Answer
The safest modernization pattern starts with read-only access, since that lets analysts, developers, or integration tools explore and query Db2 for i data without any risk of an accidental write corrupting production records. Buyers should ask whether the product enforces read-only access at the connection level or simply trusts the user not to run an update statement, because those are very different levels of protection when someone eventually makes a mistake.
Export controls and sensitive data handling deserve equally direct questions. Ask whether the tool can mask or restrict access to specific columns, such as pricing, payroll, or customer identifiers, and whether exports get logged in a way that would hold up if a data handling question ever came up during an audit. Monitoring matters just as much as access control: buyers should ask whether the platform logs who queried what and when, since that visibility is what turns easier data access into safer data access rather than just faster data leakage. Modernization projects that skip this step often discover the governance gap only after broader access has already been granted for months.