POPIA Privacy Policy

Effective Date: 07 June 2026

1. Introduction

The South African Council for the Architectural Profession (SACAP) is committed to protecting your personal information in accordance with the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA), Act 4 of 2013.

This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you use the AI Assessor Building Compliance system.

2. Information We Collect

We collect the following types of information:

• Personal Information: Name, email address, SACAP registration number
• Professional Information: Architectural professional category, firm details
• Building Plans: PDF documents uploaded for compliance review
• Technical Data: Plan metadata, compliance assessment results
• Usage Data: System access logs, feature usage statistics

3. How We Use Your Information

Your information is used for:

• Verifying SACAP membership and professional credentials
• Processing building plan compliance assessments
• Generating compliance reports and certifications
• Improving AI assessment accuracy and system performance
• Communicating system updates and support
• Maintaining audit trails for regulatory compliance

4. Legal Basis for Processing

We process your personal information based on:

• Consent: You provide explicit consent when registering and using the system
• Legitimate Interest: Professional regulation and building compliance verification
• Legal Obligation: Compliance with National Building Regulations and SACAP Act

5. Information Sharing

We do not sell your personal information. We may share information with:

• Municipalities: When you submit plans for approval
• Mentors: SACAP-registered professionals you designate for plan review
• Service Providers: AI processing (Anthropic Claude), hosting providers
• Regulatory Bodies: When required by law or regulation

6. Data Security

We implement appropriate technical and organizational measures including:

• Encrypted data transmission (SSL/TLS)
• Secure file storage with access controls
• Regular security audits and updates
• Role-based access restrictions
• Audit logging and monitoring

7. Your POPIA Rights

You have the right to:

• Access your personal information
• Correct inaccurate or incomplete information
• Request deletion of your information (subject to legal retention requirements)
• Object to processing in certain circumstances
• Lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator

8. Data Retention

We retain your information for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes outlined in this policy, or as required by applicable laws and regulations (minimum 5 years for building records).

9. Contact Information

For privacy-related inquiries or to exercise your POPIA rights:

10. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of any material changes by posting the new policy on this page and updating the effective date.