Privacy Policy

Effective Date: 1 July 2025  |  Last Updated: 1 July 2025

This Privacy Policy describes how Gowuku (operating as Gowuku, referred to herein as “we,” “us,” or “our”) collects, uses, discloses, and protects personal information obtained through the website located at gowuku.info (the “Website”). We are committed to respecting your privacy and handling your personal information responsibly in compliance with the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) and all applicable Canadian federal and provincial privacy legislation.

By accessing or using our Website, or by submitting information through any contact form on the Website, you acknowledge that you have read, understood, and consent to the practices described in this Privacy Policy. If you do not agree with this Policy, please do not use our Website or submit personal information to us.

1. Introduction and Accountability

Gowuku is the organization accountable for the personal information it collects, uses, and discloses. We have designated a Privacy Officer who is responsible for overseeing compliance with PIPEDA and this Privacy Policy. If you have any questions, concerns, or requests relating to privacy, you may contact our Privacy Officer using the information provided in Section 14 of this Policy.

We are responsible for personal information in our possession or custody, including information transferred to third-party service providers for processing on our behalf. We use contractual and other means to ensure that such third parties provide a comparable level of protection while processing your information.

This Privacy Policy applies to all personal information collected by us through the Website, including information provided voluntarily by users through contact forms, and information collected automatically through the use of cookies and similar tracking technologies.

2. Personal Information We Collect

We collect only the personal information that is necessary for the identified purposes described in this Policy. We do not collect personal information indiscriminately. The categories of personal information we collect include:

2.1 Information You Provide Directly

When you complete and submit a contact form on our Website, we collect the following personal information:

• Full Name: Your first and last name, used to address you appropriately in our communications.
• Email Address: Used to respond to your inquiry and to send you relevant information you have requested.
• Phone Number: Provided optionally, used to contact you by telephone if you have indicated a preference for phone communication or if we need to clarify details of your inquiry.
• Message Content: The content of your inquiry or message, including any additional personal details you choose to include in the body of your submission.

You are not required to provide a phone number in order to submit a contact form. Providing your phone number is voluntary. However, providing your name, email address, and message is necessary for us to process and respond to your inquiry.

2.2 Information Collected Automatically

When you visit our Website, certain technical information may be collected automatically through cookies and similar technologies. This may include:

• IP Address: Your internet protocol address, used for security purposes and to understand general geographic usage patterns.
• Browser Type and Version: Information about the web browser you are using.
• Device Type: Whether you are accessing the Website from a desktop, tablet, or mobile device.
• Pages Visited and Time Spent: Information about your interactions with pages of our Website.
• Referring URL: The web address from which you navigated to our Website.
• Date and Time of Access: The timestamp of your visit to the Website.

Much of this automatically collected information is non-identifying on its own; however, when combined with other data, it may constitute personal information under PIPEDA. We treat all such data with appropriate care.

3. How We Use Your Personal Information

We identify the purposes for which personal information is collected before or at the time of collection, as required by PIPEDA. We use the personal information we collect for the following purposes:

• Responding to Inquiries: To review, process, and respond to messages and inquiries submitted through our contact form.
• Communicating with You: To follow up on your inquiry via email or telephone, as appropriate.
• Improving Our Website: To understand how visitors use our Website and to improve its functionality, content, and user experience.
• Security and Fraud Prevention: To detect, investigate, and prevent fraudulent activity or unauthorized access to our Website and systems.
• Legal Compliance: To comply with applicable laws, regulations, legal proceedings, or enforceable government requests.
• Analytics (Optional): If analytics cookies are enabled (see Section 5), to analyse aggregate website usage data for internal reporting and service improvement.

We do not use personal information collected through this Website for automated decision-making, profiling, or any purpose that would be incompatible with the purposes identified above. We will not sell your personal information to third parties.

4. How Contact Form Submissions Are Processed

When you submit a contact form on our Website, your submission is transmitted securely to our web server via an encrypted connection (HTTPS/TLS). The form submission is processed by our server-side application and the data is delivered to our designated business email inbox so that a member of our team can review and respond to your inquiry.

Contact form submissions may also be temporarily stored in our email system and, where applicable, a secure internal database or customer relationship management (CRM) tool, for the purpose of tracking and following up on your inquiry. Access to this data is restricted to authorized personnel who have a legitimate business need to review it.

We do not share the content of contact form submissions with third parties except as described in Section 7 of this Policy (Third-Party Service Providers) or as required by law.

5. Cookies and Tracking Technologies

Our Website uses cookies and similar technologies to provide a functional browsing experience and, optionally, to collect analytics data. A “cookie” is a small text file stored on your device by your web browser when you visit a website. Cookies allow the website to remember information about your visit.

5.1 Functional Cookies (Essential)

Functional cookies are strictly necessary for the Website to operate correctly. These cookies do not collect personal information for marketing purposes and cannot be disabled without impairing the functionality of the Website. Examples include:

• Session management cookies that maintain the integrity of your browsing session.
• Security cookies that help protect the Website against cross-site request forgery and other threats.
• Form token cookies that ensure contact form submissions are processed correctly and securely.

Under PIPEDA, your implied consent is considered sufficient for the placement of strictly necessary functional cookies, as these are essential to deliver the service you have requested.

5.2 Analytics Cookies (Optional)

We may use optional analytics cookies to collect aggregated information about how visitors interact with our Website. This information helps us understand traffic patterns, popular content, and areas for improvement. Analytics cookies are only placed with your consent, which we seek through a cookie consent mechanism presented to you on your first visit to the Website.

You may withdraw your consent to analytics cookies at any time by adjusting your browser settings or by using the cookie preference controls on our Website (where available). Please note that disabling analytics cookies will not affect your ability to use the core features of the Website.

5.3 Managing Cookies

Most web browsers allow you to manage cookies through their settings. You can typically:

• View the cookies stored on your device.
• Delete specific cookies or all cookies.
• Block cookies from specific websites or all websites.
• Configure your browser to notify you when a cookie is being set.

Please be aware that blocking all cookies may affect the functionality of some websites, including this one. For instructions on managing cookies in your specific browser, please consult your browser’s help documentation.

6. Third-Party Services

Our Website uses certain third-party services to deliver content and functionality. These third parties may collect limited technical information (such as your IP address and browser type) as part of delivering their services. We describe these services below:

6.1 Google Fonts

Our Website uses Google Fonts, a web font service operated by Google LLC (a subsidiary of Alphabet Inc., headquartered in the United States). When your browser loads a page on our Website, it may make a request to Google’s servers to retrieve font files. This request may expose your IP address to Google. Google may use this information in accordance with its own Privacy Policy, available at https://policies.google.com/privacy. We use Google Fonts to ensure consistent and visually appealing typography across devices and browsers.

6.2 Tailwind CSS CDN

Our Website may load Tailwind CSS from a content delivery network (CDN). CDN providers may log standard server access data including your IP address, browser type, and the resources requested. This information is typically used by CDN providers for operational purposes such as caching, load balancing, and security. We encourage you to review the privacy policy of any CDN provider whose services are used on this Website.

6.3 Email Service Providers

Contact form submissions may be processed and delivered through an email infrastructure provider. These providers act as data processors on our behalf and are contractually obligated to handle your information in a secure and confidential manner consistent with applicable privacy law.

We do not permit third-party service providers to use your personal information for their own marketing or commercial purposes without your explicit consent.

7. Disclosure of Personal Information

We do not sell, rent, trade, or otherwise disclose your personal information to third parties for commercial purposes. We may disclose your personal information in the following limited circumstances:

• Service Providers: We may share information with trusted third-party service providers who assist us in operating our Website or conducting our business (e.g., email delivery, hosting services, IT support). These providers are given access only to the information necessary to perform their functions and are contractually required to maintain the confidentiality and security of your information.
• Legal Requirements: We may disclose your personal information if required to do so by law, court order, or at the request of a regulatory authority or law enforcement agency, provided such request is legally valid and compliant with applicable Canadian law.
• Protection of Rights: We may disclose information where we believe disclosure is necessary to protect the rights, property, or safety of Gowuku, our users, or the public, as permitted or required by law.
• Business Transfers: In the event of a merger, acquisition, reorganization, sale of assets, or other corporate transaction, personal information held by us may be transferred to the successor organization. We will notify you of any such change in control via a notice on our Website or by direct communication, and the successor will be required to treat your information in a manner consistent with this Privacy Policy.
• With Your Consent: We may share your personal information with third parties where you have provided your explicit consent to such disclosure.

8. International Data Transfers

Gowuku is based in Canada and primarily processes personal information within Canada. However, some of the third-party service providers we use (including Google LLC and certain CDN or email infrastructure providers) are based in or operate servers in countries outside of Canada, including the United States and potentially other jurisdictions.

When personal information is transferred outside of Canada, it becomes subject to the laws of the jurisdiction in which it is processed. Those laws may not provide the same level of privacy protection as Canadian law. We take reasonable steps to ensure that your personal information is afforded appropriate protections when transferred internationally, including by entering into data processing agreements with service providers that include standard contractual clauses or equivalent data protection obligations.

By using our Website, you acknowledge and consent to the potential transfer of your personal information to countries outside Canada as described in this section.

9. Data Retention

We retain personal information only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes for which it was collected, or as required or permitted by applicable law. Our specific retention practices are as follows:

• Contact Form Submissions: Information submitted through our contact forms is retained for a period of two (2) years from the date of submission, or longer if required for ongoing business correspondence or legal purposes. After this period, the information is securely deleted or anonymized.
• Email Communications: Emails exchanged with you in response to your inquiry are retained in accordance with our standard email retention policy, typically for a period of two (2) to three (3) years.
• Server Logs and Technical Data: Automatically collected technical data such as server access logs are typically retained for a period of ninety (90) days to one (1) year, depending on the nature of the data and applicable legal requirements.
• Cookie Data: Cookie lifespans vary depending on the type of cookie. Session cookies expire when you close your browser. Persistent cookies may have expiry periods ranging from thirty (30) days to two (2) years, as set out in our cookie configuration.

When personal information is no longer required, we destroy, erase, or anonymize it using secure methods appropriate to the nature of the information and the medium on which it is stored.

10. Data Security

We take the security of your personal information seriously and have implemented appropriate technical, administrative, and physical safeguards to protect it against unauthorized access, collection, use, disclosure, copying, modification, disposal, or destruction.

Our security measures include, but are not limited to:

• Encrypted Transmission: All data transmitted between your browser and our Website is protected using industry-standard Transport Layer Security (TLS/HTTPS) encryption.
• Access Controls: Access to personal information is restricted to authorized personnel who have a legitimate business need to access it. We enforce role-based access controls and require strong authentication for administrative access.
• Secure Hosting: Our Website is hosted on infrastructure that employs security best practices including firewalls, intrusion detection systems, and regular security updates.
• Minimal Data Collection: We adhere to the principle of data minimization, collecting only the personal information that is necessary for the identified purposes.
• Employee Training: Personnel who handle personal information are made aware of their privacy and security obligations.
• Regular Review: We periodically review our security practices and update them as necessary to address emerging threats and vulnerabilities.

Despite our efforts, no method of electronic transmission or storage is 100% secure. While we strive to use commercially acceptable means to protect your personal information, we cannot guarantee absolute security. In the event of a security breach that poses a real risk of significant harm to individuals, we will notify the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada and affected individuals as required under PIPEDA.

11. Your Privacy Rights Under PIPEDA

As a resident of Canada, you have the following rights with respect to your personal information under PIPEDA and related Canadian privacy legislation:

11.1 Right of Access

You have the right to request access to the personal information we hold about you. Upon receipt of a written request, we will provide you with:

• Confirmation of whether we hold personal information about you.
• A description of the personal information we hold, including the form in which it exists.
• A description of the purposes for which the information has been used.
• The names of any third parties to whom the information has been disclosed.

We will respond to access requests within thirty (30) days of receipt, or provide written notice if additional time is required, as permitted by PIPEDA.

11.2 Right to Correction and Amendment

If you believe that personal information we hold about you is inaccurate, incomplete, or out-of-date, you may request that we correct it. We will correct information that is demonstrably inaccurate or incomplete. Where we disagree with your correction request, we will note your request in the record.

11.3 Right to Withdrawal of Consent

Subject to legal and contractual limitations, you may withdraw your consent to our collection, use, or disclosure of your personal information at any time by providing reasonable notice to us. We will inform you of the implications of withdrawing your consent. Please note that withdrawal of consent may affect our ability to provide certain services or respond to your inquiries.

11.4 Right to Deletion

You may request that we delete personal information we hold about you where there is no legitimate legal or business reason for us to retain it. We will honour deletion requests where feasible, subject to our data retention obligations under applicable law and any legitimate ongoing business need.

11.5 Right to Lodge a Complaint

If you believe we have not handled your personal information in compliance with PIPEDA, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (OPC). You can contact the OPC at:

• Website: www.priv.gc.ca
• Toll-free: 1-800-282-1376
• Address: 30 Victoria Street, Gatineau, Quebec K1A 1H3

We encourage you to contact us directly in the first instance so that we may attempt to resolve any concerns you may have regarding our privacy practices.

12. Children’s Privacy

Our Website and services are not directed to children under the age of thirteen (13). We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13 without verifiable parental consent. If you are a parent or guardian and believe that your child has provided us with personal information without your consent, please contact us immediately using the contact information provided in Section 14 of this Policy.

If we become aware that we have inadvertently collected personal information from a child under the age of 13 without appropriate consent, we will take prompt steps to delete that information from our records. Persons between the ages of 13 and 18 are encouraged to review this Privacy Policy with a parent or guardian.

13. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update or modify this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, legal requirements, or the services we offer. When we make material changes to this Policy, we will:

• Update the “Last Updated” date at the top of this Privacy Policy.
• Post a notice on our Website indicating that the Privacy Policy has been updated.
• Where required by law or where changes are significant, seek your renewed consent or provide direct notice by email to users who have submitted their contact information to us.

We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically to stay informed about how we protect your personal information. Your continued use of the Website after the effective date of any changes constitutes your acceptance of the updated Privacy Policy.

Previous versions of this Privacy Policy are available upon request by contacting our Privacy Officer.

14. Contact Our Privacy Officer

If you have any questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or our personal information handling practices, please contact our Privacy Officer:

We will acknowledge receipt of your request within five (5) business days and respond substantively within thirty (30) days, unless a longer period is permitted under PIPEDA or applicable law. If additional time is required, we will notify you in writing of the extended timeline and the reason for the delay.

All privacy inquiries and complaints will be investigated and addressed promptly and in good faith. Where a complaint is found to be justified, we will take appropriate corrective action, including amending our policies and practices as necessary.

15. PIPEDA Compliance Summary

Gowuku is committed to complying with all ten fair information principles established under Schedule 1 of PIPEDA:

1. Accountability: We are responsible for personal information under our control and have designated a Privacy Officer accountable for our compliance.
2. Identifying Purposes: We identify the purposes for which personal information is collected at or before the time of collection.
3. Consent: We obtain meaningful consent for the collection, use, or disclosure of personal information, except where otherwise permitted by law.
4. Limiting Collection: We limit the collection of personal information to what is necessary for the identified purposes.
5. Limiting Use, Disclosure, and Retention: We use and disclose personal information only for the purposes for which it was collected and retain it only as long as necessary.
6. Accuracy: We keep personal information as accurate, complete, and up-to-date as necessary for its intended use.
7. Safeguards: We protect personal information using security safeguards appropriate to the sensitivity of the information.
8. Openness: We make information about our policies and practices relating to personal information management readily available.
9. Individual Access: Upon request, we inform individuals of the existence, use, and disclosure of their personal information, and allow access to that information.
10. Challenging Compliance: Individuals may challenge our compliance with PIPEDA by contacting our Privacy Officer or filing a complaint with the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada.

This Privacy Policy was prepared in accordance with the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (S.C. 2000, c. 5), as amended, and applicable guidance issued by the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada. © 2025 Gowuku. All rights reserved.