Privacy policy

This policy explains what personal information Viridezest (Pty) Ltd (“Viridezest”, “we”) collects, why we collect it, what we do with it, and what rights you have. It is written to meet our obligations under the Protection of Personal Information Act, 2013 (POPIA).

Who is responsible

Viridezest (Pty) Ltd, a company registered in the Republic of South Africa under registration number K2016/404605/07, is the responsible party for the personal information described here.

What we collect

We collect only what we need in order to respond to you and to run the company:

• Information you give us directly — your name, telephone number, email address and the content of your message, when you contact us by telephone, by WhatsApp or by email.
• WhatsApp message information — where you message us on WhatsApp, we receive your WhatsApp display name, your telephone number, the content of your messages and the time they were sent.
• Basic technical information — when you visit this website, our content delivery provider records standard server information such as the requesting IP address, the page requested and the time of the request. This is used for security and to keep the site running. This website sets no cookies and runs no analytics or advertising trackers.

Why we use it, and on what basis

• To answer you. If you contact us, we use your details to reply. The lawful basis is that the processing is necessary to take steps at your request.
• To meet legal obligations. Company, tax and financial record-keeping required of a registered South African company.
• For the legitimate operation of the company, including keeping records of correspondence and protecting our systems against misuse.

We do not sell personal information. We do not use it for advertising, and we do not use it to build profiles about you.

Messaging you on WhatsApp

Where we communicate with you over WhatsApp, including by automated message:

• We message you only where you have contacted us first, or where you have given consent to be contacted.
• Some replies may be sent automatically. Where a reply is automated rather than written by a person, we will make that clear.
• You may stop messages at any time by replying STOP. We will record that and will not message you again unless you ask us to.
• WhatsApp is operated by Meta Platforms, Inc. Messages sent over WhatsApp are handled on Meta’s infrastructure and subject to Meta’s own terms and privacy policy, which we do not control.

Who we share it with

We share personal information only where it is necessary, and only with:

• Service providers who operate our systems on our behalf — our website hosting and content delivery provider, our email provider, and WhatsApp for the delivery of messages. These parties process the information on our instruction.
• Our professional advisers — accountants, auditors and legal advisers, where required.
• Authorities, where we are legally obliged to disclose.

Some of these providers operate outside South Africa, which means your information may be processed in another country. Where that happens, we take reasonable steps to satisfy ourselves that the recipient is subject to protections comparable to those required by POPIA.

How long we keep it

Correspondence is kept for as long as needed to deal with the matter it relates to, and then for a reasonable period afterwards in case the matter resurfaces. Records we are legally required to keep — company and financial records — are kept for the period the law prescribes. After that, information is deleted.

Keeping it safe

We apply reasonable technical and organisational measures appropriate to the size of the company: access to information is limited to those who need it, systems are kept current, and this website is served only over an encrypted connection.

Your rights

Under POPIA you have the right to:

• ask what personal information we hold about you, and be given a copy;
• ask us to correct information that is wrong, or complete information that is incomplete;
• ask us to delete information we no longer have grounds to keep;
• object to processing in certain circumstances; and
• withdraw consent where our processing relies on consent.

To exercise any of these, contact us using the details above. We will respond within a reasonable time and will not charge you for a reasonable request.

Complaints

If you are not satisfied with how we have handled your information, please raise it with us first so that we have the chance to put it right. You also have the right to complain to the Information Regulator of South Africa, at inforegulator.org.za.

Children

This website and our services are not directed at children, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe we hold information about a child, please tell us and we will delete it.

Changes to this policy

If this policy changes we will update it here and change the date at the top of the page. We suggest you check it if you have not visited for some time.