Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

EdSoft (PTY) LTD ("EdSoft", "we", "us", or "our") is committed to protecting your personal information. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, and protect your personal data when you use our platform at edsoft.org, in compliance with the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 ("POPIA") and, where applicable, the General Data Protection Regulation ("GDPR").

2. Who We Are

The responsible party for your personal information is EdSoft (PTY) LTD, a company registered in South Africa (Registration Number: 2024 / 540233 / 07). For any privacy-related enquiries, contact our Information Officer at info@edsoft.org.

3. What We Collect

We collect the following categories of personal information:

• Account information: name, email address, and encrypted password
• Usage data: modules accessed, progress, and completion percentages
• Purchase history: transaction references and dates (payment card details are handled entirely by Paddle and are never stored by EdSoft)
• Technical data: IP address, browser type, and device information collected automatically when you use the platform

4. How We Use Your Data

We use your personal information to:

• Create and manage your EdSoft account
• Provide access to purchased and free modules
• Process refund requests
• Send transactional emails (account verification, purchase receipts)
• Send marketing communications, with your consent
• Improve and secure our platform
• Comply with legal and regulatory obligations

5. Legal Basis for Processing

We process your personal data on the following grounds:

• Contractual necessity: to provide the services you have requested or purchased
• Legitimate interests: platform security, fraud prevention, and service improvement
• Consent: marketing communications (you may withdraw consent at any time)
• Legal obligation: retention of financial records as required by South African law

6. Payment Processing

All payments on the EdSoft platform are processed by Paddle.com Market Limited ("Paddle"), who acts as the Merchant of Record. EdSoft does not store or process your payment card details. Paddle's processing of your payment data is governed by Paddle's Privacy Policy.

7. Third-Party Services

We may share your data with the following categories of third parties:

• Paddle (payment processing and Merchant of Record)
• Cloud hosting and infrastructure providers
• Email delivery service providers (transactional communications only)

We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information to any third party.

8. International Data Transfers

EdSoft serves a global audience. Where your personal data is transferred outside the Republic of South Africa, we ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place in accordance with POPIA and, where applicable, GDPR. By using our platform, you consent to such transfers.

9. Data Retention

We retain your personal data for as long as your account remains active. If you delete your account, we retain a hashed (irreversible) record of your email address for 90 days solely to prevent misuse of promotional offers. Financial transaction records are retained for 5 years as required by South African tax law.

10. Your Rights

South African users (POPIA):

• Right to access your personal information held by us
• Right to request correction of inaccurate information
• Right to request deletion of your information
• Right to object to the processing of your information
• Right to lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator of South Africa

EU / UK users (GDPR / UK GDPR):

• Rights of access, rectification, erasure, restriction, and portability
• Right to withdraw consent at any time without affecting prior processing
• Right to lodge a complaint with your local supervisory authority

To exercise any of these rights, contact us at info@edsoft.org.

11. Cookies

We use the following cookies on the EdSoft platform:

• Essential cookies: Required to keep you logged in and maintain your session. These cannot be disabled without affecting platform functionality.
• Analytics cookies: We use Google Analytics to understand how visitors use our platform (pages visited, time on site, general location). This data is aggregated and anonymised and is not used to identify you personally.

We do not use advertising or retargeting cookies. By using the EdSoft platform you consent to the use of analytics cookies as described above. You can opt out of Google Analytics tracking at any time by installing the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on.

12. Children's Privacy

EdSoft offers educational modules designed for learners of all ages, including children. We take children's privacy seriously and have designed our platform accordingly.

Accounts vs. profiles: Only adults (18 years or older) may create an EdSoft account. Parents and guardians may create learner profiles for children under their account. A learner profile contains only a first name and is used solely to track progress within purchased modules. No email address, password, or other personal information is collected from the child directly.

By creating a learner profile for a child, the parent or guardian consents to the collection of that child's first name and learning progress data on their behalf. Parents and guardians may delete a child's profile at any time from their account settings.

If you believe a child has been registered without parental or guardian consent, please contact us immediately at info@edsoft.org.

13. Institutional and School Accounts

Schools and other educational institutions may purchase module access on behalf of their learners. When an institution holds an EdSoft account, the institution is the account holder and acts as the responsible party (data controller) for all learner profiles and associated data created under that account.

In this context, EdSoft acts as a data processor on behalf of the institution. The institution is responsible for:

• Ensuring appropriate consent has been obtained from learners, parents, or guardians in accordance with applicable law
• Complying with any applicable education data protection laws, including POPIA (South Africa), FERPA (United States), and GDPR (European Union)
• Managing learner profile access and deletion under their account

Schools acting in loco parentis for learners may create learner profiles without individual parental consent where permitted by applicable education law. EdSoft does not independently verify the legal basis used by an institution to create learner profiles and relies on the institution's confirmation that appropriate authority exists.

Institutions requiring a Data Processing Agreement (DPA) for GDPR or POPIA compliance purposes may contact us at info@edsoft.org.

14. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy periodically. We will notify registered users of any material changes by email at least 14 days before the changes take effect. The "Last updated" date at the top of this page reflects when the policy was last revised.

15. Contact / Information Officer

For privacy-related enquiries or to exercise your rights: