Privacy Policy
How Pfukani Cash Loans collects, uses, and protects your personal information under POPIA.
Last updated: January 2025
1. Introduction
Pfukani Cash Loans ("Pfukani", "we", "us", "our") respects your privacy and is committed to protecting your personal information in accordance with the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 ("POPIA"). This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect, why we collect it, how we use and protect it, and the rights you have over your personal information.
By interacting with us whether through this website, WhatsApp, email, or in person you agree to the practices described in this policy.
2. Who We Are
Pfukani Cash Loans is a registered credit provider with the National Credit Regulator (NCR) under registration number NCRCP17495. For the purposes of POPIA, Pfukani is the responsible party for the personal information you share with us in the course of your enquiry or credit agreement.
3. Information We Do Not Collect
Before describing what we collect, it is important to be clear about what we do not collect through this website:
- This website does not have any online forms, upload fields, or login areas.
- We do not collect your ID, payslips, or bank statements through this website.
- We do not use tracking pixels, advertising cookies, or third-party analytics that profile you.
- We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information to third parties for marketing purposes.
4. Information We Collect
We collect personal information only when you choose to share it with us, typically through the following channels:
Full name, ID number, date of birth, gender, marital status, and contact details (phone, email, physical address) as provided by you during your enquiry.
Bank statements (typically 6 months), payslips, proof of income, existing credit commitments, and banking details required by the NCA for affordability assessment.
Your credit report from registered credit bureaux, obtained with your consent as part of the mandatory affordability and credit checks.
WhatsApp messages, emails, call notes, and other records of our interaction, kept for quality assurance, dispute resolution, and legal record-keeping.
5. Why We Process Your Information
We process your personal information for the following lawful purposes:
- To respond to your enquiry about a potential loan;
- To conduct affordability assessments and credit checks (required by the NCA);
- To draft a written quotation and, if approved, a credit agreement;
- To administer the loan, including debit orders, statements, and repayments;
- To comply with legal obligations under the NCA and other legislation;
- To detect and prevent fraud, money laundering, and other financial crime;
- To resolve complaints and disputes;
- To report to credit bureaux as required by law.
6. Our Lawful Basis for Processing
POPIA requires that we have a lawful basis for processing your information. We rely on one or more of the following:
- Consent: where you have given us clear permission (for example, to contact you via WhatsApp).
- Contract: where processing is necessary to enter into or perform a credit agreement.
- Legal obligation: where the NCA, FICA, or other law requires us to process or retain information.
- Legitimate interest: where we have a lawful business interest (such as fraud prevention) that does not override your rights.
7. Who We Share Your Information With
We share your personal information only where necessary and lawful. Recipients may include:
- Registered credit bureaux: to report your credit behaviour as required by the NCA;
- Payment processors and banks: to administer debit orders and EFT payments;
- Verification and fraud prevention providers: to verify identity and detect fraud;
- Debt collectors and attorneys: where lawful collection action becomes necessary;
- Regulators and law enforcement: where required by law or by a valid court order.
We do not share your information with third parties for their own marketing. All third-party service providers are contractually required to handle your information securely and only for the purposes we specify.
8. How Long We Keep Your Information
We retain personal information only for as long as necessary for the purposes for which it was collected and to comply with legal obligations. Typical retention periods:
- Enquiries that do not result in a loan: up to 12 months, then securely destroyed;
- Credit agreements: for at least 5 years after the loan is settled, as required by the NCA;
- Financial records: for 5 years, as required by the Tax Administration Act and FICA;
- Recordings of complaints: up to 5 years for dispute resolution.
9. How We Protect Your Information
We take the security of your personal information seriously. Our safeguards include:
- Encrypted storage of electronic documents;
- Access controls only authorised staff and contractors can view your information;
- Confidentiality undertakings signed by all employees;
- Physical security of any paper documents;
- Ongoing staff training on POPIA and data protection;
- Regular review of our security procedures.
While we take these precautions, no system is completely immune to risk. If a data breach occurs that may affect you, we will notify you and the Information Regulator as required by section 22 of POPIA.
10. Cookies and Website Logs
This website does not use advertising or profiling cookies. Our hosting infrastructure may log basic technical information (IP address, browser type, pages visited) for security, performance, and diagnostic purposes. These logs are not linked to your personal identity.
11. Cross-Border Transfers
We do not actively transfer your personal information outside South Africa. Some service providers (such as email or messaging platforms) may route data through international servers. Where this happens, we ensure that such transfers are subject to adequate data protection safeguards as required by section 72 of POPIA.
12. Your Rights Under POPIA
As a data subject, you have the following rights:
Right to access: you may request a copy of the personal information we hold about you.
Right to correction: you may request that inaccurate or incomplete information be corrected.
Right to deletion: you may request deletion of personal information we no longer have a lawful basis to keep.
Right to object: you may object to processing based on legitimate interest, or to direct marketing at any time.
Right to withdraw consent: where processing is based on your consent, you may withdraw it at any time.
Right to complain: you may lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator if you believe your rights have been violated.
13. How to Exercise Your Rights
To exercise any of the rights above, contact our Information Officer using the details in section 16. We will respond to your request within a reasonable time, and in any event within 30 days as required by POPIA. We may ask for proof of identity before actioning a request to protect your information from unauthorised access.
14. Children's Privacy
Our services are intended for adults aged 18 and over. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe a child has provided us with personal information, please contact us and we will delete it promptly.
15. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in law or in our practices. The current version will always be published on this page with a "Last updated" date. Where changes are material, we will endeavour to notify active customers directly.
16. Information Officer & Contact
In accordance with POPIA, we have appointed an Information Officer who is responsible for ensuring compliance with this policy and responding to data subject requests.
17. Complaints to the Information Regulator
If you believe we have processed your personal information unlawfully, or have not responded adequately to a request you have made under this policy, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator (South Africa):
The Information Regulator (South Africa)
JD House, 27 Stiemens Street, Braamfontein, Johannesburg, 2001
Email: complaints.IR@justice.gov.za
Website: inforegulator.org.za
18. Governing Law
This Privacy Policy is governed by the laws of the Republic of South Africa, including POPIA and the NCA. Any dispute relating to this policy shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the South African courts.