Privacy Policy.

About this Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy applies to personal information processed through the Lekker Books website, online bookstore, customer accounts, author applications, author memberships, Author Dashboard, events, contact forms, newsletters and related services.

Lekker Books is committed to processing personal information lawfully, reasonably and transparently in accordance with applicable South African privacy requirements.

This policy should be read together with the Lekker Books Terms and Conditions and any additional notice displayed when information is collected.

Responsible party and contact information

The responsible party determines why and how personal information is processed through Lekker Books.

Trading name

Lekker Books

Legal owner

Lekker Books

Registration number

N/A

Physical address

38 Van Riebeeck Str, Ceres, 6835

Information Officer

Graeme May

Privacy email

authors@lekkerbooks.co.za

Website

Lekker Books

Contact page

Submit a privacy enquiry

Personal information we may collect

The information collected depends on how a person uses Lekker Books.

Information may include:

• Full name and preferred display name
• Email address
• Telephone and WhatsApp number
• Billing and delivery addresses
• Account username and encrypted password information
• Order numbers and transaction records
• Products purchased, downloaded or returned
• Payment status and payment-provider references
• Delivery, courier and tracking information
• Customer-service enquiries and correspondence
• Author applications and membership information
• Author biography, photograph and public profile details
• Book, publishing and rights-related information
• Author sales and statement records
• Website, social-media and promotional links
• Newsletter preferences and communication history
• Event registrations or enquiries
• IP address, browser, device and operating-system data
• Pages viewed and general website-usage information
• Fraud-prevention and website-security information

Lekker Books aims to collect only information that is relevant and reasonably necessary for the purpose for which it is processed.

How personal information is collected

Information may be collected directly when a person:

• Places an order
• Creates or updates an account
• Submits an author application
• Purchases or renews an author membership
• Updates an author profile
• Downloads a digital product
• Registers for an event
• Subscribes to a newsletter
• Completes a contact or support form
• Communicates by email, telephone or messaging

Information may also be received from payment providers, couriers, publishers, authors, website-service providers, security systems and other parties involved in fulfilling a lawful request or transaction.

Technical information may be collected automatically when a visitor uses the website.

Why personal information is used

Lekker Books may process personal information to:

• Create and maintain customer and author accounts
• Process and verify orders and payments
• Deliver printed books and digital downloads
• Provide order, account and download support
• Process returns, refunds and payment adjustments
• Review and administer author applications
• Manage memberships, renewals and suspensions
• Create and maintain public author profiles
• Connect authors to their listed books
• Calculate and provide author sales statements
• Manage events, enquiries and registrations
• Send operational and service communications
• Send marketing where lawful and permitted
• Maintain website security and prevent fraud
• Understand and improve website performance
• Maintain accounting and transaction records
• Comply with legal, regulatory and tax obligations
• Establish, exercise or defend legal rights

Information will not be used for a materially incompatible purpose without an appropriate legal basis or further notice.

Lawful reasons for processing information

Depending on the circumstances, personal information may be processed because:

• The person has consented to a particular form of processing
• Processing is required to enter into or perform a contract
• Processing is required to comply with a legal obligation
• Processing protects a legitimate interest of the person
• Processing is necessary for Lekker Books’ legitimate business interests and does not unjustifiably infringe privacy
• Processing is otherwise permitted or required under applicable law

Consent may be withdrawn where consent is the applicable basis for processing. Withdrawal does not invalidate processing that lawfully occurred before the withdrawal.

Orders, payments and deliveries

Order information is used to process purchases, confirm payment, supply downloads, package printed books and arrange delivery.

Payment information is processed through the payment methods displayed during checkout. Lekker Books may receive transaction references, payment status and limited verification information from the payment provider.

Lekker Books does not need to store a customer’s complete card number or online-banking credentials when those details are entered directly into a secure third-party payment platform.

Delivery information may be shared with couriers, fulfilment providers, authors, publishers or suppliers where reasonably necessary to complete the order.

Transaction and accounting records may be retained for financial, tax, legal and dispute-resolution purposes.

Authors, applications and memberships

Author applicants provide information needed to verify their identity, assess their application, connect them to the correct books and establish an author account.

Approved author information may be divided between private account information and public profile information.

Public profile information may include:

• Author or pen name
• Profile photograph
• Biography
• Website and social links
• Genres and categories
• Linked books
• Approved promotional information

Private membership, payment, account and sales information is not intended to appear publicly.

Authors are responsible for ensuring that information, images and links submitted for public display may lawfully be published.

Cookies, analytics and website information

Lekker Books may use cookies and similar technologies to operate the website, remember preferences, maintain sessions, support checkout, protect accounts and understand website usage.

Cookies may include:

• Essential cookies required for security, accounts, carts and checkout
• Preference cookies that remember selected settings
• Analytics cookies or local measurement tools used to understand visits and page views
• Marketing cookies where such tools are enabled and consent is required

Browser settings can be used to block or delete cookies. Blocking essential cookies may prevent carts, accounts, checkout or other website functions from working properly.

Website analytics may record information such as general location at country level, device type, browser, operating system, referring source and pages viewed.

Newsletters and direct marketing

Lekker Books may send newsletters, book news, author updates, event announcements or promotional messages where the communication is lawful.

Marketing consent should be separate from consent required to complete an order, create an account or provide another requested service.

A person may unsubscribe from marketing by using the unsubscribe option in the communication or by contacting Lekker Books.

Unsubscribing from marketing does not prevent essential operational messages relating to an order, account, membership, payment, download or support request.

Lekker Books will not sell personal contact information to advertisers or unrelated marketing businesses.

When personal information may be shared

Personal information may be shared only where reasonably necessary for a lawful purpose.

Recipients may include:

• Website-hosting and technical-service providers
• Payment gateways and financial-service providers
• Couriers and fulfilment providers
• Authors, publishers, printers or book suppliers
• Email and newsletter-service providers
• Accounting, legal and professional advisers
• Fraud-prevention and cybersecurity providers
• Regulators, courts and government authorities
• A purchaser or successor where the business or platform is lawfully transferred

Service providers acting on behalf of Lekker Books should process information only for the agreed service and apply appropriate confidentiality and security safeguards.

Lekker Books does not disclose personal information merely because an unrelated person requests it.

Processing outside South Africa

Some website, hosting, email, cloud, payment or technical service providers may store or process information outside South Africa.

Where personal information is transferred across borders, Lekker Books will take reasonable steps to ensure that the transfer is permitted and that appropriate safeguards, contractual protections or recognised legal grounds apply.

The privacy laws of another country may differ from South African law.

How information is protected

Lekker Books uses reasonable technical and organisational measures intended to protect personal information against loss, misuse, unauthorised access, alteration or destruction.

Measures may include:

• Secure website connections
• Password and account-access controls
• Restricted administrative access
• Software, theme and plugin maintenance
• Security monitoring and activity logs
• Data backups
• Malware and unauthorised-access protection
• Confidentiality requirements for service providers
• Limiting access to people who require the information

No internet-based system can guarantee absolute security. Customers and authors must also protect their passwords, email accounts and devices.

Security compromises

Lekker Books will investigate a suspected loss, unauthorised access or security compromise affecting personal information.

Where required, Lekker Books will notify the Information Regulator and affected people as soon as reasonably possible, subject to any lawful delay requested by an appropriate authority.

A notification may explain what happened, the information affected, the steps being taken and practical measures that affected people can use to protect themselves.

A person who suspects that their account has been compromised should change the relevant password and contact Lekker Books immediately.

How long information is retained

Personal information is retained only for as long as reasonably required for the purpose for which it was collected or as required by law.

Retention periods may depend on:

• The duration of a customer or author account
• The author membership period
• Order, download and delivery requirements
• Accounting, tax and reporting obligations
• Warranty, return and refund periods
• Fraud-prevention and security requirements
• Legal claims and dispute-resolution periods
• A lawful request to preserve information

Information that is no longer required may be securely deleted, destroyed, anonymised or retained in a restricted form where legally appropriate.

Public author-profile information may be hidden when a membership is suspended or terminated while underlying records are retained for legitimate operational and legal purposes.

Your privacy rights

Subject to applicable law and reasonable identity verification, a person may request:

• Confirmation of whether Lekker Books holds personal information about them
• Access to personal information held about them
• Correction or updating of inaccurate or incomplete information
• Deletion or destruction where retention is no longer lawful or necessary
• Restriction of information while an accuracy or legal concern is reviewed
• Objection to processing in circumstances recognised by law
• Withdrawal of consent where processing depends on consent
• Removal from direct-marketing communication
• Information about the identity of authorised recipients where applicable
• A complaint to Lekker Books or the Information Regulator

A request may be refused, delayed or limited where another person’s rights, confidentiality, legal privilege, fraud prevention, legal obligations or another lawful ground applies.

Lekker Books may request sufficient information to verify the requester’s identity and locate the relevant records.

Information relating to children

The Lekker Books website may contain books suitable for children, but the online store and account services are not intended to collect personal information directly from young children without appropriate involvement from a competent person.

A parent, guardian or other competent person should complete purchases or provide required consent where a child’s personal information is involved.

Contact Lekker Books where personal information relating to a child appears to have been submitted without appropriate authority.

Lekker Books may delete, restrict or request further consent before processing such information.

Links to other websites and services

Lekker Books may link to author websites, social-media pages, payment platforms, courier tracking pages, newsletters, event-booking services or other third-party websites.

Third parties operate under their own terms and privacy policies. Lekker Books does not control how an unrelated third party processes information after a visitor leaves the Lekker Books website.

Visitors should review the applicable third-party privacy information before submitting personal information.

Changes to this policy

Lekker Books may update this Privacy Policy when the website, business processes, service providers, legal requirements or information practices change.

The current version will be published on this page with an updated revision date.

Material changes may also be communicated directly where reasonably appropriate.

Privacy enquiries and complaints

Privacy questions, access requests, correction requests, objections and complaints should first be submitted to the Lekker Books Information Officer.

Please include:

• Your full name
• Your contact email address
• The nature of the request or complaint
• Relevant order, account or membership information
• Enough detail to identify the affected information
• Proof of identity where reasonably required

A person may also submit a complaint to the Information Regulator of South Africa where they believe their personal information has been processed unlawfully.