Last updated: 2024/07/02
Please read this Privacy Statement carefully to understand how your personal information will be handled by Bridge And Bend (Pty) Ltd (“Bridge and Bend”, the “Company”, “We”, “Us”, or “Our”). Every term of this Statement is material. If you do not agree with the processing of your personal information as set out in this Statement, we may in our sole discretion decide whether to provide or continue with the provision of our services to you, unless we have a legal obligation to do so or to otherwise engage with you.
1. About the Company
Bridge and Bend is an online health and fitness business providing various health and fitness services to users. The Company is subject to various laws protecting the privacy and confidentiality of data subjects including the Promotion of Access to Information Act (Act No. 2 of 2000), the Protection of Personal Information Act (Act No. 4 of 2013), and other international privacy laws.
The Company’s contact details are as follows:
– Address: PO Box 573, Lonehill, 2062, South Africa
– E-mail: carmen@bridgeandbend.com
– Website: www.bridgeandbend.com
2. Information Officer
The contact details of the Company’s Information Officer are as follows:
– Name: Carmen Baier
– E-mail: carmen@bridgeandbend.com
– Mail: PO Box 573, Lonehill, 2062, South Africa
3. Definition of Terms
3.1 “Personal information” refers to information relating to identifiable, living, natural persons as well as identifiable, existing juristic persons, and includes, but is not limited to:
3.1.1 Information relating to the race, gender, sex, pregnancy, marital status, national, ethnic or social origin, colour, sexual orientation, age, physical or mental health, well-being, disability, religion, conscience, belief, culture, language, and birth of the person;
3.1.2 Information relating to the education or the medical, financial, criminal or employment history of the person;
3.1.3 Any identifying number, symbol, e-mail address, physical address, telephone number, location information, online identifier or other particular assignment to the person;
3.1.4 The biometric information of the person;
3.1.5 The personal opinions, views or preferences of the person;
3.1.6 Correspondence sent by the person that is implicitly or explicitly of a private or confidential nature or further correspondence that would reveal the contents of the original correspondence;
3.1.7 The views or opinions of another individual about the person; and
3.1.8 The name of the person if it appears with other personal information relating to the person or if the disclosure of the name itself would reveal information about the person, and “information” has a similar meaning unless the context requires otherwise.
3.2 “Processing” refers to any operation or activity or any set of operations, whether or not by automatic means, concerning personal information, including –
3.2.1 the collection, receipt, recording, organisation, collation, storage, updating or modification, retrieval, alteration, consultation or use;
3.2.2 dissemination by means of transmission, distribution or making available in any other form; or
3.2.3 merging, linking, as well as restriction, degradation, erasure or destruction of information.
3.3 “POPIA” means the Protection of Personal Information Act (Act 4 of 2013) and Regulations made in terms thereof.
3.4 “PAIA” means Promotion of Access to Information Act (Act No. 2 of 2000) and Regulations made in terms thereof.
3.5 “We” / “us” refers to The Company and The Company Directors.
3.6 “You” / “your” refers to the data subject (i.e. the person or entity) whose personal information is in the possession of or under the control of or processed by the practice.
3.7 “The Service” refers to the Company’s website, app, online programs, email newsletters, and any informational resources. It also refers to any and all services provided by the Company.
3.8 The “User” / “Users” refers to any person who makes use of The Service.
4. Application of the Privacy Statement
This Privacy Statement applies to personal information that we have in our possession or under our control and information that we collect or receive from or about you (for example, when you obtain services from the Company and/or submit information via the Company’s website). It stipulates, amongst others, how we collect your personal information, the type of information collected, why that information is collected, the circumstances under which that information will be shared with others, the security measures that we have implemented to protect your personal information, and your right to obtain access to and correct the information in our possession or under our control.
5. Our Commitment
We understand that your personal information is important to you and that you may be anxious about disclosing it. Your privacy and the security of your information are just as important to us and we therefore want to make sure you understand how your information will be processed. We acknowledge that we are required by law to keep your personal information confidential and secure. We are committed to conducting our business in accordance with the law to ensure that the confidentiality of your personal information is protected and maintained. We take this commitment to look after your personal information seriously. We have implemented several processes to make sure that your personal information is used in the right way.
6. Privacy Principles
We apply the following principles in order to protect your privacy:
– No more personal information about you than what is necessary is collected;
– Your personal information is only used for the purposes specified in this Privacy Statement unless you are advised otherwise;
– Your personal information is not kept by us if it is no longer needed; and
– Other than as specified in this Privacy Statement or otherwise agreed with you, we do not share your personal information with third parties.
7. When You Provide Information about Another Individual / Entity
You must make sure that if you provide personal information about any individual or entity to us, you may lawfully do so (e.g., with their consent). We will accept that you are acting lawfully. You should make sure that they are familiar with this Privacy Statement and understand how we will use and disclose their information.
8. Collection of Your Personal Information
We obtain personal information directly from you when you use our services, register on our site, subscribe to our newsletter, contact us, become and an employee or contactor or affiliate, or when you provide information to us. Information may also be collected from other sources, depending on the circumstances, such as a referral source, a credit bureau, a public record, or when you make information publicly available. The information that we request from you is necessary to provide you with our services or to manage the employment or other relationships. Information is generally collected for the purposes as set out below.
You also may provide information to be published or displayed (hereinafter, “posted”) on public areas of the Website or App or transmitted to other users of the Website or App or third parties (collectively, “User Contributions”). For example, you may post a question about a particular type of activity in our online forum or post achievements in the public areas of our Website or App. Your User Contributions are posted on and transmitted to others at your own risk. Although we limit access to certain pages, please be aware that no security measures are perfect or impenetrable. Additionally, we cannot control the actions of other users of the Website and App with whom you may choose to share your User Contributions. Therefore, we cannot and do not guarantee that your User Contributions will not be viewed by unauthorized persons.
9. Information We Collect Through Automatic Data Collection Technologies
As you navigate through and interact with our Service, we may use automatic data collection technologies to collect certain information about your equipment, browsing actions, and patterns, specifically:
– details of your visits to our Website or App, such as traffic data, location, logs, referring/exit pages, date and time of your visit to our Website or use of our App, error information, clickstream data, and other communication data and the resources that you access and use on the Website or in the App; and
– information about your computer, mobile device, and Internet connection, specifically your IP address, operating system, browser type, and App version information.
The information we collect automatically may include Personal Information or we may maintain it or associate it with Personal Information we collect in other ways or receive from third parties.
The technologies we use for this automatic data collection may include:
– Cookies (or browser cookies). We and our service providers may use cookies and other technologies to receive and store certain types of information whenever you interact with our Website and App through your computer or mobile device. A cookie is a small file or piece of data sent from a website and stored on the hard drive of your computer or mobile device. On your computer, you may refuse to accept browser cookies by activating the appropriate setting on your browser, and you may have similar capabilities on your mobile device in the preferences for your operating system or browser. However, if you select this setting you may be unable to access certain parts of our Website or use certain parts of our App. Unless you have adjusted your browser or operating system setting so that it will refuse cookies, our system will issue cookies when you direct your browser to our Website or use our App.
– Web Beacons. Pages of a Website, text marketing, or our e-mails, may contain small electronic files known as web beacons (also referred to as clear gifs. pixel tags and single-pixel gifs) that permit us, for example, to count users who have visited those pages, opened an e-mail or text marketing message and for other related website statistics (for example, recording the popularity of certain website content and verifying system and server integrity).
We use cookies, web beacons, and other tracking technologies to enhance your experience. You can opt-out of cookies through your browser settings. Please refer to our Cookie Policy for more information.
Do Not Track Signals. We do not respond to Do Not Track (DNT) signals. However, you can set your browser to reject cookies and tracking technologies.
10. Processing and Disclosure of Users’ Personal Information
There are various laws that permit the processing of your personal information such as PAIA and POPIA. We will only process, which includes collect, use, store or disclose, your personal information in accordance with the law or otherwise with your consent and will always strive to keep your information confidential, whether you supply it directly to us or whether it is collected lawfully from other sources.
We generally process the following personal information about you, as may be applicable in the circumstances, and retain it as part of our records:
– Name, identity number, date of birth, age, contact details, address, and gender;
– Health status and disability;
– Payment information;
– Services provided by the Company;
– User documentation including intake forms, contacts, invoices, photos, videos, and correspondence; and
– Usage data such as IP address, browser type, operating system, and browsing behaviour.
As a User of our Service, we will use your personal information for the following purposes:
– To provide and maintain our service;
– To notify you about changes to our service;
– To allow you to participate in interactive features;
– To manage our relationship with you and provide customer support;
– To gather analysis to improve our service;
– To monitor usage of our service;
– To detect, prevent, and address technical issues;
– Ensure compliance with laws and regulations;
– For historical, statistical, and research purposes; and
– For any other lawful purpose related to the activities of an online health and fitness business.
We do not share, sell, or otherwise disclose your Personal Information for purposes other than those outlined in this Privacy Statement.
Depending on the circumstances, your personal information will be disclosed to the following persons and entities:
– Relevant employees and contractors, or with our affiliates and third party service providers that we use to perform services on our behalf. The services provided by these organizations include providing IT and infrastructure support services, and ordering, advertising, marketing, and payment processing services;
– Our professional advisers as well as employees and service providers who assist us to provide the services and who perform functions related to the administration of the company, subject to confidentiality agreements;
– Debt collectors and credit bureaus, if your accounts are outstanding;
– To comply with legal obligations;
– Relevant public and private bodies as may be required in terms of the law;
– Law enforcement structures, including courts and tribunals;
– As required or permitted by law, including to comply with any legal obligation or to protect the rights, property, or safety of our business, employees, users, the public, or others;
– A purchaser of the company, if applicable;
– To fulfil the purpose for which you provide it;
– For any other purpose disclosed by us when you provide the information; and
– To protect and defend our rights and property, including to enforce or apply our Terms and Conditions and other agreements, including for billing and collection purposes; and if we believe disclosure is necessary or appropriate to protect the rights, property, or safety of Bridge And Bend, our customers, or others. This includes exchanging information with other companies and organizations for the purposes of fraud protection and credit risk reduction.
11. Processing and Disclosure of Employees’ and Service Providers’ Personal Information
There are various laws that permit the processing of your personal information such as labour laws, PAIA, and POPIA. We will only process, which includes collect, use, store or disclose, your personal information in accordance with the law or otherwise with your consent and will always strive to keep your information confidential, whether you supply it directly to us or whether it is collected lawfully from other sources.
We generally process the following personal information about you, as may be applicable in the circumstances, and retain it as part of our records:
Employees:
– Name, identity number, date of birth, age, contact details, address, position or role in the Company, nationality, gender, race, qualifications, specialisation and interests, curriculum vitae, references, and photos;
– Membership of professional bodies as required by specific roles;
– Relevant medical and disability information;
– Signatures of official signatories of the practice and proof of residence, if required by the bank;
– Employment-related information;
– Bank details;
– Professional indemnity cover information; and
– Correspondence.
Suppliers, Service Providers, Other Stakeholders including Public Bodies and Regulators:
– Organisation name and contact details;
– Names, titles and contact details of relevant persons and officers;
– Black-Economic Empowerment (BEE) status of suppliers;
– Agreements and related information;
– Invoices;
– Bank details;
– Official documentation, including newsletters and statements; and
– Engagement-related information and correspondence.
Other personal information may be collected and processed, as may be necessary and applicable in the circumstances.
12. Purpose of Processing of Personal Information of Data Subjects (Other than Service Users)
We generally process personal information for one or more of the following purposes:
– to conduct and manage the Company in accordance with the law, including the administration of the Company and claiming and collecting payment for services rendered;
– for communication purposes;
– for the maintenance of Company records;
– for employment and related matters of employees and other service providers;
– for reporting to persons and bodies as required and authorised in terms of the law or by you;
– for historical, statistical and research purposes;
– for proof;
– for enforcement of the Company’s rights; and/or
– for any other lawful purpose related to the activities of an online health and fitness business.
We do not share, sell, or otherwise disclose your Personal Information for purposes other than those outlined in this Privacy Statement.
13. Disclosure of Personal Information of Data Subjects (Other than Service Users)
Relevant personal information of data subjects (other than Service Users) will be shared, as may be necessary in the circumstances, with our professional advisers, relevant employees (on a need-to-know basis), our auditors / accountants, regulators, relevant public and private bodies, law enforcement structures, and a purchaser of the company, if applicable. The information will only be shared as permitted in terms of the law or as otherwise agreed to with such a person.
14. Links to Social Networking Services
We use social networking services such as WhatsApp, LinkedIn, Instagram, TikTok, X, Pinterest, and Facebook to communicate with the public about our services. When you communicate with us through these services, the relevant social networking service may collect your personal information for its own purposes. These services have their own privacy policies, which are independent of this Privacy Statement.
15. Links to external websites
Our sites may, from time to time, contain links to and from the websites of our partner networks, advertisers and affiliates. If you follow a link to any of these websites, please note that these websites have their own privacy policies and that we do not accept any responsibility or liability for these policies or how such websites collect and use your data. Please check these policies before you submit any Personal Information to these websites.
16. Children’s Privacy
Our service is not intended for individuals under the age of 18. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If we learn we have collected or received Personal Information from a user under 18 without verification of parental consent, we will delete that information. If you believe we might have any information from a user under 18, please contact the Information Officer.
17. Your rights as a data subject
The data protection laws give you certain rights in relation to the data we hold on you. These are:
– the right to be notified. This means that we must tell you how we use your Personal Information, and this is the purpose of this Privacy Statement;
– the right of access. You have the right to access the Personal Information that we hold on you. To do so, you should make a subject access request;
– the right for any inaccuracies to be corrected. If any Personal Information that we hold about you is incomplete or inaccurate, you are able to require us to correct it;
– the right to have information deleted. If you would like us to stop processing your Personal Information, you have the right to ask us to delete it from our systems where you believe there is no reason for us to continue processing it;
– the right to restrict the processing of the Personal Information. For example, if you believe the Personal Information we hold is incorrect, we will stop processing it (whilst still holding it) until we have ensured that it is correct;
– the right to portability. You may transfer the Personal Information that we hold on you for your own purposes;
– the right to object to the inclusion of any information. You have the right to object to the way we use your Personal Information where we are using it for our legitimate interests;
– the right to regulate any automated decision-making and profiling of Personal Information. You have a right not to be subject to automated decision making in way that adversely affects your legal rights.
18. Consent
If you provide consent to us to process your personal information, you may withdraw your consent at any time subject to contractual obligations. This does not affect the processing of personal information that has already occurred. If you withdraw your consent, your personal information will only be processed as provided for in the law, and, if the circumstances make it reasonable and lawful for us to do so, we may terminate our relationship with you.
19. Choices about how we use and disclose your information
We offer you choices on how you can opt out of our use of tracking technology, disclosure of your Personal Information for our advertising to you, and other targeted advertising.
We do not control the collection and use of your information collected by third parties described above in Processing and Disclosure of Personal Information. These third parties may aggregate the information they collect with information from their other customers for their own purposes.
In addition, we strive to provide you with choices regarding the Personal Information you provide to us. We have created mechanisms to provide you with control over your Personal Information:
Tracking Technologies and Advertising: You can set your browser or operating system to refuse all or some cookies, or to alert you when cookies are being sent. If you disable or refuse cookies, please note that some parts of our Website or App may then be inaccessible or not function properly
Promotional Offers from Bridge and Bend: If you do not wish to have your email address and(or) telephone number used by Bridge and Bend to promote our own products and services, you can opt-out at any time by clicking the unsubscribe link at the bottom of any email or replying STOP to a text marketing message. You can opt-out any other marketing communications you receive from us by contacting us directly; allow 72 hours during hours of our operating business hours for requests to be administered. This opt-out (unsubscribe) does not apply to information provided to Bridge and Bend as a result of a product purchase, or your use of our Services.
Targeted Advertising: To learn more about interest-based advertisements and your opt-out rights and options, visit the Digital Advertising Alliance and the Network Advertising Initiative websites (aboutads.info and http://www.networkadvertising.org). Please note that if you choose to opt out, you will continue to see ads, but they will not be based on your online activity. We do not control third parties’ collection or use of your information to serve interest-based advertising. However, these third parties may provide you with ways to choose not to have your information collected or used in this way. You can also opt out of receiving targeted ads from members of the NAI on its website.
20. Objection to Processing
In certain instances, you may object to the processing of your personal information, if it is reasonable to do so, unless we may do so in terms of the law. This must occur on the form prescribed by POPIA. This does not affect personal information already processed. If you object and we agree with your objection, your personal information will only be processed as provided for in the law. If you exercise this right and, if the circumstances make it reasonable and lawful for us to do so, we may terminate our relationship with you.
21. Transfers of Personal Information outside of the Borders of the Republic of South Africa
Your data may be transferred to, stored at, and processed at a destination outside of South Africa by our service providers (e.g. Google Workspace and WhatsApp). By submitting your Personal Information, you agree to this transfer, storing or processing. We will take all steps reasonably necessary to ensure that your data is treated securely and in accordance with applicable legislation or other relevant and appropriate laws. If we must provide your personal information to any third party in another country, we will obtain your prior consent unless such information may be lawfully provided to that third party, or as allowed for in this statement.
22. Data Retention
We retain your personal information for as long as it is necessary for lawful purposes in accordance with the law, including to fulfil your requests, provide services to you, comply with legal obligations, resolve disputes, enforce agreements and as proof. These records may be held in electronic format. We may also retain your personal information for historical, statistical and research purposes, subject to the provisions of the law.
23. Security of Your Personal Information
We are committed to ensuring the security of your personal information to protect it from unauthorized processing and access as well as loss, damage, or unauthorized destruction. There are also inherent risks in the electronic transfer and storage of personal information. We have implemented and continually review and update our information protection measures to ensure the security, integrity, and confidentiality of your information in accordance with industry best practices. In addition, only those employees and service providers that require access to your information to discharge their functions and to render services to us are granted access to your information and only if they have concluded agreements with or provided undertakings regarding the implementation of appropriate security measures, maintaining confidentiality and processing the information only for the agreed purposes.
Unfortunately, the transmission of information via the Internet is not completely secure. Although we do our best to protect your Personal Information, we cannot guarantee the security of your Personal Information transmitted to our service in via electronic correspondence. Any transmission of Personal Information is at your own risk. We are not responsible for circumvention of any privacy settings or security measures contained on the Website, in your operating system, or in the App.
24. Security Breaches
We will inform you and the Information Regulator, if any person has unlawfully obtained access to your personal information, subject to the provisions of the law.
25. Right to Access your Personal Information
You have the right to have access to your personal information subject to restrictions imposed in legislation. You may request access to your information in our possession or under our control and information of third parties to whom we supplied that information. If you wish to exercise this right, please complete and submit the prescribed form to the Information Officer. Costs may be applicable to such request. The relevant form and costs can be obtained from the Information Officer. You may also consult our PAIA Manual.
26. Accuracy of Your Personal Information
It is important that we always have accurate information about you on record as it could impact on communication with you and your health, if applicable. You must therefore inform us as soon as any of your information has changed. You may also request that we correct or delete any information. Such a request must be made in writing on the prescribed form to the Information Officer and must provide sufficient detail to identify the information and the correction or deletion required. Information will only be corrected or deleted, if we agree that the information is incorrect or should be deleted. It may not be possible to delete all of the information if there is a legal basis to retain the information. However, please contact the Information Officer to discuss how we can assist you with your request. If we correct any information and the corrected information will impact on any decision made or to be made about you, we will send the corrected information to persons to whom the information has been disclosed in the past if they should be aware of the changed information.
27. Marketing of Products and Services
If you have provided consent, we may inform you, electronically or otherwise, about supplementary products and services offered by us that may be useful or beneficial to you. You may at any time withdraw your consent and opt-out from receiving such information. This is detailed above in Choices about how we use and disclose your information.
28. Changes to this Privacy Statement
We reserve the right in our sole and absolute discretion, to revise or supplement this Privacy Statement from time to time to reflect, amongst others, any changes in our business or the law. We will publish the updated Privacy Statement on our website at www.bridgeandbend.com. Any revised version of the Statement will be effective as of the date of posting on the website. Any revised version of the Statement will be effective as of the date of posting on the website, so you should always refer back to the website for the latest version of the Statement. It is your responsibility to make sure you are satisfied with any changes before continuing to use our services. If we make a material change to how we use your personal information, we will provide you with an opportunity to opt-out of such new or different use. If you have any questions concerning this Statement, please contact our Information Officer.
29. Concerns and Complaints about the Processing of Your Personal Information
All enquiries, requests, or concerns regarding this Statement or relating to the processing of your personal information by us should be addressed to our Information Officer. If you believe that we process your personal information contrary to this Privacy Statement or in contravention of the law, please contact the Information Officer immediately. You may also lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator at complaints.IR@justice.gov.za / +27 (0)10 023 5207 / +27 (0)82 746 4173.
30. Laws applicable to this Privacy Statement
This Privacy Statement is governed by the laws of the Republic of South Africa.
Conclusion
The Company strives to ensure that your privacy is protected at all times and in all situations. However, it is your responsibility to ensure that the information you provide to us is accurate, complete, and up to date. By engaging with us, you agree to the processing of your personal information as set out in this Privacy Statement. Further information may be found in the Company’s POPIA Policy and PAIA Manual.
Contact Us
For any questions or concerns regarding this Privacy Statement or our data privacy practices, please contact the Information Officer at:
– Email: carmen@bridgeandbend.com
– Mail: PO Box 573, Lonehill, 2062, South Africa