Privacy Policy

1. About this Policy

This Privacy Policy explains how Fundamentals Firm collects, uses, shares and protects personal information through its website at www.fundamentalsfirm.co.za (the “Website”), its AI assistant, and in the course of providing its services. It is published in compliance with the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 (“POPIA”).

By using the Website or engaging with Fundamentals Firm in any capacity, you confirm that you have read and understood this Policy.

In this Policy, “Fundamentals Firm”, “we”, “us” and “our” refer to Fundamentals Firm, a South African firm that builds AI agents and knowledge systems and provides AI direction services. “You” and “your” refer to any person whose personal information is collected by Fundamentals Firm. “Personal information” has the meaning given to it in POPIA.

2. Information We Collect

2.1 Information you give us directly

When you complete the contact form, chat with Ncedo, our AI assistant, request a consultation, send an email or otherwise engage with us, we may collect: your name, email address, telephone number, organisation, role, and any other information you choose to share in your message or conversation.

2.2 Information collected automatically

The Website is hosted on Vercel. When you visit the Website, certain technical information is processed automatically, including your IP address, browser and device type, pages visited and referring source. We use this to keep the Website secure and working, and to understand, in aggregate, how it is used.

We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under the age of 18.

3. How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect for the following purposes:

• To respond to your enquiries and requests for consultation
• To provide, manage and improve our services
• To send you information that you have requested or that is relevant to an active engagement
• To maintain proper records of our business activities
• To comply with our legal and regulatory obligations
• To understand how the Website is used and improve its content and performance

We rely on one or more of the following lawful bases under POPIA: your consent; the performance of a contract or a step taken at your request prior to entering into a contract; compliance with our legal obligations; and the legitimate interests of Fundamentals Firm, balanced against your rights.

4. Cookies, Analytics and Our AI Assistant

4.1 Functional storage

The Website uses small amounts of storage in your browser that are necessary for it to work, such as keeping your chat conversation open as you move between pages.

4.2 Analytics

We use Vercel Web Analytics to understand how visitors use the Website. It does not use cookies and reports only aggregated information, such as page views and the countries visitors come from. It is not used to identify you.

4.3 Ncedo, our AI assistant

The Website includes Ncedo, an AI assistant that answers questions about Fundamentals Firm. Ncedo is an AI, not a person, and will say so if asked. Your messages are processed on our own server and by our AI model provider in order to generate replies. If you choose to share your contact details or ask the assistant to pass a message to us, those details are recorded in our customer records so that we can respond. Please do not share sensitive personal information, such as health or financial details, in the chat.

5. Sharing With Third Parties

We do not sell your personal information.

We share information with third parties only where necessary to operate our business or comply with the law. Our principal third parties are:

• Vercel Inc.: our website hosting and analytics provider. Website data may be processed outside South Africa, including in the United States, under Vercel's data processing terms.
• AI and automation providers: the AI model provider that generates our assistant's replies, and the tools that route enquiries and record them in our customer records.
• Email and productivity tools: we use standard business email and productivity tools to manage correspondence and engagement records.
• Professional advisors and authorities: we may share information with our professional advisors (such as legal or accounting advisors) where strictly necessary, or with regulatory authorities where required by law.

Some of these providers process information outside South Africa. Where they do, we rely on their contractual and legal safeguards to protect it, in line with POPIA. All third parties with access to personal information are required to handle it in a manner consistent with this Policy and applicable law.

6. Data Retention and Security

We retain personal information only for as long as it is necessary for the purposes set out in this Policy, or for as long as required by law. As a general rule:

• Enquiry and chat information is retained for up to 24 months after the last contact, unless an engagement begins.
• Engagement records (proposals, invoices, deliverables, correspondence) are retained for a minimum of 5 years from the end of the engagement, in line with South African tax and commercial record-keeping requirements.

We apply reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect personal information against loss, unauthorised access, alteration or disclosure. No method of storage or transmission over the internet is fully secure, but we work to maintain appropriate safeguards.

7. Your Rights Under POPIA

As a data subject, you have the right to:

• Be informed of the personal information we hold about you
• Request access to your personal information
• Request correction or deletion of your personal information
• Object to the processing of your personal information in certain circumstances
• Withdraw consent where processing is based on consent
• Lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator of South Africa

To exercise any of these rights, please contact our Information Officer using the details below. We will respond to your request within a reasonable time, in line with POPIA.

Information Regulator (South Africa): inforegulator.org.za · enquiries@inforegulator.org.za

8. Information Officer and Contact

The designated Information Officer for Fundamentals Firm is Mhlengi Kunene, Founder and Principal.

Email: mhlengi.kunene@fundamentalsfirm.co.za · Phone: 074 940 0539

9. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, services or legal obligations. The current version will always be available on the Website, with the effective date shown above. We encourage you to review this Policy periodically.