1. Introduction

Industry247 is a quarterly digital magazine published by Mettle SA, dedicated to South Africa's industrial sectors — including mining, energy, construction, manufacturing, and agriculture. We are committed to protecting the privacy of our readers, subscribers, advertisers, and all individuals who interact with our platform.

This Privacy Policy explains how Industry247 ("we", "us", "our") collects, uses, stores, and protects your personal information in accordance with the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 (POPIA) and all other applicable South African data protection legislation.

By visiting our website, subscribing to our magazine, registering your interest, or otherwise engaging with Industry247, you acknowledge that you have read and understood this Privacy Policy.

 

2. Who We Are

Industry247 is published by Mettle SA, operating as a digital media platform focused on the South African industrial SME market.

 

For all data privacy enquiries, you may contact our Information Officer at:

 

• Publication: Industry247

• Publisher: Mettle SA

• Email: hello@industry247.co.za

• Website: www.industry247.co.za

• Country: South Africa

 

3. Information We Collect

We collect personal information only where necessary and only to the extent required to deliver our services. The types of information we may collect include:

 

3.1 Information You Provide Directly

• Full name and surname

• Business email address

• Company or organisation name

• Job title or role

• Industry sector

• Nature of interest (subscription, advertising, editorial, or general enquiry)

• Any additional information you voluntarily provide through correspondence or forms

 

3.2 Information Collected Automatically

When you visit our website, we may automatically collect certain technical and usage data, including:

• IP address and approximate geographic location

• Browser type and version

• Pages visited and time spent on site

• Referring website or source

• Device type and operating system

​

This information is collected through standard web analytics tools and cookies, as described in Section 8 of this Policy.

 

3.3 Information from Third Parties

We do not purchase or source personal data from third-party data brokers. Any personal information we hold about you will have been provided directly by you or collected through your interaction with our platform.

 

4. How We Use Your Information

We use your personal information for the following purposes:

 

4.1 To Deliver Our Services

• To send you our quarterly digital magazine editions

• To respond to enquiries and registration submissions

• To process advertising, advertorial, and editorial requests

• To communicate launch updates, new edition notifications, and editorial announcements

 

4.2 To Manage Our Business Operations

• To maintain accurate subscriber and advertiser records

• To generate anonymised audience and readership statistics

• To comply with legal and regulatory obligations

• To resolve disputes or enforce our terms and conditions

 

4.3 For Marketing and Communications

With your consent, we may contact you with information about Industry247 editions, sector features, advertising opportunities, and related content we believe may be of professional interest to you. You may withdraw your consent at any time — see Section 7 for details.

 

5. Legal Basis for Processing

In accordance with POPIA, we process your personal information on one or more of the following grounds:

• Consent: You have given us clear consent to process your information for a specific purpose, such as subscribing to our publication or registering interest.

• Contractual necessity: Processing is necessary to fulfil an agreement with you, such as delivering a paid advertorial or editorial service.

• Legitimate interest: We have a legitimate business interest in processing your information, provided this does not override your rights and interests.

• Legal obligation: We are required to process your information to comply with applicable law.

 

6. Sharing of Personal Information

Industry247 does not sell, rent, or trade your personal information to any third party for marketing or commercial purposes.

We may share your information only in the following limited circumstances:

 

6.1 Service Providers

We may share your information with trusted third-party service providers who assist us in operating our platform and delivering our services. These may include:

• Email distribution and newsletter platforms

• Website hosting and cloud storage providers

• Analytics and audience measurement tools

• Payment processing providers (where applicable)

All service providers are required to handle your information in accordance with POPIA and are contractually bound to maintain appropriate data protection standards.

 

6.2 Legal Requirements

We may disclose your personal information if required to do so by law, court order, or regulatory authority, or if we believe in good faith that such disclosure is necessary to protect our rights, your safety, or the safety of others.

 

6.3 Business Transfers

In the event of a merger, acquisition, or transfer of all or part of our business, your personal information may be transferred as part of that transaction. We will notify you before your information is transferred and becomes subject to a different privacy policy.

 

7. Your Rights Under POPIA

As a data subject under the Protection of Personal Information Act, you have the following rights:

• Right of access: You have the right to request a copy of the personal information we hold about you.

• Right to correction: You may request that we correct inaccurate or incomplete personal information.

• Right to deletion: You may request that we delete your personal information where it is no longer necessary for the purposes for which it was collected.

• Right to object: You may object to the processing of your personal information for direct marketing purposes at any time.

• Right to withdraw consent: Where we process your information based on consent, you may withdraw that consent at any time without affecting the lawfulness of prior processing.

• Right to lodge a complaint: You have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator of South Africa if you believe your personal information has been processed in violation of POPIA.

 

To exercise any of the above rights, please contact us at hello@industry247.co.za. We will respond to all requests within a reasonable time and in accordance with our obligations under POPIA.

 

The Information Regulator of South Africa may be contacted at:

• Website: www.inforegulator.org.za

• Email: inforeg@justice.gov.za

• Address: JD House, 27 Stiemens Street, Braamfontein, Johannesburg, 2001

 

8. Cookies and Tracking Technologies

Our website may use cookies and similar tracking technologies to improve your browsing experience and help us understand how our platform is used.

 

8.1 What Are Cookies?

Cookies are small text files placed on your device when you visit a website. They allow the website to recognise your device on subsequent visits and may store preferences and usage data.

 

8.2 Types of Cookies We Use

• Essential cookies: Required for the website to function correctly. These cannot be disabled.

• Analytics cookies: Help us understand how visitors use our site (e.g. pages visited, time on site). We use this data in anonymised, aggregated form only.

• Preference cookies: Remember settings or choices you have made to personalise your experience.

 

8.3 Managing Cookies

You can control and manage cookies through your browser settings. Please note that disabling certain cookies may affect the functionality of our website. For more information on managing cookies, visit www.allaboutcookies.org.

 

9. Data Retention

We retain your personal information only for as long as is necessary for the purposes set out in this Privacy Policy, or as required by applicable law.

Specifically:

• Subscriber and reader data is retained for the duration of your subscription and for a reasonable period thereafter to maintain records.

• Enquiry and registration data is retained for up to 24 months from the date of submission, unless you request earlier deletion.

• Advertiser and editorial client records may be retained for up to 5 years in accordance with financial record-keeping requirements.

When your information is no longer required, it will be securely deleted or anonymised.

 

10. Security of Your Personal Information

We take the security of your personal information seriously and implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect it against unauthorised access, loss, alteration, or disclosure.

These measures include:

• Secure data storage with access controls

• Encrypted transmission of data where applicable

• Limited internal access to personal information on a need-to-know basis

• Regular review of our data protection practices

While we take all reasonable steps to protect your information, no method of electronic transmission or storage is completely secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security, but we are committed to responding promptly to any suspected data breach in accordance with POPIA.

 

11. Children's Privacy

Industry247 is a professional B2B publication aimed at business owners, managers, and decision-makers in South Africa's industrial sectors. Our platform is not directed at or intended for use by individuals under the age of 18. We do not knowingly collect personal information from minors. If you become aware that a minor has submitted personal information to us, please contact us immediately at hello@industry247.co.za and we will take steps to delete such information.

 

12. Third-Party Links

Our website and publications may contain links to third-party websites, including our advertisers, editorial partners, and sector resources. This Privacy Policy applies solely to Industry247 and does not cover the privacy practices of any third-party sites. We encourage you to review the privacy policies of any external websites you visit.

 

13. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, legal obligations, or operational requirements. Any material changes will be communicated by posting the updated policy on our website with a revised effective date.

We encourage you to review this policy periodically. Your continued use of Industry247's services following any updates constitutes your acceptance of the revised policy.

 

14. Contact Us

If you have any questions, concerns, or requests relating to this Privacy Policy or the handling of your personal information, please do not hesitate to contact us:

 

• Publication: Industry247

• Publisher: Mettle SA

• General enquiries: hello@industry247.co.za

• Advertising enquiries: advertise@industry247.co.za

• Website: www.industry247.co.za

• Country: South Africa

 

We are committed to resolving all queries and complaints fairly and in a timely manner.