Power Platform Security Week – Day 5: SharePoint vs. Dataverse Permissions: Which Is Safer?

Power Platform Security Week – Day 5: SharePoint vs. Dataverse Permissions: Which Is Safer?

When building solutions on the Microsoft Power Platform, one of the key architectural choices is where to store and secure your data. The two prevailing options within the Microsoft ecosystem are Microsoft SharePoint (via lists, libraries, sites) and Microsoft Dataverse (the data platform designed for business-apps). While both support storing data and can integrate with Power Apps, Power Automate and Teams, their security and permission models differ substantially. This article explores the differences in permission frameworks between SharePoint and Dataverse, assesses which is “safer” in which scenario, and provides guidance for when one might choose one over the other.

Understanding the Permission Models

SharePoint permission model

SharePoint’s permission model is built around sites, libraries, lists, folders, and items. You assign permissions to users or groups such as “Owners”, “Members”, “Visitors”, and then those flow down via inheritance or can be broken for specific items. It integrates with Microsoft 365 security groups and SharePoint groups. You can also apply item-level permissions, unique permissions on list items, etc. (see sources) However, as many practitioners note, managing many unique item-level permissions in lists can become complex and error-prone. For example, when you break inheritance on many items, you risk untracked permissions and potential exposure of data. Also, one blog points out that with SharePoint lists, if you’ve shared the underlying list and your app simply hides items in the UI, a savvy user might still access the list directly and see underlying records.

Dataverse permission model

Dataverse, on the other hand, is designed as a relational data platform with much richer security capabilities. You have security roles, business units, teams, record ownership (user-owned, team-owned, organization-owned), and privileges for Create/Read/Write/Delete/Share/Append/AppendTo on tables. Beyond that, you can define row-level (record-level) access, field-level security (restricting access to specific columns), hierarchical access via business-unit boundaries, and integrate with Azure AD groups. In practice, users in the Power Platform community comment that Dataverse allows “very good security model and you can restrict user … set record based security as well.”

Side-by-Side: Security Strengths and Weaknesses

Granularity of access: SharePoint supports permissions at site/list/folder/item levels, which is fine for many collaborative document or simple list scenarios. But its granularity is limited compared with Dataverse: SharePoint does not natively support field-level security (i.e., restricting access to a particular column in a list item). By contrast, Dataverse supports field-level and record-level permissions.

Complex data relationships and logic: When you have complex relationships, business logic, or many users with different roles needing different access, Dataverse is built for this. It is designed for business-critical apps, scalability and enterprise-level security. SharePoint lists, while great for lightweight use-cases, struggle when you try to treat them like a full data platform: performance degrades, filters are limited, and security becomes harder to manage.

Permission management complexity: It may seem easier to use SharePoint when your scenario is simple: fewer users, simpler data, fewer access patterns. But that simplicity can become a liability when you scale: managing hundreds of unique item-permissions, inheritance breaks, permissions audits become difficult. In effect, the “ease” can turn into exposure risk. Dataverse, while more complex to license and configure, gives you a structured model (roles, business units) that can scale and be audited.

Audit, compliance and governance: For highly regulated scenarios (data protection, audit trails, field-level access tracking), Dataverse clearly has stronger capabilities. The richer security model, plus built-in auditing features, mean it aligns better with enterprise governance needs. SharePoint does have auditing, but the limitations in item-level management and relational modelling can limit its suitability for such scenarios.

Licensing and cost considerations: Of course, security isn’t just about technical capability—costs and licensing matter. SharePoint lists are included in most Microsoft 365 suites, making them cost-effective for lighter workload. Dataverse requires Power Apps or Power Platform licensing (premium) and the associated capacity and governance. Sometimes the budget dictates a choice, which in turn has security implications.

Which Is Safer? Context Matters

It’s tempting to declare a clear winner (Dataverse) and leave it at that, but the truth is that “safer” depends on the use-case.

When SharePoint might be sufficient (and safe enough):

• If your use-case is essentially collaborative: document libraries, shared lists for team tasks, minimal relational complexity, and all users already have the appropriate access.
• If you don’t need field-level restrictions, row-level access differences, or heavy business logic around who sees what.
• If budget is tight and the data sensitivity is moderate, SharePoint may provide an adequate layer of security with less overhead.

When Dataverse is the safer choice:

• If you are building business-critical applications with complex user-role scenarios, need to enforce strict “who-can-see-what” at row or field level, or have regulatory/compliance demands.
• If you anticipate growth in data volume, complexity of relationships, many teams/units, or external guest access scenarios.
• If you require advanced auditing, segregation of data across business units, or plug-in logic that ensures security logic is enforced server-side rather than only client-side.

In short: while SharePoint can be safe in the right scenario, Dataverse is designed to deliver stronger security capability. If you treat SharePoint as if it were a relational database with row-level restrictions and many users with different access rights, you increase risk because managing that becomes difficult and you may inadvertently expose data. Indeed one blog warns:

“If your app contains many different lists, large amounts of data … and sensitive data for which all of the users of your app should not have access … then … you should consider using alternative data sources …”

Practical Guidance for the Power Platform Admin / Architect

Here are some actionable suggestions when you face the SharePoint vs Dataverse decision with security in mind:

• Start with the data access patterns: ask “Who needs to see what? At what level?” If you have simple “everyone sees all the items in the list” then list-level security in SharePoint may suffice. If you have “some users see only their own items, some users see all, some see a subset,” then lean toward Dataverse.
• Consider future growth and change: If you expect the solution to scale in volume, complexity, or regulation, favour Dataverse now rather than migrate later. The cost of doing a migration after the fact is high.
• Define a security model up-front: For Dataverse this means designing business units, teams, roles, privileges, field and record-level security. For SharePoint this means setting up groups, permissions, inheritance strategy, and avoiding many broken-inheritance items.
• Stick to least-privilege principle: Regardless of platform, give only the minimum access needed. With Dataverse, you can control precisely; with SharePoint you may need to manage more manual work.
• Audit and monitor: Especially for sensitive data, ensure you have audit logs, review who has access, and check for unusual access. Dataverse has stronger built-in logging for changes to records and fields.
• Think about guest or external access: If external users or B2B guests will access the data, understand limitations in each platform. Dataverse may require licensing and extra configuration.
• Manage licensing and costs: Don’t choose a platform solely on cost—but also don’t ignore cost. If SharePoint meets your security needs, there’s no reason to pay for premium features you don’t require.

Summary

In the context of Power Platform Security Week Day 5, when comparing SharePoint versus Dataverse permissions in terms of which is safer, the clear answer is that Dataverse offers the more comprehensive and robust security framework. It supports granular control (table, row, field), sophisticated role hierarchies, auditing, and is designed for enterprise-scale apps. That said, SharePoint remains a perfectly valid and safe choice — provided that your scenario is straightforward: collaboration, simple list-based data, modest user access patterns, and you apply good governance. The key is matching solution complexity, data sensitivity, and growth potential with the appropriate platform. Choose the right tool for the right job — and implement the security model deliberately.

Source: Power Platform Security Week – Day 5: SharePoint vs. Dataverse Permissions: Which Is Safer?