Privacy Policy

Last updated: October 14, 2026

Entity Name: Neural Forge Solutions (Pty) Ltd (“we,” “us,” or “our”)
Website: https://www.neuralforge.co.za
Primary Contact / Email: forge@neuralforge.co.za

1. Introduction & Overview

Neural Forge respects your privacy and is committed to protecting the Personal Information of our clients, prospective leads, site visitors, and digital interactive users.

This Privacy Policy governs our data collection, processing, and storage practices across:

  1. Our main website (https://www.neuralforge.co.za).
  2. Our proprietary platforms and services (including Tesseract, Socrava, and Custom Software / Web Engineering engagements).
  3. Our social media presence and messaging channels, including LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp (including automated conversational bots).

By engaging with our website, services, or communication channels, you consent to the practices described in this policy.

2. Information We Collect

We collect information in three ways: directly from you, automatically via interaction, and via third-party platform metadata.

A. Personal Information Provided Directly by You

  • Contact Details: Name, email address, phone number, company name, and job title provided via contact forms, project inquiries, or calendar bookings.
  • Social Media & Messaging Interactions: Messages, text queries, phone numbers, and profile details provided when contacting us or interacting with our automated tools via WhatsApp, LinkedIn, Facebook, or Instagram.
  • Client / Account Data: Account credentials, project briefs, technical documentation, billing/payment details, and contract specifications provided during software engagements.

B. Information Collected Automatically (Website & Platforms)

  • Technical & Usage Data: IP addresses, browser types, device specifications, operating systems, referring URLs, pages viewed, time spent, and error logs.
  • Cookies & Analytics: Essential cookies required for website operation and non-essential analytical cookies used to evaluate performance and user engagement.

C. Service-Specific Data Processing (Tesseract)

  • Tesseract (AI Code Guardrails & Governance): System logs, continuous drift metrics, pull requests, repository metadata, compliance risk logs, and code audit trails processed as part of software quality and safety checks.

3. Purpose & Legal Basis for Processing Information

We process your Personal Information strictly for legitimate business purposes, including:

  1. Service Delivery & Execution: Fulfilling software engineering contracts, deploying custom applications, and providing ongoing system monitoring and maintenance.
  2. Communication & Lead Handling: Responding to inquiries across email, website forms, WhatsApp, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram.
  3. AI Core Functionality: Powering our software governance checks (Tesseract) according to strict client access controls.
  4. Marketing & Outreach: Conducting targeted business-to-business research, sharing technical insights, and running campaign ads on LinkedIn, Meta (Facebook/Instagram), or Google.
  5. Security & Compliance: Maintaining technical infrastructure integrity, auditing system access, and satisfying legal/regulatory requirements under South African law (including POPIA).

4. Messaging & Social Media Platforms (WhatsApp, Meta, LinkedIn)

When you connect with Neural Forge through external platforms:

  • WhatsApp Messaging & Bots: We use WhatsApp to facilitate quick sales and support conversations. By sending a message to our WhatsApp channel, your phone number, profile name, and chat history will be processed to answer your query.
  • LinkedIn, Facebook & Instagram Pages: Any public comments, direct messages (DMs), or lead generation forms submitted via Meta or LinkedIn services are governed jointly by this Privacy Policy and the privacy rules of the respective platforms (Meta Privacy Policy, LinkedIn Privacy Policy).
  • Cross-Channel Data Integration: Information gathered via messaging channels may be stored in our internal CRM or communication tools to maintain consistent service across contact points.

5. Data Sharing & Third-Party Service Providers

Neural Forge does not sell, rent, or trade your personal information. We share data only with verified third parties strictly necessary to deliver our services:

  • Cloud Infrastructure Providers: Scalable hosting, database, and infrastructure providers (e.g., Google Cloud Platform, AWS, Azure).
  • AI & Machine Learning Infrastructure: Cloud-hosted LLM endpoints and processing infrastructure (e.g., OpenAI, Anthropic/Claude) used for platform intelligence. (Client code and persistent business memories are processed in isolated, access-controlled environments).
  • Communication & Support Tools: WhatsApp Business APIs, transactional email platforms, and internal collaboration software.
  • Legal Requirements: When required by law, subpoena, or legal process under applicable South African or international authorities.

6. Data Security & Technical Guardrails

We enforce technical, administrative, and organizational measures to safeguard your information against loss, unauthorized access, alteration, or disclosure:

  • Encrypted Transmission & Storage: Standard encryption (TLS/HTTPS) for data in transit and encrypted data storage at rest.
  • Strict Gatekeeping & Access Control: Internal access to sensitive business data and codebase repositories is governed on a strict need-to-know basis.
  • Continuous Monitoring: Ongoing code stability, schema tracking, and security drift checks across our production systems.

7. Data Retention

  • Lead & Sales Data: Kept for as long as necessary to fulfill the initial inquiry or nurture ongoing business discussions, up to 24 months from last contact unless opting out.
  • Client Engagement Data: Retained for the duration of the commercial agreement plus standard statutory retention periods (e.g., financial/tax records).
  • Messaging History: WhatsApp and social media chat transcripts are purged periodically according to operational needs and regulatory compliance.

8. Your Data Rights (POPIA / GDPR)

Depending on your jurisdiction, you have the following rights regarding your Personal Information:

  • Right of Access: Request a copy of the Personal Information we hold about you.
  • Right to Rectification: Request correction or updating of inaccurate, incomplete, or out-of-date information.
  • Right to Erasure / Deletion: Request the deletion of your personal data where there is no legal requirement for us to retain it.
  • Right to Object / Opt-Out: Object to processing for direct marketing purposes at any time by clicking “unsubscribe” in emails or replying “STOP” to automated messages.

To exercise any of these rights, email us directly at forge@neuralforge.co.za.

9. Third-Party Links

Our website and social media channels may contain links to external third-party websites. Neural Forge is not responsible for the privacy practices or content of third-party platforms. We encourage you to review their respective privacy notices upon leaving our site.

10. Updates to This Privacy Policy

Neural Forge reserves the right to modify this Privacy Policy at any time to reflect changing technical requirements, operational practices, or legal standards. The updated version will always be accessible via our website with a revised “Last Updated” date.

11. PAIA Manual

In compliance with the Promotion of Access to Information Act 2 of 2000 (PAIA), Neural Forge Solutions (Pty) Ltd has published a PAIA Manual describing the categories of records we hold and the process for requesting access to information under the Act.

Download PAIA Manual (PDF)

12. Contact Us & Information Officer

If you have questions, feedback, or complaints regarding this Privacy Policy or our handling of your personal data, please contact us: