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Quickstart

Follow this guide to create an account, activate a plan, get an API key, and try your first Guardian Layer transformations from the Dashboard.

You can complete this walkthrough without writing code.

1. Create an account​

Open the Custodian Labs Dashboard and create an account.

After verifying your email, sign in to access the Dashboard.

Learn more about creating an account

2. Choose a plan​

Open Subscriptions in the Dashboard and choose a plan.

The Free plan is a good place to start. It does not require payment and lets you try the core product workflow.

Signing in does not automatically create an API key. To start with the Free plan, open Subscriptions and click Get Started Free.

Learn more about plans

3. Get your API key​

After your plan is activated, Custodian Labs generates an API key automatically.

Open API Keys in the Dashboard and copy the key linked to your active plan.

Your API key looks like this:

custodian_labs_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Keep your key private. You will use it later when integrating Custodian Labs into your application.

Learn more about API keys

4. Test a text transformation​

Use the Dashboard to transform a short text input:

  1. Open API Testing.
  2. Select your API key.
  3. Choose Enter Text.
  4. Paste this example:
Please contact Jane Smith at jane.smith@example.com or call (415) 555-0123.
  1. Select All PII.
  2. Choose Transform.
  3. Click Mask Now.

The transformed output appears in the Results panel.

tip

You can also try Redact to hide detected information with masking marks.

Learn more about testing your first request

5. Test a file transformation​

You can also transform an uploaded file from the Dashboard:

  1. Create a small TXT file containing fictional information:
sample.txt
Customer: Jane Smith
Email: jane.smith@example.com
Phone: (415) 555-0123
  1. In API Testing, choose Upload File.
  2. Upload sample.txt.
  3. Select All PII.
  4. Choose Transform.
  5. Click Mask Now.
  6. Download the transformed file.

Guardian Layer also supports CSV, DOCX, and PDF uploads.

Learn more about file de-identification

6. Integrate Custodian Labs into your application​

Now that you have completed your first transformations, choose the path that fits your application.

Build an AI assistant​

Use the Python SDK to create conversational AI assistants with instructions, examples, knowledge files, retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), and multi-turn chat sessions.

Install the Python SDK

For advanced routing across multiple specialized agents, see Multi-Agent Teams.

Protect text or files directly​

Use the Guardian Layer API when you want to detect and de-identify sensitive information directly from your application.

Explore Guardian Layer

Next steps​