Health Horizon (Pty) Ltd t/a Health Horizon

Last updated: 2026-08-20

1. Introduction

Health Horizon (Pty) Ltd (registration number [PENDING]), trading as Health Horizon(“the Company”, “we”, “us”, or “our”), operates the website www.healthhorizon.co.za (“the Site”) through which we sell research-grade peptides and related laboratory products to researchers, institutions, and other customers within South Africa and, where applicable, internationally.

We are committed to protecting the personal information we process about you in accordance with the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 (“POPIA”), the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act 25 of 2002 (“ECTA”), the Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008 (“CPA”), and any other applicable South African data protection and consumer protection legislation.

This Privacy Policy explains what personal information we collect, why and how we use it, who we share it with, how long we keep it, and what rights you have as a data subject. By using the Site or providing us with your personal information, you acknowledge that you have read and understood this Policy.

2. Responsible Party and Information Officer

For the purposes of POPIA, the “Responsible Party” is:

  • Company name: Health Horizon (Pty) Ltd
  • Registration number: [PENDING]
  • Physical address: [PENDING]
  • Email: [email protected]
  • Telephone: +27 79 399 5423

Our Information Officer, registered with the Information Regulator as required by POPIA, is:

Any queries, requests, or complaints regarding this Policy or the processing of your personal information should be directed to the Information Officer in the first instance.

3. Personal Information We Collect

We collect personal information directly from you, automatically through your use of the Site, and from third parties (such as payment processors and couriers). This may include:

3.1 Account and order information

  • Full name, email address, telephone number
  • Billing and delivery address
  • Company/institution name and, where applicable, your professional or research affiliation
  • Order history, product preferences, and correspondence with us
  • Where relevant to verifying eligibility to purchase research-use products, information you volunteer confirming the intended research or laboratory use of the products

3.2 Payment information

Card and payment details are collected and processed directly by our third-party payment gateway, PayFast. We do not store full card numbers on our own servers. See section 6 (Third-Party Service Providers) below.

3.3 Technical and usage information

  • IP address, browser type and version, device identifiers
  • Pages visited, time spent on the Site, referring website, and general browsing behaviour
  • Cookies and similar tracking technologies (see section 8)

3.4 Communications

  • Information you provide when you contact us, submit a support query, or complete a form on the Site

We do not intentionally collect special personal information (e.g. health information, biometric data, religious or political beliefs) as defined in section 26 of POPIA, and we ask that you do not submit such information to us unless specifically requested.

4. Purpose and Lawful Basis for Processing

We only process personal information where a lawful basis under section 11 of POPIA applies, including where:

  • You have consented to the processing (e.g. for marketing communications);
  • Processing is necessary to conclude or perform a contract with you (e.g. to fulfil your order);
  • Processing is necessary to comply with a legal obligation (e.g. tax, customs, or record-keeping requirements);
  • Processing is necessary to pursue our legitimate interests, or those of a third party, provided this does not unreasonably infringe your rights (e.g. fraud prevention, Site security, or improving our services).

We use your personal information to:

  • Create and manage your account and process and fulfil your orders
  • Verify your eligibility to purchase research/laboratory-use products and confirm you are not purchasing for human or animal consumption
  • Process payments and prevent fraud
  • Arrange delivery via our courier partners
  • Communicate with you about your orders, account, or queries
  • Send you marketing communications, where you have opted in (see section 5)
  • Comply with our legal, tax, customs, and regulatory obligations
  • Maintain the security, integrity, and performance of the Site

5. Direct Marketing

In accordance with section 69 of POPIA, we will only send you direct marketing communications (e.g. newsletters, promotions, or product updates) by email or SMS if you have given your prior consent (opted in), or where you are an existing customer and we are marketing similar products or services to you, subject to your right to object.

You may withdraw your consent or opt out of direct marketing at any time, free of charge, by:

  • Clicking the “unsubscribe” link in any marketing email; or
  • Emailing us at [email protected] with the subject line “Opt-out”.

We will action your objection promptly and free of charge, as required by the POPIA Regulations.

6. Sharing Your Information with Third Parties

We do not sell your personal information. We may share your information with the following categories of third parties, strictly for the purposes described in this Policy:

  • Payment gateways and processors, to process payments securely (e.g. PayFast, Yoco, PayGate, Peach Payments)
  • Courier and logistics providers, to deliver your order (e.g. The Courier Guy, Aramex, PostNet, DHL)
  • Website hosting, IT, and software service providers (e.g. our WordPress/WooCommerce hosting provider)
  • Email and SMS service providers used to send transactional or marketing communications
  • Analytics providers (e.g. Google Analytics), to help us understand Site usage
  • Our professional advisors, auditors, and regulators, where required by law
  • Law enforcement or regulatory authorities, where we are legally required to disclose information (for example, in relation to controlled substance or customs compliance enquiries)

We require all third-party service providers to keep your personal information secure and to use it only for the purposes for which we disclose it to them, in accordance with section 20 and Operator obligations under POPIA.

7. Cross-Border Transfer of Personal Information

Some of our service providers (for example, cloud hosting, email, or analytics providers) may store or process personal information outside South Africa. Where this occurs, we take reasonable steps to ensure that any recipient of your personal information is subject to a law, binding corporate rules, or binding agreement which provides an adequate level of protection that effectively upholds principles for the reasonable processing of the information, substantially similar to POPIA’s conditions, as required by section 72 of POPIA.

8. Cookies and Similar Technologies

The Site uses cookies and similar tracking technologies to operate correctly, remember your preferences, keep your shopping cart and login session active, and understand how visitors use the Site (via tools such as Google Analytics and WooCommerce session cookies).

You can control or disable cookies through your browser settings. Please note that disabling essential cookies may affect the functionality of the Site, including your ability to complete a purchase.

9. Data Retention

We retain personal information only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes described in this Policy, including to meet our legal, accounting, tax, and regulatory record-keeping obligations (which, for financial and consumer transaction records, may require retention for a minimum of five years under South African tax and companies legislation). Where information is no longer required, we securely delete or anonymise it.

10. Security Measures

In accordance with section 19 of POPIA, we implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal information against loss, damage, unauthorised destruction, and unlawful access, including:

  • Encrypted (HTTPS/SSL) connections on the Site
  • Restricted access to personal information on a need-to-know basis
  • Secure, PCI-DSS-compliant payment processing through our payment gateway partners
  • Regular software and security updates to our website and hosting environment

No system is completely secure, and while we take reasonable steps to protect your information, we cannot guarantee absolute security of information transmitted to us over the internet.

11. Your Rights as a Data Subject

Subject to POPIA, you have the right to:

  • Be notified that personal information about you is being collected, and why
  • Access the personal information we hold about you
  • Request correction or updating of inaccurate, incomplete, or outdated personal information
  • Request the deletion or destruction of personal information that we are no longer authorised to retain
  • Object, on reasonable grounds, to the processing of your personal information, including for direct marketing purposes
  • Withdraw consent where processing is based on consent
  • Lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator if you believe we have processed your personal information unlawfully
  • Institute civil proceedings for damages suffered as a result of a breach of POPIA

To exercise any of these rights, please contact our Information Officer using the details in section 2. We may need to verify your identity before actioning your request, and we will respond within a reasonable time.

12. The Information Regulator

If you are not satisfied with how we have handled your personal information, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator of South Africa:

  • Physical address: Woodmead North Office Park, 54 Maxwell Drive, Woodmead, Johannesburg, 2191
  • Email: [email protected]
  • Telephone: 010 023 5200 / Toll-free: 0800 017 160
  • Website: www.inforegulator.org.za

13. Children’s Information

The Site and our products are not directed at, and are not intended for use by, persons under the age of 18. Given that our products are research-grade materials intended solely for laboratory and research use, we do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If we become aware that we have inadvertently collected personal information from a minor without appropriate consent, we will delete it promptly.

14. Automated Decision-Making

We do not make any decisions concerning you that are based solely on automated processing, including profiling, which would produce legal or similarly significant effects for you, without human involvement.

15. Changes to this Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technology, or applicable law. The “Last updated” date at the top of this Policy indicates when it was last revised. We encourage you to review this Policy periodically.

16. Contact Us

If you have any questions, requests, or concerns about this Privacy Policy or our processing of your personal information, please contact:

  • Health Horizon (Pty) Ltd
  • Attention: Information Officer
  • Email: [email protected]
  • Telephone: +27 79 399 5423