Privacy Policy
1. Who we are
This website, airefinery.co.za ("AI Refinery," "we," "us," "our"), is operated by:
Business name: AI Refinery (operated by Beau Solms-Peixoto, sole proprietor)
Registration number: Not applicable — AI Refinery is operated as a sole proprietorship
Physical/business address: Stellenbosch, Western Cape, South Africa
Contact email: beau@airefinery.co.za
Information Officer: Beau Solms-Peixoto
We are the "responsible party" as defined under the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 (POPIA) for the personal information we collect through this website.
2. What personal information we collect
Depending on how you interact with the site, we may collect:
- Contact details — name and email address, when you sign up for our newsletter, take our free quiz, or purchase a digital product.
- Purchase information — the products you buy, order value, and transaction reference (payment card details are never seen or stored by us — see Section 6).
- Quiz responses — the answers you give in our interactive quiz, used to determine whether you're a Starter, Builder, or Scaler and to recommend relevant content.
- Communication data — messages you send us via email, WhatsApp, or our contact form.
- Technical data — IP address, browser type, device type, and pages visited, collected automatically via cookies and analytics tools (see Section 5).
We do not knowingly collect sensitive personal information (such as health, religious belief, or biometric data), and this site is not directed at children under 18.
3. How we collect it
- Directly from you, when you fill in a form, take the quiz, subscribe to our newsletter, or make a purchase.
- Automatically, through cookies and similar tracking technologies when you browse the site.
- From our third-party service providers (e.g. our payment processor confirming a successful transaction).
4. Why we collect it, and our lawful basis
We process your personal information for the following purposes:
| Purpose | What we use it for |
|---|---|
| Fulfilling purchases | Delivering the digital product you bought, sending order confirmations and receipts |
| Email marketing | Sending newsletters, product updates, and relevant offers (only if you've opted in) |
| Quiz personalisation | Matching you to Starter/Builder/Scaler content based on your answers |
| Customer support | Responding to your questions via email or WhatsApp |
| Site improvement | Understanding how visitors use the site so we can improve it |
| Legal compliance | Keeping records required under South African tax and consumer protection law |
Under POPIA, we rely on your consent (for marketing and the quiz), the performance of a contract (when you buy a product), and our legitimate business interests (for basic site analytics) as our lawful grounds for processing.
5. Cookies and tracking
Our site uses cookies and similar technologies to:
- Keep the site functioning correctly (essential cookies)
- Understand site traffic and behaviour (analytics cookies — e.g. Google Analytics, if in use)
- Power retargeting or ad tracking (e.g. a TikTok or Meta pixel, if in use)
Where cookies are not strictly necessary for the site to function, POPIA requires us to obtain your opt-in consent before they're set, via a cookie consent banner that blocks non-essential cookies until you agree.
[PLACEHOLDER — do not publish this section as-is until your consent banner is actually installed and live; a policy describing consent you're not yet collecting is a bigger compliance risk than having no policy at all.]
You can control or delete cookies through your browser settings at any time.
6. Who we share your information with
We don't sell your personal information. We do share limited information with trusted service providers who help us run the business, including:
- Paystack — our payment processor, which handles all card and payment details directly. We never see or store your full card number.
- Brevo — for sending newsletters and managing email subscribers.
- [PLACEHOLDER — your website hosting provider] — to run the website and process orders.
- [PLACEHOLDER — Google Analytics or other analytics tool, if used] — to understand site traffic.
- WhatsApp (Meta) — if you choose to message us via our WhatsApp integration.
Some of these providers may store or process data outside South Africa (for example, on servers in the EU or US). Where this happens, POPIA requires that the destination country have adequate data protection laws, or that we put safeguards in place (such as the provider's own data processing agreement). [PLACEHOLDER — worth listing which of the above are hosted outside SA once confirmed, as this is a specific POPIA disclosure requirement.]
7. How long we keep your information
We keep personal information only for as long as necessary for the purpose it was collected, or as required by law (for example, financial records must generally be kept for 5 years under South African tax law). If you unsubscribe from our newsletter, we stop using your details for marketing but may retain a record that you unsubscribed, to honour that request.
8. Your rights under POPIA
As a data subject, you have the right to:
- Ask us what personal information we hold about you
- Request that we correct or update inaccurate information
- Request that we delete or destroy your personal information (subject to legal retention requirements)
- Object to us processing your information, on reasonable grounds
- Withdraw consent at any time (e.g. unsubscribe from our newsletter using the link in any email)
- Lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator if you believe we've mishandled your information
To exercise any of these rights, email us at beau@airefinery.co.za.
9. Direct marketing
We only send you marketing emails if you've opted in (for example, by signing up for our newsletter or taking our quiz). Every marketing email includes an unsubscribe link. You can opt out at any time, and we'll stop sending you marketing communications, though we may still need to contact you about an order you've placed.
10. Security
We take reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect your personal information against loss, unauthorised access, or disclosure. No online system is 100% secure, but we work with reputable providers (like Paystack, which is PCI-DSS compliant for payment handling) to reduce this risk. If we become aware of a data breach that's likely to affect you, we will notify you and the Information Regulator as soon as reasonably possible, as required under POPIA.
11. Changes to this policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time as our tools or practices change. The "Last updated" date at the top will reflect the most recent revision. We encourage you to check back periodically.
12. Contact us / complaints
If you have any questions about this policy or how we handle your information, contact us at beau@airefinery.co.za.
If you're not satisfied with our response, you have the right to lodge a complaint with South Africa's Information Regulator:
- Website: inforegulator.org.za
- General enquiries: enquiries@inforegulator.org.za
- Toll-free: 0800 017 160
(The Information Regulator periodically updates its specific complaints channels — worth checking their site directly for the current process before referring anyone there.)