This notice explains how we collect and use personal data across everything under the Chikwenze name:
- the website chikwenze.com and its sub-sites, such as lecture.chikwenze.com
- the events we organise or promote, including lectures, festivals, book launches and signings
- book sales and enquiries
- the emails and WhatsApp messages we send
We follow the Nigeria Data Protection Act 2023 (NDPA). For people in the European Economic Area and the United Kingdom, we also follow the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the UK GDPR.
- Who we are
- What we collect and why
- Emails and WhatsApp
- Cookies and other services
- Who we share it with
- Transfers outside Nigeria
- Filming and photos at events
- Your rights
- Security
- Children
- Changes and contact
1. Who we are
Vynehouse Ads and Assets Limited runs chikwenze.com, its sub-sites and the related events and communications on behalf of the Chikwenze Family. It is the data controller for the personal data described in this notice. Partners such as event managers help run some events; where they do, they handle your data only on our instructions.
Vynehouse Ads and Assets Limited (RC 7030248)13 Walter Carrington Crescent, Victoria Island, Lagos, Nigeria
Data and privacy contact: privacy@chikwenze.com
2. What we collect and why
We collect personal data only when you give it to us or when your browser connects to our sites. The legal basis for each use, under section 25 of the NDPA and Article 6 of the GDPR, is shown below.
| What | Why we use it | Legal basis | How long we keep it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Event registration: name, phone or WhatsApp number, (optional) email address, and whether you will attend in person or online | To reserve your place, plan seating and access, and send the confirmation, reminders and joining links for the event you registered for | Steps you asked us to take (contract, or pre-contract steps) | Until 12 months after that event, then deleted |
| Your choices to receive recordings, book information, news of future events, or WhatsApp updates | To send only the extra messages you chose | Your consent, which you can withdraw at any time | Until you withdraw consent; contacts for future events are reviewed every 2 years |
| Book enquiries and orders, including WhatsApp chats with Vynehouse Literature | To answer you, take and deliver orders, and handle returns | Steps you asked us to take, and legal obligations for sales records | Enquiries: up to 12 months after the conversation ends. Sales records: as long as tax law requires |
| Messages you send us by email, WhatsApp or social media | To reply and keep a record of what we agreed | Legitimate interests, or steps you asked us to take | Up to 12 months after the conversation ends |
| The page you signed up from, the date and time, and the messages we sent you | To know which of our links work, avoid sending duplicates, and keep a record of your consent | Legitimate interests | As long as the related registration |
| Email addresses that unsubscribed, and phone numbers that replied STOP | To make sure we never message you again | Legal obligation and legitimate interests | Kept while we send any messages |
| Technical logs: IP address, browser type, pages requested, date and time | To run the websites securely and fix problems | Legitimate interests | As kept by our hosting provider, usually no more than 90 days |
We do not make decisions about you by automated means. We do not build profiles for advertising, and we do not sell or rent personal data.
3. Emails and WhatsApp
When you register for an event with an email address, we send a confirmation and timed reminders for that event, and afterwards the recording if one is published. Book details and news of future events go only to people who ticked those boxes. Every email has an unsubscribe link that works with one click.
WhatsApp messages go only to people who ticked "Send me updates on WhatsApp". We send them through the WhatsApp Business Platform, which Meta provides, or by hand from our WhatsApp number. Reply STOP to any of them and we will not message you on WhatsApp again.
4. Cookies and other services
Our own pages set no cookies and use no analytics or advertising trackers.
- Remembered choices. Some pages remember a choice you make, such as which bookshop to show you, in your browser's local storage. A page may also read your device's time zone, on your device only, to show the nearest place to buy a book. Neither is sent to us.
- Fonts. Our pages load fonts from Google Fonts, so your browser connects to Google, which receives your IP address.
- Video. Livestreams and recordings are YouTube videos shown in privacy-enhanced mode. YouTube (Google) may set cookies once you play a video.
- Links to other sites. When you follow a link to Amazon, Selar, Facebook, Instagram, Google Scholar, WhatsApp, Vynehouse or another site, that site's own privacy policy applies. Amazon links may carry our Amazon Associates tag. If they do, Amazon may use cookies to credit us with a small commission on qualifying purchases, at no cost to you.
5. Who we share it with
We share personal data only as needed, and only with:
- Service providers who process it for us under contract. These are our web hosting provider, which also sends our emails, and Meta, which provides the WhatsApp Business Platform.
- Partners who help run a particular event, such as event managers, venues or a host institution. They receive only what that event needs, for example a guest list for seating, security or protocol.
- Vynehouse Literature, for book enquiries and orders.
- Authorities, where the law requires it.
6. Transfers outside Nigeria
Some of our providers, such as Google and Meta, store data outside Nigeria, and Vynehouse has staff in Estonia. When personal data leaves Nigeria or the European Economic Area, we rely on the safeguards the NDPA (Part VIII) and the GDPR (Chapter V) allow. These include adequacy decisions, standard contractual clauses, or transfers necessary to provide what you asked for. You can ask us for details.
7. Filming and photos at events
Events we organise may be filmed, photographed or livestreamed, and recordings and photos may be published afterwards. Guests may appear in wide shots of the audience. We do this on the basis of our legitimate interest in sharing public and academic events. If you would prefer not to appear, tell a member of the event team on arrival and we will seat you away from the cameras where we can. You can also ask us afterwards to blur or remove a close-up of you where we reasonably can.
8. Your rights
Under the NDPA (sections 34 to 38) and the GDPR you have the right to:
- be told how your data is used, which is what this notice is for
- get a copy of the personal data we hold about you
- have inaccurate data corrected
- have your data deleted
- restrict how we use it while a concern is resolved
- receive your data in a portable format
- object to our use of it based on legitimate interests
- withdraw consent at any time, without affecting earlier use
To unsubscribe from emails, use the link in any email. To stop WhatsApp messages, reply STOP. For anything else, write to privacy@chikwenze.com. We may ask you to confirm your identity, and we will reply within one month.
Complaints
If you are unhappy with how we handle your data, please tell us first so we can put it right. You can also complain to the Nigeria Data Protection Commission. If you are in the European Economic Area, you can complain to your local data protection authority, which for Estonia is the Data Protection Inspectorate. In the United Kingdom, complain to the Information Commissioner's Office.
9. Security
Our sites use encrypted connections (HTTPS).
Registration and contact data is stored on our hosting account outside any public web folder. Only named members of our team can reach it, through password-protected tools.
If a breach puts your data at risk, we will report it to the Nigeria Data Protection Commission within 72 hours of becoming aware of it, as the law requires. Where the risk to you is high, we will also tell you directly.
10. Children
Our sites and messages are meant for adults. We do not knowingly collect data from anyone under 18. Young people attending our events should be registered by a parent, guardian or their school. If you believe a child has given us their details, write to us and we will delete them.
11. Changes and contact
We will update this notice if our practices change and show the new effective date at the top. Where a change is significant, we will tell people we hold contact details for.
Questions or requests: privacy@chikwenze.com
Post: Vynehouse Ads and Assets Limited, 13 Walter Carrington Crescent, Victoria Island, Lagos, Nigeria