We use your personal data to provide and improve the service. By using the service, you agree to the collection and use of information in accordance with this Privacy Policy.
Interpretation and Definitions
Interpretation
The words whose initial letters are capitalized have meanings defined under the following conditions. The following definitions shall have the same meaning regardless of whether they appear in singular or plural.
Definitions
For the purposes of this Privacy Policy:
- Applicable Law
- includes Nigerian laws and regulations applicable to the Service including data protection and cybersecurity obligations. The Nigerian cooperative framework is grounded in the Nigerian Co-operative Societies Act.
- Account
- means a unique account created for you to access our Service or parts of our Service.
- Affiliate
- means an entity that controls, is controlled by, or is under common control with a party, where "control" means ownership of 50% or more of the shares, equity interest or other securities entitled to vote for election of directors or other managing authority.
- Application
- refers to UniqueCoop, the software program provided by the Company.
- Country
- refers to Nigeria.
- Content
- means data, text, documents, records, images, files and other materials uploaded or generated through the Service.
- Cooperative
- means a cooperative society or association using the Service.
- Member
- means a Cooperative member whose records (contributions, loans, repayments) may be processed through the Service.
- MERLOTEK
- means the parent company of UniqueCoop.
- NDPR
- means the Nigeria Data Protection Regulation, 2019.
- NDPA
- means the Nigeria Data Protection Act, 2023.
- Personal Data
- is any information that relates to an identified or identifiable individual.
- Service
- includes the UniqueCoop applications, websites, APIs, dashboards, support and any related services.
- Service Provider
- means any natural or legal person who processes the data on behalf of the Company.
- Subscription
- means paid plans, licenses or usage-based fees for the Service.
- User
- means any person using the Service (member, admin, officer, staff, agent, auditor or other authorized user).
- UniqueCoop
- "we," "us," "our" means UniqueCoop (a MERLOTEK company).
- Usage Data
- refers to data collected automatically, either generated by the use of the Service or from the Service infrastructure itself.
- You
- means the individual accessing or using the service, or the company or other legal entity on behalf of which such individual is accessing or using the service.
Personal Data We Collect
We may collect:
A. Account and profile data
name, email, phone number, role (member, admin, auditor), login credentials (hashed), organization or cooperative affiliation.
B. Cooperative operational data
member IDs, contribution history, loan requests, approvals, repayment schedules, statements, audit logs, notes.
C. Identity / KYC data (if enabled by the Cooperative)
government ID numbers and images, selfies or liveness checks, bank details, typically via third-party verification providers.
D. Payments and transaction metadata (if enabled)
transaction references, amounts, timestamps, payment status, payer or payee identifiers (depending on integrations).
E. Device and usage data
IP address, device identifiers, browser type, app events, crash logs, cookies (where applicable).
F. Support communications
messages, call records (where lawful), tickets and feedback.
How We Use Personal Data
We use data to:
- provide, maintain and secure the Service;
- create accounts and administer access;
- process cooperative workflows (contributions, loans, reporting);
- prevent fraud and unauthorized access;
- provide customer support and respond to requests;
- meet legal obligations and respond to lawful requests;
- improve product performance and user experience;
- send service notices (security alerts, policy updates).
How We Share Personal Data
We may share data with:
A. Your Cooperative
Admins and officers may access member data as part of cooperative operations.
B. Service providers (processors)
Cloud hosting, analytics, customer support tools, email and SMS providers, KYC providers, payment processors, only as needed and under contractual safeguards.
C. Legal and regulatory authorities
Where required by law, court order or to protect rights and safety. Nigeria's Cybercrimes Act forms part of the broader legal environment for cybersecurity and lawful cooperation.
D. Corporate transactions
If UniqueCoop or MERLOTEK undergoes merger, acquisition, restructuring or asset sale, data may be transferred with safeguards.
We do not sell personal data as a business model.
Lawfulness, Fairness and Transparency
Personal Data must be processed lawfully, fairly and in a transparent manner at all times. This implies that Personal Data collected and processed by or on behalf of the company must be in accordance with the specific, legitimate and lawful purpose consented to by the Data Subject, save where the processing is otherwise allowed by law or within other legal grounds recognized in the NDPR 2019 and the NDPA 2023.
Your Privacy Rights
As data subjects you have certain rights under applicable data protection laws such as the NDPR and NDPA for Nigeria and the GDPR for European countries. These may include the right:
- to request access and obtain a copy of your personal information.
- to request rectification or erasure.
- to restrict the processing of your personal information.
- to data portability.
- in certain circumstances as stated in section 2.8 of the Nigeria Data Protection Regulation, you may also object to the processing of your personal information.
- to lodge a complaint with the Nigeria Data Protection Commission.
Collecting and Using Your Personal Data
Personal Data
While using our Service, we may ask you to provide us with certain personally identifiable information that can be used to contact or identify you. Personally identifiable information may include, but is not limited to:
- Email address
- First name and last name
- Phone number
- Address, State, City
Usage Data
Usage Data is collected automatically when using the Service.
Usage Data may include information such as your device's Internet Protocol address (IP address), browser type, browser version, the pages of our Service that you visit, the time and date of your visit, the time spent on those pages, unique device identifiers and other diagnostic data.
When you access the Service by or through a mobile device, we may collect certain information automatically, including but not limited to the type of mobile device you use, your mobile device's unique ID, the IP address of your mobile device, your mobile operating system, the type of mobile internet browser you use, unique device identifiers and other diagnostic data.
Information Collected while Using the Application
While using our Application, in order to provide features of our Application, we may collect, with your prior permission:
- Information regarding your location
- Information from your device's phone book (contacts list)
- Pictures and other information from your device's camera and photo library
You can enable or disable access to this information at any time through your device settings.
How We Transfer, Store and Protect Your Data
The information we collect through the App may be stored and processed in Nigeria and in other countries where our servers, partners, affiliates or service providers are located. These may include countries such as the United States, United Kingdom, European Union and other jurisdictions where data processing facilities are maintained.
As part of providing our services, we may transfer your personal information across borders, including from Nigeria to other countries. Some of these countries may have data protection laws that are different from those in Nigeria.
We take appropriate measures to ensure that your personal data is adequately protected at all times, in line with the Nigeria Data Protection Act (NDPA) 2023, applicable regulations issued by the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) and other relevant data protection laws. These measures may include contractual safeguards, data security controls and access restrictions.
We implement reasonable technical and organizational security measures to protect your data against unauthorized access, loss, misuse or disclosure, regardless of where it is processed.
Retention of Your Personal Data
The Company will retain your personal data only for as long as is necessary for the purposes set out in this Privacy Policy. We will retain and use your Personal Data to the extent necessary to comply with our legal obligations, resolve disputes and enforce our legal agreements and policies.
Delete Your Personal Data
You have the right to delete or request that we assist in deleting the personal data that we have collected about you.
You may update, amend or delete your information at any time by signing in to your account, if you have one, and visiting the account settings section that allows you to manage your personal information. You may also contact us to request access to, correct or delete any personal information that you have provided to us.
Please note, however, that we may need to retain certain information when we have a legal obligation or lawful basis to do so.
Disclosure of Your Personal Data
Business Transactions
If the company is involved in a merger, acquisition or asset sale, your personal data may be transferred. We will provide notice before your Personal Data is transferred and becomes subject to a different Privacy Policy.
Law enforcement
Under certain circumstances, the company may be required to disclose your personal data if required to do so by law or in response to valid requests by public authorities.
Other legal requirements
The Company may disclose your personal data in the good faith belief that such action is necessary to:
- Comply with a legal obligation
- Protect and defend the rights or property of the Company
- Prevent or investigate possible wrongdoing in connection with the Service
- Protect the personal safety of Users of the Service or the public
- Protect against legal liability
Security of Your Personal Data
The security of your Personal Data is important to us, but remember that no method of transmission over the internet or method of electronic storage is 100% secure. While we strive to use commercially reasonable means to protect your Personal Data, we cannot guarantee its absolute security.
Children's Privacy
Our Service does not address anyone under the age of 18. We do not knowingly collect personally identifiable information from anyone under the age of 13. If you are a parent or guardian and you are aware that your child has provided us with Personal Data, please contact us.
Cookies and Similar Technologies
Most web browsers are set to accept cookies by default. If you prefer, you can usually choose to set your browser to remove cookies and to reject cookies. If you choose to remove cookies or reject cookies, this could affect certain features of our services to you.
Links to Other Websites
Our service may contain links to other websites that are not operated by us. If you click on a third-party link, you will be directed to that third party's site. We strongly advise you to review the Privacy Policy of every site you visit.
Changes to this Privacy Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. If changes are material, we will notify you via the app, email or the App and indicate the new effective date.
Contact Us
If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, you can contact us:
Tel: 09010481922, 08077321644
Email: hello@uniquecoop.net