Welcome to Chekku. Your privacy and the security of your data are of paramount importance to us. This Privacy Policy outlines how Chekku (“we”, “us”, or “our”) collects, uses, maintains, and discloses information collected from the users (“User”, “you”, or “your”) of the Chekku platform (“Services”). By accessing or using our Services, you agree to the collection and use of information in accordance with this policy.

1. Information We Collect
At Chekku, we understand the importance of your data and are committed to transparency in our data collection practices. Our services are designed to empower small businesses and contractors, requiring us to collect, store, and utilise various forms of information responsibly. Below outlines the types of information we collect from you and the manner in which we gather this data.

1. Personal Information
   • Directly Provided Information: Account Registration: To create a Chekku account, you’re required to provide us with essential contact details, including but not limited to your full name, email address, and a secure password. This foundational information enables us to establish and secure your account.
   • Profile Completion: Completing your Chekku profile involves furnishing additional details such as your business name, the services you offer, and contact phone numbers. This information aids in crafting a comprehensive business profile that enhances your visibility and appeal to potential clients.
   • Certifications and Qualifications: We collect details of your professional certifications, qualifications, and any pertinent licenses to verify your expertise and compliance with industry standards. This crucial step ensures that job opportunities matched to you align with your skills and legal operating requirements.
   • Business and Compliance Data: Managing statutory compliance is central to our service offering. We require detailed disclosures regarding your business operations, including applicable licenses, insurance policies, health & safety protocols, and any certifications. This information is instrumental in maintaining high standards of compliance and trust within the Chekku community.
2. Automatic Information Collection
   • Usage and Device Information: Each time you interact with our Services, we automatically capture data concerning the device used to access Chekku, including IP addresses, device type, browser specifications, and operating system. This data assists us in optimising our Services for diverse hardware and software environments, ensuring a seamless user experience across all platforms.
   • Cookies and Tracking Technologies: Our use of cookies and similar tracking technologies plays a pivotal role in personalising your experience on Chekku. By analysing your browsing habits, preferences, and interactions with our Services, we can tailor content, recommendations, and advertisements to better suit your needs and interests. Cookies also facilitate operational functionalities like staying logged into your account and remembering your preferences across sessions.

This data collection enables Chekku to deliver a tailored and efficient service to our users, ensuring both compliance with industry regulations and a personalised user experience. By engaging with our Services, you consent to this data collection, which is integral to our mission of empowering small businesses and contractors.

2. How We Use Your Information

At Chekku, we are deeply committed to not only safeguarding your information but also utilising it to enhance your experience on our platform. Understanding the purpose behind our data utilisation practices is crucial. Below we delineate the multifaceted ways in which your information propels our mission to support and empower small businesses and contractors:

• Enhancement of Services: The core information we collect underpins our ability to offer a robust and dynamic platform. This includes rolling out updates, introducing new features, and ensuring the seamless operation of existing functionalities. It is the bedrock upon which we continuously refine and evolve our services to meet your growing needs.
• Account Management: Effective account management is vital. The information you provide helps us in creating and maintaining your Chekku profile. This management extends to ensuring your business details are up-to-date, safeguarding your account security, and facilitating a personalised user experience.
• Job Matching and Business Opportunities: Our platform’s primary goal is to connect you with opportunities that align with your skills, certifications, and business offerings. By analysing your profile, qualifications, and preferences, we adeptly match you with job listings and projects that suit your expertise, thereby fostering meaningful business connections and collaborations.
• Communication: We utilise your information to communicate essential updates, service announcements, and support messages. This ensures you’re always in the loop regarding Chekku’s offerings, including new product features, subscription services, and promotional deals that might interest you.
• Trend Analysis and Service Optimisation: Understanding how our services are used is critical for continuous improvement. By analysing usage trends and activities on our platform, we identify popular features, pinpoint areas for enhancement, and develop insights that guide our innovation roadmap.
• Security and Fraud Prevention: Protecting our community is paramount. We use your information to detect and prevent unauthorised access, fraudulent transactions, and other malicious activities that could compromise the integrity of our platform and the safety of our users. This commitment extends to enforcing our Terms of Service, ensuring compliance, and safeguarding both your rights and those of Chekku.
• Personalisation of Experience: We believe in a tailored experience. Your information helps us personalise your interactions with our platform, from customising the content and advertisements you see to recommending features and services that align with your interests and business needs. This personalisation enhances your productivity on Chekku and ensures the relevance of the information and opportunities presented to you.

In harnessing the power of your information across these diverse fronts, Chekku remains steadfast in its mission to provide a platform that not only meets but anticipates and surpasses the needs of our users. By choosing Chekku, you entrust us with not just your data but your business aspirations, and we’re committed to honouring that trust with a service that continually evolves in alignment with your growth and success.

3. How We Share Your Information

Chekku is dedicated to fostering a trusted and secure environment for all users. The sharing of information is conducted with careful consideration of privacy and security standards, tailored to enhance service delivery while upholding user confidentiality. Below, we outline the circumstances under which your information may be shared:

1. With Other Users
   Job Opportunities: Engaging in the Chekku platform’s job matching feature inherently involves the sharing of information about your business. When you express interest in or respond to job opportunities, details such as your business profile, services offered, certifications, and contact information are shared with the potential client. This process is designed to facilitate an informed decision-making process by the job poster, ensuring they have access to essential information about your qualifications and business offerings.
2. With Service Providers
   Operational Support: To ensure the smooth operation of our Services, we collaborate with various third-party service providers. These entities may include, but are not limited to, cloud hosting services, customer support vendors, and analytics providers. When necessary, we share your information with these partners to enable them to perform their services efficiently on our behalf. Such sharing is conducted under strict confidentiality agreements, ensuring your data is handled securely and in accordance with our privacy standards.
   Payment Processing: For subscribers utilising our premium services, we engage trusted third-party payment processors to manage subscription payments. Information necessary for processing payments, such as your billing details, may be shared with these providers to facilitate transactions.
3. For Legal Reasons
   Regulatory Compliance: In certain instances, we may be required to disclose your information in response to lawful requests by public authorities, including meeting national security or law enforcement requirements. This includes complying with legal processes such as court orders, warrants, or subpoenas.
   Policy Enforcement and Rights Protection: We reserve the right to share your information if we believe it’s necessary to enforce our terms of service, prevent fraud or abuse of our platform, or protect the rights, property, or safety of Chekku, our users, or others. This includes sharing information with other companies and organisations for fraud protection and credit risk reduction.
   Merger or Acquisition: In the event Chekku is involved in a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets, your information may be transferred as part of that transaction. We will provide notice before your personal information is transferred and becomes subject to a different privacy policy.

4. Your Privacy Rights

Chekku acknowledges and respects your rights to control your personal information. Our commitment to your privacy is reflected in our provision of clear choices about how your information is used and shared. Below we detail the rights you possess regarding the personal information we hold about you and how you can exercise these rights:

1. Right to Access
   You have the right to request access to the personal information Chekku holds about you. This includes the right to be informed about the nature of the personal information, the purposes for which it is processed, and whom it may be shared with.
2. Right to Correction
   Should your personal information be incorrect, incomplete, or outdated, you have the right to request its correction or update. Chekku is committed to maintaining accurate records of your personal information to ensure the efficacy of our services.
3. Right to Deletion
   You have the right to request the deletion of your personal information from our records, subject to certain exceptions prescribed by law. For instance, we may retain certain information for legal, security, or operational reasons, such as for the completion of transactions you have initiated, compliance with legal obligations, or resolution of disputes.
4. Right to Opt-Out
   Marketing Communications: You can opt-out of receiving marketing communications from us at any time. If you decide you no longer wish to receive such communications, you can unsubscribe through the link provided in the emails or contact us directly to remove you from the marketing distribution list.
   Cookies and Tracking Technologies: You have the right to opt-out of the use of cookies and tracking technologies that analyse your use of our services. While most browsers accept cookies by default, you can typically change your browser settings to reject cookies or to alert you when a cookie is being sent.
5. Right to Data Portability
   Where technically feasible, you have the right to request that your personal information be transferred to another organisation or directly to you in a structured, commonly used, and machine-readable format.
6. Right to Object
   You have the right to object to the processing of your personal information based on legitimate interests, direct marketing (including profiling), and processing for research or statistical purposes.
7. Right to Withdraw Consent
   For data processing activities based on your consent, you have the right to withdraw your consent at any time. The withdrawal of consent does not affect the lawfulness of processing based on consent before its withdrawal.

Exercising Your Rights

To exercise any of your privacy rights, please contact us through the contact information provided on our website. We may require verification of your identity before fulfilling your request. Chekku is dedicated to responding to your inquiries and fulfilling your requests in accordance with applicable laws.

5. Data Security

At Chekku, safeguarding your personal information is a paramount concern. We understand the critical nature of personal information security in the digital age and are committed to implementing robust security measures to protect the data you entrust to us. Our comprehensive approach to data security is designed to prevent unauthorised access, disclosure, alteration, and destruction of your personal information.

1. Security Measures
   Encryption: We employ state-of-the-art encryption technologies during data transmission and storage to ensure that your personal information is protected from unauthorised access. This includes the use of Secure Socket Layer (SSL) technology for sensitive data.
   Access Control: Access to your personal information is strictly limited to personnel who require it to perform their job functions. We enforce strict internal policies and procedures to prevent unauthorised access to or disclosure of your data.
   Regular Audits and Monitoring: Our security protocols include regular audits and monitoring of our systems and practices. This enables us to identify potential vulnerabilities and implement corrective actions promptly.
   Employee Training: All employees are required to undergo data security and privacy training. This ensures that they understand the importance of protecting personal information and the specific practices and behaviours required to maintain its security.
   Vendor and Partner Security: We carefully vet all third-party vendors and partners for compliance with our security standards. Contracts with third parties include obligations to maintain the confidentiality and security of your personal information and to use it only for the purposes for which it was disclosed.
2. Incident Response Plan
   Despite our rigorous security measures, we recognise that no system is impenetrable. In the unlikely event of a data breach, we have a comprehensive incident response plan in place. This plan includes immediate measures to secure the data, assess the scope and impact of the breach, notify affected individuals and regulatory authorities (where applicable), and take steps to prevent future occurrences.
3. User Responsibilities
   While we are dedicated to protecting your personal information, you also play a vital role in ensuring your data’s security. We encourage you to use strong, unique passwords for your accounts, be cautious of phishing scams, and protect the confidentiality of your login credentials. Additionally, we recommend regularly reviewing the permissions and settings on your account to ensure they align with your privacy preferences.
4. Continuous Improvement
   Data security practices are continually evolving, and we are committed to staying at the forefront of this field. We regularly review and update our security measures in response to emerging threats and advancements in technology.

6. International Data Transfers

In the global landscape of business and technology, Chekku operates across borders to deliver seamless and efficient services to our users. This international operation necessitates the transfer of personal information across geographical boundaries. As such, your personal information may be stored and processed in any country where we have facilities or in which we engage service providers.

1. Data Transfer Practices
   Compliance with Laws: When transferring personal information internationally, Chekku complies with applicable data protection laws. We take measures to ensure that any transfer of your personal information is conducted securely and in accordance with our privacy policy.
   Safeguarding Measures: We employ appropriate safeguards for cross-border data transfers as required by law, including the use of Standard Contractual Clauses approved by the European Commission, reliance on the recipient’s Privacy Shield certification (for transfers to US-based entities that are Privacy Shield certified), or other legally accepted means.
   Data Hosting and Processing Locations: Your information may be transferred to, and maintained on, computers located outside of your state, province, or country—potentially including countries that have different data protection regulations than your jurisdiction. Regardless of where your information is processed, we apply the same protections described in our privacy policy.
2. Your Rights and Choices
   We understand that international data transfers raise concerns about the protection and privacy of personal information. Chekku is committed to transparency and giving you control over your information. You have the right to be informed about where and how your data is processed, including any international transfers.
   Information and Transparency: Upon request, we will provide you with information about the specific safeguards in place for the transfer of your personal information to other countries.
   Consent and Withdrawal: Where we rely on your consent for the international transfer of your personal information, you have the right to withdraw that consent at any time. However, this will not affect the lawfulness of the processing based on consent before its withdrawal.
   Privacy Shield Framework: For transfers to entities in the United States, we endeavour to work with companies that comply with the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield Framework, ensuring an adequate level of protection for personal data.
3. Commitment to Privacy
   Chekku is dedicated to ensuring that your personal information receives an adequate level of protection regardless of where it is processed. We are committed to upholding our privacy obligations and your rights under applicable privacy laws. Should you have any questions or concerns regarding the international transfer of your personal information, please feel free to contact us at support@chekku.com.au

7. Changes to This Privacy Policy

In our continuous effort to enhance our services and comply with evolving legal and regulatory frameworks, Chekku reserves the right to amend this Privacy Policy periodically. Such updates are reflective of changes in our data processing practices, alterations in regulatory requirements, or the expansion of our services.

1. Notification of Changes
   To ensure transparency and keep you informed, we will:
   Update Notification: Notify you of any substantial changes to our Privacy Policy by posting an announcement on our platform, through email, or by other direct communication, depending on the nature of the change.
   “Last Updated” Date: Indicate the revision date of the Privacy Policy at the top of this document. We encourage you to review the Privacy Policy regularly to stay informed about how we are protecting the personal information we collect.
   Document Versioning: Maintain an archive of previous versions of our Privacy Policy for your review upon request. This is to ensure that you are aware of the evolution of our privacy practices over time.
2. Review Period
   Following the notification of updates to our Privacy Policy, we may provide a review period during which you can evaluate the changes. We understand the importance of privacy to our users and aim to make any policy changes clear and understandable.
3. Your Acceptance of Changes
   Continued Use: Your continued use of our Services after any changes to the Privacy Policy have been made will constitute your acceptance of those changes. If you do not agree with any modifications to the Privacy Policy, you should cease using our Services immediately.
   Feedback and Inquiries: We welcome your feedback regarding any changes to our Privacy Policy. If you have questions or concerns about any updates, please contact us directly. Our dedicated privacy team is committed to addressing your inquiries and providing the necessary support.
4. Commitment to Communication
   Chekku is committed to maintaining open channels of communication regarding our privacy practices. We understand the importance of privacy and data protection in the digital age and strive to ensure that our policy reflects the highest standards of transparency and accountability.

8. Contact Us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, please contact us at support@chekku.au