1. Who we are

Circle Media is a South African creative, branding and digital agency. In this policy, “Circle Media”, “we”, “us” and “our” refer to Circle Media, the responsible party for personal information collected through our website and in the course of providing our services.

This policy explains how we collect, use, store and protect personal information, and the choices available to you.

2. Information we collect

We collect information that you give us directly, for example when you submit an enquiry, request a quotation, subscribe to communications, apply for a role, or work with us as a client or supplier. This may include:

• your name, business name, email address, telephone number and other contact details;
• information you include in your message, brief, quotation request or application;
• billing, payment and transaction information where needed to provide services; and
• content, files and access details you provide so that we can deliver agreed work.

When you browse our website, we may automatically collect limited technical information such as your IP address, browser type, device information, pages visited and how you interact with the site. We collect this through cookies and similar technologies.

3. How we use your information

We use personal information only where we have a lawful reason to do so. This includes to:

• respond to your enquiry and prepare proposals or quotations;
• provide, manage and support our services and client relationships;
• process payments, maintain records and meet legal or tax obligations;
• improve our website, services, performance and security;
• communicate important service, project or account information; and
• send relevant marketing only where permitted by law and, where required, with your consent.

You may opt out of marketing at any time by using the unsubscribe link in our emails or contacting us.

4. Cookies and analytics

Cookies are small text files placed on your device when you visit a website. We may use necessary cookies to make the site function, and analytics cookies to understand how visitors use it and to improve the experience.

You can control or delete cookies through your browser settings. Please note that disabling certain cookies may affect how parts of the website work.

5. When we share information

We do not sell your personal information. We may share it only where necessary with trusted service providers who help us operate our business or deliver services, such as website hosting, email, payment, accounting, cloud storage and analytics providers. These providers may process information only on our instructions and with appropriate safeguards.

We may also disclose information where required by law, to protect our rights or safety, or in connection with a business restructuring or transfer.

6. International transfers

Some of our service providers may process information outside South Africa. Where this happens, we take reasonable steps to ensure that the recipient is subject to appropriate data-protection safeguards, as required by applicable law.

7. Security and retention

We use reasonable technical and organisational safeguards to protect personal information against loss, misuse, unauthorised access, disclosure, alteration or destruction. No online system can be completely secure, so we cannot guarantee absolute security.

We keep information only for as long as reasonably necessary for the purpose it was collected, to provide services, to resolve disputes, or to meet legal, accounting and reporting obligations. We then securely delete or anonymise it where appropriate.

8. Your rights

Subject to applicable law, you may ask us to confirm whether we hold your personal information; request access to it; ask that inaccurate, incomplete or outdated information be corrected; object to certain processing; withdraw consent where processing is based on consent; or request deletion where we no longer have a lawful reason to retain it.

To protect your information, we may need to verify your identity before actioning a request.

9. Children’s information

Our website and services are not intended to knowingly collect personal information from children without appropriate consent. If you believe a child has provided personal information to us without the necessary consent, please contact us so that we can investigate and take appropriate action.

10. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time. The current version will always be published on this page and the “Last updated” date will show when it was most recently revised.

11. Contact us

If you have a privacy question, wish to exercise your rights, or have a concern about how we handle your information, please contact Circle Media through our contact page.