Welcome to Dipika (“we”, “our”, “us”). Your privacy is important to us. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, protect and disclose your personal information when you visit or interact with https://dipika.co.za (“the Website”).
Dipika is committed to protecting your personal information in accordance with the Protection of Personal Information Act, 2013 (POPIA) of South Africa and, where applicable, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) of the European Union.
1. Who We Are
Dipika is an independent educational platform dedicated to providing high-quality information about Sanatan Dharma (Hinduism).
Website: https://dipika.co.za
Email: info@dipika.co.za
2. Information We Collect
Depending on how you use the Website, we may collect the following information.
Information you provide voluntarily
When you:
- contact us
- submit a form
- subscribe to newsletters
- leave comments
- create an account
- donate
- participate in surveys
we may collect:
- Name
- Email address
- Telephone number (if supplied)
- Country
- Organisation (optional)
- Message content
Automatically collected information
When you browse the Website we may automatically collect:
- IP address
- Browser type
- Device type
- Operating system
- Screen resolution
- Language
- Pages visited
- Time spent on pages
- Referral source
- Search terms used
- Date and time of access
Cookies
The Website uses cookies to improve functionality and user experience.
Cookies may be used to:
- remember preferences
- improve performance
- understand visitor behaviour
- maintain login sessions
- analyse website traffic
You may disable cookies through your browser settings.
Some website features may not function correctly if cookies are disabled.
3. How We Use Your Information
We use your information to:
- operate the Website
- respond to enquiries
- improve user experience
- analyse website usage
- send newsletters (only with consent)
- improve search functionality
- moderate comments
- detect abuse
- improve website security
- comply with legal obligations
4. Lawful Basis for Processing
Where applicable, we process personal information on one or more of the following legal bases:
- your consent
- performance of a contract
- compliance with legal obligations
- legitimate interests in operating and improving the Website
5. Newsletter
If you subscribe to our newsletter we will use your email address only to send:
- new articles
- important updates
- publications
- announcements
- educational material
You may unsubscribe at any time using the unsubscribe link included in every email.
We do not sell mailing lists.
6. Comments
If comments are enabled, information submitted through comments may include:
- name
- email address
- IP address
- browser information
Comments may be moderated before publication.
We reserve the right to remove comments that are:
- abusive
- offensive
- defamatory
- misleading
- spam
- promotional
- unlawful
7. Contact Forms
Information submitted through contact forms is used solely to respond to your enquiry.
We do not use contact form submissions for unsolicited marketing.
8. Donations
If donations are accepted through third-party payment providers, payment information is processed directly by the payment provider.
Dipika does not store:
- credit card numbers
- banking PINs
- CVV numbers
- payment passwords
Please refer to the privacy policy of the relevant payment processor.
9. Analytics
We may use website analytics services including:
- Google Analytics
- Matomo
- Cloudflare Analytics
- other privacy-friendly analytics platforms
These services help us understand:
- visitor numbers
- popular content
- search behaviour
- website performance
Analytics information is generally aggregated and does not identify individual visitors.
10. Search
Search terms entered into the Website may be stored in anonymous form to improve search quality and user experience.
Search history is not linked to identifiable users unless you are logged into an account and have expressly consented.
11. Artificial Intelligence
Dipika may use artificial intelligence technologies to assist in:
- organising content
- improving search
- generating summaries
- recommending related articles
- improving navigation
Personal information is not intentionally used to train public AI systems.
12. Embedded Content
Articles may include embedded content from third-party services such as:
- YouTube
- Vimeo
- Google Maps
Embedded content behaves in the same manner as if you visited those third-party websites directly.
Those websites may collect information according to their own privacy policies.
13. External Links
The Website contains links to external websites.
Dipika has no control over the privacy practices of external websites.
Users should review the privacy policies of those websites separately.
14. Data Sharing
We do not sell personal information.
We may share information only where necessary with trusted service providers including:
- hosting providers
- email delivery services
- analytics providers
- spam protection services
- security providers
- payment processors
These providers process information only to the extent necessary to provide their services.
15. International Data Transfers
Some service providers may store or process information outside South Africa.
Where this occurs we take reasonable steps to ensure appropriate safeguards are in place.
16. Data Security
We employ reasonable administrative, technical and organisational measures to protect personal information, including:
- SSL encryption
- secure hosting
- firewall protection
- malware monitoring
- software updates
- access controls
- password protection
- backup systems
No method of electronic transmission or storage is completely secure.
17. Data Retention
We retain personal information only for as long as necessary to:
- fulfil the purpose for which it was collected
- comply with legal obligations
- resolve disputes
- enforce agreements
Information that is no longer required is securely deleted or anonymised.
18. Your Rights
Subject to applicable law, you may have the right to:
- request access to your personal information
- request correction of inaccurate information
- request deletion of personal information
- withdraw consent
- object to processing
- restrict processing
- request portability of your personal information
- lodge a complaint with the relevant supervisory authority
Requests may be submitted through our Contact page.
19. Children’s Privacy
Dipika is intended for a general audience.
Where children’s educational material is provided, we do not knowingly collect personal information from children without appropriate consent where required by law.
Parents or guardians who believe personal information has been collected in error should contact us immediately.
20. Security Breaches
Should a data breach occur that is likely to affect your rights, Dipika will take reasonable steps to:
- investigate the incident
- mitigate the impact
- notify affected individuals where required
- notify the relevant regulatory authorities where legally required
21. Changes to this Privacy Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time.
The latest version will always be published on this page.
Continued use of the Website constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.
22. Contact Us
If you have any questions regarding this Privacy Policy or the processing of your personal information, please contact us.
Website: https://dipika.co.za
Email: info@dipika.co.za