Privacy Policy

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Please read this Policy before using our website. Your continued use of this website, our platforms and our services indicates that you have both read and agree to the terms of this Privacy Policy. Unfortunately, you cannot use this website, our platforms and our services if you do not accept this Policy.

Personal Information will be understood in accordance with the definition provided in the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 (“the Act”) and in accordance with the definition of Personal Data in Article 4 (1) of the General Data Protection Regulation GDPR (EU) 2016/679. Messagesquare also subscribes to the principles for electronically collecting Personal information outlined in the Act, and the further legislation referred to therein. We endeavour to ensure the quality, accuracy and confidentiality of Personal Information in our possession.

In adopting this Privacy Policy, we wish to balance our legitimate business interests and your reasonable expectation of privacy. Accordingly, we will take all reasonable steps to prevent unauthorised access to, or disclosure of your Personal Information.

Messagesquare may use and disclose your personal information in the following manner:

1. by the use of your email address and/or mobile phone number to contact you from time to time relating to promotions and offers, to send you notifications and for security reasons;
2. to aggregate statistics and data about the use of Messagesquare and/or to customise the Messagesquare’s content, layout and services;
3. by the aggregation of your personal information with other people’s personal information to create and disseminate, as Messagesquare considers appropriate, as aggregated data without specific identification or your unique personal data;
4. to verify your identity in accordance with Know Your Customer (KYC), Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and sanctions screening requirements.

You may at any time, via written notice to Messagesquare, require that we do not disclose your personal information in the manner contemplated above, in which case Messagesquare will not do so, but Messagesquare may, on the basis of operational requirements, preclude your use of our services.

We will not collect, use or disclose sensitive information (such as information about racial or ethnic origins or political or religious beliefs, where relevant) except with your specific consent or in the circumstances permitted by law.

By agreeing to the terms contained in this Privacy Policy, you consent to the use of your Personal Information in relation to:

• The provision and performance of the services;
• Informing you of changes made to our website, services and platforms;
• Responding to any queries or requests you may have;
• Developing a more direct and substantial relationship with you for the purposes described in this clause;
• For security, administrative and legal purposes; and
• The creation and development of market data profiles which may provide insight into market norms, practices and trends to help us improve our offering to you. Such information will be compiled and retained in aggregated form, but shall not be used in any way which may comprise the identity of a user.
• Marketing of our services and other related offerings to you;
• Understanding general user trends and patterns so that we can develop and support existing and ongoing marketing strategies.

Although absolute security cannot be guaranteed on the internet, Messagesquare places great importance on the security of your Personal Information, and has in place technical and organisational security measures to protect your Personal Information against accidental or intentional manipulation, loss, misuse, destruction or against unauthorised disclosure or access to the information we process online.

We will continue to maintain and improve these security measures over time in line with legal and technological developments in order to protect any unauthorised access to your Personal Information.

We store your Personal Information directly, or alternatively, store your Personal Information on, and transfer your Personal Information to, a central database. If the location of the central database is located in a country that does not have substantially similar laws which provide for the protection of Personal Information, we will take the necessary steps to ensure that your Personal Information is adequately protected in that jurisdiction by means of ensuring that standard data protection clauses are enforced.

Your information will not be stored for longer than is necessary for the purposes described in these Terms or as required by applicable legislation or law.

The Personal Information Messagesquare collects from Clients shall only be accessed by Messagesquare employees, representatives and consultants on a need-to-know basis, and subject to reasonable confidentiality obligations binding such persons.

We constantly review our systems and data to ensure the best possible service to our users. We do not accept any users, or representatives of users, under the age of majority in your relevant territory or who otherwise do not have the relevant capacity to be bound by this Privacy Policy, unless you are a user who is a minor or is otherwise incapable of being bound by this Privacy Policy, and you warrant that you have obtained the consent of your legal guardian / or you are the legal guardian providing such consent to this Privacy Policy.

We will not sell, share, or rent your Personal Information to any third party without your consent or use your e-mail address for unsolicited mail. Any emails sent by Messagesquare will only be in connection with the provision of our Services. In order to effectively render our Services to you, we share your information, where necessary, with website analytics services, identity verification and KYC/FICA partners, and/or other regulatory authorities as required by law, as well as other service providers required to render our Services to you.

The Personal Information provided by you is necessary in order that Messagesquare may provide the requisite Services to you, and failure to provide such Personal Information may render Cross Switch unable to provide such Services.

As with all websites and online platforms, when you visit Messagesquare.com/Messagesq.com/sms2sos.com we may collect information, such as your IP address, the name of your ISP (Internet Service Provider), your browser, the website from which you visit us, the pages on our website that you visit and in what sequence, the date and length of your visit, and other information concerning your computer’s operating system, language settings, and broad demographic information. This information is aggregated and anonymous data and does not identify you specifically.

However, you acknowledge that this data may be able to be used to identify you if it is aggregated with other Personal Information that you supply to us. In this regard, however, and as recorded, only with a Client’s consent and subject strictly to the terms of this Privacy Policy will an Client’s information be transferred and/or shared, and currently same is only being used within Messagesquare on a need-to-know basis. Any individually identifiable information related to this data will never be used in any way different to that stated above, without your explicit consent.

Messagesquare and our website analytics partners use cookies. A cookie is a small piece of information stored on your computer or smart phone by the web browser. The two types of cookies used on the Website are described below:

• “Session cookies”: These are used to maintain a so-called ‘session state’ and only lasts for the duration of your use of the Website. A session cookie expires when you close your browser, or if you have not visited the server for a certain period of time. Session cookies are required for the Platform to function optimally, but are not used in any way to identify you personally.
• “Permanent cookies”: These cookies permanently store a unique code on your computer or smart device hard drive in order to identify you as an individual user. No Personal Information is stored in permanent cookies. You can view permanent cookies by looking in the cookies directory of your browser installation. You may delete or reject permanent cookies, but this may affect the availability and/or functionality of the services of the Website to you. These permanent cookies are not required for the website to work, but may enhance your browsing experience.

• Messagesquare, and the services available through the website, may contain links to other third party websites, including (without limitation) social media platforms and payment gateways (“Third Party Websites”).  If you select a link to any Third Party Website, you may be subject to such Third Party Website’s terms and conditions and/or other policies, which are not under the control, nor responsibility, of Messagesquare.
• Hyperlinks to Third Party Websites are provided “as is”, and Messagesquare does not necessarily agree with, edit or sponsor the content on Third Party Websites.
• Messagesquare does not monitor or review the content of any Third Party Website. Opinions expressed or material appearing on such websites are not necessarily shared or endorsed by us and we should not be regarded as the publisher of such opinions or material. As such, we are not responsible for the content of such Third Party Websites.
• Messagesquare does not accept any responsibility for any loss or damage in whatever manner, howsoever caused, resulting from your disclosure to third parties of personal information.