Privacy and Terms

This page belongs to Paperman, based in Durban, South Africa. It explains, in plain language, how this website works, what information we do and don't collect, and the simple rules for our WhatsApp study groups.

The short version: we don't ask for your name, email, or phone number on this site. We use anonymous analytics to see which pages and buttons get used so we can make the site better. That's it.

1. What this website is

This site is a free directory of Paperman's WhatsApp study groups for Grade 8 to 12 learners in South Africa. You browse by grade and subject, tap a link, and join a group. There are no accounts, no sign-ups, and no payments on this site.

2. What we collect (and what we don't)

We do not collect:

• Your name, email address, or phone number
• Your ID number or any account details
• Your exact location
• Anything you type, because there is nothing to type here

We do collect anonymous usage statistics. We use Google Analytics for Firebase to understand how the site is used, for example how many people visit, which grades and subjects are most popular, and which buttons get tapped. This data is aggregated and does not identify you personally:

• Full IP addresses are not logged or stored by Google Analytics
• We have switched off advertising features, ad personalisation, and Google Signals
• We only see totals and trends, never individual people
• We do not sell or share this data with anyone

This means we can see that "1,200 people viewed the Grade 12 section this week," but we cannot see who any of those people are.

3. Cookies

This site uses a small number of cookies solely to make the anonymous analytics above work. A notice appears at the bottom of the site to let you know. Cookies here are not used for advertising, tracking you across other websites, or building a profile of you.

If you prefer, you can block or delete cookies in your browser settings at any time. The site will still work normally.

4. Learners under 18

Most of our visitors are high school learners, and we designed this site with that in mind. Because we don't collect names, contact details, or any personal information on this website, there is nothing personal for us to store about any learner who visits.

A note for parents and guardians: this site only links to WhatsApp groups. We encourage you to look through the groups your child joins, and you are welcome to join them yourself. If you have any questions or concerns, contact us at the email address below and a real person will respond.

5. About the WhatsApp groups

When you tap a join link, you leave this website and enter WhatsApp, which is run by Meta and governed by WhatsApp's own Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. A few honest things you should know before joining:

• Your phone number and profile name are visible to other members of a WhatsApp group. This is how WhatsApp groups work and is outside our control. If you'd prefer more privacy, you can adjust your WhatsApp privacy settings (for example, hiding your profile photo from people who aren't your contacts) before joining.
• Our current focus is building the Paperman app. We are not actively sharing study material in the groups at this time. The groups exist for learners to help each other, share resources, and study together.
• Messages in the groups are written by members, and moderation is currently limited. Given the sheer number of groups, spam and scam messages are sometimes missed. We remove what we can, but WhatsApp only allows admins to delete messages within a limited time window, so some older messages can't be removed even when we want them gone. We are working to appoint dedicated moderators for every group as soon as possible.
• Be alert for scams. Never send money, banking details, OTPs, or personal information to anyone in a group, no matter who they claim to be. Paperman will never ask you for money or personal details inside a group. If something looks like a scam, it probably is. Report it to a group admin or email us.
• We aren't responsible for what individual members post, but we do act on reports. If you see something that shouldn't be there, report it to a group admin or email us and we'll deal with it as fast as WhatsApp's tools allow.

6. Group rules

By joining a Paperman WhatsApp group, you agree to keep it useful for everyone:

• Be respectful. No bullying, hate speech, or harassment of any kind.
• Keep it about school. No spam, advertising, or off-topic flooding.
• No inappropriate content. Anything unsuitable for a school environment gets you removed.
• Please post in English first. With members from every province and language background, English is the one language the majority of the community understands, so it keeps the groups useful for everyone.
• Don't share other members' numbers or personal information outside the group.
• Admins may remove any member or message at their discretion to protect the group.

We reserve the right to remove members, close groups, or restructure groups at any time to keep the community safe and useful.

7. No guarantees

The study groups and any material shared in them are provided free of charge to help you learn. We work hard to keep content accurate and helpful, but we can't guarantee that everything shared by members is correct, and group content is not a substitute for your school's official curriculum, your teachers, or professional advice. Use your judgement and always double-check against your official study materials before exams.

8. Third-party services

Two third parties are involved in this website:

• Google (Firebase / Google Analytics): processes the anonymous usage statistics described above. Google's servers are located outside South Africa, which means this anonymised data is processed internationally under Google's own privacy safeguards.
• WhatsApp (Meta): hosts the study groups. Once you join a group, WhatsApp's terms and privacy policy apply to your use of WhatsApp.

We don't control these companies, and their handling of data is governed by their own policies.

9. Your rights under POPIA

South Africa's Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA) gives you rights over your personal information. Because this site doesn't collect personal information, there is generally nothing for us to hand over, correct, or delete. But your rights still stand, and if you believe we hold any personal information about you, you may:

• Ask us what information we have about you
• Ask us to correct or delete it
• Object to any processing
• Lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator of South Africa (inforegulator.org.za)

Email us at the address below and we'll respond promptly.

10. Changes to this page

If we change how the site works, for example if we ever add features that collect personal information, we will update this page and change the effective date at the top. Significant changes will be announced in our main WhatsApp group.

11. Contact us

Questions, concerns, or requests about anything on this page:

Email: support@paperman.app

A real person reads every email.