Brume 2.1 adds deterministic FK-safe pseudonymization for PostgreSQL 12-18

Brume 2.1, released under Apache 2.0, addresses a persistent operational problem for PostgreSQL teams: creating realistic test and debug datasets without exposing production personal data or breaking foreign key relationships. The tool reads from a source database and writes transformed output to either a target database or a .sql file, applying column-level pseudonymization strategies before any data is persisted.

The release supports PostgreSQL versions 12 through 18 and offers packages for Debian/Ubuntu, RHEL/Fedora, and macOS. Its deterministic output guarantees that identical inputs with the same secret produce identical pseudonyms across all releases within a major version, enabling stable test fixtures and reproducible debug sessions.

Pseudonymization strategies and referential integrity

• Column-level transformation strategies: Brume provides FAKE for synthetic values, MASK for partial reveals, HASH for one-way hashing, NULLIFY for data removal, FPE_ID and FPE_UUID for format-preserving encryption of identifiers, and DATE_SHIFT for preserving date distributions while altering actual values.
• Deterministic keyed output: All transformations use user-provided secrets as keys, ensuring that the same input consistently produces the same pseudonym across runs and releases within a major version.
• Foreign key preservation: Format-preserving encryption rewrites primary keys and their corresponding foreign keys identically, maintaining referential integrity without disabling triggers or suspending constraints.
• Cross-table consistency via linked_columns: Values shared across tables without formal foreign key relationships, such as an email appearing in both users and audit_logs, receive identical pseudonyms throughout the extract.
• Declarative subsetting and configuration: Row-level filters with configurable foreign-key traversal depth produce self-contained extracts, controlled by a version-controllable brume.yml file supporting semantic types and JSONB path targeting.

Why it matters

For Linux-based PostgreSQL deployments in regulated industries, Brume offers a practical alternative to ad-hoc masking scripts that routinely corrupt database relationships. The tool's audit-friendly, code-reviewable configuration aligns with GDPR Articles 25 and 32 requirements for pseudonymization, reducing compliance overhead for data protection officers while preserving developer productivity in bug reproduction and testing workflows.