Is Excel Still Running Your Global Compliance? Why It's Time for a Change

If your company operates in multiple countries, you know that keeping up with global security and privacy rules is a major task. For a long time, spreadsheets were the go-to tool. But as we head further into 2025, relying on Excel to manage these critical responsibilities is becoming a big risk – one that could seriously impact your business. Simply put, for companies dealing with rules in many countries, manual compliance methods just don't cut it anymore.

Using spreadsheets for something as vital as security and privacy compliance has some real downsides. Think about it: people make mistakes when typing in data, it's easy to lose track of the latest version of a file, and keeping sensitive information secure in a spreadsheet is tough. Imagine trying to manage requests about personal data, report a security breach, or prove you're following the rules when your information is scattered across files that anyone could change or accidentally delete. It’s not just messy; it’s asking for trouble.

Global Rules are Growing – And They’re Not Getting Simpler

One of the biggest headaches today is managing multiple compliance frameworks. It’s not just about Europe's GDPR or the new NIS 2 rules, or key laws in the US. If you do business around the world, you're also juggling:

• Asia-Pacific (APAC): Places like Singapore (PDPA), Australia (Privacy Act), and China (with its PIPL and CSL laws) have strict data protection rules that can affect you even if your main office isn't there.

• Middle East: Countries like the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Bahrain are also stepping up their data privacy laws (often called PDPLs), and you need to keep up.

Trying to keep track of all these different requirements, link them to your internal controls, and show you’re compliant using only spreadsheets is a recipe for overwhelming and costly mistakes.

Make Things Easier: How AI Can Help Simplify Complex Compliance

So, if spreadsheets aren't the answer, what is? And how AI can help manage multiple compliance demands that seem to come from every direction? Modern compliance software, especially with AI built-in, offers a much smarter way:

• AI can help gather proof that you're following the rules, linking it to the right controls across different standards.

• It can smartly map your existing controls to new regulations, saving you from doing the same work over and over when managing multiple compliance frameworks.

• AI tools can also scan for updates in regulations, giving you a heads-up on changes that might affect your business.

• It can even spot potential risks or compliance gaps early on, so you can fix them before they become big problems.

• Plus, getting reports ready for your board or for auditors becomes much quicker than trying to pull everything together from different spreadsheets.

This kind of technology doesn't just make things faster; it truly helps simplify complex compliance. It turns a reactive, often frustrating job into something more proactive and manageable. Good compliance platforms give you one central place to see everything, clear audit trails, secure ways for teams to work together, and can grow with your business.

Time for a Smarter Approach

Let's be frank: the risk of getting security and privacy compliance wrong is too high to rely on old methods. If your company wants to confidently handle today's global rules, moving away from manual spreadsheets is essential. For businesses looking to simplify complex compliance and efficiently handle various international security and privacy laws, a dedicated, smart platform isn't just nice to have – it's a must.

As you plan for 2025 and beyond, it’s worth looking into how a solution like the FEHA platform can support your global compliance efforts. FEHA is designed to tackle these very challenges, offering smart features, including AI-powered assistance, to help you with managing multiple compliance frameworks clearly and effectively, no matter where in the world you operate.

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