Privacy Policy

1. Who We Are

The Website is the official tourism information portal for the Sarah Baartman District, Eastern Cape, South Africa. It promotes destinations, accommodation, events, activities, and tourism businesses across the district. If you have any questions about our use of your information, please contact us using the details in the “How to Contact Us” section below.

2. Information We Collect

We collect information about visitors to the Website, registered account holders, tourism businesses that list with us, and people who contact us. This information is collected from the following sources:

• Information you provide directly - such as your name, email address, and phone number when you register an account, submit a listing or enquiry, subscribe to our newsletter, or contact us.
• Information from tourism partners - business details, descriptions, images, contact information, and pricing supplied by accommodation providers, tour operators, and local tourism organisations for their listings.
• Information collected automatically - technical and usage data gathered when you browse the Website (see the next section).

3. Information Collected Automatically

When you visit the Website we may automatically collect certain information from your device, which may be considered personal information under applicable law:

• IP address, device type, and unique device identifiers;
• browser type and broad geographic location (e.g. country or city level);
• pages accessed, links clicked, and how your device interacts with the Website;
• referring websites and search terms;
• usage patterns and the content that is of interest to you.

This helps us understand our visitors, improve the Website, and make our content more relevant. Much of it is collected through cookies and similar technologies.

4. How We Use Your Information

We use personal information for the following purposes:

• to operate, maintain, and improve the Website and its content;
• to create and manage your account and tourism listings;
• to respond to your enquiries and provide support;
• to send service messages and, where you have consented, newsletters and updates;
• to understand visitor interests through analytics;
• to protect against fraud, misuse, and security threats;
• to comply with our legal and regulatory obligations.

5. How We Share Information

We do not sell your personal information. We may share it with the following categories of recipients:

• service providers who help us operate the Website (e.g. hosting, storage, email, and analytics providers);
• tourism partners where you have asked to be put in contact with them;
• law enforcement bodies, regulators, or courts where disclosure is required by law;
• any other party where you have given us your consent to do so.

6. Cookies

The Website uses cookies and similar technologies to enable core functionality, remember your preferences, and understand how the Website is used. You can manage or disable cookies through your browser settings, although some features may not work as intended if you do.

7. Data Retention

We retain personal information only for as long as we have a legitimate need to do so - for example, to provide a service you requested or to comply with legal, tax, or accounting requirements. When we no longer have such a need, we securely delete or anonymise the information.

8. Security

We maintain reasonable and appropriate administrative, technical, and physical safeguards to protect personal information against loss, theft, misuse, and unauthorised access, including:

• network and host security controls;
• encryption of data in transit and, where appropriate, at rest;
• access controls and operating procedures designed to protect your information;
• regular review of our security practices.

Keep your account credentials confidential and do not share them. If you believe your account has been compromised, contact us immediately. No method of transmission over the internet is completely secure, so we cannot guarantee absolute security.

9. Your Rights Under POPIA

Subject to applicable law, you have the right to:

• Access - request access to the personal information we hold about you;
• Correction - request correction of inaccurate or incomplete information;
• Deletion - request deletion of your personal information;
• Objection - object to certain processing of your information;
• Restriction - request that we restrict processing;
• Withdraw consent - withdraw consent where processing relies on it.

You can opt out of marketing communications at any time using the “unsubscribe” link in our emails. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator of South Africa.

10. International Transfers

Your information may be transferred to, and processed in, countries other than the one in which you reside, where our service providers operate. Where this happens, we take appropriate steps to ensure your information remains protected in line with this Policy and applicable law.

11. Children’s Privacy

The Website is intended for a general audience and is not directed at children. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children without the consent of a parent or guardian. If you believe we have done so, please contact us and we will remove the information as required by law.

12. Updates to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time in response to changing legal, technical, or business developments. The “Last updated” date above shows when it was most recently revised. Please review this page periodically.

13. How to Contact Us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, wish to exercise your rights, or want to raise a privacy concern, please contact us:

• Email: [email protected]
• Address: Sarah Baartman District Municipality, Eastern Cape, South Africa