Copying production data into development or test environments might seem like a quick way to validate functionality, replicate bugs, or test performance under real-world conditions.
But as we recently faced during a deployment, there's a lot more to it than convenience — especially when dealing with sensitive customer data, automated journeys, and communication tools like Customer Insights.
Here’s a breakdown of the real implications, pros and cons, and recommendations when considering copying production data into lower environments.
Why Teams Consider Copying Prod Data
- Need to replicate edge-case bugs tied to real records
- Want to validate complex journeys or flows with accurate datasets
- Looking to perform performance benchmarking under realistic data volume
- To seed test data without manual effort
Seems valid, right? Yes — but...
The Risks of Copying Production Data
1. Sensitive Customer Data Exposure (PII)
Your dev/test environments likely have:
- Broader access (including admins, external vendors, support teams)
- Weaker governance
- Looser monitoring
Copying PII or client records into these environments can violate privacy regulations like GDPR, HIPAA, or the Australian Privacy Act.
2. Unintended Communications
Many production systems have:
- Power Automate flows, Customer Insights Journeys, and third-party integrations that trigger real-time comms
- Lower environments may still have enabled connectors or misconfigured endpoints
Result? Emails, SMS, or notifications could accidentally be sent to real customers from dev/UAT.
3. Data Storage and Cost Impact
Environments in Power Platform have limited storage quotas (especially if you're on a license with capacity constraints). Cloning large volumes of production data:
- Eats into your storage limits
- May affect backup/restore timelines
- Increases API usage during batch imports
4. Performance Impact on Sandbox Instances
Unlike production, lower environments may not have optimized compute or database performance. High-volume prod data can:
- Slow down dev testing
- Skew performance results
- Increase noise and time during solution deployments
Pros of Copying Prod Data
| Benefit | Description |
|---|---|
| Realism | See data in its true structure — relationships, field usage, formats |
| Debugging Accuracy | Reproduce data-specific bugs not found in dummy records |
| Customer Journey Validation | Test segmentation, triggers, and conditions with accurate datasets |
| Performance Benchmarking | Understand how real volumes affect async processes or UI |
Cons (and Risks)
| Risk | Description |
|---|---|
| PII Exposure | Sensitive fields like emails, names, phone numbers may be accessible |
| Live Comms | Flows or journeys could send emails/SMS unintentionally |
| Storage Overload | Cloned environments may exceed storage quota limits |
| Support/Vendor Visibility | Non-internal resources may gain visibility into real data |
| Compliance Breach | Regulatory exposure depending on your industry/data classification |
Recommendations (What We Do)
- Use the Configuration Migration Tool or your own sanitized data seeding scripts.
- If you must copy prod data:
- Scrub PII during export (e.g., replace names, emails with mock data).
- Disable all flows and journeys before importing.
- Use a temporary sandbox with locked-down access.
- For critical debugging, clone a single record and recreate its context — not the entire dataset.
Final Thoughts
Copying production data into lower environments might seem like a shortcut — but it introduces serious risks that outweigh the benefits in most cases.
With tools like the Configuration Migration Tool, Sample Data Generator, and mocked journey datasets, you can build realistic test environments without compromising data security or compliance.