Privacy Policy – Vivarium Fitness Centre

Effective date: 14 October 2025
Website: https://www.vivarium.durban
Controller/Responsible Party: Vivarium Fitness Centre (“we”, “us”, “our”)
Registered contact: 1 Village Way, Umhlanga Rocks Drive, Level -3, Durban, 4051 • +27 81 778 6734 • info@vivarium.durban. vivarium.durban

1) Who we are

Vivarium Fitness Centre operates a fitness studio in Umhlanga and the website vivarium.durban. We process personal information in line with South Africa’s Protection of Personal Information Act, 2013 (“POPIA”). This policy explains what we collect, why, how we use and share it, and the choices you have. Key POPIA rights are summarised in Section 11. POPIA

2) What we collect

Depending on how you engage with us (website, enquiries, sign-ups, challenges, in-person training), we may collect:

  • Identity & contact data: name, email, mobile/phone, address, emergency contact.

  • Membership & transaction data: membership type, start/end dates, attendance, payments/receipts (processed via secure payment gateways), offers/challenges joined.

  • Health & training data (special personal information): voluntary disclosures relevant to training readiness (e.g., injuries, contraindications), goals, measurements. We only collect this with your explicit consent for training/safety purposes.

  • Technical data & cookies: device, browser, IP address, pages viewed, and similar analytics or advertising identifiers (e.g., Google Analytics/Meta Pixel) to improve the site, measure marketing, and prevent fraud.

  • Communications & marketing preferences: enquiries, feedback, opt-in/opt-out choices.

3) How we collect it

  • Directly from you (web forms, phone/email, in-person at the gym).

  • Automatically via our website (cookies, analytics—see Section 8).

  • From payment providers and booking tools used to complete your purchase/booking.

  • From social channels only if you interact with our accounts or ads and choose to share details.

4) Why we process your information (POPIA legal grounds)

We process data only when lawful and necessary, including:

  • To perform a contract or take steps at your request (join the gym, book classes, provide training, customer service).

  • Consent (e.g., health/training info, certain marketing; you can withdraw any time).

  • Legal obligations (tax, accounting, safety incident logs).

  • Legitimate interests (operate, secure, and improve our gym/website; prevent fraud; measure performance) balanced against your privacy rights. POPIA allows data subjects rights to access, correction/deletion, objection, and to limit direct marketing—see Section 11. POPIA

5) Special personal information (health)

Health information is special personal information. We only collect what is relevant to safe training and only with your explicit consent. You may refuse to provide it; however, this may limit certain services where safety is a concern. You can withdraw consent at any time (see Section 12).

6) Sharing your information

We share data only as needed with:

  • Service providers/Operators under contract (e.g., website hosting/analytics, communication platforms, payment gateways, booking/CRM tools, IT support).

  • Professional advisers and regulators (auditors, legal, tax, law enforcement) where required by law.

  • Marketing and social platforms (e.g., Meta/Google) for measurement/ads only where cookies/pixels are enabled and subject to your choices (see Section 8).
    All operators must protect your information and may not use it for their own purposes without permission.

7) International transfers

Some service providers may process information in other countries. When we transfer data cross-border, we use safeguards permitted by POPIA (contracts with operators, comparable protection, or your consent).

8) Cookies & similar technologies

Our website may use essential cookies (to run the site), analytics cookies (to understand usage), and advertising cookies/pixels (to measure or personalise ads). You can control cookies in your browser and, where offered on our site, via a cookie banner or preferences link. Under POPIA, you can object to direct marketing at any time—see Section 12. (General POPIA guidance on cookies/rights.) Cookiebot

9) Retention

We keep personal information only as long as necessary for the purposes above and to meet legal/accounting/reporting obligations. After that, we delete or de-identify it. POPIA allows you to request deletion where we no longer need the data (subject to lawful retention). POPIA

10) Security

We use reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect information (access controls, encryption where appropriate, least-privilege access, staff confidentiality). If a security compromise creates a real risk of harm, we will notify you and the Information Regulator where required by POPIA. POPIA

11) Your rights (POPIA)

Under POPIA you may have the right to:

  • Be informed about processing.

  • Access your personal information we hold (Section 23).

  • Request correction or deletion of inaccurate/out-of-date/excessive information or deletion where we’re no longer authorised to retain it (Section 24).

  • Object to processing on reasonable grounds and opt out of direct marketing at any time.

  • Lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator (see Section 13). POPIA+1

12) Exercising your rights / managing preferences

To access, correct, delete, object, or withdraw consent/marketing:

  • Email info@vivarium.durban with your request; please include proof of identity so we can verify the request.

  • Where applicable, we will respond as soon as reasonably practicable and may provide forms to help you exercise your rights (e.g., forms substantially similar to Form 2 under the POPIA Regulations for correction/deletion requests). Connect On Tech

  • To opt out of email/SMS marketing, use the unsubscribe link or reply STOP where available, or email us at any time.

13) Complaints

If you believe your privacy rights have been infringed, please contact us first so we can try to resolve it. You may also complain to the Information Regulator (South Africa):

14) Children

Our services are primarily for adults. If a minor participates (e.g., teen classes), we process their information with the consent of a competent person (parent/guardian), and we collect the minimum necessary for service and safety.

15) Links to other sites

Our website and social pages may link to third-party sites (e.g., Facebook/Instagram). Those sites are governed by their own privacy policies. Please review their policies before providing personal information.

16) Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time. The latest version will always be available on our website with the effective date at the top. Material changes will be communicated where reasonably practicable.

17) Contact us (Information Officer)

Email: info@vivarium.durban • Phone: +27 81 778 6734 • Address: 1 Village Way, Umhlanga Rocks Drive, Level -3, Durban, 4051. vivarium.durban