Create a bespoke document in minutes, or upload and review your own.
Get your first 2 documents free
Your data doesn't train Genie's AI
You keep IP ownership of your information
Privacy Notice
I need a privacy notice for a South African e-commerce website that collects personal data from users, including their names, contact information, and purchase history, ensuring compliance with the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA) and detailing data usage, storage, and user rights.
What is a Privacy Notice?
A Privacy Notice tells people exactly how an organization collects and uses their personal information. In South Africa, businesses must provide these notices under POPIA (Protection of Personal Information Act) to show their commitment to data protection and transparency.
Think of it as your data handling playbook - it covers what information you gather, why you need it, how you'll protect it, and who you might share it with. The notice helps build trust with customers while keeping your organization compliant with South African privacy laws. It must be clear, accessible, and written in plain language that everyone can understand.
When should you use a Privacy Notice?
Your business needs a Privacy Notice whenever you start collecting personal information from customers, employees, or suppliers in South Africa. This includes launching a new website, rolling out customer loyalty programs, or setting up employee databases. POPIA requires this transparency from day one of operations.
Update your Privacy Notice when you change how you handle data - like adopting new marketing tools, expanding to different services, or sharing information with new partners. Having a clear notice ready helps avoid legal issues, builds customer trust, and makes it easier to respond when people ask about their data rights under South African law.
What are the different types of Privacy Notice?
- Data Privacy Notice: The most comprehensive type, covering all aspects of personal information handling across an organization's operations
- Website Privacy Notice: Specifically focuses on online data collection, including user tracking and digital interactions
- Cookie Notice: A specialized notice explaining website cookie usage and online tracking technologies
- Data Protection Policy And Privacy Notice: Combines privacy commitments with internal handling procedures
- Data Protection Notice: Emphasizes security measures and safeguards for protecting personal information
Who should typically use a Privacy Notice?
- Business Owners & Directors: Ultimately responsible for ensuring their organizations have compliant Privacy Notices under POPIA
- Information Officers: Draft and maintain Privacy Notices as part of their data protection duties
- Legal Teams: Review and update notices to ensure alignment with South African privacy laws
- Website Operators: Display and implement Privacy Notices for online data collection
- Data Subjects: Customers, employees, and suppliers whose personal information is collected rely on these notices to understand their rights
- Regulatory Authorities: Monitor compliance and enforce privacy requirements through the Information Regulator
How do you write a Privacy Notice?
- Data Mapping: List all personal information your organization collects, processes, and shares
- Purpose Assessment: Document why you need each type of information and how you use it
- Security Review: Detail your safeguards for protecting personal data from unauthorized access
- Third-Party Sharing: Identify all external parties who receive or process your data
- Rights Documentation: Outline data subject rights under POPIA and how people can exercise them
- Access Points: Note all ways people can view your Privacy Notice (website, forms, offices)
- Plain Language Check: Ensure the notice is clear and accessible to all South African readers
What should be included in a Privacy Notice?
- Organization Details: Full legal name, registration number, and contact information of the responsible party
- Data Collection Scope: Types of personal information collected and processing methods
- Purpose Statement: Clear explanation of why personal information is collected and how it will be used
- Sharing Practices: Details about third-party recipients and cross-border transfers
- Security Measures: Description of safeguards protecting personal information
- Data Subject Rights: How to access, correct, or object to data processing under POPIA
- Retention Period: How long personal information will be kept and disposal methods
- Cookies Policy: Details about online tracking technologies and their purpose
What's the difference between a Privacy Notice and a Data Processing Notice?
A Privacy Notice differs significantly from a Data Processing Notice in several key ways. While both documents deal with personal information, they serve distinct purposes under POPIA and have different scopes.
- Audience and Purpose: Privacy Notices communicate directly with data subjects about their rights and how their information is used, while Data Processing Notices focus on the technical and operational details of data handling between organizations
- Content Detail: Privacy Notices provide broader, more accessible information about data collection and use, whereas Data Processing Notices contain specific technical procedures and security measures
- Legal Requirements: Privacy Notices are mandatory for all organizations collecting personal information, while Data Processing Notices are specifically required for operator relationships
- Timing: Privacy Notices must be available before or during data collection, but Data Processing Notices are typically exchanged before processing begins between business partners
Download our whitepaper on the future of AI in Legal
ұԾ’s Security Promise
Genie is the safest place to draft. Here’s how we prioritise your privacy and security.
Your documents are private:
We do not train on your data; ұԾ’s AI improves independently
All data stored on Genie is private to your organisation
Your documents are protected:
Your documents are protected by ultra-secure 256-bit encryption
Our bank-grade security infrastructure undergoes regular external audits
We are ISO27001 certified, so your data is secure
Organizational security
You retain IP ownership of your documents
You have full control over your data and who gets to see it
Innovation in privacy:
Genie partnered with the Computational Privacy Department at Imperial College London
Together, we ran a £1 million research project on privacy and anonymity in legal contracts
Want to know more?
Visit our for more details and real-time security updates.
Read our Privacy Policy.