We use your information to provide accounts, tender alerts, supplier tools and requested insurance assistance. We do not sell your personal information. Documents placed in the readiness vault stay in your browser unless you separately submit a document with an insurance enquiry.
Who we are
SimplyTenders provides an independent tender discovery and supplier-workspace service at simplytenders.co.za. In this policy, “SimplyTenders”, “we”, “us” and “our” refer to the operator of that service. For personal information that we decide how and why to process, SimplyTenders is the responsible party under the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 (“POPIA”).
This policy applies to our public website, supplier accounts, tender alerts, insurance enquiry forms and related communications.
Information we collect
Depending on how you use the service, we may collect:
- Account and profile information: your name, email address, telephone number, company name, authentication details and email-verification status.
- Tender alert preferences: industries, provinces, keywords, delivery frequency, delivery time and whether alerts are enabled.
- Insurance enquiry information: company and contact details, business type, province, insurance needs, renewal information, tender context, referral source and any tender document you choose to attach.
- Communications: messages, support requests, preferences and other information you send to us.
- Technical information: information ordinarily included in web requests and server logs, such as IP address, browser or device type, requested pages, timestamps and security events.
We collect information from you, from an identity provider when an authorised administrator uses Google sign-in, and automatically through the operation and security of the service. Tender notices themselves are obtained from public procurement sources or supplied by buyers and are not account profile information.
Information kept on your device
Some supplier-workspace features use your browser’s local storage or IndexedDB. Saved tenders, bid tracking, workspace preferences, readiness-document metadata and readiness-vault files are stored on that device. Those files are not uploaded to our servers through the readiness-vault feature.
Clearing browser data, changing browsers or devices, or using private browsing may remove or make this information unavailable. A document is sent to us only if you separately attach it to an insurance enquiry or another upload feature that clearly says it will submit the file.
How we use information
We process personal information only where we have a lawful reason to do so, including to perform our agreement with you, act on your request or consent, comply with law, and pursue legitimate interests that do not unjustifiably affect your rights. We use information to:
- create, verify, secure and support your account;
- personalise the supplier workspace and match tender alerts to your criteria;
- send requested service, security, verification, password-reset and tender-alert messages;
- process and follow up on an insurance enquiry;
- operate, troubleshoot, protect and improve the service; and
- prevent misuse, keep required records, enforce our terms and comply with legal obligations.
Tender matching helps filter opportunities using criteria you select. It does not make a decision that has legal or similarly significant effects on you.
International processing
Some technology providers may process or store information outside South Africa. Where personal information crosses borders, we take reasonable steps to use a recipient, agreement or other safeguard that provides an adequate level of protection as required by POPIA.
How long we keep information
We keep personal information only for as long as it is needed for the purpose for which it was collected, to provide the service, resolve disputes, maintain security, or meet legal, tax, audit and recordkeeping obligations. Retention periods vary by record type.
Account and alert information is generally retained while the account or feature remains active. Insurance enquiries and related documents are retained for the period reasonably needed to handle the enquiry and meet applicable business or legal requirements. We delete or de-identify information when it is no longer required, unless the law permits or requires further retention.
How we protect information
We use reasonable technical and organisational safeguards designed to protect personal information against loss, misuse, unauthorised access, alteration or disclosure. No internet service is completely secure. You are responsible for keeping your sign-in details confidential and for securing devices that contain locally stored workspace information.
If a security compromise affects your personal information, we will investigate and notify the Information Regulator and affected people as required by POPIA.
Your rights and choices
Subject to POPIA and other applicable law, you may ask whether we hold personal information about you, request access to or correction of it, ask for deletion where appropriate, object to certain processing, or withdraw consent where processing relies on consent. You may also unsubscribe from tender alerts or change their schedule in your email-alert settings.
To exercise a right, email [email protected]. We may need to verify your identity before acting. If you are not satisfied with our response, you may lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator (South Africa).
Children's privacy
SimplyTenders is intended for businesses and people who are legally able to participate in procurement activities. It is not directed to children under 18, and we do not knowingly collect their personal information through the service.
Changes and contact
We may update this policy when our service or legal obligations change. We will post the revised version here, update the date above and give additional notice where a change materially affects your rights.
Questions, privacy requests and concerns can be sent to [email protected]. For the rules that apply when using the service, read our Terms of Service.