Categoriesrestricted

Categoriesrestricted is a term used in information management to describe a configuration in which access control is applied at the category level rather than at the item level alone. In systems that implement categories, content items are tagged with one or more categories. When categoriesrestricted is enabled, a user’s permissions are scoped to the categories they are allowed to access, and items in other categories are hidden or blocked, even if the user has broader rights to the repository. The approach helps enforce data governance by aligning access with organizational structures, topics, or sensitivity classifications.

Implementation typically relies on a combination of category tagging, role-based access control, and access control lists. Permissions may be inherited along a category hierarchy, with the possibility of explicit overrides for exceptions. Some systems also support time-based restrictions, workflow-based approvals, or conditional access depending on context such as location or device. Logging and auditing are common to monitor category-level access and to support compliance reviews.

Use cases include corporate document repositories with sensitive divisions, learning management systems that restrict modules by department, content platforms that separate public and restricted topics, and data catalogs that limit visibility of datasets by project or governance category.

Related concepts include category-based access control, data classification, and RBAC or ABAC frameworks. See also: CBAC, RBAC, ABAC, data governance, and privacy compliance.