Understanding Visitor Permissions and Restrictions in BoldDesk

In BoldDesk, users who access your support portal or chat without signing in as Agents or Contacts are classified as unauthenticated users—commonly referred to as visitors. When a visitor opens your support portal or initiates a chat session, they are automatically listed under the Visitors section in the agent interface.
This article covers:

• Who visitors are
• What actions they can perform based on your configuration
• The restrictions that apply to them

Visitors are individuals interacting with your support portal or chat widget without authentication. While they are not signed in as agents or contacts, they can still engage with your support system in limited ways, depending on your settings.

1. Actions Visitors Are Allowed to Perform

Depending on your portal and security settings, visitors can perform certain actions without signing in. These permissions help improve accessibility while maintaining control over sensitive data.

Visitors can perform the following actions when permitted:

• Submit Tickets Without Logging In

  • Directly from the portal if Allow unauthenticated users to create tickets is enabled under Admin > Customer Portal > General Tab.
  • Via email to your support address.
  • Through embedded widgets or web forms.

• Access Knowledge Base articles whose visibilities are set to Any User, but only if the Knowledge Base visibility in the Customer Portal is configured as All Users under Admin > Customer Portal Settings > Knowledge Base Tab.

• Initiate a chat session and will appear under the Visitors list in the agent portal.

• Download attachments if Allow anyone who has a file download link to download file without having to log in is selected under File Download Settings, visitors can download files using a direct link without signing in.

2. Actions Restricted for Visitors

To maintain security and protect sensitive information, certain actions are restricted for visitors. These limitations ensure that only authenticated users have access to critical features.

The following actions are restricted for visitors:

• Viewing or Tracking Tickets in the Portal
• Accessing articles set to Logged-in Users visibility.
• Downloading attachments if either of the following options in File Download Settings is enabled:
  • Allow only if the user has permission to view the ticket (requires user to be logged in)
  • Allow any agent or customer to download (requires user to be logged in)

• Performing Agent-Specific Actions
  • Managing tickets, accessing analytics, or using agent portal features is not possible.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. Who are visitors in BoldDesk?
Visitors are unauthenticated users who interact with your support portal or chat widget without signing in as agents or contacts. They automatically appear under the Visitors list in the agent interface.

2. Can visitors submit tickets without logging in?
Visitors can submit tickets without logging in if the setting Allow unauthenticated users to create tickets is enabled under Admin > Customer Portal > General Tab. They can also submit tickets via email or through embedded widgets and web forms. Once a ticket is submitted, they are added as unverified Contacts.

3. Can visitors view Knowledge Base articles?
Visitors can view Knowledge Base articles only if the portal visibility is set to All Users under Admin > Customer Portal Settings. If the setting is Logged-in Users, visitors cannot access KB content.

4. Can visitors reply to tickets?
Yes, visitors can respond to ticket updates through email notifications even if they are not logged in.

5. Can visitors initiate a live chat?
Yes, visitors can start a chat session from the portal or widget. When they do, they appear under the Visitors list in the agent dashboard.

6. Can visitors download attachments?
Visitors can download attachments only if the setting Allow anyone who has a file download link to download file without having to log in is enabled under File Download Settings. If other options are selected, login is required.

7. What actions are restricted for visitors?
Visitors cannot:

• View or track tickets in the portal.
• Access KB articles when portal visibility is set to Logged-in Users.
• Download attachments if restrictive file download settings are enabled.
• Perform agent-specific actions such as managing tickets or accessing analytics.