Website: https://marinadagamastory.co.za Last updated: 9 September 2026
1. Who We Are
This website is operated in connection with the book 50 Years On: The Marina de Gama Story (“we”, “us”, “our”). Our website address is https://marinadagamastory.co.za. If you have any questions about this policy or how we handle your personal information, you can contact us at patrick.mckenna1961@gmail.com or patrick@composition.co.za.
This policy is written to comply with South Africa’s Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA).
2. What Information We Collect
We collect personal information when you interact with our site, and in particular when you purchase a copy of the book. Depending on what you do on the site, this may include:
- Contact details: your name and email address
- Delivery details: your postal/shipping address, if you order a printed copy
- Order information: details of the book(s) you purchase, order date, and order value
- Payment information: we do not collect or store your card or banking details ourselves. Payments are processed securely by our third-party payment provider, PayFast (Pty) Ltd. PayFast collects and processes your payment details directly, under its own privacy policy, available at https://www.payfast.co.za/privacy-policy/
- Technical/usage data: basic website analytics (see Section 4, Google Analytics), such as pages visited, browser type, and approximate location, collected automatically
We do not knowingly collect information from children, and this site is not directed at children.
3. How We Use Your Information
We use the personal information we collect to:
- Process and fulfil your book order (digital or printed)
- Deliver printed copies to the address you provide
- Communicate with you about your order (e.g. confirmations, delivery updates, order queries)
- Respond to enquiries you send us
- Understand general website traffic and improve the site (via Google Analytics)
- Meet our legal, tax, and accounting obligations
We do not use your information for automated decision-making or profiling, and we do not sell your personal information to third parties.
4. Cookies and Google Analytics
Our site may use cookies for basic website functionality (for example, remembering items in a shopping cart during checkout).
We also use Google Analytics, which uses cookies to help us understand website traffic. For example: how many people visit the site and which pages are popular. This information is used on an occasional, informal basis. We are not conducting detailed audience tracking or advertising profiling.
Google Analytics may collect data such as your IP address, browser type, device type, and pages viewed. This information is processed by Google in accordance with Google’s own privacy policy, available at https://policies.google.com/privacy.
You can control or disable cookies through your browser settings at any time. Disabling cookies may affect some site functionality, such as checkout.
5. Who We Share Your Data With
We share personal information only where necessary to provide our service:
- PayFast — to process your payment securely
- Courier/postal service providers — to deliver printed copies of the book to you
- Google Analytics — for general, aggregated website traffic insights
We do not share your personal information with any other third parties, and we do not sell your data.
6. Where Your Data Is Sent
Your payment details are sent directly to PayFast for processing and are not transmitted to or stored on our servers. PayFast is a South African-based payment gateway. Google Analytics data may be processed on servers outside South Africa, in accordance with Google’s own data protection safeguards.
7. How Long We Retain Your Data
We retain order information (name, contact details, delivery address, order history) for as long as necessary to fulfil the order, handle any related queries or returns, and meet our legal and tax record-keeping obligations. After that period, we take reasonable steps to delete or anonymise this information.
8. Your Rights
Under POPIA, you have the right to:
- Request access to the personal information we hold about you
- Request correction of inaccurate or outdated information
- Request that we delete personal information we hold about you (subject to our legal obligations, e.g. financial record-keeping)
- Object to our processing of your personal information in certain circumstances
- Lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator (South Africa) if you believe your information has been mishandled: https://inforegulator.org.za/
To exercise any of these rights, contact us at patrick.mckenna1961@gmail.com or patrick@composition.co.za.
9. Security
We take reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect your personal information. However, no method of transmission over the internet is 100% secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.
10. Changes to This Policy
We may update this policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or legal requirements. The “Last updated” date at the top of this page will reflect the most recent revision.
11. Contact Us
If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or how your data is handled, please contact us at:
Email: patrick.mckenna1961@gmail.com or patrick@composition.co.za Website: https://marinadagamastory.co.za