Summary: ◀▼
You can control whether agents who submit tickets as requesters see internal notes or access those tickets in the Agent Workspace. This helps protect sensitive information while allowing agents to track their requests in the help center. Options include showing all notes, hiding notes on tickets assigned to private groups, or hiding all internal notes, with access varying by group, brand, and role permissions.
When an agent submits a ticket as the requester, Zendesk can treat that ticket differently from other tickets in their queue. On Enterprise plans, admins can control whether those agents can view internal notes and access the ticket in the Agent Workspace.
This setting helps you protect sensitive internal conversations while still letting agents track their own requests in the help center when needed.
This article includes the following topics:
Understanding agent requester access
In Zendesk, agents sometimes submit tickets on behalf of themselves or others. When the agent is listed in the Requester field, Zendesk can apply special access rules based on the agent’s group, brand, and role permissions.
This feature is useful when you want to do the following:
- Prevent agents from seeing internal notes on tickets they requested.
- Limit access to tickets assigned to groups or brands they don’t belong to.
- Keep sensitive collaboration private while still letting agents follow their own requests.
- Support workflows where agents can submit requests without seeing every internal detail.
Depending on how you configure this feature, Zendesk can allow agents to view all internal notes on tickets where they’re the requester, restrict access only when the ticket is assigned to a private group or a brand they don’t belong to, or apply broader restrictions that also cover tickets assigned to public groups and brands outside the agent’s membership.
If access is restricted, the agent may lose access to the ticket in the Agent Workspace and instead follow the request in your help center under My Requests. In that case, Zendesk treats the agent like an end user for that ticket.
For example, if an agent submits an HR ticket and assigns it to a private HR group they don’t belong to, your settings might prevent that agent from seeing internal notes or even accessing the ticket in the Agent Workspace. Even so, they can still track the request in your help center.
Considerations
- The setting controls access to tickets where the agent is the requester. If the agent is only submitting a ticket on behalf of someone else and is not listed as the requester, normal agent access applies.
- For agents to manage their requested tickets in your help center, you must activate your help center and enable agents to access request forms.
- If agents submit tickets to brands they don’t belong to, brand visibility can affect whether they can access those tickets in your help center. You can update your configuration to give agents visibility across brands.
- Agents with roles that allow access to all tickets may still see internal notes, even when restrictions are enabled. Similarly, depending on how you configure this feature, agents in custom roles with permission to access tickets within their groups and public groups can view internal notes in public group tickets because Zendesk treats those agents as members of those public groups.
Configuring your agent as requester workflow
In Admin Center, configure whether agents can view internal notes and access the ticket in the Agent Workspace when they're the requester on the ticket.
To configure the agent as requester workflow
- In Admin Center, click
Workspaces in the sidebar, then select Agent tools > Agent interface. - Under Agent is the requester, choose an option:
- Show all internal notes
- Hide internal notes on tickets assigned to private groups
- Hide all internal notes
See Understanding the workflow configuration options for details on each option.
- Click Save.
Understanding the workflow configuration options
Admins have three options when configuring the agent as requester workflow, as shown below.
Although these options only refer to internal note visibility, it’s important to understand that each option also affects whether agents can assign or access tickets when they’re the requester.
Show all internal notes
Choose this option if you want agents to have no additional restrictions when they’re the requester.
- Agents can view internal notes on tickets where they’re the requester. (This applies only to tickets in Support. Internal notes aren't visible in your help center.)
- Ticket access isn't restricted by requester status.
Hide internal notes on tickets assigned to private groups (default setting)
Choose this option if you want requester access to be restricted only in certain cases.
- Agents can view internal notes unless the ticket is assigned to a private group or a brand they don’t belong to.
- If the ticket is assigned to a private group or a brand they don't belong to, the agent loses access to the ticket in the Agent Workspace, and the agent's internal notes become public. However, the agent can still access the ticket in their email or the help center under My Requests.
- Agents in custom roles with access to all tickets can still view internal notes.
Hide all internal notes
Choose this option if you want the strongest restriction.
- Agents cannot view internal notes on tickets where they’re the requester if
the ticket is assigned to a private group, public group, or brand they don’t
belong to.
Keep in mind that agents can view internal notes in public group tickets if they have a custom role with permission to access tickets within their groups and public groups, because Zendesk treats those agents as members of those public groups.
- If the ticket is assigned to a private group, public group, or brand they don't belong to, the agent loses access to the ticket in the Agent Workspace, and the agent's internal notes become public. However, the agent can still access the ticket in their email or in your help center under My Requests.
- Agents in custom roles with access to all tickets can still view internal notes.