Website Privacy Policy
Privacy Policy
Business Sherpa Group Inc., and its affiliates or corporate partners, (“BSG” or “we“/”our”), collect, use, and disclose Personal Information in compliance Canadian and applicable laws when providing services to our users or individuals who reach out to us (together, “you” or “your”). Along with our Terms and Conditions, this Policy serves to let you know how we collect, use, and disclose your personal information when you visit, access, log-in to, or use our website, our services, and/or purchase products through our propriety or third party platforms “The Platforms”.
What is Personal Information
Within this policy, Personal Information is defined as any factual or subjective information, recorded or not, about an identifiable individual or which may allow an individual to be identified. For instance, personal information includes age, name, ID numbers, income, ethnic origin, blood type, opinions, evaluations, comments, social status, disciplinary actions, employee files, credit records, loan records, and medical records.
We are responsible for the personal information that we possess or control. We maintain internal practices to protect personal information and have appointed our COO as BSG’s Privacy Officer to oversee privacy matters.
Information we Collect and Why we Collect it
Information Collected | Purpose | Legal Basis |
Account Information Such as your name, business name (if applicable), phone number, and email address. | This information is collected to maintain our relationship with you, our suppliers, and other third parties. | Consent; Contractual Necessity |
Usage Data Such as IP Address, Internet Service Provider (ISP) Information and browser, and referring website address. | This information is collected to provide you with suggestions based on your use of the Platforms and to understand our customer’s and prospective Customer’s needs and offer products and services to meet those needs. | Consent; Contractual Necessity; our legitimate interests |
Tracking Information Such as the approximate geolocation of your device the device identifiers (such as Cell-ID), and mobile service provider. | This information is collected to detect and protect against error, fraud, theft and other illegal activity as well as to authenticate you when you contact us. | Consent; Contractual Necessity |
Security Information This information includes personal data that can we be used to authenticate your identity. We collect information through email and our O365 Platform. | We collect this information to adjust our content, verify your credentials or authenticate you, and understand your preferences and online activities when interacting with the Platforms. | Consent; Contractual Necessity |
Text Data This information includes email address, MS Word Documents, PDF Files, employment agreements, resumes, and training certificates. | We collect this data to answer any questions or inquires you may have, as well as to update you on changes to our practices and procedures. | Consent; Contractual Necessity |
Meta Data This includes information such as the date you use the platform. | We use this data to manage and send updates to our mailing list subscribers. | Consent; Contractual Necessity; our legitimate interests |
Raw Data This includes transactional data we use to facilitate EFT Payments. | This data is collected to conduct credit checks on customers and prospective customers and to collect and process payments. | Consent; Contractual Necessity |
Aggregated and Anonymized Data This is data collected related to the use of our website or Platforms. | This data is collected to provide and enhance our platforms, to develop and manage operations, and to fulfill our contractual obligations. | Consent; Contractual Necessity |
PROVIDING YOUR PERSONAL DATA TO OTHERS OR RECEIPT FROM OTHERS
From time to time, we may need to provide your personal information to other parties (such as our third-party service providers or our affiliates) to provide to the Platforms and process your transactions, or as required by applicable law. We provide only what is necessary to complete the service and/or fulfil our obligations. We may also receive information about you from another party. When we receive information from another, we do so because it is for a legitimate business purpose, such as to contact potential customers who have expressed an interest in our Platform, or it is necessary to complete the service or would negatively impact you to be required to obtain the information from you first. For example, we may be required to provide or receive information to facilitate any payments.
Cookies
We collect personal information using cookies on the Platforms. Cookies are small files placed on your devices to track how you use our website. This helps us improve your user experience and save your preferences. We use Essential, functionality, Analytics and Advertisement cookies.
Type of Cookie | Purpose | Reason for Use |
Essential Cookies | These cookies are crucial for accessing services on the Platforms. They enable you to log in to secure areas and ensure that page’s load quickly. | These cookies are required to provide you the services you have requested, and we only use these cookies to provide you those services. |
Functionality Cookies | These cookies help the Platform remember your choices, like language preference, login details, and other customizations you make. | These cookies help to provide you with a more personal experience and to avoid you having to re-enter your preferences every time you visit our Services. Some functional cookies we use to provide services include, but are not limited to; – Third party cookies to ensure safety and security – Google RECAPTCHA (https://policies.google.com/terms) – PHP Session ID (“PHPSESSIS”) to keep track of PHP sessions and maintain logged in users. |
Analytics and Advertisement Cookies | These cookies collect data about traffic and how users interact with our Services. The data is anonymous and does not identify any individual. It includes the number of visitors, the time they visited, if they have visited before, and other similar details. | We use this information to help operate our Services more efficiently, to gather broad demographic information and to monitor the level of activity on our Services. |
Cookies may be blocked on some browsers. Blocking cookies may affect the way our Websites and Platforms work on your devices. You can set your browser to disable cookies at any time. For instructions on how to disable cookies, please review your browser settings.
How do we store and retain your Personal Information?
Storage and Location
Most information uploaded or sent to BSG stored in the cloud, through our third-party providers. BSG makes best effort to request these providers locate the data in Ontario, or a jurisdiction with similar privacy and data laws of Canada. We generally do not keep hard copies of personal information. If we receive hard copy documents with personal information, we will destroy them as soon as possible, in accordance with legal requirements.
Retention
We retain personal information only as long as necessary for the purposes outlined in this Policy, unless otherwise required by law or if you request its deletion. Canadian law requires us to keep financial information for at least 6 years. Once we no longer need the information for its original purpose, we securely dispose of or de-identify it, in accordance with legal requirements and any written requests from you.
Online Communications
The Platforms feature a form for submitting information to us. We use the personal information you provide solely to respond to your questions or inquiries. Additionally, we send emails to individuals in our contact database regarding updates to our services or practices. Our emails include options to opt out and instructions on how to unsubscribe. You can also request removal from our contact list by emailing info@businesssherpagroup.com. Please note, in some cases, we may need to authenticate your identity before processing your request.
Electronic Marketing Communications
We may send you information about the Platforms or other services we believe may interest you. Unless we already have a business relationship with you or you have provided your contact information (e.g., through your business card), we will obtain your consent before sending any commercial electronic communications.
You can withdraw your consent and opt-out of our sales and marketing communications at any time. To do so, please contact our Privacy Officer at info@businesssherpagroup.com or use the unsubscribe link in any email you receive. By unsubscribing and requesting placement on our “do not contact” list, you acknowledge and agree that we will retain your information on this list to ensure compliance with your preferences and prevent unsolicited communications.
Third Party Links
Our Platforms include links to other websites where your personal information may be collected. We are not responsible for how these websites collect, use, or disclose your personal information. We recommend reviewing their privacy policies before providing them with your personal information.
Do Not Track Signals
As there is not yet a common understanding of how to interpret Do Not Track (“DNT”) signals, we do not currently respond to such browser DNT signals.
Our Third-Party Service Providers
To the extent we engage third-party service providers, we try to ensure that those providers maintain comparable privacy protections and practices if they process your personal information. Some of our third-party service providers include:
- HubSpot (For CRM, sales and marketing purposes)
- Microsoft 365 (For conducting work)
- ProjectorPSA (for sending invoices)
- Teamwork (for project management)
- EasyDNS (for website hosting services); and
- Google Analytics (for analytical purposes);
We encourage you to read and review all of our third-party service providers’ privacy policies available through the links above. For more information on the service providers we engage, please contact our Privacy Officer at info@businesssherpagroup.com.
Automated Decision Making
We do not use systems that make autonomous decisions with your Personal Information.
Your Consent
We will obtain your explicit consent to collect, use, and disclose your personal information whenever possible and as required by law. If you provide your personal information directly to us, we assume you consent to its processing for the intended purpose. This applies if you sign up as a Customer, agree to our Terms, purchase a Subscription, access the Platforms, or if an authorized representative does so on your behalf.
We do not collect, use or disclose personal information without consent unless authorized or required by law to do so, such as in the following circumstances:
- When the information is publicly available, such as in public directories, registries or published information;
- if we are required to disclose personal information to a lawful authority;
- in an emergency that threatens someone’s life, health or personal security;
- for security reasons; or
- as otherwise authorized by law.
We obtain electronic or oral consent from those who subscribe to our mailing list for updates related to the Platforms or who express an interest in receiving communications from us.
Your Rights to the Personal Information We Posses About You
Every user of our Platform and Website is entitled to the following Data Privacy Rights:
Right to access: You can request copies of your personal data from BSG. We may charge a small fee for this.
Right to rectification: You can ask BSG to correct any inaccurate information or complete any incomplete information about you.
Right to erasure: You can request BSG to delete your personal data under certain conditions.
Right to restrict processing: You can ask BSG to limit the processing of your personal data under certain conditions.
Right to object to processing: You can object to BSG processing your personal data under certain conditions.
Right to data portability: You can request BSG to transfer your collected data to another organization or directly to you under certain conditions.
If you would like to exercise any of these rights, please contact us at the address located below. By contacting BSG to exercise any of these rights, you acknowledge, agree and consent to the collection by BSG of certain Personal Information for the purposes of verifying your identity. All requests will be responded to within one month of submission.
Security and Accuracy
We protect personal information in our files from loss, misuse, unauthorized access, and alteration using technical, physical and administrative methods. We frequently monitor our systems to ensure we have implemented up-to-date and effective security measures. Senior employees only have access to Personal Information required to carry out their work. We ensure that all our employees and/or sub-contractors have entered into agreements related to the protection and security of your Personal Information containing terms no less restrictive than the terms outlined in this Privacy Policy.
Through our providers, we have implemented the following security measures, including:
- Data encryption for both transit and storage.
- Secure SSL communication with HTTPS.
- DDoS protection.
- Continuous website security monitoring, including a mandatory password management software to maintain strong and efficient passwords.
- Use of strong, complex passwords with regular changes.
- Implementation of server-side measures against common hacks and attacks.
- Secure server-side endpoints to prevent unauthorized access.
- Adherence to best practices and coding standards.
- Ongoing protection against SQL injection and vulnerability testing.
- Controlled and secure access to all data and source code.
- Daily backups of platform data for disaster recovery purposes.
Nevertheless, you acknowledge that no security system is completely invulnerable. When you share your personal information with us, there is a risk that it could be compromised if our systems, or those of our third-party providers, are breached. If a breach has been identified, we will notify you as soon as required to by law.
We strive to maintain accurate personal information in our records. If you notice any inaccuracies in your information, we encourage you to contact us to update it.
For more information on our security measures or records, please contact us at info@businesssherpagroup.com.
Contact Us
If you would like to review or correct your personal information we have on file, or have any other concerns regarding your privacy rights, please send a written request to:
Privacy Officer
Business Sherpa Group Inc.
We will respond within 30 days. If more time is required, we will advise you, and provide the reasons.
You acknowledge that when you request to exercise your privacy rights, you are consenting to our collection of your basic contact information so that we can authenticate you and communicate with you regarding your request.
Challenging Compliance
BSG will respond to questions we receive about this Policy and our legal compliance. We will investigate all challenges and attempt to resolve all complaints. If you feel we have not met our legal obligations under this Policy or applicable laws, please contact our Privacy Officer at info@businesssherpagroup.com. Following our investigation, we will decide whether to update our policies and practices as necessary.
If you are unsatisfied with our responses, you may at any time consult the relevant government privacy office based in your province, state or country.