Regardless of which software.
NEVER
Passwords or credentials of any kind Database connection strings API keys Card or bank details Identification numbers
FROM CONFIGURATION FILES
Remove credentials before pasting. Configuration files routinely contain them.
This is the most common accidental disclosure.
FROM EMAIL THREADS
Other people's information, and sometimes credentials people sent in plain text.
FROM SPREADSHEETS
Customer lists, employee details, financial records.
Consider what a sheet actually contains before uploading it.
FROM SCREENSHOTS
They capture whatever was on screen, including other windows, notifications and tabs.
Check the image before uploading.
FROM DATABASE EXPORTS
Everything. Including every customer record.
WHAT TO DO INSTEAD
Remove the sensitive parts, or describe the structure rather than supplying the data.
THE TEST
If you would not email it to a supplier, do not paste it.
