How Shapers Church looks after your information
This notice explains what personal information Shapers Church keeps in its app, website and church systems, why, for how long, and your rights under the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA).
Who we are
Shapers Church, 8 Mellis Road, Rivonia, Sandton, Johannesburg. Email info@shaperschurch.com.
Our Information Officer is [name], who can be reached at [email]. They answer questions and requests about your information.
What we keep
- Your church record: your name, contact details, date of birth if you give it, household, campus and how you are involved at church.
- Your login: your mobile number or email, and when you last signed in.
- Prayer requests you send us, and whether you asked for them to be shared.
- Event bookings, including the people you book for and answers you give.
- Connect cards you fill in during a service or on the website.
- Which sermons you listened to and where you stopped, so you can carry on.
- Notifications we send you, and the phones you asked us to send them to.
- If you are in a home cell: the cell's meeting reports, which may mention you, your attendance and prayer needs.
- If you serve: the teams you are on, when you were asked to serve and your answers, and the days you said you are away.
Because this is a church, your record shows your religious belief. Prayer requests can also include health information. POPIA calls these special personal information, and we keep them only with your consent.
Why we keep it
- To be your church family: pastoral care, prayer, follow-up and knowing who belongs to Shapers.
- To run services, events and bookings you ask for.
- To send you the messages you choose, on the channels you allow.
- To keep records the law requires, such as giving records for SARS.
We do not sell your information, and we do not use it for advertising.
Who else handles it
- Microsoft Azure stores our systems in its South Africa North region in Johannesburg.
- Azure Communication Services sends our emails. It keeps their records in its Africa data location.
- When you allow notifications, Expo, Google Firebase and Apple deliver them to your phone. These services are outside South Africa. That is why notifications only ever carry a short message, never your prayer requests or other personal details.
- Sermon and service videos play from YouTube. YouTube's own privacy terms apply when you watch.
How long we keep it
- Prayer requests: one year.
- Connect cards: two years.
- Listening history: one year.
- Notifications: one year.
- Home cell meeting reports: names, prayer needs and follow-ups are removed after one year; only attendance numbers stay.
- Serving history (when you were asked to serve and your answers): two years. Days you marked as away: until a month after they pass.
- Visitor details that were never confirmed: 90 days.
- Records of who accessed sensitive information: five years.
- Giving records: five years, as SARS requires. After that they are removed.
Your church record stays while you are part of the church, or until you ask us to delete it.
Your rights
- See everything we hold about you: in the app, go to Profile, then Your data, then Download my data.
- Ask us to correct anything that is wrong.
- Ask us to delete your information. Some records, such as giving records, we must keep for a time by law. We will tell you if that applies.
- Withdraw your consent at any time, for example by switching off notifications or emails in the app.
- Object to how we use your information.
We answer requests within 30 days.
Complaints
If you are unhappy with how we handled your information, please contact our Information Officer first. You can also complain to the Information Regulator: www.inforegulator.org.za, POPIAComplaints@inforegulator.org.za.
Changes
When this notice changes, the app asks you to read the new version before you carry on.