Despite years of digital transformation, many organisations in the UK are still clinging to spreadsheets to manage their data protection compliance. From data breach logs and rights request trackers to the company’s Records of Processing Activities (ROPA), these critical functions are often held together by manual Excel files or shared Google Sheets.
It’s a risky and outdated way of working—and it’s far more common than it should be.
According to the Coalfire Compliance Report 2023 , 60% of Governance, Risk and Compliance (GRC) users globally still manage compliance manually using spreadsheets. Even more concerning is that UK-specific research shows the situation may be worse here: a 2025 survey reported by DIGIT found that 81% of UK businesses still rely solely on spreadsheets to document compliance and manage data. In another 2024 survey highlighted by IOSH Magazine , more than half of UK businesses continue to use Excel over digital solutions, even for tasks as vital as asset and health & safety management.
The result? Inaccurate records, security risks, and a high likelihood of non-compliance.
Spreadsheets: The Hidden Weakness in Your Compliance Strategy
The spreadsheet might be a familiar tool, but it is fundamentally flawed when used as the backbone of a compliance programme. Chief among the issues is version control. Once a spreadsheet is emailed or shared in the cloud, it becomes virtually impossible to guarantee a single source of truth. Teams edit different copies, updates are missed, and people lose track of which version is the most current. When regulators ask to see an accurate log or your current ROPA, you may struggle to produce a clean, defensible version.
Security is another major concern. Spreadsheets containing personal or sensitive data are often shared via email or stored in shared drives with minimal protection. If an unauthorised individual gains access or if the file is sent to the wrong recipient, your organisation could easily find itself in breach of data protection laws. Worse still, the use of unsecured and untracked spreadsheets may itself be seen by regulators as a failure to implement appropriate organisational and technical safeguards.
Then there’s the matter of efficiency. Double-keying information from emails into a breach log or DSAR tracker isn’t just time-consuming—it’s error-prone. When dealing with data subjects’ rights requests, a mistyped deadline or missed entry could result in you breaching your legal obligations. In today’s fast-paced regulatory environment, manual processes just don’t cut it anymore.
YourDataSafe: The Smarter Way to Manage Compliance
YourDataSafe was built to eliminate these problems and bring control, visibility, and structure to your data protection operations. It replaces static spreadsheets with a secure, cloud-based system that centralises your compliance tasks—DSARs, ROPA, breach logs, DPIAs, LIAs, and processor records—all in one place.
No more emailing spreadsheets around. With YourDataSafe, each team member gets their own login, turning every employee into a frontline compliance officer. If someone spots a potential data incident or receives a DSAR, they can report it immediately via the platform. This saves valuable time and, more importantly, eliminates the data security risk of emailing sensitive information internally. No more double keying, no more confusion—just instant logging and automatic notification to the compliance team.
Data Protection Impact Assessments (DPIAs) and Legitimate Interest Assessments (LIAs) can be initiated and tracked within the platform, with version-controlled updates, automated risk scoring, and reminders for review. This ensures that your organisation is not only documenting its decision-making but doing so in a consistent and defensible way.
The same applies to managing your third-party processors. YourDataSafe allows you to keep a live register of vendors and service providers, store processor agreements, conduct risk assessments, and monitor due diligence tasks. When your regulator asks how you’re managing processor risk, you’ll be ready with a full audit trail and supporting evidence—something no spreadsheet can reliably offer.
Embedding Compliance Across the Organisation
One of the greatest strengths of YourDataSafe is its ability to distribute compliance responsibility across your organisation. By giving each colleague a login, you make compliance part of everyone’s day-to-day role. Reporting is simplified. Communication is streamlined. And most importantly, it becomes embedded in your culture—not just a siloed task for the compliance team.
Real-time dashboards provide visibility into outstanding actions, breaches under investigation, DSARs in progress, and third-party contract reviews. Everything is trackable, reportable, and secure.
The Real Cost of Spreadsheet Compliance
The continued reliance on spreadsheets isn’t just inefficient—it’s dangerous. The high-profile statistics from the UK show that businesses are clinging to tools that no longer serve them. Manual processes may be familiar, but they expose you to data breaches, non-compliance, enforcement action, and reputational damage.
Using spreadsheets to manage data protection compliance is, in many cases, a compliance failure in itself. Regulators expect structured, secure, and accountable systems—not disconnected tabs and colour-coded cells.
If your compliance logs still live in a shared folder or your ROPA is an Excel file marked “FINAL_v7”, it’s time to modernise. YourDataSafe gives you the structure, visibility, and peace of mind that spreadsheets never can.
Modern compliance demands modern tools. It’s time to ditch the spreadsheets and embrace a smarter way of working.
Ready to Upgrade? Here’s How to Get Started with YourDataSafe
Accessing YourDataSafe is straightforward. Just visit www.yourdatasafe.co.uk and choose the subscription level that suits your organisation. Whether you’re a micro-business managing your first DSAR or a growing company juggling multiple compliance registers, YourDataSafe gives you the tools you need to stay on top of your obligations—with confidence and clarity.
We’re proud to support the third sector too. All registered charities receive a 50% discount on every subscription tier. It’s our way of giving back to those doing good in the community while still needing to meet serious regulatory responsibilities.
For smaller organisations, YourDataSafe is both affordable and powerful. Our Micro subscription—designed for organisations with between 1 and 5 employees—starts from just £500 per year, offering full access to core features including incident reporting, DSAR management, live ROPA building, DPIA/LIA workflows, and secure third-party processor tracking.
No more emailing spreadsheets. No more double keying. No more risk of non-compliance. Just one secure platform to manage it all.
Take the first step towards smarter, safer data protection.
Visit yourdatasafe.com today to start your subscription or request a demo—and see for yourself why it’s time to ditch the spreadsheets for good.
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- Coalfire Compliance Report 2023 – secureframe.com
- DIGIT. (2025). UK businesses still relying on spreadsheets to track compliance data. Retrieved from digit.fyi
- IOSH Magazine. (2024). Research finds 68% of UK businesses likely to fail on-the-spot HSE inspections due to poor data tracking. Retrieved from ioshmagazine.com
