Why CSV exports are a security risk
The specific controls a spreadsheet export leaves behind — row-level security, audit trail, offboarding — and what remains once it does.
Free breach calculator
Find out what that actually costs. Enter a record count and data type below for an estimate built on IBM’s 2025 Cost of a Data Breach Report, then take the 8-question self-assessment to see how exposed your current workflow is.
$4.44M
Global average breach cost, 2025
$178
Cost per record, IP data
241 days
Average time to identify + contain
51%
Breaches from malicious/criminal attack
Source: IBM Cost of a Data Breach Report 2025, research by Ponemon Institute.
Free self-assessment
Eight questions covering exports, access controls, and offboarding, scored as you go.
Why this keeps happening
A spreadsheet inside a governed warehouse is protected by that warehouse’s controls. The moment it’s exported to a CSV, none of that applies anymore.
No audit trail
A CSV on a laptop, in a Downloads folder, or attached to an email leaves no record of who has it, or how many copies exist.
No access revocation
Disabling someone's account doesn't delete the files they already exported. Offboarding a person doesn't offboard their old CSVs.
No governance controls
Row-level security, column masking, and compliance rules configured in the warehouse don't travel with an exported file.
The fix
spreadsheetsecurity.com is built by Row Zero, a spreadsheet built to work with warehouse data without exporting it. SOC 2 Type II, HIPAA, and GDPR compliant, with a Zero Data Retention architecture.
Governed access, not exported files
Users work with live warehouse data through the spreadsheet, with the same row-level access controls that apply everywhere else.
SSO, SCIM, and export restrictions
Enterprise plans support single sign-on, SCIM provisioning, and the ability to restrict data export entirely.
Zero Data Retention
Built so your data isn't copied and retained outside the systems you already govern.
FAQ
No. Both tools run entirely in your browser. Nothing is uploaded, logged, or stored anywhere, including by Row Zero.
IBM's Cost of a Data Breach Report 2025, research independently conducted by the Ponemon Institute. The calculator uses the report's published average cost per compromised record by data type. See the key findings summary for the source figures.
No. It's a rough, per-record exposure estimate, not IBM's full total-cost methodology, which also factors in detection, notification, and recovery costs that don't scale linearly with record count. Treat it as an order-of-magnitude figure, not a quote.
No. It's a quick self-check built from general data-governance practices, not a certified or independently validated audit standard. See the checklist guide for the reasoning behind each question.
Each of the 8 questions is worth 0–2 points based on how much the answer reduces exposure. The total (out of 16) maps to a Lower / Moderate / High exposure tier.
No. Both tools work with no account. An account is only needed if you continue on to Row Zero.
Yes. spreadsheetsecurity.com is built and operated by Row Zero, Inc., which also operates bigspreadsheets.com and openbigcsv.com.
If you arrive already signed in to Row Zero, the site recognizes that and swaps the signup button for a direct link back into your account. If you're seeing a signup prompt anyway, you can still sign in normally at rowzero.com — no duplicate account is created.
Resources
The specific controls a spreadsheet export leaves behind — row-level security, audit trail, offboarding — and what remains once it does.
A sourced summary of IBM's 2025 report — the per-record and by-industry figures, and what they do and do not support.
The eight practices behind the self-assessment, written out with the reasoning for each. A starting point for a conversation with your security team.