Privacy Policy | Stay True Sounds

1. Who We Are

Stay True Sounds is an online store operated from South Africa, selling music, audio-related products, and merchandise through https://staytruesounds.com. For the purpose of POPIA, Stay True Sounds is the Responsible Party for personal information collected through this website.

Contact for privacy queries:
Email: info@staytruesounds.co.za
Telephone: +27 72 172 1052

2. Information We Collect

2.1 Information you give us

Account details: name, email address, password (stored hashed), and phone number.
Billing details: billing address and contact information required to process an order.
Shipping details: delivery address and recipient details needed to fulfil your order.
Order details: the products you buy, order quantities, and order history.
Correspondence: messages you send us via email, contact forms, or support channels.
Marketing preferences: if you opt in to newsletters or promotional emails.

2.2 Information collected automatically

Technical data: IP address, browser type, device information, and pages visited.
Cookies and similar technologies: to keep you logged in, remember your cart, and improve the site (see section 8).

2.3 Information we do not store

We do not store your credit card, debit card, or bank account details. All payments are processed directly by our payment provider on their own secure infrastructure.

3. How We Use Your Information

To create and manage your account.
To process orders, take payment, and deliver the products you purchase.
To communicate with you about your order — confirmations, receipts, dispatch notices, delivery updates, returns, and refunds.
To respond to your enquiries and provide customer support.
To send marketing communications where you have consented to receive them.
To detect fraud, prevent misuse of the platform, and keep the site secure.
To comply with our legal, tax, and accounting obligations.

4. Legal Basis for Processing

Under POPIA, we process your personal information on the following bases:

Contract: to fulfil your order and deliver the products and services you have purchased.
Legal obligation: to meet tax, financial, and consumer-protection requirements.
Legitimate interest: to secure the platform, prevent fraud, and improve our services.
Consent: for optional marketing communications, which you can withdraw at any time.

5. Who We Share Your Information With

We only share your personal information with the following categories of third parties, and only to the extent necessary:

Payment provider (PayFast): to process your payment. PayFast receives the transaction details required and is a Responsible Party for the payment data it collects.
Courier and delivery providers: to deliver your order to the address you supply.
Email delivery services: to send order confirmations, dispatch notices, and account emails.
Hosting and infrastructure providers: who store the site and its database on our behalf.
Analytics providers: to help us understand how the site is used so we can improve it.
Law enforcement or regulators: where we are legally required to do so.

We do not sell your personal information to third parties.

6. Cross-Border Transfers

Some of our service providers (for example, email delivery, analytics, and cloud hosting) may process your data outside South Africa. Where this happens, we require those providers to apply protections that are equivalent to those required under POPIA.

7. How Long We Keep Your Information

Account information: for as long as your account remains active, and for a reasonable period after closure to handle disputes and legal obligations.
Orders and invoices: retained for at least 5 years to comply with South African tax and accounting law.
Marketing preferences: retained until you unsubscribe or delete your account.
Website logs: typically retained for up to 12 months for security and diagnostics.

8. Cookies

We use the following categories of cookies:

Strictly necessary: to keep you logged in, maintain your cart, and process the checkout. These cannot be turned off.
Functional: to remember your preferences.
Analytics: to understand how the site is used so we can improve it.
Marketing: where enabled, to measure the effectiveness of promotional campaigns.

You can control cookies through your browser settings or our cookie banner. Disabling strictly necessary cookies may prevent parts of the site — including checkout and account access — from working.

9. Security

We take reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect your personal information, including encrypted connections (HTTPS), hashed passwords, restricted access to production data, and regular software updates. No system is completely secure, so we cannot guarantee absolute security — but we work hard to keep your information safe and to notify you promptly of any breach that affects you, as required by POPIA.

10. Your Rights Under POPIA

You have the right to:

Be told what personal information we hold about you.
Request access to that information.
Request that inaccurate information be corrected or updated.
Request that we delete personal information we no longer need.
Object to processing based on legitimate interest or direct marketing.
Withdraw consent for optional processing at any time.
Lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator (see section 12).

To exercise any of these rights, email hello@staytruesounds.com. We may ask you to verify your identity before actioning a request.

11. Children

Stay True Sounds is not intended for children under 18. If a purchase is being made on behalf of a minor, the order must be placed by a parent or legal guardian, who accepts responsibility for the transaction and the details supplied.

12. Contacting Us & the Information Regulator

For any privacy-related question, correction, deletion request, or complaint, contact us first at:

Stay True Sounds
Email: hello@staytruesounds.com
Telephone: +27 72 172 1052

If you are not satisfied with our response, you may lodge a complaint with:

The Information Regulator (South Africa)
Website: inforegulator.org.za
Complaints: POPIAComplaints@inforegulator.org.za

13. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we make material changes, we will update the “Last updated” date above and, where appropriate, notify you by email or a notice on the site. Please review this page periodically.