Why Your Personal Info must Be Protected?

There are several risks with personal information exposure, however the #1 Risk to you is Identity Theft, also known as ID Hijacking. Since e-mail can be easily intercepted or compromised, it can result in your personal information being exposed and abused if it's not properly secured. Here are just a few reasons why you must ensure that organisations always secure your confidential personal information when emailing it to you.

Banking & Financial Fraud

Criminals gain access to your Financial Accounts to steal money from it, or open Bank Accounts using your details to scam other people & businesses.

Social Media & Email Account Hijacking

Your personal information is used to impersonate you to gain access to your account's (Account Take Over).

Medical Fraud

Your details or medical data are used to defraud a medical aid, do false medical/insurance claims, or to access prescription drugs.

Motor Vehicle Purchasing

Your personal information is used to purchase motor vehicles for criminal activities, or for cross-border clearance.

SASSA Fraud

Criminals steal personal information of Senior Citizens and Children to defraud SASSA, or to access social grants.

Physical Safety

Criminals can use your personal information and confidential data to target you, your family, or a close friend.

How This Website Works

If you have received an email from any organisation which contain your personal information and it has not been adequately secured (for example, password protected and encrypted), please make use of this website as a free public service to notify the sender of their violation and inform them about your right to ensure your confidential personal information is properly protected.

This initiative aspires to advocate better personal data protection for everyone and to champion a national #protectmydata campaign, so we have made it extremely easy for you the data subject to inform any organisation to always email your personal information securely to minimise unauthorised exposure of your personal information.

Work Flow

1 Click to Send A Notice

When you press the Send A Notice button on this website, a prepared notice will automatically open in your default email client on your computer or mobile device ready for you to send the notice to an information sender.

Enter Sender's Email Address

Once the email opens, simply type the email address of the information sender i.e. the email address of the person or organisation who sent your personal information unprotected. Hit Send to inform them of the transgression.

Include Us on CC

Our mailbox will be automatically added to the CC field of the notice email so that a data protection champion can follow-up with the information sender to ensure compliance and if possible, to help them improve their data security measures for you (and others). Remove our email address from CC if you do not want to include us on the notice being sent.

Untitled design (2)
protectmydat-image

Your Right to Personal Data Security & The POPI Act.

The Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA) is South African law that protects your rights when your personal information is being processed by any organisation (business or entity). The organisation is referred to as the "Responsible Party" under POPIA because they become responsible for your personal information (PI) the moment they obtain it. They (the Responsible Party) must only use your data lawfully and are required (by law) to protect and safeguard your confidential personal data.

This is in addition to your constitutional right to privacy which is afforded to every citizen of South Africa.

What is Personal Information?

This is information that can identify you as an Individual (living being) or can identify an existing juristic person like a Company or Trust.

What is Special Personal Information?

This is a specific category of personal information which is more sensitive. It is information that relates to religious or philosophical beliefs, race or ethnic origin, trade union membership, political persuasion, health or sex life, or biometric information.

Our Sponsors

This public service is brought to you free of charge and without obligations thanks to the generosity and kind support of our sponsors.

1
POPI Comply

Provides insights, information, and a DYI Toolkit to affordably help organisations comply with the POPI Act

2
SMBsecure

Provides an inexpensive solution bundle for device and data security as well as PDF Email Encryption for SMEs.

3
Beachhead Solutions

Provides a proven platform for implementing device security measures on PCs, Macs, USBs, Android & iOS.

1+
Billion Emails Sent Each Day
1+
Million Rand is the Cost of Data Breaches
1+
Million Rand POPI Fine Issued in SA
1+
Breaches Reported to SA Info Regulator

General

Some Industry Mandates

The Health Professions Council of South Africa and medical scheme administrators both require medical practices and healthcare professionals to secure patient data when it is stored and when transmitted (emailed).

HPCSA

The financial sector conduct authority (FSCA) issued the Joint Standard for Cybersecurity and Cyber Resilience which is applicable to financial services providers (FSPs). It requires adherence to the POPI Act and robust data protection of consumer data, amongst several other requirements.

Financial Sector Conduct Authority

The Law Society of South Africa prescribes good data and IT security practices for its members. Legal professionals are required to comply with the POPI Act and must ensure that client confidential information is secured.

LSSA

Frequently Ask Questions (FAQ)

Please send another notification to them using this website and ensure to include us on the notification so that a data protection ambassador can follow-up with the Responsible Party. 

YES. Any natural or juristic person of South Africa (Data Subject) may use this service to complain to a Responsible Party, who are subject to the principles of lawful processing of your personal data under the POPI Act.

YES. There are no costs to make use of this service.

Report it to the South African Police Services and obtain a case number from SAPS. Alert the SA Fraud Prevention Service immediately on 0860 101 248 or at safps.org.za. Register for credit and identity theft monitoring.