CRM Access and Permissions Required for Cognism CRM Enrichment

What this article helps you do

Understand which CRM permissions are required to use Cognism CRM Enrichment and how Cognism handles your CRM data securely.

Why CRM access is required

Cognism CRM Enrichment analyses your existing CRM data to identify gaps and synchronise enriched data back into your CRM.

To do this reliably, Cognism needs permission to:

• Read existing CRM records to assess data quality and coverage. 
• Match records accurately to Cognism’s database. 
• Sync enriched data back to the correct records. 
• Run ongoing updates automatically without manual input. 

If permissions are limited, enrichment may not work as expected. This can result in incomplete diagnostics, failed syncs, or inaccurate matching.

Salesforce access and permissions

Required Salesforce permissions

To enable CRM enrichment and two-way sync, Cognism requires the following permissions in Salesforce:

• View All Data  
• View All Users  
• Customise Application  

These permissions allow Cognism CRM Enrichment to read CRM records, understand record ownership, and synchronise data reliably across objects.

Salesforce data imported by Cognism

When Salesforce access is enabled, Cognism imports:

• Contacts 
• Leads 
• Accounts 
• Users 
• Tasks 

This data is used to:

• Power CRM-based filters and segmentation. 
• Check whether records already exist in your CRM. 
• Ensure enriched data is written back to the correct records and owners. 

Task data is included to improve matching accuracy and overall data quality.

How Cognism uses imported CRM data

Across Salesforce, imported data is used to:

• Match CRM records to Cognism data. 
• Identify enrichment opportunities. 
• Prevent duplicate records. 
• Power CRM-aware filters and diagnostics. 

Cognism does not:

• Sell customer CRM data. 
• Use CRM data for unrelated purposes. 
• Enrich third-party datasets using customer CRM records. 

Imported data is used only to deliver Cognism Enrich functionality.

Data security and compliance

Cognism applies enterprise-grade security and compliance standards to all customer CRM data.

• Data is encrypted at rest using AES-256. 
• Access is permission-based and auditable. 
• Data usage is limited to enrichment, matching, and sync logic. 

Cognism complies with applicable data privacy regulations, including GDPR. Customer data privacy is always prioritised.

Opt out of CRM data import

You remain in full control of your CRM data access.

If CRM data import is disabled, you can:

• Request deletion of imported data, which Cognism completes after 30 days. 
• Retain the data until deletion is requested. 

You can re-enable CRM data import at any time if enrichment is needed again.

What happens if the sync breaks

Most temporary sync issues resolve automatically.

If a persistent issue occurs:

• Cognism can trigger a full re-import to restore normal operation. 
• Minor delays may occur during large data processing, but these usually resolve within standard sync cycles. 

Expected results

When the correct CRM permissions are enabled:

• Cognism Enrich analyses your CRM data accurately. 
• Enriched data syncs back to the correct records. 
• Diagnostics and filters reflect your real CRM coverage.