VIPz Privacy Policy

Effective Date: May 16, 2025

Introduction

Welcome to VIPz! VIPz (accessible via our website at bongovip.co.tz and related mobile applications) is a social platform that connects celebrities (“VIPs”) and fans. Our platform enables users to create profiles, join or form groups, share content, chat with others, and even earn income through advertisements. We value your privacy and are committed to protecting your personal information. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, share, and protect your data when you use VIPz. By using VIPz, you agree to the practices described in this Privacy Policy and you confirm that you are at least 18 years old (VIPz is intended for adult users, 18+). This Policy is part of our Terms of Use and applies globally to all users of our web and mobile services.

Information We Collect

We collect several types of information from and about you to provide and improve our services:

• Account Information: When you register for VIPz, we ask for personal details such as your name, email address, phone number, and a username. You will also create a password (which we store in an encrypted form). These are required to create an account and let you log in. You may log in using your email, phone number, or username along with your password.

• Profile Details: You have the option to add additional information to your profile, such as your location (e.g., city or country), profile picture, biography, and other details. Providing this info is voluntary and can help personalize your experience (for example, showing you relevant content or allowing others to find you).

• Content You Share: We collect the content you create or upload on VIPz, including posts, comments, photos, videos, and chats. This content may include personal information if you choose to include it. Keep in mind that content you share with others on the platform (such as posts or comments in public groups) will be visible to those audiences by default. Private communications (such as one-on-one chats) are accessible only to the intended recipients, but we still process them to transmit and, if necessary, moderate them for safety.

• Interactions and Usage Data: We automatically collect information about your use of VIPz. This includes your activities and interactions on the platform (e.g., pages or profiles you visit, content you like or share, people you follow, groups you join, ad interactions, etc.). We also collect timestamps of logins, features you use, and other analytics data that help us understand how the platform is being used.

• Device and Technical Information: When you use VIPz (especially the web or mobile app), we receive technical data such as your IP address, browser type, device type, operating system, mobile network, and app version. We may also infer your general location from your IP or device settings (e.g., to show content relevant to your region). If you enable location services on the mobile app, we may collect precise geolocation, but only with your permission.

• Cookies and Similar Technologies: VIPz uses cookies, pixels, and local storage to collect data about your device and online activity. Cookies help us remember your login session, preferences, and understand usage of our site (see “Cookies and Tracking Technologies” below for details).

• Payment and Financial Information: If you earn money through VIPz or make transactions, we will collect information needed to process those payments. For example, when we disburse earnings to you, we use your phone number (as linked to your mobile wallet via our payment partner) or other payment account details you provide. We do not store full credit/debit card numbers on our servers. Payments on VIPz are handled through our third-party payment gateway, Selcom, which may receive your phone number, name, and transaction amount to execute mobile wallet payments. (Selcom may have its own privacy policy governing how it handles that information.)

• Customer Support Communications: If you contact us for help or participate in surveys or promotions, we collect the information you give us (such as your contact details and the content of your communications). This helps us address your questions and improve our services.

We collect the above information either directly from you (when you fill out forms or give it to us), automatically (through technology like cookies and logs as you use the platform), or from third parties (for example, if someday we enable sign-in via a social network or obtain fraud-detection information from security services). We only collect what we truly need to fulfill the purposes described in this Policy.

How We Use Your Information

VIPz uses your personal information to operate, maintain, and enhance our platform and services. Specifically, we use the information we collect for the following purposes:

• Providing the Service: To create and manage your account, authenticate you when you log in, and allow you to use the platform’s features (posting content, joining groups, following VIPs, messaging, etc.). We use your info to display your profile and content to others as per your settings, and to facilitate social connections between users (fans and celebrities).

• Personalizing Your Experience: To tailor the content you see on VIPz to your interests. For example, we might use your location to show you local content or events, use your activity to suggest VIPs or groups you might like, and show relevant advertisements. Personal data helps us customize the feed, recommendations, and adverts so that the platform is more engaging for you.

• Advertising and Monetization: To enable you and other users to earn through ads and to deliver advertisements. We may target or personalize ads based on non-sensitive personal data (such as demographics or interests) to make them more relevant. We keep track of ad impressions and engagement to properly credit earnings to content creators. Your information (like engagement with content) helps determine payouts if you are earning through the platform.

• Payment Processing: To send or receive payments related to our service. If you are eligible to receive earnings (for example, advertising revenue or other payouts), we will use your provided payment details (e.g., mobile phone number for mobile money disbursements via Selcom) to pay you. Similarly, if you make purchases on VIPz (such as upgrading to a pro account or buying content), we process your payment through our payment partner. We use personal data to ensure transactions are recorded, secure, and completed successfully.

• Communication: To communicate with you about your account and the service. This includes sending you administrative emails (e.g. password resets, account notifications, security alerts), confirmations, and updates about new features or policies. If you have opted in, we may also send newsletters or promotional communications about VIPz or our partners. You can unsubscribe from marketing emails at any time. We may also respond to you when you contact our support team.

• Content Moderation and Safety: To keep VIPz a safe and welcoming community, we monitor and moderate content. We use automated systems including AI tools, as well as human review, to detect spam, hateful content, nudity, or other content that violates our Terms or community guidelines. For example, if you upload an image or post, it may be scanned by an AI content moderation service to check for prohibited material. These tools help us quickly remove or block harmful content and ensure user-generated content complies with our policies and applicable law. Similarly, we may use automated filters to detect and block fraudulent activity, bots, or other misuse of the platform.

• Customer Support and Service Improvements: We may use AI-powered tools to assist with customer service or to analyze user feedback. For instance, an AI chatbot might help answer common questions when you seek help, or we might analyze support queries to improve our help responses. All customer support communications (whether handled by AI or humans) are used to resolve your issues and improve our future support and services.

• Improving and Developing the Platform: We analyze how users interact with VIPz to troubleshoot issues, test features, and enhance performance. The usage data and feedback we collect help us understand what is working, what isn’t, and how to make VIPz more user-friendly and secure. For example, we might use aggregated usage data to decide new features or to improve the user interface.

• Legal Compliance and Preventing Harm: To comply with legal obligations and enforce our Terms of Use. We may process personal data to meet requirements under applicable laws (for example, keeping transaction records for tax or accounting purposes, or verifying identity if required by law). We also use data as necessary to investigate and prevent fraud, security breaches, and activities that are illegal or that violate our policies. This might include sharing information with law enforcement if we are required by law or if disclosure is necessary to protect our rights, your safety, or the safety of others.

Legal Bases for Processing: (For users in certain jurisdictions like the EU/EEA) We only process your personal information when we have a valid legal basis. This includes: your consent (for example, for optional marketing emails or certain cookies); the necessity to fulfill our contract with you (providing the VIPz service and its features you signed up for); compliance with a legal obligation; and our legitimate interests (such as improving our services, ensuring security, and providing a safe community) – in all cases balanced against your rights and expectations.

Cookies and Tracking Technologies

Cookies are small text files that we and our partners place on your device to make our site work and to collect information. When you visit or use VIPz, we use cookies and similar technologies (like web beacons, pixels, and mobile identifiers) for several reasons:

• Essential Cookies: These are necessary to make the platform function. For example, they keep you logged in during your session and enable core site features. Without these, the site may not perform properly.

• Preference Cookies: These remember your preferences and settings, such as language selection or interface customizations, to give you a better, personalized experience.

• Analytics Cookies: We use these to understand how users access and use VIPz. They help us count visitors, see which pages or features are most popular, and track conversion metrics. This data is usually aggregated and helps us improve the platform. We may use third-party analytics services (like Google Analytics or similar) that set their own cookies to perform these services on our behalf.

• Advertising Cookies: If we display advertisements, we or our ad partners may use cookies or pixels to deliver and measure ads. For instance, an advertising cookie might record that a user’s browser visited a particular page or saw a specific ad, so that we can count ad impressions or avoid showing the same ad too many times. Ad partners might also use cookies to personalize ads, for example, based on your activity on VIPz or other sites (commonly known as interest-based advertising). Any such partners are required to handle data in accordance with privacy laws and this Policy.

You have choices about cookies. Most web browsers allow you to control cookies through their settings, including blocking or deleting them. However, be aware that if you disable certain cookies, parts of VIPz might not function correctly (for example, you may not stay logged in). On our website, we may also display a cookie consent notice or settings tool when required by law, allowing you to manage which non-essential cookies you accept. Our use of tracking technologies is solely to support the purposes outlined in this Policy; we do not use them to collect sensitive personal data without consent.

How We Share Your Information

We understand that your personal information is important, and we only share it in a few specific situations, outlined below. We do not sell your personal information to third parties. When we do share data, we take steps to ensure it is handled securely and lawfully. The circumstances under which we may share user data include:

• Service Providers and Partners: We share information with trusted third-party service providers who perform functions on our behalf. These include:

• Payment Processor (Selcom): When you earn money or make payments through VIPz, we share the necessary personal and transaction information with Selcom, our mobile wallet payment gateway, to process the payment. For example, if you are receiving a payout, we will provide Selcom with your phone number (linked to your mobile money account) and the amount to be paid. Selcom processes the transaction and is contractually required to protect your data and use it only for payment purposes.

• Hosting and Infrastructure: We may use cloud hosting services to store data and run the platform (these providers could be located in various countries). They will have access to data stored on their servers but only to the extent necessary to maintain and operate our service.

• Analytics and Advertising Partners: We may use external analytics tools (e.g., for traffic analysis) or advertising networks to serve ads. These partners may receive pseudonymous information (like cookie IDs or device identifiers) to provide their services. For instance, an analytics provider might receive information about your app usage patterns, or an ad network might receive a hashed version of your user ID to sync advertising frequency. We do not share directly identifying information like your name or email with ad networks without your consent.

• AI Service Providers: To implement content moderation and customer support via AI, we might send some data to third-party AI tools. For example, an image or text you post might be analyzed by an AI content moderation API to check for policy violations, or a support inquiry you send might be routed through an AI assistant system. These providers will only receive the information necessary for the task (e.g., the text of a message for analysis) and are contractually obligated to keep your data confidential and secure. We ensure any AI service provider we use complies with privacy requirements and does not retain or use the data beyond the needs of the service.

• Email/SMS Communication Services: If we send emails, SMS, or push notifications, we may use third-party communication platforms (for example, an email sending service or SMS gateway). These services will have access to your contact info (like email address or phone number) solely for the purpose of sending communications on our behalf.

• Within Our Corporate Group: If VIPz is part of a larger corporate group or in the future has affiliates, we may share data with our parent company, subsidiaries, or affiliates as necessary to operate the platform (for example, if parts of the service are managed by another entity under common ownership). Any such affiliate will honor the commitments of this Privacy Policy.

• Legal Requirements and Protection: We may disclose your information if we in good faith believe such action is necessary to comply with a legal obligation, regulation, or valid legal process (e.g., a subpoena, court order, or government request). We may also share data when we must enforce our Terms of Use or other agreements, investigate potential violations, or protect the rights, property, or safety of VIPz, our users, or others. This can include sharing information with law enforcement or regulators (subject to applicable law) when necessary to address fraud, security issues, or any situation involving potential threats to personal safety.

• Business Transfers: If VIPz (or the company that owns VIPz) undergoes a business transaction such as a merger, acquisition, reorganization, or sale of assets, your personal information may be transferred as part of that deal. We will ensure the new owner continues to respect your personal data in line with this Privacy Policy. If such a change in ownership results in a materially different use of your data, we will notify you and may also provide choices regarding your information.

• With Your Consent: We will share your personal information with third parties in instances where you have given us explicit consent to do so. For example, if in the future you opt in to a feature that involves sharing data with a partner (like a promotion or integration with another app), we will do so only with your knowledge and permission.

When we share data with any third party, we only share what is necessary for that party to carry out its duties. We also require that they handle your personal information with appropriate confidentiality and security, and in compliance with applicable privacy laws. Aside from the situations listed above, we do not share, sell, rent, or trade your personal information to third parties for their own marketing purposes.

Your Rights and Choices

You have rights and choices regarding your personal information on VIPz. We believe it’s important that you can control your data. Depending on your location and the applicable laws (such as the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) or similar data protection laws), your rights may include:

• Access and Portability: You have the right to request a copy of the personal information we hold about you, and to obtain it in a commonly used electronic format. This helps you to review the information and even transfer it to another service if you choose.

• Correction (Rectification): If any of your personal details are inaccurate or incomplete, you have the right to correct or update them. You can do this directly on your profile for many fields (like updating your email or name), or by contacting us for assistance. Please keep your information up to date so we can serve you best.

• Deletion: You have the right to request deletion of your personal data. This is sometimes called the “right to be forgotten.” You can delete certain information by removing it from your profile or deleting content you’ve posted. If you want to delete your entire account and all associated data, you can request this by contacting us (or via any account deletion feature we provide). Upon such request, we will erase your personal data, except for information we are required or permitted to retain by law (for example, records of financial transactions or data needed for legal disputes, which we must keep for a certain time). We will inform you of any data we must retain. Once your account is deleted, you will no longer be able to recover that information.

• Withdrawal of Consent: If we process any of your data based on your consent, you have the right to withdraw that consent at any time. For example, if you consented to receive marketing emails or to share precise location, you can opt out later (via unsubscribe links, in-app settings, or contacting us). Note that withdrawing consent won’t affect the legality of processing already done, and it might prevent us from providing certain services to you (for instance, if you withdraw consent to data needed for a feature, that feature may not function).

• Objection to Processing: You may have the right to object to certain processing of your data, especially if we are processing it based on legitimate interests. For example, you can request that we stop processing your data for direct marketing purposes, or if you feel our legitimate interest does not override your rights. In many cases, we will comply unless we have a compelling legitimate ground to continue (or if the data is needed for legal reasons).

• Restriction of Processing: You can ask us to restrict or “pause” processing of your personal information in certain circumstances – for instance, if you contest the accuracy of the data or have objected to our processing and we are evaluating your request. During such a period, we will store your data securely and not use it (except to the extent allowed by you or required by law) until the issue is resolved.

• Account Settings & Preferences: Beyond formal legal rights, we provide various controls within the VIPz platform. You can edit your profile information at any time, choose what information to share publicly, and adjust your privacy settings (for example, who can see your posts or send you messages, if such settings are available). We encourage you to review these settings to make sure they reflect your preferences.

• Cookies Choices: As described above, you can manage cookies through your browser or device settings and through any tools we provide (cookie consent banner). You can also opt out of interest-based ads from participating ad networks (via tools like the Digital Advertising Alliance opt-out site, if applicable).

• Declining to Provide Data: You have the choice not to provide certain information. However, please note that some data is necessary for us to provide the service (for example, we need an email or phone number to create your account, and you must have a phone number on file to receive payout via mobile money). If you choose not to provide required information, you may not be able to use some features of VIPz.

To exercise any of your rights, please contact us using the information in the “Contact Us” section below. We will respond to your request as soon as possible and in accordance with applicable law (typically within 30 days). For security, we may need to verify your identity before fulfilling certain requests (for example, ask you to confirm from the email address associated with your account or provide identification).

No Discrimination: VIPz will never penalize or discriminate against you for exercising your privacy rights. For example, if you request deletion or opt out of marketing, we will not deny you services or give you a different quality of service (except that we may not be able to provide something that relies on the data you asked us to delete).

California Residents: Although VIPz is a global service based in [Tanzania]*, if you are a resident of California, you are entitled to certain disclosures and rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA). In summary, VIPz does not sell your personal information. You have the right to know what categories of personal information we collect and for what purposes (which this Policy describes), the right to access and delete your information (subject to some exceptions), and the right not to be discriminated against for exercising these rights. If you need to exercise your CCPA rights, contact us as described below. (If applicable – VIPz will treat all user privacy requests with equal care.)

European Economic Area (EEA) and UK Users: If you are in the EEA, UK, or a similar jurisdiction with comprehensive data protection laws, you also have the right to lodge a complaint with your country’s data protection authority if you believe we have infringed your privacy rights. We encourage you to contact us first so we can address your concerns directly.

Security Measures

We take the security of your personal data seriously. VIPz implements a variety of technical and organizational measures to protect your information from unauthorized access, loss, misuse, or alteration. These measures include:

• Encryption: We use encryption protocols (such as HTTPS/TLS) to secure data transmission between your device and our servers. This means that when you provide personal information or use the site, the data is encrypted in transit to prevent eavesdropping. Sensitive data (like passwords) is also stored in encrypted or hashed form in our database.

• Access Controls: We limit access to personal data to authorized personnel who need it to operate our service or assist you. Our staff and any contractors are bound by confidentiality obligations. We also employ access control mechanisms (like authentication and role-based permissions) in our systems so that each employee or service can only access the data necessary for their role.

• Monitoring and Testing: Our systems are monitored for potential vulnerabilities and attacks. We regularly update our software and employ security tools like firewalls, intrusion detection systems, and anti-virus scanning to guard against threats. Security testing and audits are conducted to evaluate our defenses.

• Secure Storage: Personal data is stored on secure servers. We may use reputable cloud service providers that have strong security practices. Data centers are protected by physical security measures as well as cybersecurity measures.

• Payment Security: Any payment transactions are handled through PCI-DSS compliant providers (such as Selcom). We do not store sensitive financial information like full credit card numbers on our own servers to reduce risk.

• Training and Policies: We train our team about the importance of privacy and security. We have internal policies and incident response plans to handle any potential security issues swiftly and effectively. In the unlikely event of a data breach that affects your personal information, we will notify you and the appropriate authorities as required by law.

Despite all these efforts, it’s important to note that no method of transmission over the internet, or method of electronic storage, is 100% secure. While we strive to protect your personal information, we cannot guarantee absolute security. You also play a role in safety: please use a strong, unique password for VIPz and keep your login credentials confidential. If you suspect any unauthorized access to your account or any security vulnerabilities, contact us immediately so we can help.

Data Retention

We retain your personal information for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes outlined in this Privacy Policy, unless a longer retention period is required or permitted by law. In practice, this means:

• Active Account: For as long as you have an active account on VIPz, we will keep the information associated with your account. This allows us to provide the service to you (for example, showing your past posts, maintaining your friends/groups, or processing your earnings).

• Inactive Accounts: If you stop using VIPz or deactivate your account, we may retain your data for a reasonable period in case you return, or as needed to finalize any pending transactions. We periodically review and anonymize or delete data from accounts that have been inactive for a long time, unless we need to keep it for legal reasons.

• Deleted Accounts: If you request to delete your account (or it is deleted due to inactivity or violation of terms), we will remove or anonymize personal information in your profile. However, content you have posted or shared with others may still be retained in order to respect others’ use of the platform (for example, messages you sent to friends, or posts in a group may still be visible to those users). We will dissociate such content from your profile, or anonymize it, if your account is deleted. Some residual copies of your data (e.g., in backups) might remain temporarily in our systems but will be purged according to our backup retention schedules.

• Transaction Records: We keep records of financial transactions (payments, payouts, receipts) for at least the duration required by finance and tax regulations. This may mean even if you delete your account, we retain certain financial information or logs as mandated by law (typically 5-7 years in many jurisdictions) – but we will only use it for those legal purposes.

• Legal Obligations and Disputes: If we are under a legal obligation to retain data (for example, for law enforcement, regulatory, or compliance reasons), we will retain the data for as long as required. Additionally, if there is an ongoing dispute or investigation relating to you or your use of VIPz, we will retain the necessary information until it is resolved.

After the applicable retention period ends, or if storage of data is no longer necessary for the purposes described, we will either delete your personal information or anonymize it (so that it can no longer be associated with you). Anonymized data (which is no longer personally identifiable) may be retained indefinitely for statistical purposes without further notice to you.

International Data Transfers

VIPz is a global service – users from all around the world can access it, and our infrastructure and service providers may be located in different countries. By using VIPz, you understand and consent that your personal information may be transferred to and stored on servers outside of your home country. In particular, if you are located outside of Tanzania, your data will likely be processed in Tanzania where our operations are based, and possibly in other countries where our service providers (such as cloud hosting or content moderation services) operate. Some of these countries might not have the same level of data protection laws as your jurisdiction.

However, no matter where your data is processed, we take steps to protect it in line with this Privacy Policy. When we transfer personal data internationally, we implement appropriate safeguards: for example, we may use standard contractual clauses approved by regulators (for transfers from jurisdictions like the EU), or rely on your consent or other legal bases for such transfers. Our third-party vendors are also required to maintain adequate data protection standards regardless of location.

If you are in the European Economic Area (EEA), United Kingdom, or other regions with data transfer restrictions, we ensure that your data is transferred in compliance with those requirements. You can contact us for more information on the safeguards we use for international data transfers.

Children’s Privacy (Users Under 18)

VIPz is not intended for children or anyone under the age of 18. We do not knowingly solicit or collect personal information from individuals under 18 years old. Our platform is designed and marketed for adults, as it involves content sharing and potential earnings through ads, which require legal adulthood.

If you are under 18, you are not permitted to use VIPz or provide any personal information on the platform. Parents or guardians should not allow minors to use VIPz. We do not knowingly display targeted ads to or knowingly process any data of minors.

In the unlikely event that we discover we have collected personal information from someone under 18, we will take prompt action to delete that information. If you believe that we might have any information from or about a child under 18, please contact us immediately so that we can investigate and address it. We may ask for proof of age if necessary to verify and carry out deletion of data for an underage user.

Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technologies, legal requirements, or for other operational reasons. When we make changes, we will post the revised Policy on our website (and in our app) with a new “Effective Date” at the top. If the changes are significant, we will provide a more prominent notice of the update – for example, by emailing you at the email address on your account, or by placing a notice on the site or within the app.

We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically to stay informed about how we are protecting your information. Your continued use of VIPz after any update to this Policy becomes effective will signify your acceptance of the changes. If you do not agree with the changes, you should discontinue using the platform and can request that we delete your account and data.

Contact Us

If you have any questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or your personal data, please do not hesitate to contact us. We are here to help and committed to addressing any privacy-related issues.

Contact Information:

• Email: You can reach our privacy team at privacy@bongovip.co.tz. This is our dedicated address for privacy inquiries, data access/deletion requests, and any questions about how your information is handled.

• Mail: [VIPz/BongoVIP] –Privacy Department (P.O.Box 8356 Dar es Salaam , 6 Kilimanjaro, Mwai Kibaki)

• In-App/Website: You may also contact us through the Contact Us form on our website or app. Please include the keyword “Privacy” in your message so it can be routed appropriately.

We will do our best to respond to your inquiries promptly and resolve any concerns. If you contact us to exercise a privacy right, we may need to verify your identity for security purposes.

Thank you for trusting VIPz with your personal information. We are dedicated to safeguarding your privacy and creating a safe, enjoyable experience for all our users worldwide.