How to Check What an Excel File Reveals Before You Send It
A workbook carries more than what is on screen. Sheets nobody can see, rows that were hidden rather than removed, comments with your colleagues' names on them, links to a path on your network, and your own name in the file's properties. None of it shows in the window. All of it goes with the email.
Last updated: October 2026
| Severity | What | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Review | Very hidden sheet | Pricing 2025 |
| Review | Hidden rows or columns | Sheet1 — 12 hidden rows |
| Review | Names in comments | Ana Smith, Ben Jones |
| Review | Document property: Author | your name here |
What to look for, and why each one matters
- Very hidden sheets. Invisible even in the Unhide dialog, so the sender has usually forgotten them and the recipient would never find them — unless they go looking.
- Hidden rows and columns. Hiding is not redaction. The values are still there, one right-click away.
- Filtered sheets. The same thing in another hat: what is on screen is not what is in the file.
- Comments and notes. They carry author names — personal data about your colleagues going to a third party — along with whatever was said while the file was internal.
- Links to other workbooks. These leak the path they point at, often a full network path with a username in it, and break noisily for the recipient.
- Document properties. Author, Last saved by, Company, Manager — filled in automatically by Office, and never once by you.
The 1-click way (Tellsheet)
Share Check
Run Share Check and it writes a report to a new sheet: every finding, where it is, and why it matters, ranked so the things worth a second look come first. It reports and never changes your file — a hidden column of working notes may be entirely deliberate, and deciding otherwise at the moment you are about to send something would be the wrong kind of help. It also lists what it could not check on your version of Excel, so the report never implies a clean bill of health it did not earn.
Where this sits next to Document Inspector
Honestly: Excel's own Document Inspector covers part of this ground on Windows. It is limited or absent on Excel for Mac, and there is no equivalent on the web — which is where a great many files are shared from now. Share Check runs on all three, and reports rather than strips. If you are on Windows and happy with Document Inspector, use it; this is for everyone else, and for anyone who wants to see the list before deciding.
Frequently asked questions
What is a very hidden sheet?
One that does not appear in the Unhide dialog at all.
Does hiding rows protect them?
No — hiding is not redaction.
What personal data does a file carry?
Comment authors, and Author / Last saved by / Company in the properties.
Does it change my workbook?
Never. It writes a report and leaves the file alone.
Related Excel guides
Know what you are sending
Share Check lists what travels with the file — on Windows, Mac and the web, without changing a thing.
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