Privacy Policy

This policy explains how TenderFinder(“we”, “us”) collects, uses and protects your personal information when you use tenderfinder.co.za. We process personal information in line with the Protection of Personal Information Act, 2013 (POPIA). The short version: we collect only what we need to run your account and send the tender alerts you ask for, and we never sell your data.

1. Information we collect

• Account information: your name, email address, password (stored hashed, never in plain text) and chosen plan.
• Alert preferences: the provinces, tender categories and keywords you select for alerts and saved searches.
• Usage information: basic technical logs such as pages viewed, tenders saved and approximate device/browser type, used to operate and improve the Service.
• AI analysis: which tenders you asked us to analyse, the analysis we produced and stored against your account, the date, and your daily and monthly usage count.
• Billing information: payments are processed by PayFast. We never see or store your full card details; we keep only the subscription and transaction records needed for your account and for tax purposes.

2. Why we process it

• To create and operate your account.
• To send the tender alerts, closing-date reminders and bulletins you subscribe to.
• To send essential service emails such as verification, billing and security notices.
• To provide support and to improve the Service.
• To meet legal, accounting and tax obligations.

We process your information because it is necessary to provide the Service you signed up for, or with your consent (which you can withdraw), or where we have a legitimate interest that does not override your rights.

3. Email

Transactional and alert emails are delivered through our mail service provider, which processes your email address on our behalf solely to deliver those messages. Every non-essential email includes an unsubscribe link, and you can change or switch off alerts in your account at any time.

4. AI tender analysis

When you use AI tender analysis, we send the published tender notice and the published tender documents attached to it to Google, through the Gemini API, which processes them as our operator. Both are public records, published by the state. We do not send your name, your email address, your account identifier, your saved tenders, your alert keywords, your billing information, your pricing or any of your own files, and nothing you type into TenderFinder forms part of the request.

Google processes this outside South Africa. That is a transborder transfer under section 72 of POPIA, made on the basis that it is necessary to provide the analysis you asked for and that our agreement with Google requires a comparable level of protection. Your requests and the documents are not used to train Google's models. Google may retain the request for a limited period for abuse monitoring, and within that window we cannot recall a copy.

We store the analysis against your account until you remove it or close your account. Please do not type identity numbers, banking details or employee information into this feature.

5. Sharing

We do not sell, rent or trade your personal information. We share it only with service providers who help us run TenderFinder(such as our hosting provider, mail service, PayFast for payments, Google Analytics for usage statistics and Google's Gemini API for AI tender analysis) under agreements that limit what they may do with it, or where the law requires disclosure. Google processes both analytics data and AI analysis requests on servers outside South Africa.

6. Cookies and analytics

We keep cookies to a minimum. Strictly necessary cookies sign you in and keep your session secure. We also use Google Analytics to understand how the Service is used, which pages people find useful and where they run into trouble. Google Analytics sets its own cookies and receives your IP address, device and browser details, and the pages you visit on TenderFinder. We do not send it your name, email address or any other detail that identifies you personally, and we do not use it to serve you adverts.

You can opt out of Google Analytics entirely by installing Google's browser add-on at tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout, or by blocking cookies in your browser settings. Blocking analytics cookies does not affect your ability to use TenderFinder.

7. Security and retention

We use appropriate technical and organisational safeguards, including encryption in transit and hashed passwords, to protect your information. We keep personal information only for as long as your account is active or as needed to meet legal obligations, and then delete or de-identify it. Saved AI analyses are kept against your account until you remove them, and they are deleted when you close your account.

8. Your rights under POPIA

• Request access to the personal information we hold about you.
• Ask us to correct or update inaccurate information.
• Ask us to delete your personal information and close your account.
• Object to processing or withdraw consent for optional communications at any time.

An access or deletion request covers your saved AI analyses as well as your account and alert information.

To exercise any of these rights, reach us through tenderfinder.co.za/contact and we will respond within a reasonable time.

9. Information Regulator

If you believe we have processed your personal information unlawfully and we have not resolved your complaint, you may lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator (South Africa) at inforegulator.org.za.

10. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time. If a change is material, we will notify you by email or an in-app notice before it takes effect. The “Last updated” date at the top shows the current version.

11. Contact

Privacy questions? Contact us at tenderfinder.co.za/contact. See also our Terms of Service.