# Geo

This generator can be used to mask columns of latitude and longitude.

The Geo generator divides the globe into grids that are approximately 4.9 x 4.9 km. It then counts the number of points within each grid.

During data generation, each (latitude, longitude) pair is mapped to its grid.

* If the grid contains a sufficient number of points to preserve privacy, then the generator returns a randomly chosen point in that grid.
* If the grid does not contain enough points to preserve privacy, then the generator returns a random coordinate from the nearest grid that contains enough points.

## Characteristics <a href="#geo-characteristics" id="geo-characteristics"></a>

<table data-header-hidden><thead><tr><th valign="top"></th><th valign="top"></th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td valign="top"><strong>Consistency</strong></td><td valign="top">No, cannot be made consistent.</td></tr><tr><td valign="top"><strong>Linking</strong></td><td valign="top">Yes, can be linked.</td></tr><tr><td valign="top"><strong>Differential privacy</strong></td><td valign="top">No</td></tr><tr><td valign="top"><strong>Data-free</strong></td><td valign="top">No</td></tr><tr><td valign="top"><strong>Allowed for primary keys</strong></td><td valign="top">No</td></tr><tr><td valign="top"><strong>Allowed for unique columns</strong></td><td valign="top">Yes</td></tr><tr><td valign="top"><strong>Uses format-preserving encryption (FPE)</strong></td><td valign="top">No</td></tr><tr><td valign="top"><strong>Privacy ranking</strong></td><td valign="top">3</td></tr><tr><td valign="top"><strong>Generator ID (for the API)</strong></td><td valign="top"><a href="../../../api/quick-start-guide/tonic-api-generator-assignment/generator-api-reference/generator-api-ref-geo"><code>GeoGenerator</code></a></td></tr></tbody></table>

## How to configure <a href="#geo-configure" id="geo-configure"></a>

To configure the generator:

1. From the **Link To** dropdown list, select the column to link to this one.\
   \
   You typically assign the Geo generator to both the latitude and longitude column, then link those columns.
2. From the value type dropdown, select whether this column contains a latitude value or a longitude value.
3. If [Structural data encryption](https://docs.tonic.ai/app/generation/generators-assign-config/generators-data-encryption-config) is enabled, then to use it for this column, in the advanced options section, toggle **Use data encryption process** to the on position.