TrustDex is operated by Novadex (Pty) Ltd, a private company registered in the Republic of South Africa (registration number 2026 / 473401 / 07; physical address: Sandton, 2191). Under the Protection of Personal Information Act, 2013 (POPIA), we are the "responsible party" for the personal information described here. You can contact our Information Officer at support@trustdex.co.za.

Account details: your name, email address, and how you sign in (email and password, or Google). Passwords are handled by Google's Firebase Authentication and are stored in hashed form, so we never see or store your actual password.

Profile details you choose to add: names you give family members, ages or age groups, and health-related sensitivities such as allergies, diabetes, ADHD, PKU, asthma, gluten or dairy sensitivity. This is used only to personalise the warnings shown on product pages.

Usage information: how many searches or scans you've used, your credit balance and credit history, and when you last signed in. Your saved-products list stays on your own device. We also keep aggregate, non-identifying counts of which products and categories are viewed most.

Product submissions: photos and details you upload when submitting a missing product, and the email address you submitted from.

Payment information: payments are handled by PayFast on the web and by Google Play in the Android app. We receive a confirmation, the pack purchased, the amount and a reference. We never see or store your card or bank details.

Technical information: basic device, browser and IP-address information that our hosting and security services log automatically. The app also stores a copy of the product catalogue and your profile on your device so it works quickly and offline.

Camera: the app uses your camera to scan barcodes and, if you choose, to photograph a product for submission. Scanning happens on your device; a photo only leaves it if you submit it.

To provide TrustDex: creating and securing your account, showing scores, personalising warnings for the profiles you create, tracking credits, processing purchases and refunds, reviewing product submissions, and giving support. We also use limited information to keep the service secure and to improve it. We rely on your consent for health-related and children's information and for marketing emails, on the need to perform our agreement with you for running your account and credits, and on legitimate interests and legal obligations (for example fraud prevention and tax records) for the rest.

Health-related details and information about children are "special personal information" under POPIA, so we only store them with your explicit consent, which the app asks for before you save a profile that includes them. We only use this information to personalise scores for you, and we never sell it or use it for advertising.

TrustDex accounts are for adults (18 and over). If you add a profile for a child, you confirm that you are their parent or legal guardian and consent on their behalf. You can edit or delete any profile at any time in the app.

We don't sell your personal information. We use trusted service providers ("operators") who process it for us under agreements that require them to protect it:

Google (Firebase and Google Cloud): sign-in, our database, file storage and back-end services.
PayFast and Google Play: payment processing (Google Play for purchases in the Android app).
EmailJS and our email hosting provider: sending account emails such as verification and password resets.
Netlify: hosting the website and app.

We may also disclose information where the law requires it, or to protect our rights, users or the public from fraud or abuse.

Some of these providers store or process information outside South Africa, including in the United States. Where that happens, we rely on providers that are bound by data-protection obligations comparable to POPIA, or on your consent, as POPIA allows.

We keep your account information for as long as your account is open. When you delete your account we delete your profile, family profiles and credit history from our systems. Payment records are kept for as long as tax and accounting law requires, and product submissions may be kept as a record of what was submitted and reviewed. Information in our product database is product data, not personal information.

We take reasonable technical and organisational steps to keep personal information secure, including encrypted connections, access controls on our database, and limiting who at Novadex can see it. No system is perfectly secure, and if a breach puts your information at risk we'll tell you and the Information Regulator as POPIA requires.

You can ask to see the personal information we hold about you, ask us to correct it, ask us to delete it, object to how we use it, or withdraw a consent you've given, at any time. Email support@trustdex.co.za and we'll respond within a reasonable time. You can also make changes yourself in the app under your profile. If you're unhappy with how we've handled your information, you can complain to the Information Regulator of South Africa at inforegulator.org.za.

In the app, open your profile and choose Delete my account. This permanently removes your account and the data described above. If you can't access the app, email support@trustdex.co.za from the address on your account and we'll delete it for you.

To remove specific data without closing your TrustDex account: open your Saved Products list in the app and tap the ✕ next to any item to remove it immediately. Only that saved product is deleted — your account, other saved products, credit balance and profile information are all kept and unaffected. There's no retention period for a removed item: it's deleted from your saved list immediately, with no delay or backup copy kept. If you'd like us to delete a different specific piece of information instead (for example a profile field) without deleting your account, email support@trustdex.co.za and we'll action it directly.

We only send marketing emails if you opt in, either with the optional box when you sign up or later in the app. Every marketing email has an unsubscribe link, and you can turn them off in the app at any time. You'll still get essential account emails, such as verification and password resets.

We may update this policy as TrustDex grows. If we make a material change, we'll let you know in the app or by email, and ask you to accept the new version where the law requires it. This policy was last updated on 25 September 2026.

Questions about your privacy? Email support@trustdex.co.za.