privacy policy

Nigeria Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers (NIESV) Abuja, (“NIESV”, “Association”, “we”, “us” or “our”) offers an online platform to share information within members of the association. NIESV Abuja values the privacy of Members who use our website and all related sites, applications, services and tools (collectively, our “Services”).This Privacy Policy describes how we collect, use, store, share, and protect personal data from Members who engage in the use this Services.

The Services are primarily intended for and provided to members of the association alone and not Non-Members of the association. Thus, we generally process personal data at the direction of and on behalf of Members. When we do, we do so as a service provider or a “data processor” to those Members, but we do not control and are not responsible for the privacy practices of those Members.

This Privacy Policy does not apply to services that are not owned or controlled by NIESV Abuja, including third-party websites. This Privacy Policy applies to all forms of systems, operations and processes within the NIESV Abuja settings that involve the processing of personal data. NIESV Abuja is a branch of National Body of Nigeria Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers (NIESV); for more information about National Body of Nigeria Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers (NIESV), https://niesv.org

By using or accessing our Services, you agree to the collection, use, and disclosure of your personal data as described in this Privacy Policy. Your use of our Services is also subject to NIESV Abuja’s Terms. Should you disagree to abide by such Terms, or if you revoke your consent to the processing of your personal data, your account will be disabled and you will no longer be able to access or interact with the NIESV Abuja platform.

1. The Information We Collect

1.1 Personal Data You Provide Directly

We collect personal data you provide to us. For example:

• Registration information. To gain full access to our website and services, you must register for a NIESV Abuja account. When you register for an account, we collect personal data, which you voluntarily provide to us (e.g. email address, name, and telephone number).
• Payment information. If you make a financial transaction, we collect credit card numbers, financial account information, and other payment details.
• Communications. If you contact us directly, for example with an inquiry or a support request, we may receive additional personal data about you, including your email address and the content of your communications.

1.2 Personal Data We Collect Automatically

• Device Information. We receive information about the device and software you use to access our Services, including internet protocol (IP) address, web browser type, operating system version, and device identifiers.
• Usage Information. To help us understand how you use our Services, and to help us improve them, we automatically receive information about your interactions with our Services. This information includes records of your transactions and information about your other activities related to our services. Such as date and time of your sessions, the pages you view, links to/from any page, and time spent in a session. Some of the data we gather through the use of cookies and similar technologies as discussed below.
• Location Information. When you use our Services, we may collect or infer your general location information. For example, your IP address may indicate your general geographic region.

When you are asked to provide personal data, you may decline. And you may use web browser or operating system controls to prevent certain types of automatic data collection. But if you choose not to provide or allow information that is necessary for certain services or features, those services or features may not be available or fully functional.

2. How We Use Personal Data?

We use the personal data we collect to:

• Provide you with the required services
• Respond to your questions or requests
• Improve features, website content and analyse data to develop services
• Address inappropriate use of our website
• Prevent, detect and manage risk against fraud and illegal activities using internal and third party screening tools
• Send you marketing content, newsletters and service updates curated by NIESV Abuja, however, we will provide you with an option to unsubscribe if you do not want to hear from us
• Maintain up-to-date records of Members
• Resolve disputes that may arise, including investigations by law enforcement or regulatory bodies
• Any other purpose that we disclose to you in the course of providing NIESV Abuja services to you

3. How We Share The Personal Data You Provide ?

NIESV Abuja does not sell, trade or rent personal data to anyone. Further, we will not share or disclose your personal data with a third party without your consent except as necessary to provide the Services or as described in this Privacy Policy.

Third party analytics and advertising companies also collect personal data through our website and apps including, marketing and communications data, demographic data, content and files, geolocation data, usage data, and inferences associated with identifiers and device information (such as cookie IDs, device IDs, and IP address) as described in the Cookies section of this statement. These third party vendors may combine this data across multiple sites to improve analytics for their own purpose and others. For example, we use Google Analytics on our website to help us understand how users interact with our website; you can learn how Google collects and uses information at www.google.com/policies/privacy/partners.

Finally, we may share de-identified information in accordance with applicable law.

4. Cookies

We use cookies and similar technologies on our website to help collect information and operate the site. We use cookies to: remember visitors to our website; make your user experience easier; customize our services, content and advertising; help you ensure that your account security is not compromised, mitigate risk and prevent fraud; and to promote trust and safety on our website. Cookies are small text files placed by a website and stored by your browser on your device.

Our cookies hold a unique random reference to you so that once you visit the site we can recognize who you are and provide certain content to you. Most web browsers are set to accept cookies by default. If you prefer, you can go to your browser settings to learn how to delete or reject cookies. If you choose to delete or reject cookies, this may impact your experience using our website.

5. How We Protect Your Information?

NIESV Abuja has established adequate technical and organizational controls to protect the integrity and confidentiality of your Personal Information, both in digital and physical format, whilst preventing Personal Information from being accidentally or deliberately compromised.

NIESV Abuja is committed to managing your Personal Information in line with best practices. We protect your Personal Information using physical, technical, and administrative security measures to reduce the risks of loss, misuse, unauthorized access, disclosure and alteration, we also use industry recommended security protocols to safeguard your Personal Information. Other security safeguards include but are not limited to data encryption, firewalls, and physical access controls to our building and files and only granting access to Personal Information to only employees who require it to fulfil their job responsibilities.

In compliance with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS Requirements”), we implement access control measures, security protocols and standards including the use of encryption and firewall technologies to ensure your card information is safe and secure in our servers, additionally, we implement periodical security updates to ensure that our security infrastructures are in compliance with reasonable industry standards.

NIESV Abuja also maintains a data breach procedure in order to deal with incidents concerning Personal Information or practices leading to the accidental or unlawful destruction, loss, alteration, unauthorized disclosure of, or access to, Personal Information transmitted, stored or otherwise processed. You may contact our DPO upon becoming aware of any breach of Personal Information or if your access credentials have been compromised, to enable us to take the necessary steps towards ensuring the security of your Personal Information or account. We will report any breaches that will compromise your rights and freedoms to the Relevant Authority within 72 hours of discovery.

6. Storage Limitation

We will retain your information for the following periods:

• As long as reasonably necessary for the purpose of providing our services to you
• For the duration your account is active and we have your consent
• For the period needed to comply with our legal and statutory obligations
• As needed to verify your information with a financial institution

NIESV Abuja is statutorily obliged to retain the data you provide in order to process transactions, ensure settlements, make refunds, identify fraud and to comply with applicable laws and regulatory guidelines.

Under the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Regulations and Guidelines we are mandated to retain transactional records (customer and beneficiary names, addresses, identification number, amount, currency etc.) for at least seven years following the completion of the transaction.

Therefore, even after closing your NIESV Abuja account, we will retain certain personal data and transaction data to comply with these obligations. All personal data shall be destroyed by NIESV Abuja where possible in other instances.

The length of storage of personal data shall, amongst other things, be determined by:

• The contract terms agreed between NIESV Abuja and the Member or as long as it is needed for the purpose for which it was obtained or; Whether the transaction or relationship has statutory implication or a required retention period or
• Whether there is an express request for deletion of Personal Data by the Member, provided that such request will only be treated where the Data Subject is not under any investigation which may require NIESV Abuja to retain such Personal Data or there is no subsisting contractual arrangement with the Data Subject that would require the processing of the Personal Data or
• Whether NIESV Abuja has another lawful basis for retaining that information beyond the period for which it is necessary to serve the original purpose.

7. Transfer of Personal Data

As part of our service provision, we may rely on third-party servers, databases co-located with hosting providers, resident in foreign jurisdictions, which constitutes the transfer of your personal data to computers or servers in foreign countries. We take steps designed to ensure that the data we collect under this Privacy Policy is processed and protected according to the provisions of this Policy and applicable law wherever the data is located.

Where personal data is to be transferred to a country outside Nigeria, NIESV Abuja shall put adequate measures in place to ensure the security of such Personal Information. Any transfer of Personal Information out of Nigeria will be in accordance with the provisions of relevant data protection regulations. In particular, NIESV Abuja shall, among other things, use contractual terms to ensure protection of the data or ensure the country has adequate data protection laws (i.e. listed in the National Information Technology Development Agency’s [“NITDA”] White List of Countries, or the General Data Protection Regulation’s [“GDPR”] Adequacy List).

Should you wish to transfer personal data to a country deemed to have inadequate data protection laws, NIESV Abuja will take all necessary steps to ensure that informed consent is obtained from you, and you are aware of the risks entailed with such transfer. In any instance, NIESV Abuja will ensure Personal Information is transmitted in a safe and secure manner. Details of the protection given when your Personal Information is transferred abroad, and details of the basis of such transfers shall be provided to you upon request.

8. Grounds for Processing of Personal Information

Processing of Personal Information by NIESV Abuja shall be lawful if at least one of the following applies:

• The Data Subject (Member or Member representative) has given consent to the processing of his/her Personal Information for one or more specific purposes
• The processing is necessary for the performance of a contract to which the Data Subject is party or in order to take steps at the request of the Data Subject prior to entering into a contract
• Processing is necessary for compliance with a legal obligation to which NIESV Abuja is subject
• Processing is necessary in order to protect the vital interests of the Data Subject or of another natural person and
• Processing is necessary for the performance of a task carried out in the public interest or in exercise of official public mandate vested in NIESV Abuja.

9. Choices and Rights

Members with Personal Information held by NIESV Abuja are entitled to the following rights:

• Right to request for and access any Personal Information collected and stored by NIESV Abuja
• Right to be informed regarding their Personal Information
• Right to object to automated decision making and processing
• Right to request rectification and modification of Personal Information which NIESV Abuja keeps
• Right to request the deletion of their data
• Right to request the movement of data from NIESV Abuja to a third party - this is the right to the portability of data
• Right to revoke consent
• Right to object to direct marketing, and to request that NIESV Abuja restricts the processing of their information and
• Right to submit a complaint to the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA).
• Your request will be reviewed and answered by NIESV Abuja’s Data Protection Officer within a 30-day period. You may review your account settings and update your Personal Information directly or by contacting us.

10. Children under the Age of 13

Our Website is not intended for children under 13 years of age. No one under age 13 may provide any information to or on the Website. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you are under 13, do not use or provide any information on this Website or through any of its features, register on the Website, make any purchases through the Website, use any of the interactive or public comment features of this Website, or provide any information about yourself to us, including your name, address, telephone number, email address, or any screen name or user name you may use.

If we learn we have collected or received personal information from a child under 13 without verification of parental consent, we will delete that information. If you believe we might have any information from or about a child under 13, please contact us at info@niesvabuja.org.

11. Policy Violations

Any violation of this Privacy Policy should be brought to the attention of the Data Protection Officer (details below) for appropriate sanctioning and treatment.

You certify that the information provided to register as a Member is correct to the best of your knowledge. Furthermore, when providing the personal data of any other person, you confirm that you are only providing accurate and up-to-date data in accordance with their instructions, and are able to provide evidence of their consent to the data processing described in this Policy as and when required by NIESV Abuja. Please note that any attempt to mislead may result in prosecution and the deliberate provision of inaccurate data results in a privacy violation.

12. Retaining and Deleting Personal Data

Personal data that we process for any purpose or purposes shall not be kept for longer than is necessary for that purpose or those purposes.

We will only retain your personal data for as long as reasonably necessary to fulfil the purposes we collected it for, including for the purposes of satisfying any legal, regulatory, tax, accounting or reporting requirements. We may retain your personal data for a longer period in the event of a complaint or if we reasonably believe there is a prospect of litigation in respect to our relationship with you.

To determine the appropriate retention period for personal data, we consider the amount, nature and sensitivity of the personal data, the potential risk of harm from unauthorised use or disclosure of your personal data, the purposes for which we process your personal data and whether we can achieve those purposes through other means, and the applicable legal, regulatory, tax, accounting or other requirements.

If you want to delete your account, visit https://niesvabuja.org/delete_account to delete your personal data.

13. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may need to update, modify or amend our Privacy Policy as our technology evolves and as required by law. If we materially change the ways in which we use or share personal data previously collected from you through our Services, we will provide notice or obtain consent regarding such changes as may be required by law. The Privacy Policy will apply from the effective date provided on our website.

14. Contact NIESV Abuja’s Data Protection Officer (DPO)

If you have any questions relating to this Privacy Policy, complaints or would like to find out more about exercising your data privacy rights, please reach out to our DPO via email at info@niesvabuja.org.

For any further queries, our Data Protection Officer, may be reached at the following address:

Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers (NIESV) Abuja Branch
2nd Floor, Left Wing,
No. 4, Ekpenyong Street, Off Oladipo Diya Way,
Gudu District, Abuja – FCT,
Nigeria