Privacy Policy

Who We Are

For privacy-related questions, requests, complaints, or concerns regarding the processing of your personal data, you may contact us using the information above.

Information We Collect

Depending on how you use SIWES Connect, we may collect different categories of personal information.

2.1 Student Information

When a student creates an account or uses our services, we may collect:

• Full name
• Email address
• Telephone number
• Institution/university
• Faculty
• Department
• Academic level
• Matriculation/registration number
• State and city
• CGPA or other academic information voluntarily provided
• Skills
• SIWES interests
• Placement preferences
• Application messages
• Account and authentication information
• Information relating to applications submitted through the platform

2.2 Company Information

When a company or organisation creates an account, we may collect:

• Company name
• Company email address
• Company telephone number
• Business address
• State and city
• Industry/category
• Department
• Company description
• Placement information
• Number of students required
• Placement requirements
• Account and authentication information

2.3 Application Information

When a student applies for a placement, we may collect:

• Student information associated with the application
• Placement applied for
• Company offering the placement
• Application date
• Application message
• Application status
• Acceptance or rejection information
• Related communications and notifications

2.4 Technical Information

When you use SIWES Connect, we may automatically collect certain technical information, including:

• IP address
• Browser type
• Device type
• Operating system
• Pages visited
• Login/session information
• Date and time of access
• Basic diagnostic and security information

We use this information primarily to operate, secure, maintain, and improve the platform.

How We Use Your Personal Data

We may use personal information to:

• Create and manage user accounts.
• Authenticate students and companies.
• Allow students to search for SIWES placements.
• Allow companies to advertise available placements.
• Process student applications.
• Allow companies to review applications submitted to their placements.
• Allow authorised companies to view relevant applicant information.
• Send application and account notifications.
• Communicate important service information.
• Prevent fraud, abuse, unauthorised access, and other security threats.
• Maintain and improve SIWES Connect.
• Provide customer and technical support.
• Comply with applicable legal and regulatory obligations.
• Resolve disputes and enforce our Terms and Conditions.
• Generate aggregated or anonymised statistics and insights where appropriate.

We will not intentionally use your personal information for purposes incompatible with the purposes described in this Privacy Policy unless permitted or required by applicable law.

Lawful Basis for Processing

Depending on the circumstances, SiwesConnect Nigeria Limited may rely on one or more lawful bases recognised under applicable data protection law, including:

Consent

Where consent is required, we will request it before carrying out the relevant processing. You may withdraw consent where processing is based on consent. Withdrawal does not affect the lawfulness of processing that occurred before withdrawal.

Contract

We may process information necessary to create your account and provide services requested by you.

Legitimate Interests

We may process certain information where necessary for legitimate interests such as:

• Platform security
• Fraud prevention
• Service improvement
• Account administration
• Protection of users
• Enforcement of our terms

Such processing will be undertaken with appropriate consideration of your rights and interests.

Legal Obligations

We may process or retain information where required by applicable law, regulation, court order, or lawful request from a competent authority.

The NDPC recognises lawful bases including consent, contract, legal obligations and legitimate interests depending on the circumstances of the processing.

Student Privacy and Company Access

We do not intend to make a student's complete profile publicly available simply because the student has registered on SIWES Connect.

When a student applies for a placement, the company responsible for that placement may receive information reasonably necessary to evaluate the application. This may include:

• Student name
• Institution
• Faculty
• Department
• Academic level
• Matriculation/registration number
• Skills
• SIWES interests
• CGPA where provided
• Telephone number
• Email address
• Application message
• Other information reasonably necessary for placement consideration

Companies should only access applicant information relating to placements they own or are authorised to manage.

Companies must not sell, publish, misuse, or unlawfully disclose student information obtained through SIWES Connect.

Company Information

Certain company information may be visible to students and other users for the purpose of helping students identify suitable placement opportunities. This may include:

• Company name
• Industry
• General location
• Company description
• Available placements
• Placement requirements

We will not intentionally expose confidential company information that is not necessary for operating the placement service.

Third-Party Service Providers

We may use trusted third-party service providers to operate SIWES Connect. These may provide:

• Cloud hosting
• Database services
• Authentication
• Email delivery
• Security services
• Analytics
• Website infrastructure
• Technical support

SIWES Connect currently uses Supabase for certain database, authentication, and backend infrastructure services.

Third-party service providers may process personal information only to the extent reasonably necessary to provide their services to us or as otherwise permitted by applicable law.

We take reasonable steps to ensure that service providers handling personal information provide appropriate privacy and security protections.

International Data Transfers

Some service providers used by SIWES Connect may process or store personal information outside Nigeria.

Where personal information is transferred outside Nigeria, we will take reasonable steps to ensure that the transfer and subsequent processing comply with applicable Nigerian data protection requirements and that appropriate safeguards are implemented where required.

Data Security

We take reasonable technical and organisational measures designed to protect personal information against:

• Unauthorised access
• Unauthorised disclosure
• Loss
• Destruction
• Alteration
• Misuse
• Unlawful processing

Our security measures may include:

• Authentication controls
• Password protection
• Database access controls
• Row-level security
• Encryption where appropriate
• Access restrictions
• Security monitoring
• Administrative controls

However, no internet-based service can guarantee absolute security.

Users are responsible for keeping their account credentials confidential and should contact us immediately if they believe their account has been compromised.

Data Retention

We retain personal information only for as long as reasonably necessary for the purposes for which it was collected, including:

• Providing our services
• Maintaining account records
• Processing placement applications
• Resolving disputes
• Preventing fraud and abuse
• Meeting legal and regulatory obligations
• Maintaining appropriate business records

When personal information is no longer reasonably required, we may delete, anonymise, or securely dispose of it, subject to applicable legal or legitimate retention requirements.

Your Data Protection Rights

Subject to applicable law and lawful limitations, you may have rights including:

Right to be informed

You have the right to receive clear information about how your personal data is processed.

Right of access

You may request access to personal information we hold about you.

Right to rectification

You may request correction of inaccurate or incomplete information.

Right to erasure

You may request deletion of your personal information where applicable.

Right to object

You may object to certain forms of processing where applicable.

Right to restrict processing

You may request restriction of certain processing in circumstances permitted by law.

Right to data portability

Where applicable, you may request your personal information in a structured and commonly used format.

Right to withdraw consent

Where processing is based on consent, you may withdraw your consent.

Rights concerning automated decision-making

Where applicable, you may have rights concerning decisions based solely on automated processing.

The NDP Act and NDPC guidance recognise data-subject rights and require organisations to provide appropriate information and mechanisms for exercising those rights.

How to Exercise Your Rights

To exercise a data protection right, contact:

Please include:

• Your full name
• Email address associated with your account
• Nature of your request
• Relevant information that will help us identify the data or account concerned

We may need to verify your identity before processing certain requests to prevent unauthorised disclosure of personal information.

Account Deletion

You may request deletion of your SIWES Connect account and associated personal information by contacting us.

Some information may need to be retained where required by law or where reasonably necessary to:

• Resolve disputes
• Prevent fraud or abuse
• Maintain security
• Establish, exercise, or defend legal claims
• Comply with legal obligations

Where information cannot be deleted for a legitimate reason, we will restrict its use where appropriate.

Cookies and Similar Technologies

SIWES Connect may use cookies and similar technologies to:

• Maintain login sessions
• Remember preferences
• Improve website functionality
• Improve security
• Monitor platform performance
• Understand general usage patterns

Where required by applicable law, we will provide appropriate information and controls concerning cookies and similar technologies.

Service and Marketing Communications

We may send service-related communications necessary for operating your account, including:

• Account verification
• Password/security notifications
• Application updates
• Placement notifications
• Important service announcements

Where promotional communications require consent, you may withdraw consent or opt out using the available mechanism.

Opting out of promotional communications will not necessarily stop essential service communications.

Student and Company Responsibilities

Students

Students are expected to:

• Provide accurate information.
• Keep account credentials confidential.
• Not impersonate another person.
• Not submit fraudulent applications.
• Not unlawfully provide another person's personal information.

Companies

Companies using SIWES Connect must:

• Use student information only for legitimate purposes.
• Keep applicant information confidential.
• Not sell or unlawfully disclose applicant information.
• Not use student information for unrelated purposes without an appropriate lawful basis.
• Maintain reasonable security over applicant information.
• Delete or appropriately dispose of applicant information when it is no longer reasonably required, subject to applicable obligations.

Access to student information through SIWES Connect does not give a company unrestricted ownership or rights over that information.

Children and Minors

SIWES Connect is primarily intended for students in tertiary educational institutions.

Where a user is under the applicable age of consent for data processing and applicable law requires parental or guardian involvement, we will take reasonable steps to comply with those requirements.

If you believe that a minor has provided personal information in circumstances where appropriate consent was required, please contact us.

Data Breaches

If we become aware of a personal data breach affecting users, we will take appropriate steps to:

• Investigate the incident
• Contain the breach
• Mitigate potential harm
• Restore affected systems
• Take corrective measures
• Notify relevant authorities and/or affected individuals where required by applicable law

Third-Party Links

SIWES Connect may contain links to third-party websites, company websites, university websites, or other external services.

We are not responsible for the privacy practices, security, or content of third-party websites.

You should review the privacy policy of any external website before providing personal information.

Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect:

• Changes to SIWES Connect
• Changes to our data-processing practices
• Changes in technology
• Changes in applicable law
• Regulatory requirements or guidance

Where material changes are made, we will provide appropriate notice. The updated version will contain a revised Last Updated date.

Contact SIWES Connect

For questions, concerns, complaints, or requests relating to this Privacy Policy or your personal information:

Complaints to the NDPC

If you believe your data protection rights have been violated and you are unable to resolve the matter directly with SiwesConnect Nigeria Limited, you may have the right to lodge a complaint with the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC). The NDPC provides mechanisms relating to data protection compliance, data-subject rights, and privacy complaints.