Google Labels Integration
Last updated
Last updated
Google Labels is a feature in Google Workspace that allows organizations to classify and categorize their documents and files. LightBeam Spectra now supports integration with Google Labels, enabling users to leverage these classifications within the LightBeam ecosystem.
Google Labels consist of two primary types:
Badged Label:
A badged label is the most critical label that your entire organization can use, and there's a restriction allowing only one badged label for the entire organization.
It appears at the top of a file when opened.
It contains a single field of selection type.
Standard Labels:
Standard labels are either simple or descriptive labels that have structured fields added to them.
A simple label could be a tag, such as Client Name. Once created in the Label Manager, you can apply this simple label.
A more complex, structured label could be Content Status, which includes fields like Assigned to, Due Date, and Status.
There can be multiple standard labels used by an organization.
Labels in Google are structured like forms with multiple fields:
Field types include: integer, string, user, date, single selection, multiple selection
Example fields for a standard label:
Client (User type)
Department (Selection type)
Due Date (Date type)
Status (Selection type)
In Google Labels, lower numbers indicate higher priority. This is crucial for automated policy application.
LightBeam creates a label set for each Google label field with single selection options.
The choices in the Google label field become individual labels within the LightBeam label set.
Multiple label sets may be created from a single Google Label if it has multiple qualifying fields.
For example, if a Google Label named "Contract" has a field called "Department" with options like "Finance," "Legal," and "HR," LightBeam will create a label set named "Contract_Department" with labels for each of these options.
LightBeam reverses the priority mapping to maintain consistency with its interface:
Google Labels: Lower number = Higher priority
LightBeam: Higher number = Higher priority
For example, if a Google Label has options numbered , with 1 being the highest priority, LightBeam will display these as priorities , with 4 being the highest priority.
To begin the onboarding process for Google Labels:
In the LightBeam console, click on the INSIGHTS header in the top navigation menu.
In the left sidebar, click on Label Management.
On the Label Management page, click on “3rd-party Integration”.
Select "Google" from the dropdown menu of available integrations.
During the onboarding process, you will need to:
Provide a prefix for naming the label sets. This prefix will be used to create unique names for each label set derived from Google Labels.
Click on Next.
Enter the necessary credentials for accessing your Google Workspace account. This includes:
Delegated Credentials
Account JSON
Click on Test Connection.
Once the Test Connection is successful, click on Onboard Label Set.
Click on Okay.
Once the connection is established, Lightbeam synchronizes the labels from Google Labels. Users can review the synchronized labels and their associated Lightbeam labels in the Label Management interface.
LightBeam uses a standardized naming convention for label sets created from Google Labels:
[Prefix][Google Label Name][Field Name]
For example, if you provide the prefix "GLS" and have a Google Label named "Contract" with a field "Department," the resulting label set in LightBeam would be named "GLS_Contract_Department."
This naming convention helps to organize and identify the source of each label set within the LightBeam system.
Locate the label sets with the prefix you specified during onboarding.
Click on a label set to view its details.
Click View Details.
Users can provide or edit definitions for Google labels in Lightbeam.
Label Name and Priority cannot be modified as they come from Google.
Click on Select Atttribute to edit the field.
Select all Attributes that are applicable.
Click Save.
To create a labeling policy using Google Labels:
Navigate to the Policies section in LightBeam Spectra.
Click "Create New" within "Labeling Policy."
Enter a Rule Set Name such a Google Labeling.
Choose a Rule Set Criteria and then click on Next.
After selecting the necessary Datasources, click on Save & Close.
If a rule set has been already created in the Policies page, you can proceed with selecting the Google Labeling policy.
In the policy creation interface, you can now directly select Google label sets.
Click on Save & Close.
Once the policy is active, LightBeam will apply the Google Labels based on the conditions specified in your policy.
The Labels tab in LightBeam provides an overview of all labels, including those from Google:
Displays cards for each label, including those from Google
Shows label name and number of labeled objects
Enhanced performance for quicker loading
When viewing individual objects:
Open an object's details page.
In the metadata section, you'll see any Google Labels applied to the object.
These labels are displayed alongside any other LightBeam or third-party labels.
You can use Google Labels to filter objects in LightBeam:
Click on the object to go to the Object Viewer.
Use the filter options to select labels, including those from Google.
The view will update to show only objects with the selected labels.
Users can filter objects based on Google labels in the third-party label sets.
It will show third party label sets, but because they are not supported from the UI, it will be greyed out. LightBeam label sets can be updated from here
To integrate Google Labels with LightBeam, ensure your Google Workspace service account has the following permissions:
For label modification, one of the following:
https://www.googleapis.com/auth/drive
https://www.googleapis.com/auth/drive.file
https://www.googleapis.com/auth/drive.metadata
For listing labels, one of the following OAuth scopes:
https://www.googleapis.com/auth/drive.labels
https://www.googleapis.com/auth/drive.labels.readonly
https://www.googleapis.com/auth/drive.admin.labels
https://www.googleapis.com/auth/drive.admin.labels.readonly
Additionally, ensure that the "Drive Labels API" is enabled for the service account.
You have two options for configuring the service account:
Use the same service account as your Google Drive integration:
Add the required permissions for Google Labels to your existing Drive service account.
Ensure the Drive Labels API is enabled for this service account.
Create a separate service account for Labels:
Set up a new service account with the necessary permissions for both Drive and Labels.
Ensure the Drive Labels API is enabled for this service account.
For both options, make sure to include the permissions listed in section 8.1.
Consult your Google Workspace administrator to ensure the correct permissions are applied and the necessary API is enabled.
Unlike some other labeling systems, Google Labels are metadata that reside in Google's systems:
Labels do not travel with the document if it's downloaded.
If a labeled file is downloaded and re-uploaded, it will lose its label.
Currently, there is no automatic synchronization between Google Labels and LightBeam:
Changes made to labels in Google after onboarding are not automatically reflected in LightBeam.
Regular re-onboarding may be necessary to keep labels up to date.
LightBeam's integration with Google Labels operates on a snapshot basis:
The label structure and definitions are captured at the time of onboarding.
Subsequent changes in Google Labels are not automatically propagated to LightBeam.
The integration between LightBeam and Google Labels requires specific permissions and API access.
Ensure that the service account used for integration has all necessary permissions as outlined in section 8.1.
The Drive Labels API must be enabled for the service account for the integration to function properly.
Regularly review and update permissions as needed to maintain the integration's functionality.
By leveraging LightBeam's integration with Google Labels, organizations can extend their labeling and classification capabilities beyond Google's native functionality, providing a more comprehensive data governance solution
LightBeam automates Privacy, Security, and AI Governance, so businesses can accelerate their growth in new markets. Leveraging generative AI, LightBeam has rapidly gained customers’ trust by pioneering a unique privacy-centric and automation-first approach to security. Unlike siloed solutions, LightBeam ties together sensitive data cataloging, control, and compliance across structured and unstructured data applications providing 360-visibility, redaction, self-service DSRs, and automated ROPA reporting ensuring ultimate protection against ransomware and accidental exposures while meeting data privacy obligations efficiently. LightBeam is on a mission to create a secure privacy-first world helping customers automate compliance against a patchwork of existing and emerging regulations.
You can click on View/Update option to update the Rule Set Criteria or Data Sources.
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