Purview Sensitivity Labels: 2026 Guide

Key insights

• Sensitivity labels: Labels classify content as Public, Internal, Confidential or custom categories and attach protection like encryption or access restrictions.
  They help protect data while letting people keep working in supported Microsoft 365 apps.
• Create → Configure → Publish: The 2026 setup flow focuses on creating labels, configuring what each label does, then publishing them through label policies to chosen users or groups.
  Publishing makes labels visible and enforces the policy settings in apps.
• Protection options: Labels can be metadata-only or enforce protections such as encryption and access controls; encrypted labels require Azure Rights Management to be active.
  PDF protection and service-side protections in SharePoint and OneDrive need explicit enablement in the Purview portal.
• Auto-labeling: Auto-labeling applies labels based on detected content and is now standard guidance for 2026 deployments.
  Run auto-labeling in simulation mode first so you can review matches before enforcing changes.
• Workload support: Labels work across Office apps, SharePoint and OneDrive support, Teams groups/sites and Power BI, though some standalone/perpetual Office editions are not supported.
  Enable service support and connectors as needed for file scenarios and data discovery.
• Beginner rollout best practices: Start with a small label taxonomy, decide which labels need encryption, and publish to a pilot group first.
  Test auto-labeling in simulation, enable SharePoint/OneDrive file support if required, and monitor results before broader rollout.

Keywords

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