Privacy notice

This notice explains what information Orderbook Africa collects when you use the site, what other people can see, and the choices you have.

What we collect

Information you give us

• Account details: your name, email address, password, mobile number and any other phone number, whether you are an individual or a business, your area and, if you add it, your street address.
• Ads: the title, description, price, details, location and photos of each ad you post.
• Business profile: business name, logo, description, website, phone, WhatsApp, email and address.
• Enquiries: the name, email, phone number and message you enter when you contact a seller or ask for a quote.
• Saved items: your favourites and the searches you save as alerts.
• Wallet: your top-ups and how you spent points, with the amount, payment method and payment reference. Card and mobile money payments are handled by the payment provider.
• Reports and messages to us: what you tell us when you report an ad or email support.

Information we record as you use the site

• How often each ad appears in search results and is opened, and how many times a seller's phone, WhatsApp or email option is used. Sellers see these totals for their own ads.
• Technical information that any website receives, such as your IP address, browser type and the pages requested, kept in server logs to run and protect the service.

What other people can see

• Everything in a published ad is public and can appear in search engines.
• Next to your ads we show your name or business name, whether your email address is verified, and the month you joined.
• Your phone number is shown in part. The full number is given to a visitor who asks to see it or to WhatsApp you.
• Your street address is shown only if you choose to show it.
• Your email address is not shown on ads. Email enquiries are passed on to you, and you decide whether to reply.
• A business profile and storefront are public.

If you do not want your number given out, choose to hide your contact details in your profile. Buyers will then only be able to reach you by email enquiry.

How we use your information

• To run your account and publish, promote, expire and renew your ads.
• To pass enquiries and quote requests to the sellers they are meant for.
• To send emails you need or asked for: verifying your address, resetting your password, enquiries about your ads and alerts for saved searches.
• To add points to your wallet and keep a record of transactions.
• To review reported ads, prevent fraud and enforce the terms of use.
• To understand which parts of the site are used so we can improve it.

Who we share it with

• Other users, as described above: buyers see your ad and contact details, and sellers receive the details you put in an enquiry.
• Service providers that work for us, such as hosting, email delivery and payment processing. They may use the information only to provide that service.
• Authorities, when the law requires it or when it is needed to investigate fraud or protect someone's safety.

We do not sell your personal information.

Cookies and storage on your device

The site keeps a small amount of information in your browser so that it works the way you left it:

• a cookie that remembers whether you view prices in US dollars or ZiG;
• your light or dark theme choice;
• your sign-in session, so you stay signed in between visits. Signing out removes it.

We do not use advertising cookies.

How long we keep it

We keep account information while your account is open. Ads you delete are taken off the site straight away, and records of them may be kept for a period so we can deal with complaints and fraud. Wallet transactions are kept for as long as financial record-keeping rules require.

Your choices

• Edit your details at any time in your profile.
• Change how often alert emails arrive, or delete an alert, under Alerts.
• Delete any of your ads under My ads.
• Ask us for a copy of the information we hold about you, to correct it, or to close your account and delete it, by emailing help@orderbook.africa. We may need to confirm it is you first.

Keeping information safe

Passwords are stored in a scrambled form that we cannot read. Access to personal information is limited to the people who need it to run the service. No website can promise perfect security, so please use a password you do not use anywhere else.

Changes to this notice

When we change how we handle personal information we will update this page and the date at the top, and tell account holders about significant changes.

Contact

Questions about privacy go to help@orderbook.africa.