Privacy Policy

Hello Hoedspruit is operated by Robyn Dawes, trading as Hello Hoedspruit, and is based in Hoedspruit, Limpopo, South Africa, 1380. We are the “responsible party” for your personal information under the Protection of Personal Information Act, 2013 (POPIA), and this policy explains what we collect, why and the rights you have.

When you use Hello Hoedspruit, we collect the information needed to make the app work. Some of it you give us directly, and some is generated as you use the app. The kinds of information we collect include:

• Account: Details such as your name, username, email address, whether you tell us you are a local or a visitor, and profile photo if you choose to add one. If you sign in with Apple or Google, they send us your name and email address (Apple may give us a private relay email instead of your real one). We never see your Apple or Google password.
• Activity: Activity inside the app, including the listings, events and specials you save or visit, the people you follow or who follow you, follow requests, any accounts you block or report, and any edits you suggest to listings, events or specials.
• Device: Device and usage data such as your device type, operating system and app version, your notification settings, a push notification token if you allow notifications, and standard technical logs (including IP address) created when your device talks to our servers.
• Messages: Anything you choose to send us through feedback forms, contact forms or business enquiries.

We do not collect your precise location. The only location information we hold is whether you have told us you are a local or a visitor, and this is shown on your profile as “Local” or “Visitor”.

We use your information to run the app, save your favourites across devices, power the social features you choose to use, send you the notifications you have switched on, respond to your messages, and improve the service over time. We rely on the following legal grounds: performing our agreement with you when you create an account, your consent for things like notifications and your profile photo, and our legitimate interest in keeping the app secure and working properly.

We do not use your data to build advertising profiles and we do not sell it to anyone. We will not send you direct marketing by email or SMS unless you have expressly agreed to it, and you can withdraw that agreement at any time.

Your profile can be public or private. If it is public, other users can see your profile, whether you are a local or a visitor, and the listings, events and specials you have saved. If it is private, only followers you have approved can see these. You can change this setting at any time in the app.

We share information only when we genuinely need to:

• With trusted service providers who help us run the app, Lovable Cloud and Supabase, who provide our hosting, sign-in, database and file storage; and Apple and Google, who provide sign-in and deliver push notifications (Apple Push Notification service and Firebase Cloud Messaging) if you have allowed them.
• When required by law, a court order or a legitimate request from a public authority.
• To protect the rights, safety or property of Hello Hoedspruit, our users or the public.

Our service providers store and process information on servers located outside South Africa. Where that happens, the provider is bound by contract and by data protection rules that protect your information to a standard similar to POPIA, as section 72 of POPIA requires.

We keep your personal information for as long as your account is active. If you delete your account, your personal information is deleted along with it, and any copies held in system backups are removed within 30 days. Information sent through contact or feedback forms is kept only as long as needed to deal with your message.

We use a small number of cookies and similar technologies to keep you signed in, remember your preferences and keep the service secure. You can read more in our Cookie Policy.

Under POPIA you have the right to:

• Ask for a copy of the personal information we hold about you.
• Correct anything that is inaccurate or out of date.
• Delete your account and the data tied to it. You can do this yourself in the app under Account Info, or email us and we will do it for you.
• Object to or restrict certain ways we use your information, and withdraw any consent you have given.
• Complain to the Information Regulator at inforegulator.org.za; 010 023 5200 or toll free 0800 017 160.

To exercise any of these rights, email us at admin@hellohoedspruit.co. We will respond as soon as we reasonably can, and at the latest within 30 days.

Business listings in the app are compiled from publicly available information such as websites, social media pages and public directories, together with details businesses give us directly. If you run a business that is listed and you would like your details corrected or removed, email us and we will sort it out.

We take reasonable steps to protect your information against loss, misuse and unauthorised access. No system is perfect, but we treat your data the way we would want ours treated, and we work with reputable providers who do the same. If a security compromise ever affects your personal information, we will notify you and the Information Regulator as POPIA requires.

Under POPIA, a child is anyone under the age of 18. The app is not aimed at children, and users under 18 may only use it with the consent of a parent or guardian. We do not knowingly collect personal information from a child without that consent. If you believe a child has given us information, please contact us and we will remove it.

We may update this policy from time to time. When we do, we will change the date at the top of this page. If the changes are significant, we will let you know inside the app.

For privacy questions or to exercise any of your rights, contact us at:
Email: admin@hellohoedspruit.co
WhatsApp: +27 61 332 1709