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Privacy Policy

Last updated: 20 July 2026 Tshwane Talks is an online news publication based in Tshwane, South Africa. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, share and protect personal information when you visit tshwanetalks.com, contact us or interact with our content.

1. Who is responsible for your information?

Tshwane Talks is responsible for the personal information described in this policy. You can contact us about privacy matters at info@tshwanetalks.com or by writing to Tshwane Talks, Mamelodi East, 0122, Tshwane, South Africa.

2. Information we collect

We may collect:
  • Information you give us: Your name, email address, enquiry type and message when you use our contact form or email us. News tips, feedback and supporting material may contain additional information you choose to share.
  • Comments: If commenting is available, we may collect the information entered in the comment form, together with your IP address and browser information to help detect spam.
  • Technical information: Our website and its service providers may receive information such as your IP address, browser and device type, pages visited, approximate location derived from your IP address, referring page and the time of your visit.
  • Cookie and advertising information: Cookies, pixels, web beacons and similar technologies may collect information about how you use the website and interact with advertisements.
Providing information through a contact form, email or comment is generally voluntary. If you do not provide the details needed to respond to an enquiry, we may be unable to respond or follow up on a news tip.

3. How we use information

We use information to publish and operate Tshwane Talks; respond to enquiries, news tips, advertising requests and corrections; moderate comments where available; understand website traffic; improve the website; protect it from spam, fraud and misuse; and comply with applicable legal obligations. We use personal information for these purposes where permitted by applicable law, including where you have consented, where processing is necessary to respond to your request or provide a service, or where we have a lawful operational interest that does not override your rights. Information submitted as a news tip may be assessed for possible publication. We handle requests for confidentiality individually; submitting a tip does not, by itself, guarantee anonymity or publication.

4. Cookies and analytics

Cookies are small files stored on your device. We may use necessary cookies for website operation and security, preference cookies to remember choices, and analytics cookies or similar technologies to understand how visitors use the site. We use Google technology on the website to measure activity. Google may process information about your visit, including online identifiers and technical information, in accordance with its own policies. You can learn more at How Google uses information from sites or apps that use its services. You can manage or delete cookies in your browser settings. Blocking some cookies may affect website features. Where a cookie consent tool is presented, you can use it to make or change the choices it offers.

5. Advertising and Google AdSense

Tshwane Talks may display advertisements, including advertisements served through Google AdSense. Third party vendors, including Google, use cookies to serve ads based on a visitor’s previous visits to this website or other websites. Google’s use of advertising cookies enables Google and its partners to serve ads based on visits to this site and other sites on the internet. Third parties involved in serving or measuring ads may also place or read cookies, use web beacons, or collect IP addresses and other identifiers when ads appear on our website. You can manage the ads you see or opt out of personalised advertising through Google’s Ad Settings. You can also visit AboutAds.info to opt out of some participating third party vendors’ uses of cookies for personalised advertising. Opting out of personalised advertising does not necessarily stop you from seeing ads. Where required, we will request consent before using cookies or personal information for advertising purposes. The advertising partners involved may vary according to our ad settings, your location and your privacy choices.

6. Contact forms, comments and embedded content

When you send us a message, we use the information you provide to deal with your enquiry and keep a record of the correspondence where needed. If comments are enabled, comments may be reviewed or checked by an automated spam detection service before publication. Public comments and any information you choose to include in them may be visible to other visitors. Articles may include content hosted by other services, such as videos, social media posts or maps. When you interact with embedded content, the provider may collect information and use cookies according to its own privacy policy. You can review that provider’s policy for details. We use Akismet, a spam detection service provided by Automattic, to check submissions to forms where Akismet protection is enabled. Information submitted through those forms, such as your name, email address and message, together with technical details such as your IP address and browser information, may be sent to Akismet to assess whether the submission is spam. For more information, see Automattic’s privacy notice.

7. Who receives information

We may share relevant information with service providers that help us host, secure, maintain, analyse and operate the website; deliver messages; detect spam; or serve and measure advertising. These may include Google and other advertising technology providers where their services are enabled. We may also disclose information when required by law, to protect our rights or the safety of others, or with your permission. We do not sell the personal information you submit through our contact form. Some service providers may process information outside South Africa. Where this happens, we take steps required by applicable law to protect the information.

8. How long we keep information

We keep personal information only for as long as reasonably needed for the purpose for which it was collected, including responding to enquiries, maintaining editorial records, protecting the website and meeting legal obligations. Retention periods depend on the type of information and the reason we hold it. We then delete, anonymise or securely retain it where the law requires us to do so.

9. Security

We use reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect personal information against loss, unauthorised access, misuse and disclosure. No method of transmitting or storing information online is completely secure.

10. Your privacy rights

Subject to applicable law, you may ask whether we hold personal information about you, request access to it, ask us to correct or delete information that is inaccurate or unlawfully held, or object to certain processing. You may also withdraw consent where our processing relies on it. Withdrawing consent does not affect processing that was lawful before withdrawal. To make a request, email info@tshwanetalks.com. We may need to verify your identity before responding. If you believe your information has been handled unlawfully, you may lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator of South Africa.

11. Children

This website publishes news for a general audience and is not directed at children. If you believe a child has given us personal information through the website without appropriate permission, please contact us so we can assess the request.

12. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy when our website, advertising arrangements or legal obligations change. The latest version will be published on this page with a revised “Last updated” date.

13. Contact us

Tshwane Talks Mamelodi East, 0122, Tshwane, South Africa Email: info@tshwanetalks.com Telephone: 076 517 1596