VONK! — Privacy Policy / Privaatheidsbeleid

This policy is provided in English. An Afrikaans summary is available on request while we finish the full bilingual version. / Hierdie beleid word tans in Engels verskaf. 'n Afrikaanse opsomming is op aanvraag beskikbaar terwyl ons die volledige tweetalige weergawe voltooi.

VONK! ("we", "us", "our") provides CAPS-aligned mathematics worksheet generation for South African teachers (the "Teacher Generator") and an interactive practice app for learners used together with their parent or guardian (the "VONK! Kids/Parent App"). This policy explains how we handle personal information in both products, in line with the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 ("POPIA").

1. Who we are

VONK! is operated by EDUVONK (Pty) Ltd, registration number 2026/642779/07, based in South Africa. Our appointed Information Officer, registered with the Information Regulator, is:

Information Officer: Chrizaan Helena
Email: hello@eduvonk.co.za
Postal/physical address: 9 President CR Swart, Ermelo, Mpumalanga, 2350

2. What personal information we collect

Teachers (Teacher Generator)

• Email address and password (stored as a one-way cryptographic hash — we never store or see your actual password)
• Display name, if provided
• School logo or custom mascot images, if uploaded
• Purchase records: plan type, terms/year purchased, amount paid, promo codes used, and payment status (not your card number — see Section 5)
• Usage data: grades, topics, and terms you generate worksheets for, so the correct ATP-aligned content and access rights can be shown to you

Parents and children (VONK! Kids/Parent App)

• A parent or guardian creates the account and provides their own email address and password
• A first name or nickname for each child profile, and the child's grade
• The child's practice session results (questions attempted, marks, time spent) so progress can be shown on the parent's dashboard

We do not knowingly collect personal information directly from children without a parent or guardian first creating and controlling the account, consistent with the special protections POPIA gives to children's personal information (Section 34).

3. How we use your information

• To create and secure your account, and keep you logged in
• To determine which terms, years, or Pro features you have paid for and are entitled to access
• To process payments and apply promo codes
• To show a child's practice progress to their own parent/guardian
• To respond to support requests and improve VONK!'s content and features

We do not sell your personal information, and we do not use it for third-party advertising.

4. Legal basis for processing

We process your information because you have consented to it (by creating an account), because it is necessary to perform our contract with you (providing paid access you have purchased), or because we have a legitimate interest in operating and improving VONK! that does not override your own privacy rights.

5. Payments

Payments are processed by Paystack, a licensed third-party payment processor. Your card details are entered directly with Paystack and are never seen, transmitted to, or stored by VONK!'s own servers — we only receive confirmation that a payment succeeded, together with the amount and a transaction reference.

6. Cookies

We use a single, essential session cookie to keep you logged in. It is marked HttpOnly (not readable by page scripts) and is not used for tracking, profiling, or advertising. We do not use third-party advertising or analytics cookies.

7. How we protect your information

Passwords are hashed using PBKDF2-SHA256 with a unique salt per account and never stored in plain text. Access to the underlying database is restricted. While no system can be guaranteed 100% secure, we take reasonable technical and organisational measures appropriate to the sensitivity of the information we hold.

8. How long we keep your information

We retain account and purchase information for as long as your account is active, and thereafter only as long as reasonably necessary for record-keeping, tax, and legal purposes. You may request deletion of your account at any time (see Section 10).

9. Sharing your information

We share information only with the service providers needed to run VONK!, currently: Paystack (payment processing) and our hosting provider (which stores the database that powers the site). We do not sell or rent personal information to any third party.

10. Your rights under POPIA

You have the right to:

• Ask us what personal information we hold about you
• Ask us to correct inaccurate information
• Ask us to delete your account and associated personal information, subject to any legal obligation we have to retain records
• Object to our processing of your information on reasonable grounds
• Lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator of South Africa (inforegulator.org.za) if you believe your rights have been infringed

To exercise any of these rights, email hello@eduvonk.co.za.

11. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time as VONK! grows. Material changes will be reflected by an updated effective date at the top of this page. Continued use of VONK! after a change means you accept the updated policy.

12. Contact us

Questions about this policy or your personal information can be sent to hello@eduvonk.co.za.