On your platform, you can define in a very detailed way who can see a project, and who can take certain actions (per project phase). This article shows you how to set these permissions.
Before you can set these permissions, you need to create user groups for those participants who should receive access to specific projects or actions. This article guides you through the flow of defining user groups.
Once your user groups are set, go to your project page and click on the tab 'Access rights'.
There, you're offered two distinct choices:
Who can see this project?
Who can contribute (per project phase)?
1. Who can see this project?
Here you can define who will be able to see the project on the platform. People who are not included, or who are not logged in, won't be able to see that project on the platform. As this is quite a hard restriction, we recommend using it mainly when:
the project contains sensitive information that should only be shared with a limited group of participants on the platform;
the project is only relevant to a certain user group and would not bring any value to other participants on the platform.
There are 3 options for you to choose from:
Everyone: both registered and non-registered people can see this project, irrespective of whether they're logged in. The content of the project is accessible to non-registered visitors to the platform, although they will need to log in to participate.
Administrators and project managers: only platform admins and the project managers of this project will be able to see the project. This option is regularly used to allow admins to test and view the project before it is launched to participants.
Certain user groups: only the participants who are included in these groups will see the project, as well as all platform admins and the project managers of this project. As access to the project is restricted, participants will first have to log in to the platform to be able to view the project.
The default option is 'Everyone', so if you don't make any changes, everyone who visits your platform will be able to view the project.
2. Who can contribute (per project phase)?
There are two levels for defining which actions can be taken by which user groups in a certain project.
Per project phase
Per action relevant to that project phase, e.g. voting, posting, and commenting (when 'input collection' is that phase's participation method)
Participation (certain types of actions) in a phase of a project can be open to:
Registered users: all participants registered on the platform and having viewing rights for this project will be able to participate.
Administrators and project managers: only those with admin rights for this project will be able to participate.
Certain user groups: only registered participants on the platform who belong to certain user groups and who have viewing rights for this project will be able to participate.
Everyone (only available with surveys) : in the context of surveys, it is possible to open participation to registered users who are not logged in, and visitors who are not even registered on the platform. In this case, any person visiting the platform can take part in the survey.
The only difference with the previous 3 options is that instead of 'Everyone', only 'Registered users' can perform actions in a project. In other words, all platform actions can only be taken by people who have registered and are logged in. Except, in the context of surveys, it is possible to open participation to any person visiting the platform.
The default option is 'Registered users', so if you don't make any changes, all registered users will be able to take that action.
People who are not included in your selection will see a message informing them that they don't have the rights to take that action.
You're now all set to define the permissions for each of your projects!
Need help or support? Don’t hesitate to get in touch via support@citizenlab.co.