To keep personal data out of an exported file, two settings are enough. Use the GDPR / confidential marking option on the column concerned in the table. In the export, the Exclude fields marked GDPR / confidential checkbox is ticked by default. Untick it only to include these fields again. This guide explains the logic of these two settings, the special cases and how to check the file.
Are you in the configuration window of a transfer? The step by step of the Exported fields section is in the article of your export. FTP / SFTP: chapter 5.6 Choose the exported fields (FTP / SFTP). Metabase: chapter 2.1 Choose the exported fields (Metabase). This guide explains the logic behind these settings. It is for the workspace owner and administrators. The screenshots show the interface in English.
1. How does TimeTonic decide which columns go into the exported file?
Two settings work together. The GDPR / confidential marking in the table says which columns hold personal data. The Exclude fields marked GDPR / confidential checkbox in the export says whether these columns go into the file. One without the other protects nothing.
1
Mark the columns with the GDPR / confidential marking option
Column menu → GDPR / confidential marking → Sensitive. Mirror columns and Link to another table columns inherit the marking, formulas do not. Details: GDPR / confidential marking: mark a column.
2
Keep the Exclude fields marked GDPR / confidential checkbox ticked in the export
Exported fields section → Exclude fields marked GDPR / confidential, ticked by default. Every sensitive column is removed from the file, including those marked later.
3
Check the file with Test config
Test config shows the columns that will really be sent.
Without GDPR / confidential marking in the table, the export checkbox excludes nothing. Without a ticked checkbox in the export, the marking removes nothing from the file.
1.1 What GDPR / confidential marking does not do
It does not hide the column in the application
Every member who could see the column still sees it. Marking only drives the content of exported files.
It does not change your existing exports
An export created before the marking keeps its settings. Open it and tick the checkbox to apply it.
The section holds two checkboxes and the Fields to exclude list. Each checkbox ticks a whole group of fields in the list at once. The list decides everything: a ticked field does not go out, an unticked field does.
Exclude fields marked GDPR / confidential
Ticks every sensitive field: marked in the table, or inherited. The checkbox is recalculated at every run. A column marked later is excluded without touching the export.
Exclude non-exportable field types by default
Ticks the fields whose type makes no sense in a file: comments, attachments, history. The full list is below.
2.1 The four combinations of the two checkboxes
Setting
What goes into the file
No checkbox
Every column of the view, including GDPR fields and non-exportable types.
GDPR checkbox only
Everything except sensitive fields.
Non-exportable types checkbox only
Everything except these types. GDPR fields go out, and a warning points it out.
Both checkboxes
Only fields that are neither sensitive nor of a non-exportable type.
Each row of the table matches a real situation. Here is what happens in each one.
No checkbox: the file holds everything
This is the state of an export created before this release. Name, email, comments, attachments: everything goes into the file. A GDPR fields message shows in the section if columns are marked in the table.
GDPR checkbox only: personal data stays with you
Columns marked Sensitive and those that inherit from them are removed. Comments or attachments still go out, in a form that is hard to read in a flat file. Suitable when the recipient needs everything except personal data.
Non-exportable types checkbox only: the file is clean, but not compliant
Comments, history, attachments and the other types of the list are removed. GDPR-marked columns still go out. The GDPR fields message stays on screen, and every run is logged.
Both checkboxes: the recommended and default setting
Only useful columns without personal data go out. The GDPR fields message disappears. A column marked later is excluded at the next run, without reopening the export.
2.2 The GDPR fields message shown in the section
By default, the Exclude fields marked GDPR / confidential checkbox is ticked: this message does not show. It appears if the checkbox is unticked and marked columns go into the export. The screenshot below shows the two places where it appears.
1. At the top of the section: exclude or keep
The message lists the marked columns that go into the export. Click Exclude fields marked GDPR / confidential to remove them. Click Keep them in the export to keep them.
2. Under the Fields to exclude list: a reminder
If you keep these columns, a second message lists them again. Every run of the export is then logged.
3. When you save: a confirmation
An Export of GDPR / confidential fields window lists the marked columns that go out. Save anyway confirms. Cancel takes you back to the section.
The step by step when this message appears → chapter 7.
3. Tick the GDPR checkbox or pick the fields one by one: which is better?
Keep the Exclude fields marked GDPR / confidential checkbox ticked for anything related to GDPR. It follows the marking changes in the table. A field-by-field selection in the Fields to exclude list is a snapshot of the day you made it.
Setting
A sensitive column is added the following month
GDPR checkbox ticked
It is excluded automatically. Nothing to do.
Checkbox unticked, fields ticked by hand
It goes into the file. The list only knows the fields ticked that day.
Keep field-by-field selection for a file that is too wide, to remove columns unrelated to GDPR.
4. How do you keep a GDPR-marked column in the exported file?
Your choice in the Fields to exclude list always wins, over the two checkboxes and over chained exclusion.
1
Open the Fields to exclude list
Each field shows its reason: Marked GDPR / confidential, Inherited GDPR / confidential or Non-exportable type.
2
Untick the field to keep
It goes back into the file. Every other field stays excluded.
3
Test, then save
Test config confirms the field is back among the columns.
Example: an export to Metabase must contain the customer email. Keep the GDPR checkbox ticked, then untick only Customer email. The other sensitive columns stay excluded.
5. Which column types cannot be exported to a file?
Eight types do not give a usable value in a flat file. The Exclude non-exportable field types by default checkbox ticks them, and the mirror columns that read one of them.
Comments
History
URL
Attachments
E-mail
Phone
SmartText
External form
6. Why does an unmarked column disappear from the exported file?
Columns derived from an excluded column are excluded too. The exclusion follows the chain all the way, from one table to another. Removed data does not reappear under another name.
Mirror column
Follows the exclusion. A mirror of a mirror follows it too.
Link to another table column
Follows the exclusion of the column on the other side of the relation.
Formula
Does not follow: a formula has no Inherited state. Mark it Sensitive by hand if it copies personal data.
6.1 Chained exclusion example: Customers and Orders tables
The Email column of the Customers table is marked Sensitive and excluded. Here is what happens in the Orders table.
Column
Result
Customers: Email
Excluded: marked GDPR / confidential in the table.
Orders: Customer email
Excluded: mirror column of Email, inherited GDPR / confidential.
Orders: Invoice label
Stays in the file: formula that reads Customer email. Excluded only if you mark it Sensitive.
Orders: Total (excl. VAT)
Stays in the file: formula that reads Quantity and Unit price.
Formulas do not inherit the marking. This is a product choice: a formula only offers Sensitive and Not sensitive. It is Not sensitive by default, even if it reads a sensitive column. It does not appear in the Fields to exclude list and goes into the file. Mark as Sensitive, by hand, every formula that copies personal data. Example: a label that joins name and email. A formula that does not reproduce the data, such as initials or a TRUE / FALSE, can stay exported.
7. What should you do when the GDPR fields warning appears in the export?
A warning lists the GDPR fields that still go into the file. It appears, for example, when a column was marked after the export was created.
1
Read the list of the fields concerned
These are the sensitive columns the export still sends.
2
Choose one of the two buttons Exclude fields marked GDPR / confidential ticks the checkbox of the same name. The fields are excluded and the warning disappears. Keep them in the export keeps the fields knowingly. A reminder stays below the list and every run is logged.
3
Confirm when you save
A confirmation window lists again the GDPR fields that still go out. Confirm to save, or cancel to go back to the list.
8. How do you check the file with Test config before scheduling the export?
Test config applies the same logic as a real export: the two checkboxes, unticked fields, chained exclusion.
1
Click Test config
TimeTonic prepares the file with your settings, without sending it.
2
Check the columns shown
They are the ones that will be sent. An excluded column is missing from the header, it is not exported empty.
3
Save Save or Save and close. As long as a change is not saved, the Close button becomes Cancel and closes without keeping anything.
Export to Metabase: removing a column changes the shape of the table. Any Metabase question or dashboard that used that column stops working. Refresh the schema in the Metabase admin, then fix the affected questions.
An encrypted column kept in the export comes out as an asterisk: its value is never written in clear.
9. Three practical cases of GDPR / confidential marking and export
An HR table sent to the payroll provider
Last name, First name, Personal e-mail and Social security number are marked Sensitive. The weekly export ticks the GDPR checkbox. The file only holds Department and Cost centre. A Personal phone column added later is excluded from the next run.
A formula that would leak a name
The Full label formula joins Last name and Contract number. Last name is marked Sensitive. The formula stays Not sensitive and is not excluded. Mark it Sensitive by hand: the GDPR checkbox then excludes it like the others.
A dashboard that needs the email
The Orders table export ticks the GDPR checkbox. Customer email is unticked in the list. It goes into the file. Customer contact stays excluded, and so does Invoice label, marked by hand.
10. Frequently asked questions on GDPR / confidential marking and exports
My old export excludes nothing. Is that normal?
Yes. Exports created before this feature keep their settings: no checkbox ticked, no field ticked. Nothing changes without your action. Open the export, tick the Exclude fields marked GDPR / confidential checkbox, then save. The sensitive columns are removed from the next run onwards.
A column I wanted to keep has disappeared. Why?
It reads an excluded column. Chained exclusion removed it. A mirror column or a Link to another table column always follows its source column. Untick it in the Fields to exclude list to keep it: your choice wins over the checkboxes and over the chain.
My Metabase dashboard no longer works. Why?
Excluded columns are no longer sent. Removing a column changes the shape of the table on the Metabase side. Any question or dashboard that read it stops working. Refresh the schema in the Metabase admin, then fix the questions that used those columns.
More columns than expected were excluded. Why?
A linked table could not be read while the export was prepared. Its mirror columns and Link to another table columns are then treated as sensitive, as a precaution. The run log reports it. Run the export again once the table is reachable: the columns come back by themselves.
Does marking hide the column in the application?
No. Every member sees it as before. Marking only drives the content of exported files. To hide data from some members, use an encrypted field or restrict access to the column by view. Both of these settings combine with the marking.
Does the manual CSV export follow these settings?
Partly. You can exclude columns field by field when you download. The two checkboxes do not exist there, so marked columns are not removed automatically. Check the whole list carefully before you confirm, especially for a table that holds personal data.
Go further
Mark a column as personal data
The three states, inheritance and who can change it.