Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

Welcome to Afrizone ("we," "our," or "us"). Afrizone is a pan-African marketplace connecting African diaspora sellers in the USA, Canada, and Europe with buyers worldwide. We are committed to protecting your personal information and your right to privacy.

This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you use our website at afrizoneshop.com and our mobile application.

2. Information We Collect

Information you provide to us:

• Account information: name, email address, password
• Profile information: country, avatar photo
• Seller information: store name, business type, store description, logo and banner images
• Payment information: processed securely by Stripe — we do not store card numbers
• Shipping information: delivery address, name, city, state, zip code
• Communications: messages sent through our messaging system

Information collected automatically:

• Device information: browser type, operating system
• Usage data: pages visited, products viewed, search queries
• Cookies and session tokens for authentication

3. How We Use Your Information

• To create and manage your account
• To process orders and payments
• To facilitate communication between buyers and sellers
• To send order confirmations and shipping notifications via email
• To provide customer support
• To improve our platform and user experience
• To detect and prevent fraud
• To comply with legal obligations

4. Sharing Your Information

We do not sell your personal information. We share information only in these circumstances:

• With sellers: when you place an order, your shipping name and address are shared with the seller to fulfil your order.
• With buyers: sellers' store names, descriptions, and product listings are publicly visible.
• Service providers: Stripe (payments), Cloudinary (image storage), SendGrid (email), Shippo (shipping labels), Uber Direct (local delivery). These providers have their own privacy policies.
• Legal requirements: if required by law or to protect the rights of Afrizone or its users.

5. Data Storage and Security

Your data is stored on secure servers hosted by Render.com. We use industry-standard encryption (SSL/TLS) for all data transmission. Passwords are hashed and never stored in plain text. Payment data is handled entirely by Stripe and never stored on our servers.

6. Cookies

We use cookies and similar technologies to keep you logged in, remember your preferences, and improve your experience. You can disable cookies in your browser settings, but this may affect functionality.

7. Your Rights

Depending on your location, you may have the right to:

• Access the personal information we hold about you
• Request correction of inaccurate data
• Request deletion of your account and data
• Object to processing of your data
• Data portability

To exercise these rights, contact us at privacy@afrizoneshop.com.

8. Children's Privacy

Afrizone is not intended for children under 13 years of age. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe a child has provided us with personal information, please contact us immediately.

9. Third-Party Links

Our platform may contain links to third-party websites. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of those sites and encourage you to review their privacy policies.

10. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of significant changes by posting a notice on our website or sending an email. Your continued use of Afrizone after changes constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

11. Contact Us

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy or our data practices, contact us at: