Changelog · Oct 21, 2026 — A new IP page with IP history, Monocle Health Alerts, AI traffic in Explorer, and edge access tokens.

Implementation

Monocle can be implemented at different levels depending on how you want to use the data. Each level provides value, from traffic visibility through to automated enforcement.

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Monocle Implementation States

These states represent a progression from understanding traffic, to evaluating it, to taking action.

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Visibility

Visibility is the starting point for most Monocle deployments.

Monocle generates encrypted assessments for each session, providing insight into:

• VPN usage
• Proxy detection
• Anonymous session status
• Infrastructure type
• Geographic signals
• Additional connection context

At this stage, Monocle provides insight only. No action is required.

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Policy

The Policy layer introduces decision-making.

Monocle evaluates sessions against configured policy criteria and returns a simple outcome:

• Allow
• Block

This allows you to understand how traffic would be affected without needing to build your own decision logic directly against assessment fields.

Decision Approaches

You can apply logic in two ways:

Raw Assessment

You evaluate fields directly in your application.

Example conditions:

• vpn = true
• proxied = true
• anon = true

This approach gives full control over how traffic is interpreted.

Policy API

Monocle evaluates sessions against configured rules and returns a decision:

• Allow
• Block

This simplifies decision-making and keeps policy configuration centralized.

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Enforcement

Enforcement is the process of acting on a Policy decision.

Who applies the action depends on your integration:

• With an SDK integration (JavaScript, React, Next.js, iOS or Android), your system applies the action.
• With an edge integration, Monocle applies it for you, on the paths you choose to enforce.

Common enforcement examples include:

• Blocking sessions that receive a Block decision
• Triggering additional verification for high-risk traffic
• Using decisions as input into broader security systems

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Where Enforcement Happens

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Edge Enforcement

With the Cloudflare, CloudFront and Fastly integrations, Monocle enforces decisions at the edge for you:

1. Monocle assesses sessions across your whole site by default, in the background when script injection is on. With it off, visitors see a short verification screen when an assessment runs.
2. A visitor requests one of your enforced paths, such as /login.
3. Your policy is applied to the assessed session.
4. Monocle returns Allow or Block.
5. The edge serves the request, or your block response.

You choose which paths are enforced, so the rest of your site keeps working untouched. Read Assess & Enforce to set it up.

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What Monocle Does and Does Not Do

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Moving from Visibility to Enforcement

Most implementations follow this progression:

1. Use Visibility to understand traffic patterns
2. Configure a Policy
3. Review which sessions would be blocked
4. Decide where enforcement should happen
5. Implement Enforcement in your system or at the edge

This allows you to move from insight → decision → action in a controlled and measurable way.

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Next Steps

• Monocle Dashboard
• Policies
• Assess & Enforce
• Assessment Overview
• Assessment Decryption
• Quick Start