Managing network data

A method of masking communications data using context based rules comprising:

• intercepting a first communication from a server to a client by an intermediary, the communication including data to be displayed on a screen to a recipient;
• examining attributes, including a user type of the recipient, to determine whether the first communication should be parsed prior to the client receiving the first communication to determine whether a context based rule should be applied;
• responsive to an affirmative determination that the first communication should be parsed based on the attributes, parsing the intercepted first communication to determine whether a context based alteration rule should be applied;
• responsive to an affirmative determination that the context based alteration rule should be applied, applying the context based alteration rule to preselected data fields within the intercepted first communication based on the attributes and on a location of the data fields that are associated with first data to be altered within the first communication to produce an altered first communication with the altered first data;
• sending the altered first communication to the client so that the altered first data in the altered first communication is displayed in a masked manner on the screen to the recipient;
• intercepting a second communication from a client to a server by the intermediary;
• examining attributes, including a user type of the recipient, to determine whether the second communication should be parsed prior to the client receiving the second communication to determine whether a context based rule should be applied;
• responsive to an affirmative determination that the second communication should be parsed based on the attributes, parsing the intercepted second communication to determine whether a second context based alteration rule should be applied;
• responsive to an affirmative determination that the second context based alteration rule should be applied, applying the second context based alteration rule to preselected data fields within the intercepted second communication based on the attributes and on a location of the data fields that are associated with second data to be altered within the communication to produce an altered second communication with the altered second data;
• and
• sending the altered second communication to the server so that the altered second data in the altered second communication is stored in memory;
• wherein the first context based alteration rule includes contextual information on how the first data would appear on the screen to the recipient prior to the data fields being altered.

A computer usable program product comprising a non-transitory computer usable storage medium including computer usable code for use in masking communication data using context based rules, the computer usable program product comprising code for performing steps of:

• intercepting a communication between a server and a client by an intermediary, the communication including information to be displayed on a screen to a recipient;
• examining attributes, including a user type of the recipient, to determine whether the communication should be parsed prior to the client receiving the communication to determine whether a context based rule should be applied;
• responsive to an affirmative determination that the communication should be parsed based on the attributes, parsing the intercepted communication to determine whether a context based alteration rule should be applied;
• responsive to an affirmative determination that the context based alteration rule should be applied, applying the context based alteration rule to preselected data fields within the intercepted communication based on the attributes and on a location of the data fields that are associated with data to be altered within the communication to produce an altered communication with the altered data;
• and
• sending the altered communication to the client so that the altered data in the communication is displayed in a masked manner on the screen to the recipient;
• wherein the first context based alteration rule includes contextual information on how the data fields to be altered would appear on the screen to the recipient prior to the data fields being altered.

A data processing system for masking communication data using context based rules, the data processing system comprising:

• a processor;
• and
• a memory storing program instructions which when executed by the processor execute steps of:
• intercepting a communication between a server and a client by an intermediary, the communication including data to be displayed on a screen to a recipient;
• examining attributes, including a user type of the recipient, to determine whether the communication should be parsed prior to the client receiving the communication to determine whether a context based rule should be applied;
• responsive to an affirmative determination that the communication should be parsed based on the attributes, parsing the intercepted communication to determine whether a context based alteration rule should be applied;
• responsive to an affirmative determination that the context based alteration rule should be applied, applying the context based alteration rule to preselected data fields within the intercepted communication based on the attributes and on a location of the data fields that are associated with data to be altered within the communication to produce an altered communication with the altered data;
• and
• sending the altered communication to the client so that the altered data in the communication is displayed in a masked manner on the screen to the recipient;
• wherein the context based alteration rule includes contextual information on how the data fields would appear on the screen to the recipient prior to the data fields being altered.