privacy policy

Our Commitment to Your Privacy

At M1Creative ("we", "us", or "our"), respecting your privacy and safeguarding your personal information is a core priority. This Privacy Policy outlines how we collect, process, store, and protect your personal data in compliance with South Africa’s Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA Act 4 of 2013) when you visit our website (m1creative.online) or engage our web development and branding services.

1. Information We Collect

We only collect personal information that is necessary to communicate with you, provide accurate project quotes, and deliver our contracted services. This includes:

• Contact Form Data: Full name, email address, phone number (or WhatsApp number), business name, and project description submitted voluntarily through our contact and inquiry forms.
• Client Onboarding Information: Company billing address, registration details, domain records, and project assets provided during paid engagements.
• Technical & Usage Data: Standard server log details such as IP address, browser type, operating system, operating language, referring URLs, and page visit duration.

2. How and Why We Use Your Information

We use your personal data strictly for legitimate business purposes, including:

• Responding directly to your inquiries and providing custom project proposals.
• Engineering, designing, and launching contracted web builds, e-commerce stores, and brand assets.
• Processing project milestone invoices and managing ongoing monthly maintenance retainers.
• Monitoring site performance and maintaining technical infrastructure security.

3. Data Storage, Security & Third-Party Disclosure

Your information is stored in secure, encrypted cloud environments protected by multi-factor authentication and strict access controls.

Access to your personal data is limited strictly to M1Creative personnel directly managing your project. We do not sell, rent, trade, or transfer your personal information to third-party marketers or advertisers under any circumstances.

4. Cookies & Web Analytics Disclosure

Our website utilizes essential session cookies required for core navigation, layout rendering, and form security. We may also monitor aggregated, non-personally identifiable site usage metrics to ensure fast page load speeds and optimal user experience.

You can choose to disable cookies through your web browser settings at any time; doing so will not prevent you from viewing or submitting inquiries on our website.

5. Data Retention Period

We retain contact form inquiries for up to 12 months, after which unengaged records are securely deleted. Active client project data and financial invoicing records are retained for the duration of the contracted engagement and as required by South African accounting laws.

6. Your Rights Under POPIA

Under the Protection of Personal Information Act, South African citizens and legal entities possess specific rights regarding their personal data. You have the right to:

• Request confirmation of whether we hold any of your personal data.
• Request access to the specific personal information we maintain about you.
• Request correction, updating, or deletion of outdated, inaccurate, or excessive personal data.
• Object at any time to the processing of your personal information for marketing purposes.

To exercise any of these rights, please email us directly at m1creativewebconsulting@gmail.com. We will process your request promptly and confirm completion within 30 days.

7. Contact Information

If you have any questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or our POPIA compliance practices, please contact us at:

M1Creative Web Consulting
Email: m1creativewebconsulting@gmail.com
Website: m1creative.online