Data Protection Issues

Can You Hide the Activity Column in SharePoint or OneDrive?

Maira Mehtab Sep 27, 2026 869 views

Question details

The user wants to know how to hide the document activity column in SharePoint or OneDrive to prevent external clients' email addresses from being visible to others, addressing privacy and GDPR compliance concerns.

Product: SharePoint and OneDrive
Device & OS: not provided
Scenario: Sharing organizational documents and resources with multiple external clients while trying to maintain strict privacy.
Observed behavior: The Activity section displays the email addresses of external clients who access the resources, which creates privacy and GDPR concerns.

Before you start

Before modifying any settings, review your organization's external sharing policies and verify who currently has access to your SharePoint sites or OneDrive files.

Solution 1Recommended

Restrict Sharing Permissions to Mitigate Exposure

Since hiding the activity column directly is not supported, the best approach is to strictly limit who has access to the shared documents.

Currently, Microsoft SharePoint and OneDrive do not provide a built-in setting to hide the document activity log or the Activity column. The activity log is designed by default to track document access and changes.

To address privacy and GDPR concerns regarding exposed email addresses, you must rely on restricting sharing permissions rather than hiding the column itself.

Avoid broad sharing links

Do not use 'Anyone with the link' or wide external sharing options that might expose file activity to unintended recipients.

Share with specific people

When sharing a file, click 'Share', select 'Specific people' in the link settings, and manually enter the exact email addresses of the intended clients.

Review external permissions

Regularly click the three dots next to your file, select 'Manage Access', and review the list of users. Remove permissions for anyone who no longer requires access to the document.

Provide Feedback to Microsoft: If this missing feature impacts your organization's GDPR compliance, consider submitting a formal feature request through the Microsoft Feedback Portal.

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Securely Edit and Protect Documents with WPS Office

If SharePoint's limitations cause privacy concerns for your files, you can use WPS Office as a secure, lightweight alternative for your daily document creation and local file protection. It offers robust encryption features and seamless compatibility with Microsoft Office formats.

1. Open your document: Launch WPS Office and open the document you intend to share with external clients.
2. Encrypt the file: Navigate to the 'Menu', select 'Document Encryption', and set a strong password to ensure only authorized users can view the contents.
3. Share securely: Distribute the encrypted file and provide the password securely to individual clients, bypassing the need for a shared cloud activity feed.

High compatibility with Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint formats (.docx, .xlsx, .pptx).Built-in document encryption and password protection to restrict unauthorized access and protect client privacy.Lightweight application that runs smoothly on Windows, Mac, Linux, and mobile devices.Free to use with a familiar, user-friendly interface for seamless migration.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Does the Activity column in SharePoint show who viewed a document?

Yes, the Activity column tracks and displays document access, changes, and the email addresses of users who interact with the file. This can lead to privacy concerns when sharing files externally.

Can SharePoint administrators disable the activity feed for the entire organization?

No, there is currently no global administrative setting to completely hide or disable the document activity feed in SharePoint or OneDrive.

How can I protect client email addresses when sharing files?

To protect client privacy, share documents individually using the 'Specific people' option rather than using wide group sharing links. Alternatively, use secure file transfer methods or send password-protected documents directly to recipients.

Microsoft Office Security Issues