Privacy Policy.

1. Scope of this Privacy Policy

This Policy applies to personal information processed through PorkBelly websites, landing pages, forms, accounts, applications, marketplace services, communities, opportunity networks, support channels, communications, payments, bookings, coordination services, PorkBelly Private, Private Belly, PorkBelly 18, VIP Connections, and related services.

Additional privacy notices may apply to a particular form, service, event, marketplace transaction, payment process, private area, or partner opportunity. Where an additional notice conflicts with this Policy, the more specific notice applies to that activity.

2. Relationship between PorkBelly and Mingilo

PorkBelly is a broader social, marketplace, opportunity, community, and participation network. Mingilo is a dating and social-connection network operating within the wider PorkBelly social-community environment.

PorkBelly currently uses certain Mingilo-owned or Mingilo-branded websites, domains, subdomains, forms, support channels, login systems, payment pages, hosting services, and digital infrastructure.

Personal information submitted through a PorkBelly service hosted on Mingilo infrastructure is processed for the applicable PorkBelly purpose. Mingilo infrastructure may be used to store, route, administer, or secure that information.

PorkBelly and Mingilo are not the same service. Information may be shared between their relevant systems only where reasonably necessary to provide the requested service, manage an account, coordinate participation, protect users, meet legal obligations, or operate the wider network.

3. Personal information we may collect

Depending on how you use PorkBelly, we may collect:

• full name, username, profile name, stage name, and account identifiers;
• email address, telephone number, WhatsApp number, and communication preferences;
• date of birth, age, gender identity, and eligibility information;
• country, province, city, approximate location, and address information;
• identity, age-verification, business, qualification, or eligibility documents;
• profile photographs, portfolio links, videos, recordings, biographies, and social-media links;
• skills, experience, services, interests, availability, preferences, boundaries, and participation choices;
• marketplace listings, enquiries, purchases, sales, transaction information, delivery information, and reviews;
• application, booking, coordinator, support, complaint, and safety-report information;
• payment status, payment reference, transaction identifier, and related billing records;
• communications sent through forms, email, telephone, WhatsApp, chat, or support channels;
• device, browser, IP address, cookies, usage logs, and security information; and
• any other information you voluntarily provide.

We aim to collect only information reasonably necessary for the relevant PorkBelly service.

4. Sensitive and special personal information

Certain PorkBelly services may involve information that is sensitive or may qualify as special personal information under applicable law. This may include information relating to health, gender identity, sexual orientation, private preferences, intimate boundaries, biometric verification, or allegations of misconduct.

We process sensitive information only where reasonably necessary, permitted by law, supported by consent where required, or necessary to protect users, manage safety, verify eligibility, investigate misconduct, or provide the requested service.

Users should avoid submitting more sensitive information than is reasonably required.

5. How we collect information

We may collect personal information:

• directly from you when you register, apply, pay, list, buy, sell, communicate, or contact support;
• through PorkBelly, Mingilo, Forminator, marketplace, payment, messaging, or other connected systems;
• from your interactions with other users, coordinators, partners, sellers, buyers, or service providers;
• from public sources, social-media profiles, portfolios, business directories, or professional references;
• automatically through cookies, server logs, device information, security tools, and analytics; and
• from third parties where lawful and reasonably necessary.

If you provide information about another person, you confirm that you have lawful authority to do so and that the information is accurate.

6. How we use personal information

We may use personal information to:

• create, administer, secure, and support accounts and profiles;
• review registrations, applications, listings, eligibility, and verification information;
• operate PorkBelly communities, marketplace functions, opportunities, and private services;
• connect users with relevant coordinators, partners, buyers, sellers, providers, or opportunities;
• process and allocate payments, fees, purchases, refunds, and billing records;
• coordinate bookings, introductions, support, communications, and service requests;
• personalise content, categories, listings, offers, and user experience;
• prevent fraud, abuse, impersonation, exploitation, harassment, and unauthorised access;
• investigate complaints, safety reports, disputes, or suspected misconduct;
• send service notices, account messages, payment updates, support responses, and operational communications;
• send marketing communications where permitted and subject to available opt-out rights;
• measure, maintain, improve, and secure PorkBelly systems; and
• comply with legal, regulatory, contractual, or law-enforcement obligations.

7. Lawful grounds for processing

Depending on the activity, PorkBelly may process personal information because:

• you have given consent;
• processing is necessary to provide a service or perform an agreement with you;
• processing is required to comply with a legal obligation;
• processing protects a legitimate interest of PorkBelly, a user, a partner, or the public;
• processing is necessary to protect a legitimate interest of the person concerned; or
• another lawful basis applies.

Where consent is the basis for processing, you may withdraw that consent, subject to legal, contractual, evidential, safety, or operational limits.

8. Profiles, listings, and visibility

Information placed in a public or member-visible profile, marketplace listing, opportunity profile, seller page, service listing, review, post, or community area may be visible to other users or the public, depending on the service settings.

Users should not place private contact details, identity documents, financial details, home addresses, confidential information, or sensitive personal information in publicly visible fields unless clearly required and appropriate.

Private Belly, PorkBelly Private, VIP, and coordinator information is not intended to be publicly displayed unless the user has chosen a service or profile setting that requires controlled visibility.

9. PorkBelly Marketplace privacy

Marketplace information may be shared between buyers, sellers, service providers, payment processors, delivery providers, support teams, and other parties reasonably necessary to complete or manage a transaction.

A seller may receive information such as a buyer’s name, contact information, selected item, delivery information, transaction status, or enquiry details. A buyer may receive relevant seller, business, listing, contact, fulfilment, or service information.

Buyers and sellers may use information obtained through the marketplace only for the applicable transaction, support, legal, or safety purpose. They may not sell, publish, scrape, misuse, or retain another user’s information for unrelated purposes.

10. PorkBelly Private, Private Belly, PorkBelly 18, and VIP privacy

These services may require additional information about age, identity, location, preferences, boundaries, availability, services, interests, eligibility, and private participation choices.

Relevant information may be made available to authorised coordinators, support personnel, approved partners, or suitable participants where necessary to manage an enquiry, application, booking, connection, verification, or safety concern.

We may retain relevant application, consent, safety, payment, booking, and communication records where reasonably necessary to administer the service, protect users, resolve disputes, or comply with law.

11. Communications, messaging, calls, and support

PorkBelly may communicate through website forms, account messages, chat, email, telephone, WhatsApp, SMS, or other channels selected by the user or reasonably connected to the service.

Messages and support records may be stored or reviewed where necessary to deliver support, coordinate services, investigate complaints, detect fraud or abuse, protect users, enforce platform rules, preserve evidence, or comply with law.

PorkBelly does not routinely read private user communications unless necessary for a legitimate service, security, moderation, support, complaint, safety, or legal purpose.

12. Payment and financial information

Payments may be processed by independent payment providers. PorkBelly may receive transaction identifiers, payment status, payment reference, payer details, amount, date, and other information necessary to allocate and administer payment.

Complete card or banking credentials are generally processed by the payment provider and should not be submitted through ordinary PorkBelly forms, email, chat, or WhatsApp.

Payment records may be retained for accounting, fraud prevention, refunds, dispute management, access activation, and legal compliance.

13. When we may share personal information

PorkBelly does not sell personal information as a product.

We may share information with:

• Mingilo systems and authorised personnel supporting PorkBelly infrastructure;
• hosting, security, analytics, form, communication, and technology providers;
• payment processors, billing providers, and financial-service partners;
• marketplace buyers, sellers, delivery providers, and transaction partners;
• coordinators, approved partners, opportunity providers, clients, venues, or service providers;
• professional advisers, auditors, insurers, or legal representatives;
• regulators, courts, law-enforcement authorities, or other bodies where lawfully required; and
• another operator where a lawful restructuring, transfer, merger, or succession occurs.

We aim to share only information reasonably necessary for the applicable purpose.

14. Cookies, analytics, and similar technologies

PorkBelly and its service providers may use cookies, pixels, local storage, server logs, analytics tools, and similar technologies to:

• keep users signed in;
• remember settings and preferences;
• operate forms, carts, payments, and security features;
• measure traffic, usage, performance, and engagement;
• detect fraud, abuse, and technical problems; and
• improve content and user experience.

Users may manage cookies through browser settings, although disabling essential cookies may prevent some services from working properly.

15. Device, technical, and location information

We may collect IP address, browser type, device type, operating system, referring page, timestamps, login activity, security events, approximate location, and related technical information.

Precise device location is collected only where the service requests it and the user permits access. Location information may be used to display relevant services, listings, providers, events, communities, opportunities, or safety information.

16. How long we retain information

PorkBelly retains personal information only for as long as reasonably necessary for the purpose for which it was collected, or as required for legal, tax, accounting, contractual, fraud-prevention, safety, evidential, complaint, dispute, or enforcement purposes.

Retention periods vary according to the nature of the account, application, marketplace transaction, payment, booking, private service, safety report, communication, or legal obligation.

Information may be deleted, anonymised, archived, restricted, or retained in secure backups when no longer required for ordinary use.

17. Information security

PorkBelly uses reasonable administrative, technical, and operational safeguards intended to protect information against loss, misuse, unauthorised access, alteration, disclosure, or destruction.

Safeguards may include access controls, authentication, restricted staff access, secure hosting, backups, encryption where appropriate, monitoring, verification, and service-provider controls.

No website, messaging service, payment platform, or storage system can guarantee absolute security. Users must protect their passwords, devices, one-time PINs, account access, and private communications.

18. Your privacy rights and choices

Subject to applicable law, users may request to:

• confirm whether PorkBelly holds personal information about them;
• access personal information held about them;
• correct or update inaccurate, incomplete, or outdated information;
• object to certain processing;
• withdraw consent where processing is based on consent;
• request deletion or destruction where legally permitted;
• request restriction of processing in appropriate circumstances;
• opt out of direct marketing; and
• submit a complaint about the handling of personal information.

We may require identity verification before acting on a request. Certain information may need to be retained despite a deletion request where required for legal, contractual, payment, fraud, safety, evidential, or dispute purposes.

19. Direct marketing and notifications

PorkBelly may send service-related messages necessary to administer accounts, applications, payments, bookings, safety, marketplace activity, and support.

Promotional communications may be sent where permitted by law or where the user has provided the required consent. Users may opt out through the unsubscribe method provided or by contacting support.

Opting out of marketing does not prevent essential operational, transactional, security, or legal communications.

20. Children and minors

PorkBelly Private, Private Belly, PorkBelly 18, VIP Connections, and any service marked 18+ are not available to minors.

Certain general marketplace, creative, talent, or community services may permit minors only where appropriate, lawful, and supported by parent or legal-guardian involvement.

Suspected underage participation in an adult area should be reported immediately.

21. International and cross-border processing

PorkBelly may use service providers, hosting, communications, partners, users, or infrastructure located outside South Africa.

Where personal information is transferred across borders, PorkBelly aims to use lawful transfer mechanisms and reasonable safeguards appropriate to the information and destination.

22. Third-party websites and services

PorkBelly may link to or use independent payment platforms, marketplaces, messaging services, social networks, maps, forms, hosting providers, partner websites, and other third-party services.

Third parties process information under their own privacy policies and terms. Users should review those policies before submitting information or completing transactions outside PorkBelly-controlled systems.

23. Security incidents and data breaches

If PorkBelly becomes aware of a security compromise affecting personal information, it may investigate, contain, remediate, preserve evidence, notify relevant service providers, and take other appropriate action.

Where required by law, affected users and the Information Regulator may be notified.

Users should promptly report suspected unauthorised access, account takeover, impersonation, leaked information, fraud, or privacy abuse.

24. Updates to this Privacy Policy

PorkBelly may update this Policy to reflect changes in law, infrastructure, services, security, payments, marketplace activity, communities, partners, or processing practices.

The effective date will be updated when changes are made. Material changes may also be communicated through the website or registered contact details.