- The Protection of Personal Information Act (4 of 2013), otherwise known as POPIA, promotes the protection of personal information by public and private bodies.
- The Information Regulator (IR) and its members have been appointed. It is responsible for education, monitoring, enforcement and compliance, as well as the handling of complaints, performing research and facilitating cross-border co-operation.
- Estate agents, intermediaries, property companies and other institutions conducting business in the property sector, are required to comply with the Act and its Regulations, which includes obtaining consent from client before any of their private information is used, and collecting and storing client information in such a way that only individuals with the necessary authorisation are able to access it. Neither estate agents nor conveyancers may share a client’s information or pass it on to another organisation or body without the data subject’s written consent, and have suitable systems and rules in place so as to properly safeguard the client’s personal information. Estate agents will also not be allowed to hand over the information of tenants and interested purchasers to landlords and sellers without the necessary policies having been set up and permissions obtained. A breach may expose the holder of the information to a damages claim, and/or prosecution for a criminal offence – attracting a possible fine or a period of imprisonment, or both.
- The Act sets out 8 conditions which are required to be met for the lawful processing of personal information of data subjects, as follows: Accountability, Processing Limitation, Purpose Specification, Further Processing Limitation, Information Quality, Openess, Security Safeguards and Data Subject Participation. Codes of Conduct may be developed in order to clarify how the 8 conditions are to be applied within a particular Sector or Profession. The Sector within which Property Practitioners operate may therefore develop their own Codes of Conduct, service level agreements, as well as amended employment contracts, so as to ensure compliance with POPIA.
- Estate agents will need to be cognisant of the strict limits imposed by POPIA relating to direct marketing. They will need to obtain the necessary permissions in order to continue communications to clients such as sending newsletters and campaigns, online marketing, bulk emailing, special offers and latest listings.
PROTECTION OF PERSONAL INFORMATION ACT
06/13/2024
Disclaimer: The information in this article is an easy referenced overview of the South African Tax System and immovable property in South Africa. The information contained in this article is a summary of current property related information. Due to limitations in length, only key points on each topic are addressed. Words importing the masculine shall include a reference to the feminine and vice versa. We suggest that you do not act solely on material contained in this article as the nature of the information contained herein is general, and in summarised format, and may in certain circumstances be subject to misinterpretation. The information is provided with the understanding that no legal or professional advice is being rendered in this guide. We recommend that our advice be sought when encountering these potentially problematic areas. While every care has been taken in the compilation of this guide, no responsibility of any nature whatsoever will be accepted for any inaccuracies, errors, or omissions.