Sharing Business Reports Securely: Links, Roles and POPIA
How to share reports without leaking data: read-only links that expire, who should see raw data, two-factor sign-in, audit trails and the POPIA points to check.
· 5 min read · Summarix team
The safest way to share a business report is to share the finished report, not the data behind it. Use read-only links that expire instead of attachments that live forever, give most people view-only access, switch on two-factor sign-in, and keep an audit trail of who shared and exported what. Most report leaks are copies, so the fewer copies you make, the less there is to lose.
Where report data actually leaks
Breaches make headlines, but day-to-day exposure is more ordinary: the spreadsheet emailed to a supplier, the export left in a downloads folder, the PDF forwarded beyond the people it was meant for, the former employee who still has a login. Each copy is a version you can no longer update, recall or account for.
- Raw data exports travel further than reports, and carry far more detail.
- Email attachments can be forwarded indefinitely and cannot be revoked.
- Shared logins make it impossible to know who did what.
- Old access is rarely removed unless someone owns the job.
Read-only links instead of attachments
In Summarix, the Share button on a report creates a read-only link. Anyone with the link can view the report without signing in, while the chat, the underlying data and the exports stay private. You choose when the link expires, you can see how many times it has been viewed, and you can revoke it at any moment: it stops working immediately. Shared report pages are marked so that search engines do not index them.
| Link option | Use it for |
|---|---|
| Expires in 7 days | A one-off report for a meeting or a supplier |
| Expires in 30 days | A monthly report that will be replaced by next month's |
| Expires in 90 days | Quarterly packs, board papers between meetings |
| Never expires | Rarely: only for reports with no sensitive content, and review them regularly |
If you link your own domain on the Domains page, shared reports can be served on your brand, which helps clients and directors recognise them; agencies use this for white-label client reports. Creating a link needs an Editor role or above, and every new link is recorded in the audit log.
Give each person the role they need
| Role | What it can do | Who should have it |
|---|---|---|
| Owner | Everything, including billing | One accountable person |
| Admin | Manage the team, connections, API keys and branding | One or two people who run the workspace |
| Editor | Upload data, run queries, create reports and schedules | The people who build reports |
| Viewer | View reports and chat with the data | Everyone else |
Most people who read reports never need to upload data or connect a database, so Viewer should be the default. Review the team list every quarter and the day someone leaves; access that nobody owns is access that nobody removes.
Two-factor sign-in for everyone
A stolen password is the easiest way into any tool that holds business data. Summarix supports two-factor sign-in with an authenticator app and ten one-time recovery codes, and the workspace Owner can require it for every member: with that switched on, members must set up two-factor sign-in before they can open the workspace, while API keys keep working for integrations. The team page shows who has it on.
Keep an audit trail
Admins can see the workspace audit log under Settings, with when, who, what and from which IP address, and export it as CSV. It records actions such as queries, exports, shares, invitations and scheduled deliveries. Each member also has a My activity page for their own actions. Look at the log when someone leaves, when a link is shared outside the company, and once a quarter as a habit.
POPIA points to check
Most management reports are aggregates (totals by region, product or month) and contain little or no personal information, which is the best position to be in. Problems start when a report lists individuals: top customers by name, staff performance, debtors with contact details. Our guide to POPIA-compliant data analytics covers minimising and masking data before analysis.
- Keep personal information out of reports that do not need it; a customer number is usually enough.
- Check scheduled email recipients carefully: a schedule can send to up to 20 addresses, with the PDF and HTML attached, and an email cannot be recalled.
- Use expiring links rather than attachments for anything that names people.
- Know where your data goes when you use AI; work through our POPIA checklist for AI tools.
A sharing checklist
- Share the report, not the data. Exports only when there is no alternative.
- Use a link that expires, and revoke links you no longer need.
- Give Viewer access by default, Editor to report builders, Admin to very few.
- Require two-factor sign-in for the whole workspace.
- Check schedule recipient lists whenever people change roles or leave.
- Review the audit log quarterly, and when someone leaves.
For reports that go to directors, the same habits apply with higher stakes; our guide to board reports directors actually read covers the content side. The Summarix security page describes how the platform protects your data.
Share reports as read-only links that expire, with roles, two-factor sign-in and an audit log built in.
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Frequently asked questions
Can someone with a shared link see our underlying data?
No. A shared link shows the finished report only. The data, the chat and the export buttons stay inside the workspace, behind sign-in. Anyone with the link can view the report itself, so treat links like documents and choose an expiry.
What happens when I revoke a link?
It stops working immediately for everyone who has it. If some people still need the report, create a new link and send it only to them.
Is a PDF attachment less safe than a link?
It is harder to control. Once an attachment is sent, it can be forwarded and kept forever, and you cannot revoke it. A link can expire, shows how often it was viewed and can be switched off.
Who can see the audit log?
Workspace admins and the owner can see and export the full audit log under Settings. Every member can see their own actions on the My activity page.