Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

SitEasy (Pty) Ltd ("SitEasy", "we", "us", or "our") is committed to protecting your personal information and respecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, and protect your personal information in accordance with the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 ("POPIA").

By using the SitEasy platform, website, or mobile application (collectively, the "Platform"), you consent to the collection and processing of your personal information as described in this Privacy Policy.

2. Information Officer

In terms of POPIA, our designated Information Officer can be contacted at:

Email: privacy@siteasy.co.za
Address: Johannesburg, South Africa

3. Personal Information We Collect

We collect the following categories of personal information:

3.1 Information You Provide

• Account Information: Name, email address, phone number, password
• Profile Information: Profile photo, biography, location (city and suburb)
• Identity Documents: South African ID, passport, or driver's licence (for verification purposes)
• Police Clearance Certificates: Criminal record clearance documents
• Pet Information: Pet names, types, breeds, ages, medical notes, feeding instructions
• Property Information: Home address, property type, special instructions
• Payment Information: Payment details processed through our third-party payment provider
• Communications: Messages sent through the Platform

3.2 Information Collected Automatically

• Device Information: Device type, operating system, browser type
• Usage Information: Pages visited, features used, time spent on Platform
• Location Information: General location based on IP address
• Cookies: Session and preference cookies (see Section 10)

4. Special Personal Information

In terms of POPIA, certain categories of personal information are considered "special personal information" and require additional protection. We process the following special personal information:

• Criminal Record Information: Police clearance certificates submitted by Sitters for verification purposes
• Biometric Information: Facial images from identity documents, profile photos, and selfie verification photos used for identity verification
• Selfie with ID Verification: Photos of Sitters holding their ID document next to their face, used to verify that the person creating the account is the same person shown on the identity document

By submitting this information, you provide your explicit consent to the processing of this special personal information for the purposes of verification and trust and safety on the Platform. Selfie verification photos are securely stored and only accessed by authorised personnel for verification purposes.

5. Purpose of Processing

We process your personal information for the following purposes:

• Account Management: To create and manage your account
• Service Provision: To facilitate bookings between Clients and Sitters
• Identity Verification: To verify the identity of users and maintain platform trust
• Communication: To send booking confirmations, reminders, and important updates
• Payment Processing: To process payments and payouts
• Safety and Security: To detect and prevent fraud, abuse, and security incidents
• Legal Compliance: To comply with applicable laws and regulations
• Platform Improvement: To analyse usage patterns and improve our services
• Customer Support: To respond to enquiries and resolve issues

6. Legal Basis for Processing

We process your personal information based on the following legal grounds under POPIA:

• Consent: Where you have given explicit consent (e.g., for special personal information)
• Contract: Where processing is necessary to perform our contract with you
• Legal Obligation: Where we are required to process information by law
• Legitimate Interest: Where processing is necessary for our legitimate business interests, provided your rights are not overridden

7. Sharing of Personal Information

We may share your personal information with:

7.1 Other Users

When you use the Platform, certain information is shared with other users to facilitate bookings:

• Clients can see Sitter profiles, including name, photo, bio, ratings, and verification status
• Sitters can see Client profiles, including name, photo, location, and booking history
• Contact details are only shared after a booking is confirmed

7.2 Service Providers

We use third-party service providers to help operate our Platform:

• Supabase: Database hosting and authentication (Ireland/EU)
• Paystack: Payment processing (South Africa)
• Vercel: Website hosting (United States)
• Email Service Provider: Transactional emails

These providers are contractually bound to protect your information and may only use it for the purposes we specify.

7.3 Legal Requirements

We may disclose your information if required by law, court order, or government request, or if we believe disclosure is necessary to protect our rights, your safety, or the safety of others.

8. Cross-Border Transfers

Some of our service providers are located outside South Africa. When we transfer your personal information internationally, we ensure that:

• The recipient country has adequate data protection laws, or
• We have appropriate contractual protections in place, or
• You have consented to the transfer

By using the Platform, you consent to the transfer of your personal information to countries that may have different data protection laws than South Africa.

9. Data Retention

We retain your personal information for as long as necessary to:

• Provide our services to you
• Comply with legal obligations
• Resolve disputes and enforce agreements
• Maintain business records as required by law

When your account is deleted, we will delete or anonymise your personal information within a reasonable period, except where we are required to retain it for legal purposes.

Identity documents and police clearance certificates are retained for the duration of your account and for a period of 5 years thereafter for legal compliance purposes.

10. Cookies and Tracking

We use cookies and similar technologies to enhance your experience on the Platform. Cookies are small text files stored on your device that help us:

• Keep you logged in
• Remember your preferences
• Understand how you use the Platform
• Improve our services

You can control cookies through your browser settings. However, disabling cookies may affect the functionality of the Platform.

11. Your Rights Under POPIA

Under POPIA, you have the following rights regarding your personal information:

• Right to Access: You may request confirmation of whether we hold your personal information and request access to it
• Right to Correction: You may request that we correct or update inaccurate or incomplete personal information
• Right to Deletion: You may request that we delete your personal information, subject to legal retention requirements
• Right to Object: You may object to the processing of your personal information on reasonable grounds
• Right to Withdraw Consent: Where processing is based on consent, you may withdraw your consent at any time
• Right to Lodge a Complaint: You may lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator if you believe your rights have been violated

To exercise any of these rights, please contact our Information Officer at privacy@siteasy.co.za.

12. Information Regulator

If you are not satisfied with how we handle your personal information, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator:

The Information Regulator (South Africa)
Email: inforeg@justice.gov.za
Website: www.justice.gov.za/inforeg

13. Security Measures

We implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your personal information against unauthorised access, alteration, disclosure, or destruction. These measures include:

• Encryption of data in transit and at rest
• Secure authentication mechanisms
• Access controls and authorisation
• Regular security assessments
• Employee training on data protection

While we take reasonable steps to protect your information, no method of transmission over the internet or electronic storage is 100% secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security.

14. Children's Privacy

The Platform is not intended for use by persons under the age of 18. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If we become aware that we have collected personal information from a child, we will take steps to delete it.

15. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of any material changes by posting the updated policy on the Platform and, where appropriate, by email. Your continued use of the Platform after such changes constitutes your acceptance of the updated policy.

16. Contact Us

For questions about this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us at:

SitEasy (Pty) Ltd
Email: privacy@siteasy.co.za
Johannesburg, South Africa