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Sathi Privacy Policy

Effective date and last updated: 8 October 2026

1. Who is responsible for your information

SATHI (PTY) LTD, registration number 2026/292513/07, operates Sathi and is the responsible party for personal information processed through the service under South Africa's Protection of Personal Information Act, 2013 (POPIA).

Legal correspondence: admin@sathi.co.za. A physical address for legal service will be published after confirmation of the company’s authorised address.

Privacy enquiries: Address correspondence to SATHI (PTY) LTD at admin@sathi.co.za. Verendran Pather is the director identified in the supplied company record; this policy does not certify an Information Officer appointment or registration.

Privacy requests and complaints: admin@sathi.co.za.

2. Information we collect

  • Account details: your name, email, phone number, date of birth, sign-in identifiers, acceptance of terms and account status. Password authentication is handled by our authentication provider; we do not receive your Google password.
  • Profile and preferences: photos, bio, gender, preferred matches, city and province, languages, heritage, religion if supplied, lifestyle, education, profession, relationship and family preferences, interests, values and optional voice introductions.
  • Activity and communications: likes, passes, introductions, matches, messages, voice notes, blocks, reports and moderation records.
  • Optional verification: the ID or passport document and selfie you submit, document references, verification status and review outcome. A document may contain an identity number, photograph, birth date, nationality and other identifying details.
  • Payments: the selected plan, amount, currency, payment reference, payment status and membership expiry. Payments are made by EFT; we keep the proof of payment you email to us.
  • Technical information: service requests, errors, device or browser information and locally stored sign-in or installation preferences. Location information is used for matching where available; the city and province you provide also identify your approximate location.

We receive information from you, from your interactions with members, from members who report an interaction, and from providers that return authentication or payment results. If you use Google sign-in, Google supplies the account information needed for that sign-in, such as an account identifier, email and available profile information.

3. Sensitive information and optional verification

Religion, ethnic or cultural background and information that may reveal sexual orientation or sex life can be special personal information under POPIA. Provide only information you are comfortable sharing for matchmaking. Optional fields can be left blank or removed. Where consent or another statutory authorisation is required, we must have it before processing the relevant information.

Identity verification is optional for ordinary matching and text messaging. Choosing not to verify limits access to verification-gated features, not ordinary membership. Documents and selfies are used for manual identity review and associated fraud prevention, not for display to matches. Members may see your verification status, but not your ID number or document. A badge does not certify a criminal-background check or guarantee safety.

You may withdraw consent for optional processing by removing the relevant information or contacting admin@sathi.co.za. This does not invalidate lawful processing already performed; withdrawing information necessary for verification may require removal of the badge or access to verification-gated features.

4. Why we use information

We use information to create accounts, provide profiles and matching, enable conversations, administer membership payments, review optional identity verification, investigate reports, prevent abuse, provide support and meet legal obligations.

Depending on the purpose, processing relies on your consent, steps necessary to conclude or perform our agreement with you, compliance with a legal obligation, or a legitimate interest permitted by POPIA, such as preventing fraud and keeping members safe. Special personal information requires the additional authorisation applicable under POPIA. We do not treat agreement to these terms as unlimited consent for unrelated purposes.

Service and safety messages are separate from marketing. Electronic direct marketing will be sent only where consent or another lawful exception permits it, with a way to opt out.

5. Matching and profile visibility

Sathi uses profile facts and preferences to filter and rank potential matches, including interests, values, language, heritage, age and location. These recommendations do not guarantee compatibility. You choose whether to pursue a connection and can change your preferences or contact us about a result you believe is inaccurate.

Eligible signed-in members can see the profile details intended for discovery and matching, such as your displayed name, photos, age, city, bio, tags and verification badge. Do not put private contact details or identity numbers in your public profile. Messages and voice notes are shared with their intended recipients, and relevant content may be reviewed for safety or support. Other members may save or share content outside Sathi despite our rules, so consider what you disclose.

6. Service providers and other recipients

  • Lovable Cloud and its infrastructure providers: hosting, authentication, database and media storage needed to operate Sathi.
  • Our bank: membership fees are paid by EFT into the SATHI (PTY) LTD business account; we receive the payment reference and proof of payment you send us.
  • Google: when you choose Google sign-in, subject also to Google's privacy terms.
  • Daily.co: if you use an available calling feature, the information needed to create and deliver the call, such as a room identifier, user identifier and call media. Uploaded voice notes are stored as Sathi media, not processed as Daily calls.
  • Authorised personnel and professional advisers: only where reasonably needed for support, identity review, safety, administration or legal obligations.
  • Authorities or other lawful recipients: where disclosure is required or authorised by law, including a lawful investigation or protection of a person's rights or safety.

We do not sell your personal information. Access by providers must be limited to the relevant purpose and subject to appropriate confidentiality, security and data-protection arrangements.

7. International processing

Cloud, authentication, payment or calling providers may process information outside South Africa. Such transfers must satisfy POPIA section 72, including adequate protection under applicable law or a binding agreement, or another permitted basis. Contact admin@sathi.co.za for information about a transfer relevant to your account.

8. Retention and deletion

We keep account and profile information while it is needed to provide your account. The account-deletion feature is designed to remove your profile, associated account records and profile photos from the active service. It does not guarantee that every separate media object, payment record, safety record or backup is erased at that moment.

Identity documents, selfies, voice media and other residual records may require a separate deletion request. Contact admin@sathi.co.za to request removal or to ask what remains after account deletion. Information may be retained only for as long as necessary for its lawful purpose, including unresolved disputes, fraud investigations or statutory financial-record obligations; it must then be deleted, de-identified or restricted as appropriate. We do not promise an unverified fixed backup or document-purge period.

Deletion cannot remove copies independently retained by another member or provider under their own lawful obligations. Anonymised information that no longer identifies you may be retained.

9. Your POPIA rights

Subject to applicable legal requirements, you may request confirmation of whether we hold your information, access to it, correction of inaccuracies, deletion of information we are not entitled to retain, restriction or objection to processing, and withdrawal of consent. You may object to direct marketing at any time.

Settings provides profile and preference controls, an account-data export and account deletion. The export contains available account data and is not a substitute for requesting records that are not included, such as verification or payment records. Email admin@sathi.co.za for those requests or if you cannot access Settings. We may need to verify your identity before releasing or changing personal information, and will explain any lawful restriction or permitted fee.

You may complain to the Information Regulator of South Africa without first exhausting our complaints process. The Regulator's current complaints procedures and contact details are available at https://inforegulator.org.za/.

10. Security and incidents

We use access controls, authenticated access and protected media access to reduce unauthorised disclosure. No online system is risk-free. Keep your password and sign-in codes private, protect your device and report suspected unauthorised access to admin@sathi.co.za.

If there are reasonable grounds to believe personal information has been accessed or acquired by an unauthorised person, we will assess the incident and notify the Information Regulator and affected people as required by POPIA, subject to lawful exceptions or delays.

11. Cookies and local storage

Sathi and its providers use cookies or browser storage where needed for sign-in, security, temporary account details, and remembering installation-banner choices. An installed Sathi shortcut still uses the same account and privacy policy. You can manage browser storage in your browser settings; removing it may sign you out or reset preferences. This policy does not grant permission for undisclosed advertising trackers.

12. Adults only and policy changes

Sathi is for people aged 18 and older. We do not knowingly provide accounts to children. Report a suspected underage account so we can investigate and take appropriate action.

We will publish changes here and communicate material changes through the service or your account email. If a new purpose requires fresh consent, we will seek it rather than assume continued use supplies that consent.

Privacy contact: SATHI (PTY) LTD, attention Verendran Pather (director). Email admin@sathi.co.za.