.
More consistent protection for sensitive information
By linking page restrictions to information classifications, ViNotion could apply access controls more consistently across its Confluence content.
This helped the company manage access to confidential customer and project information while supporting its wider ISMS and ISO 27001 requirements.
Less manual administration and potential time savings
Employees no longer needed to make separate access-control decisions for every classified page. Defined restriction rules could apply the appropriate permissions automatically, reducing routine work for employees and Security Officers.
AppFox’s internal savings model also estimates that more consistent information controls and reduced manual evidence collection could save approximately four weeks of audit-preparation time each year, with potential savings of thousands of euros per audit.
These are modeled estimates rather than directly measured customer results.
Easier onboarding and a more manageable Cloud environment
By incorporating classification guidance into employee onboarding, ViNotion made information security requirements easier to introduce to new team members.
Compliance for Confluence also supported the company’s transition to Cloud, providing a way to maintain classification and access controls without reverting to manual permission management.
For ViNotion, the wider benefit was a more manageable approach to protecting sensitive information: one that supported its security requirements while remaining practical for everyday Confluence users.
Make sensitive information easier to protect in Confluence
Classify content, control access and reduce manual security administration with Compliance for Confluence.
Give your teams a more consistent way to protect confidential information and support your organization’s information security requirements.