This site has no accounts and no forms, so it never asks for your name, ID number, phone number or banking details. It uses Google Analytics to count visits and Google AdSense to show adverts; both use cookies, which you can block or delete in your browser and opt out of with Google's own tools, listed below. This policy explains what little is processed, why, by whom, for how long, and your rights under South Africa's Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 (POPIA).
The responsible party for this site, as POPIA section 1 and section 18 use that term, and its information officer, is:
This site is an independent information platform and is not affiliated with SASSA or any South African government department. SASSA is a separate responsible party for the information you give it on its own channels; this policy does not cover those.
| Information | Why | How long | Lawful ground |
|---|---|---|---|
| Server logs: IP address, browser type, page requested, time | Keeping the site running and secure, and blocking attacks | A short period set by the hosting provider, then deleted | Legitimate interest in a working, secure site |
| Words typed into the site search | Showing you matching pages. Suggestions are worked out in your own browser. | Not stored beyond the server log above | Needed to provide what you asked for |
| Analytics: pages viewed, device type, approximate area | Knowing which questions matter most, so the right guides are written and kept current | Held by Google Analytics for no longer than 14 months | Legitimate interest in knowing which guides readers need; you can opt out (see below) |
| Advertising data | Showing adverts, which pay for the site | Set by Google — see cookies below | Legitimate interest in funding a free site; you can opt out of personalised adverts (see below) |
| Your email address and message, if you write to us | Replying to you, or correcting the page you reported | Deleted once the matter is closed | Your consent, given by writing |
Nothing else is collected. There is nowhere on this site to enter an ID number, and please do not include your ID number, banking details or application reference in an email — we cannot act on them, and you should never need to share them with anyone other than SASSA. Personal information is never sold, rented or traded.
This site sets no cookies of its own. Google Analytics and Google AdSense set the cookies listed below. You stay in control of them:
| Name | Set by | Purpose | Lasts |
|---|---|---|---|
_ga | Google Analytics | Distinguishes one browser from another so visits can be counted. | 2 years |
_ga_* | Google Analytics | Keeps track of the current visit. | 2 years |
Advertising cookies, such as __gads and __gpi | Google AdSense and its partners | Show adverts, limit how often one repeats, measure them, detect fraud and, unless you opt out, personalise them. | Set by Google, typically up to 13 months |
This site itself sets no login, session or tracking cookie. Google's full, current list of the cookies it uses is at policies.google.com/technologies/cookies.
Google Analytics 4 tells us how many people visit, which pages they read, and roughly where they are, so we can see which questions matter most. It does not log or store IP addresses. The data is aggregated; we cannot identify you from it. Google's own policy is at policies.google.com/privacy, and you can opt out of Analytics everywhere with the Google Analytics opt-out add-on.
Adverts on this site are served by Google AdSense. Google, as a third-party vendor, uses cookies to serve adverts based on your prior visits to this website and other websites. Google's use of advertising cookies enables it and its partners to serve adverts to you based on your visit to this site and/or other sites on the internet.
You can opt out of personalised advertising by visiting Google Ads Settings, or opt out of a third-party vendor's use of cookies for personalised advertising at aboutads.info. How Google uses information from sites that use its services is explained at policies.google.com/technologies/partner-sites. Adverts are labelled on the page, are never placed to look like part of an article or a SASSA button, and advertisers have no say in what we publish.
POPIA calls a service that processes information on a responsible party's behalf an operator. This site uses three, each bound by its own data-protection terms:
No one else receives personal information from this site.
Yes. Google and Cloudflare run servers in many countries, so analytics, advertising and delivery data may be processed outside South Africa. POPIA section 72 allows this where the recipient is bound by rules giving protection substantially similar to POPIA's; both companies process data under published data-protection terms that commit them to that. Blocking cookies in your browser keeps the least possible information leaving it.
The whole site is served over an encrypted (HTTPS) connection. There is no database of visitors, no user accounts and no stored form submissions, so there is very little that could be exposed. Access to the hosting account and the contact inbox is limited to the person named above. If a security compromise ever affected your information, you and the Information Regulator would be told as POPIA section 22 requires.
You have the right to:
To make a request, email the address above with "POPIA request" in the subject. It is free, and you will get an answer within 30 days. Because this site holds almost nothing about any visitor, most requests can be answered straight away. If you are not satisfied with the answer, you may complain to the Information Regulator (South Africa), which publishes its complaint forms on its website.
No marketing is sent. There is no newsletter or mailing list, and this site never contacts anyone first — by SMS, WhatsApp, email or phone. A message claiming to be from us and asking for details is a scam.
The grants covered here are for adults, and the site is not directed at anyone under 18. We do not knowingly process information about children.
If it does, the Updated date at the top of this page will move and the change will be described here. Related pages: terms of service, disclaimer, editorial policy.