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High-Risk Salesforce Objects and Fields for Data Loss Prevention (DLP)

Prioritize unstructured and custom Salesforce fields to detect PII, PCI, PHI, Financial Data, IP/Confidential Data, and Secrets.

Overview

Salesforce environments often contain significantly more sensitive data than organizations expect. While certain fields are intentionally designed to capture structured PII, such as Email and Phone, the most meaningful exposure risk is typically found in unstructured, free-form text fields and file attachments where sensitive information is stored outside of its intended location.

Users frequently paste full customer email threads, chat transcripts, troubleshooting logs, financial documentation, identity records, medical information, and even credentials into long text fields or collaboration tools. These areas are rarely governed with the same rigor as structured data fields, making them prime locations for unexpected sensitive data exposure.

This document outlines the Salesforce objects and field types that should be prioritized for DLP scanning, based on risk, likelihood of unstructured data storage, and common real-world leakage patterns.

DLP Scanning Priorities in Salesforce

1. Case Management Objects (Highest Priority)

Support and service workflows generate large volumes of conversational and diagnostic content. These objects frequently contain pasted email threads, attachments, and customer-submitted documents.

Key Objects and Fields

Case

  • Description

  • Subject

  • InternalComments

  • Comments

  • Reason

  • SuppliedEmail

  • SuppliedName

  • SuppliedPhone

EmailMessage

  • TextBody

  • HtmlBody

  • Subject

Task

  • Description

  • Comments

Files and Attachments

  • Attachment

  • ContentDocument

  • ContentVersion

    • Title

    • Description

    • VersionData

Why This Matters

These fields commonly contain:

  • Full customer email conversations

  • Screenshots or embedded logs

  • Financial records and invoices

  • Medical disclosures

  • Identity documentation

  • Credentials or system access details

These objects should be considered foundational for any Salesforce DLP program.

2. Sales and CRM Objects (High Risk for PII and Financial Data)

Sales teams often use CRM records as informal note repositories, increasing the likelihood of unstructured sensitive data.

Lead

  • Description

  • Custom long text fields (e.g., Notes__c)

  • Any Rich Text or Long Text Area fields

Contact

  • Description

  • Custom note-style fields

  • OtherDescription

  • Long Text Area fields

Account

  • Description

  • Custom “About” or notes fields

Why This Matters

Common exposure patterns include:

  • Personal background details

  • Financial and budget information

  • Contract terms

  • Internal commentary about customers

  • Sensitive escalation details

Structured fields such as Email and Phone contain expected PII; however, unstructured description fields represent a higher likelihood of unexpected sensitive data.

3. Opportunity and Revenue Objects (Moderate to High Priority)

Sales opportunity records frequently contain sensitive business and financial intelligence.

Opportunity

  • Description

  • NextStep

  • Notes__c

  • Internal_Notes__c

  • Custom Long Text Area fields

OpportunityContactRole

  • Custom note fields

Why This Matters

These fields often contain:

  • Revenue figures and budgets

  • Banking or payment details

  • Contract excerpts

  • Personal circumstances of buyers

  • Competitive intelligence

4. Notes and Activities (Critical Hotspot)

Salesforce note objects are pure free-form text repositories and should be treated as high-priority DLP targets.

Note / ContentNote

  • Content

  • Title

Task

  • Description

  • Comments

Why This Matters

These fields frequently contain:

  • Pasted email content

  • Passwords or credentials

  • HR-related disclosures

  • Medical or financial information

  • Internal investigative notes

Because these objects are informal by design, they often accumulate high-risk data.

5. Chatter and Collaboration Objects (Very High Conversational Risk)

Collaboration tools encourage informal communication, increasing the likelihood of sensitive data sharing.

FeedItem

  • Body

  • Title

  • LinkUrl

FeedComment

  • CommentBody

FeedAttachment / ContentDocument

  • Shared files

Why This Matters

Employees frequently paste:

  • Customer email threads

  • Escalation discussions

  • Financial spreadsheets

  • Legal language

  • Screenshots containing sensitive information

Chatter content is highly conversational and often lightly governed.

6. Knowledge Articles (Text-Rich, Governance-Dependent Risk)

KnowledgeArticle

  • Title

  • Summary

  • ArticleBody

  • Instructions__c

  • Resolution__c

Knowledge__kav

  • Body

  • Summary

  • Versioned article content

Why This Matters

Knowledge articles may include:

  • Real customer examples

  • Troubleshooting logs

  • Embedded screenshots

  • Personal identifiers in case studies

Risk levels depend on governance maturity but should be included in DLP scanning.

7. Custom Objects with Long Text Fields (High Probability of Hidden Risk)

Nearly all Salesforce environments include custom objects used to capture conversations, assessments, or operational notes.

Common examples:

  • Conversation__c

  • Chat_Transcript__c

  • Audit_Log__c

  • Escalation__c

  • Customer_Review__c

  • Support_Interaction__c

  • Meeting_Notes__c

  • Risk_Assessment__c

  • Feedback__c

Field Types to Prioritize

  • Text Area (Long)

  • Text Area (Rich)

  • Text Area (Encrypted)

  • Standard Text Area

  • URL fields linking to external files

  • Notes & Attachments related lists

Custom long text fields are among the most common sources of unexpected sensitive data exposure.

8. Messaging, Chat, and Omni-Channel Objects (Extremely High Risk)

If enabled, these objects contain raw conversational transcripts.

MessagingSession

  • Body

  • Transcript__c

LiveChatTranscript

  • Body

  • ChatTranscriptBody

  • VisitorId

  • PrechatData

Why This Matters

These records often contain:

  • Identity verification details

  • Financial disclosures

  • Medical information

  • Attachments shared during chat

  • Full conversational histories

These objects should be prioritized in regulated environments.

9. Industry Clouds and Integrated Applications

Organizations using specialized Salesforce clouds may store regulated data in additional objects.

Examples include:

  • Health Cloud (PHI)

  • Financial Services Cloud (financial and KYC data)

  • CPQ (quote comments and attachments)

  • Field Service (work order descriptions and resolution notes)

  • Surveys (free-form response text)

  • Service Cloud Voice (transcripts)

  • Digital Engagement (messaging transcripts)

These deployments may significantly increase regulatory exposure.

High-Risk Field Types Across All Objects

In addition to object-level scanning, DLP programs should prioritize the following field types across the entire Salesforce schema:

  • Long Text Area

  • Rich Text Area

  • Encrypted Text

  • Email body fields

  • Case Description

  • Chatter Body

  • Knowledge ArticleBody

  • Chat and transcript fields

  • File content stored in ContentVersion

Unstructured fields consistently present the highest likelihood of unexpected sensitive data.

Recommended DLP Strategy

To maximize risk reduction:

  1. Phase 1 – Conversational Hotspots

    • EmailMessage

    • Case.Description

    • LiveChatTranscript

    • MessagingSession

    • FeedItem / FeedComment

    • ContentVersion (files)

    • Notes / ContentNote

  2. Phase 2 – CRM and Revenue Objects

    • Lead, Contact, Account (Description fields)

    • Opportunity and custom note fields

    • Custom objects with long text fields

  3. Phase 3 – Extended Ecosystem

    • Knowledge Articles

    • Industry Cloud objects

    • Surveys and integrated apps

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