Privacy Policy — Masters Africa

Masters Africa ("Platform", "we", "us", or "our") is committed to protecting the privacy of all users across Africa and beyond. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, share, and protect your personal information when you use our website at masters.africa, mobile applications, and related services. By using the Platform, you consent to the practices described in this policy.

1. Data We Collect

We collect the following categories of information:

1.1 Information You Provide

Account Information — Name, email address, phone number, password, account type (Job Seeker, Employer, Agency, or Consultant), and profile photo.
Profile Data — Professional title, work experience, education history, skills, languages, location, and biographical summary.
CVs & Documents — Curricula vitae, cover letters, certificates, portfolios, and other documents you upload to your profile or submit with job applications.
Job Listings — Job titles, descriptions, requirements, salary ranges, company information, and other details included in job postings (for Employers, Agencies, and Consultants).
Job Applications — Application data including cover messages, answers to screening questions, and any attachments submitted when applying for jobs.
Event Registrations — Information provided when creating or registering for career events, webinars, and workshops.
Communications — Messages sent through the Platform's messaging system, support inquiries, and feedback.
Payment Information — Billing name, billing address, and payment method details. Full payment card details are processed and stored by our payment processors (Stripe and PayPal), not on our servers.

1.2 Information Collected Automatically

Usage Data — Pages visited, features used, search queries, job listings viewed, application history, and interaction timestamps.
Device Information — IP address, browser type and version, operating system, device type, screen resolution, and language preferences.
Location Data — Approximate geographic location derived from your IP address. We do not collect precise GPS location without your explicit consent.
Referral Data — The website or source that referred you to the Platform.

1.3 Cookies & Similar Technologies

We use cookies and similar tracking technologies to collect certain information. See Section 5 for details.

2. How We Use Your Data

We use the information we collect for the following purposes:

Service Delivery — To operate and maintain the Platform, process your registration, and provide core functionality including job searching, posting, and application management.
Job Matching — To match Job Seekers with relevant job opportunities based on skills, experience, location preferences, and search behaviour.
Notifications — To send you job alerts, application status updates, event reminders, messages from other Users, and important service announcements.
Analytics & Improvement — To analyse usage patterns, identify trends, diagnose technical issues, and improve the Platform's features, performance, and user experience.
Personalisation — To customise content, recommendations, and search results to your preferences and behaviour.
Payment Processing — To process subscription payments, verify transactions, and manage billing for paid services.
Safety & Security — To detect and prevent fraud, abuse, spam, and unauthorised access, and to enforce our Terms of Use.
Legal Compliance — To comply with applicable laws, regulations, legal processes, or governmental requests.
Marketing — To send promotional communications about new features, events, or services, where you have opted in. You can unsubscribe at any time.

3. Data Sharing

We do not sell your personal data. We share your information only in the following circumstances:

With Employers (when you apply) — When you apply for a job, the Employer (or Agency/Consultant managing the listing) receives your application, CV, cover message, and relevant profile information. You can control the visibility of specific profile sections in your account settings.
With Payment Processors — We share billing information with Stripe and PayPal to process payments securely. These processors have their own privacy policies governing the use of your data.
With Service Providers — We engage trusted third-party service providers who assist with hosting, email delivery, analytics, customer support, and other operational functions. These providers are contractually obligated to protect your data and use it only for the services they provide to us.
For Legal Reasons — We may disclose your information if required by law, court order, or governmental regulation, or if we believe disclosure is necessary to protect our rights, your safety, or the safety of others.
Business Transfers — In the event of a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets, your information may be transferred as part of the transaction. We will notify you of any such change.

4. Data Security

We take the security of your personal data seriously and implement appropriate technical and organisational measures, including:

Encryption in Transit — All data transmitted between your device and our servers is encrypted using HTTPS/TLS.
Password Security — User passwords are hashed using industry-standard algorithms (bcrypt). We never store passwords in plain text.
Access Controls — Access to personal data is restricted to authorised personnel who need it to perform their duties.
Infrastructure Security — Our servers are hosted in secure data centres with physical and network security controls.
Regular Reviews — We periodically review and update our security practices to address emerging threats.

While we strive to protect your data, no method of transmission or storage is 100% secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security, but we are committed to promptly addressing any security incidents.

5. Cookies & Tracking

We use the following types of cookies and tracking technologies:

Essential Cookies — Required for the Platform to function, including authentication session cookies, CSRF protection, and language preferences. These cannot be disabled.
Analytics Cookies — We use Google Analytics (Measurement ID: G-XHTBPXGBLH) to understand how visitors interact with the Platform. Google Analytics collects anonymised data about page views, session duration, traffic sources, and user demographics. You can opt out by installing the Google Analytics opt-out browser extension.
Functional Cookies — Remember your preferences such as saved searches, display settings, and recently viewed listings.
Marketing Cookies — Used to deliver relevant advertisements and measure campaign effectiveness. These are only set with your consent.

You can manage cookie preferences through your browser settings. Note that disabling essential cookies may affect Platform functionality.

6. Your Rights

Depending on your jurisdiction, you may have the following rights regarding your personal data:

Right of Access — You may request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
Right to Correction — You may request that we correct inaccurate or incomplete personal data. You can also update most information directly through your account settings.
Right to Deletion — You may request that we delete your personal data, subject to legal retention requirements. You can delete your account through your account settings, which will remove your profile and associated data from public view.
Right to Data Portability — You may request a copy of your data in a structured, commonly used, machine-readable format (such as CSV or JSON).
Right to Restrict Processing — You may request that we limit the processing of your data in certain circumstances.
Right to Object — You may object to the processing of your data for direct marketing purposes at any time.
Right to Withdraw Consent — Where processing is based on your consent, you may withdraw that consent at any time without affecting the lawfulness of prior processing.

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at info@masters.africa. We will respond to your request within 30 days, or within the timeframe required by applicable law.

7. Data Retention

We retain your personal data for as long as your account is active or as needed to provide you with our services. Specific retention periods include:

Active Accounts — Profile data, CVs, and application history are retained while your account remains active.
Deleted Accounts — Upon account deletion, we remove your profile and public-facing data within 30 days. Certain data may be retained for up to 12 months for legal compliance, fraud prevention, or dispute resolution.
Job Listings — Expired job listings are archived and removed from public search after 90 days. Employers may delete listings at any time.
Payment Records — Transaction records are retained for up to 7 years as required by tax and financial regulations.
Analytics Data — Anonymised analytics data may be retained indefinitely for statistical purposes.

8. African Data Protection Compliance

Masters Africa serves users across the African continent and is committed to complying with applicable data protection laws in each jurisdiction:

South Africa — POPIA — We comply with the Protection of Personal Information Act, 2013 (POPIA). We process personal information lawfully, for a specific purpose, and with adequate safeguards. South African users may lodge complaints with the Information Regulator at inforeg.org.za.
Nigeria — NDPR/NDPA — We comply with the Nigeria Data Protection Regulation (NDPR) and the Nigeria Data Protection Act, 2023 (NDPA). We ensure lawful processing, data minimisation, and appropriate consent mechanisms for Nigerian users.
Kenya — DPA 2019 — We comply with Kenya's Data Protection Act, 2019 and process data in accordance with the principles established by the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner.
Ghana — DPA 2012 — We comply with Ghana's Data Protection Act, 2012 (Act 843) and register with the Data Protection Commission as required.
African Union Convention — We align our practices with the principles of the African Union Convention on Cyber Security and Personal Data Protection (Malabo Convention) where applicable.
Other Jurisdictions — For users in other African countries, we apply the data protection standards of the relevant local legislation. Where no specific data protection law exists, we apply internationally recognised best practices.

We appoint local representatives or data protection contacts as required by the applicable laws of each jurisdiction in which we operate.

9. International Data Transfers

Your data may be processed on servers located outside your country of residence. When we transfer data across borders, we implement appropriate safeguards, including standard contractual clauses and compliance with applicable cross-border transfer requirements, to ensure your data receives an adequate level of protection.

10. Children's Privacy

Masters Africa is intended for users who are at least 18 years of age. We do not knowingly collect personal information from individuals under 18. If we become aware that we have inadvertently collected data from a person under 18, we will take steps to delete that information promptly. If you believe a minor has provided us with personal data, please contact us at info@masters.africa.

11. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technology, legal requirements, or other factors. We will notify you of material changes by posting a notice on the Platform or sending an email to the address associated with your account. We encourage you to review this policy periodically.

12. Contact

If you have questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us at:

Email: info@masters.africa
Website: masters.africa/contact

For data protection inquiries specific to South Africa, you may also contact the Information Regulator at enquiries@inforegulator.org.za.