Data Protection Policy

hiveonline ApS and all its subsidiaries (“we” or “us” or “our”) respect the privacy of our users (“user” or “you”). This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you visit our hiveonline services (“Services”) e.g. mobile application, website, newsletter. Please read this Privacy Policy carefully. IF YOU DO NOT AGREE WITH THE TERMS OF THIS PRIVACY POLICY, PLEASE DO NOT ACCESS HIVEONLINE SERVICES.

We reserve the right to make changes to this Privacy Policy at any time and for any reason. We will alert you about any changes by updating the “Last updated” date of this Privacy Policy. You are encouraged to periodically review this Privacy Policy to stay informed of updates. You will be deemed to have been made aware of, will be subject to, and will be deemed to have accepted the changes in any revised Privacy Policy by your continued use of the Services after the date that the revised Privacy Policy is posted.

This Privacy Policy does not apply to third-party web/mobile Applications which you might access while using our Services, that may also collect and use data about you. We are not responsible for any of the data collected by any such third parties.

We may collect information about you in a variety of ways.

You directly provide hiveonline with most of the data we collect through our applications:

• vsla.online
• mycoop.online 
• Vouchers platform

We collect data and process data when you:

• Register online through either of our applications listed above
• Voluntarily complete a survey or provide feedback
• Use or view our website via your browser’s cookies
• Add your information on “contact us “ page of our website, or other sign up forms

hiveonline may also receive your data indirectly from the different partners we work with. Especially from the following sources: 

• Associação Moçambicana para a Promoção do Cooperativismo Moderno (AMPCM)
• Instituto de Amêndoas de Moçambique (IAM)
• Cooperative management registration
• Association of Women in Agriculture Kenya (AWAK)
• Self Help Africa(SHA)
• Save the Children Lebanon

The information we may collect via our Services depends on the content and materials you use, and includes:

Demographic and other personally identifiable information (such as your name, phone number, email address, Government ID, gender, date of birth) that you voluntarily give to us when choosing to participate in various activities related to the Application.

Cooperative Data

Cooperative data and identification information including InCaju ID, Smart Farm ID, NUIT number, coop registration number when you register in the mycoop.online application.

Group Data

VSLA group data and identification information including  group registration number, group name, project name,  group location etc  when you register in the VSLA application.

Derivative Data

Information our servers automatically collect when you access our Services, such as your usage of our website or your native actions that are integral to the Application eg time you logged in to our application, time you logged out

We will collect information regarding the earning from the production plans. We will estimate this from the kilos you delivered to the cooperative and the price/kg provided. We will also track loan information either internal or external and the loan purpose.

Production Plan Data

We will collect information regarding farmer production plans, including plot size, crop type, expected yield, and expected delivery date. This is to estimate the amount of produce that will be delivered and also contributes towards the reputation scoring.

Location & Geo-Location Information

We may request access or permission to and track location-based information from your mobile device, either continuously or while you are using our Services, to provide location-based functionality. This Geo information includes but not limited to longitude, latitude, country you are in, this will influence the location while registering or using our application. During registration, we also collect location info, which includes Country, region, district, municipality, county, village, territory, administrative post and neighbourhood name. If you wish to change our access to geolocation or permissions, you may do so in your device’s settings.

Mobile Device Access

We may request access or permission to certain features from your mobile device, including your location and  notifications on your browser. In the future, we might ask for access to device’s camera, photo gallery for uploading the profile photo. If you wish to change our access or permissions, you may do so in your device’s settings.

Mobile Device Data

Through the cookies and usage of our applications, we will collect device information such as your mobile device ID number, model, and manufacturer, version of your operating system, phone number, country, location, and any other data you choose to provide

Push Notifications

We may request to send you push notifications regarding your account or the Application. If you wish to opt-out from receiving these types of communications, you may turn them off in your device’s settings.

USE OF YOUR INFORMATION

Having accurate information about you permits us to provide you with a smooth, efficient, and customised experience. Specifically, we may use information collected about you via our Services to:

• Contact you regarding our organisation and Services
• Improve the quality of our Services
• Create and manage your account.
• Notify you regarding your account or order via SMS.
• Enable VSLA secretary communications to group members.
• Enable cooperative manager communications to cooperative members.
• Generate a cooperative member profile about you for cooperative management purposes.
• Generate a group member profile about you for VSLA group  management purposes.
• Increase the efficiency and operation of the Application.
• Monitor and analyse usage and trends to improve your experience with the Application.
• Notify you of updates to the Application.
• Offer new products, services, mobile applications, and/or recommendations to you.
• Perform other business activities as needed.
• Prevent fraudulent transactions, monitor against theft, and protect against criminal activity.
• Process payments and refunds.
• Compile anonymous statistical data and analysis for use internally or with third parties.
• Request feedback and contact you about your use of the Application.
• Resolve disputes and troubleshoot problems.
• Respond to product and customer service requests.
• Send you alerts and/or information through SMS.
• Solicit support for the Application.
• Deliver targeted advertising, coupons, newsletters, and promotions, and other information regarding the Application to you.
• Assist law enforcement.

Reputation Analysis

Data analysis of farmer data including KYC, Production Plans, Financial data will be conducted to build individual member and collective group reputation scoring. The reputation scoring is an alternative credit score, based on trust and provided data, which will be used for lending decisions. The analysis of reputation and cooperative data builds further evidence for grant applications and access to funding. The reputation score can then be appropriately shared with financial institutions and support agencies to increase inward investment into cooperatives and their members based on their history of reliable behaviour.

DISCLOSURE OF YOUR INFORMATION

We may share information we have collected about you in certain situations. Your information may be disclosed as follows:

By Law or to Protect Rights

If we believe the release of information about you is necessary to respond to legal process, to investigate or remedy potential violations of our policies, or to protect the rights, property, and safety of others, we may share your information as permitted or required by any applicable law, rule, or regulation. This includes exchanging information with other entities for fraud protection and credit risk reduction.

Third-Party Service Providers

We may share your information with third parties that perform services for us or on our behalf, including payment processing, data analysis, email delivery, hosting services, customer service, and marketing assistance.

MFIs and Financial Institutions

Data from the reputation analysis can then be appropriately shared with financial institutions and support agencies to increase inward investment into cooperatives  and groups and their members based on their history of reliable behaviour.

Affiliates

We may share your information with our affiliates, in which case we will require those affiliates to honor this Privacy Policy. Affiliates include our parent company and any subsidiaries, joint venture partners or other companies that we control or that are under common control with us.

Other Third Parties

We may share your information with advertisers and investors for the purpose of conducting general business analysis. We may also share your information with such third parties for marketing purposes, as permitted by law. All this will be governed by a Non disclosure agreement signed by both parties.

Sale or Bankruptcy

If we reorganize or sell all or a portion of our assets, undergo a merger, or are acquired by another entity, we may transfer your information to the successor entity. If we go out of business or enter bankruptcy, your information would be an asset transferred or acquired by a third party. You acknowledge that such transfers may occur and that the transferee may decline to honor commitments we made in this Privacy Policy. 

TRACKING TECHNOLOGIES

Services Analytics

We may also partner with selected third-party vendors to allow tracking technologies and remarketing services on our Services through the use of first party cookies and third-party cookies, to, among other things, analyse and track users’ use of our Services, determine the popularity of certain content, and better understand online activity. By accessing our Services, you consent to the collection and use of your information by these third-party vendors. You are encouraged to review their privacy policy and contact them directly for responses to your questions. We do not transfer personal information to these third-party vendors. However, if you do not want any information to be collected and used by tracking technologies, block cookies in your web browser or stop using the hiveonline Application based on which Services you are using.

You should be aware that getting a new device, installing a new browser, upgrading an existing browser, or erasing or otherwise altering your browser’s cookies files may also clear certain opt-out cookies, plug-ins, or settings.

THIRD-PARTY WEBSITES/APPS

Our Services may contain links to third-party websites and applications of interest, including advertisements and external services, that are not affiliated with us. Once you have used these links to leave our Services, any information you provide to these third parties is not covered by this Privacy Policy, and we cannot guarantee the safety and privacy of your information. Before visiting and providing any information to any third-party websites, you should inform yourself of the privacy policies and practices (if any) of the third party responsible for that website, and should take those steps necessary to, in your discretion, protect the privacy of your information. We are not responsible for the content or privacy and security practices and policies of any third parties, including other sites, services or applications that may be linked to or from our Services.

We are not responsible for the actions of third parties with whom you share personal or sensitive data, and we have no authority to manage or control third-party solicitations. If you no longer wish to receive correspondence, emails or other communications from third parties, you are responsible for contacting the third party directly.

SECURITY OF YOUR INFORMATION

We use administrative, technical, and physical security measures to help protect your personal information. While we have taken reasonable steps to secure the personal information you provide to us, please be aware that despite our efforts, no security measures are perfect or impenetrable, and no method of data transmission can be guaranteed against any interception or other type of misuse. Any information disclosed online is vulnerable to interception and misuse by unauthorized parties. Therefore, we cannot guarantee complete security if you provide personal information.

POLICY FOR CHILDREN

We do not knowingly solicit information from or market to children under the age of 18. If you become aware of any data we have collected from children under age 18, please contact us using the contact information provided below and we will follow up to seek written approval from the parent or the guardian of the minor

DATA RETENTION

We will retain all the data collected for as long as the data still continues to fulfil the purpose for which it was intended for.

DATA BREACH

Incase data breach and your data is affected, we will notify the relevant supervisory body within 48 hours and we will also notify you, the data subject within 72 hours of us knowing.

CONTROLS FOR DO-NOT-TRACK FEATURES

Most web browsers and some mobile operating systems include a Do-Not-Track (“DNT”) feature or setting you can activate to signal your privacy preference not to have data about your online browsing activities monitored and collected. No uniform technology standard for recognising and implementing DNT signals has been finalised. As such, we do not currently respond to DNT browser signals or any other mechanism that automatically communicates your choice not to be tracked online. If a standard for online tracking is adopted that we must follow in the future, we will inform you about that practice in a revised version of this Privacy Policy.

OPTIONS REGARDING YOUR INFORMATION

Account Information

You may at any time review or change the information in your account or terminate your account by:

• Logging into user account settings and updating the user account.
• Contacting us using the contact information provided.

Upon your request to terminate your account, we will deactivate or delete your account and information from our active databases. However, some information may be retained in our files to prevent fraud, troubleshoot problems, assist with any investigations, enforce our Terms of Use and/or comply with legal requirements.

Emails and Communications

If you no longer wish to receive correspondence, emails, or other  communications from us, you may opt-out by:

• Clicking the Unsubscribe link on the relevant emails
• Emailing dpo@hivenetwork.online with the subject: “Correspondence Opt-Out”

For Application-related communications:

• Noting your preferences at the time you register your account with the Application.
• Logging into your account settings and updating your preferences.
• Contacting us using the contact information provided below.

If you no longer wish to receive correspondence, emails, or other communications from third parties, you are responsible for contacting the third party directly.

CONTACT INFORMATION

If you have questions or comments about this Privacy Policy, please contact our Data Protection Office at:

Denmark Office

hiveonline ApS
Appelby Plads 7
1141 Copenhagen
Denmark
Phone: +45244273 71
dpo@hivenetwork.online

Rwanda Office

hiveonline ApS Limited
Norrsken House Kigali
KG 4 Ave, Kigali
Rwanda
dpo@hivenetwork.online

Kenya

Hive Network Limited
Nairobi, Kenya
dpo@hivenetwork.online

Mozambique – entity under registration

You may also contact the National Data Protection Authority  in your country  if you have any concerns on your rights or the usage of your data as a data subject.