Legal & Compliance
Privacy Policy
Last updated: 12 May 2026
Malawi Solar Installers Ltd ("Malawi Solar Installers", "we", "us", or "our") is committed to protecting your personal information and respecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, share, and safeguard the personal information you provide when you interact with our website at malawisolarinstallers.africa (the "Site").
This policy is governed by the Data Protection Act, 2024, Malawi's primary data protection legislation. By using this Site and submitting information to us, you consent to the practices described herein.
In terms of the Data Protection Act, Malawi Solar Installers Ltd is the Data Controller for personal information processed through this Site.
- Company: Malawi Solar Installers Ltd
- Location: Blantyre, Malawi
- Phone: +265 896 574 161
- Email: info@malawisolarinstallers.africa
- WhatsApp: +265 896 574 161
2. What Personal Information We Collect
We collect personal information only when it is necessary for a legitimate business purpose. This may include:
2.1 Information You Provide Directly
- Contact Form: Name, email address, phone number, and message content when you submit an enquiry through our website.
- WhatsApp / Phone: Your phone number and conversation content when you contact us via WhatsApp or telephone.
- Email: Your email address and any personal information you include in emails sent to us.
2.2 Information Collected Automatically
- Analytics Data: We use Google Analytics (via Google Tag Manager) to collect anonymised usage data, including pages visited, session duration, device type, browser type, and general geographic location (city/country level). This data does not personally identify you.
- Log Data: Our hosting infrastructure (Cloudflare Workers) may automatically record standard server log data such as your IP address, request timestamps, and HTTP response codes. This is used for security monitoring and operational reliability.
- Cookies: See Section 7 (Cookies) below for full details.
3. How and Why We Use Your Information
We use personal information for the following lawful purposes under the Malawi Data Protection Act:
| Purpose | Legal Basis (Data Protection Act) |
|---|---|
| Respond to your enquiries, quotes, and service requests | Contractual necessity / Legitimate interest |
| Communicate about project status and follow-ups | Legitimate interest / Consent |
| Improve our website performance and user experience | Legitimate interest |
| Comply with legal and regulatory obligations (e.g., Malawi Standards, Ministry of Labour, local authority) | Legal obligation |
| Ensure the security and integrity of our Site | Legitimate interest |
We will never sell, rent, or trade your personal information to third parties for marketing purposes.
4. Third-Party Services We Use
The Site integrates the following third-party services that may process your data:
4.1 Cloudflare (Hosting & Infrastructure)
This website is hosted on Cloudflare Workers (a serverless edge computing platform). Cloudflare acts as a processor of your data on our behalf and may process request data (including IP addresses) through their global network. Cloudflare is compliant with GDPR and relevant international data protection standards. See Cloudflare's Privacy Policy.
Our Cloudflare infrastructure includes:
- Cloudflare D1 (database) - stores content managed through our CMS.
- Cloudflare R2 (media storage) - stores images and assets.
4.2 Google Analytics
We use Google Analytics 4 (GA4) to understand how visitors interact with our Site. Google Analytics uses cookies and collects anonymised usage data. We have enabled IP anonymisation, meaning your full IP address is never stored or transmitted to Google's servers.
Google is certified under the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework. You may opt out of Google Analytics tracking by:
- Installing the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on.
- Adjusting your browser's cookie settings (see Section 7).
4.3 Web3Forms (Contact Form)
Our contact form is powered by Web3Forms, a form submission service. When you submit our contact form, your data (name, email, phone, message) is transmitted to Web3Forms' servers and forwarded to our email address. Web3Forms does not store your submissions permanently. See Web3Forms' Privacy Policy.
4.4 hCaptcha
Our contact form uses hCaptcha to protect against automated spam. hCaptcha may process information about your browser and interactions to determine whether you are a human. See hCaptcha's Privacy Policy.
4.5 Iconify & Google Fonts
The Site loads icons from the Iconify CDN and fonts from Google Fonts. These requests may expose your IP address to their respective servers as part of normal CDN operation. No personal profiling is performed through these services.
5. Cross-Border Data Transfers
As a Malawian company, Malawi Solar Installers processes personal information primarily within Malawi. However, some of our third-party service providers (Google, Cloudflare, Web3Forms, hCaptcha) may process and store data on servers located outside Malawi, including in the United States, the European Union, and other jurisdictions.
Where data is transferred internationally, we rely on service providers that implement appropriate safeguards such as Standard Contractual Clauses or equivalent data protection frameworks, as required by the Malawi Data Protection Act.
6. How Long We Keep Your Information
| Data Type | Retention Period |
|---|---|
| Contact form submissions (email) | 3 years, or until the enquiry is resolved |
| WhatsApp / phone communications | Until the project is completed and invoiced |
| Google Analytics data | 14 months (GA4 default retention) |
| Cloudflare server logs | Up to 30 days |
After the applicable retention period, personal information is securely deleted or anonymised.
7. Cookies
Our Site uses the following categories of cookies:
| Cookie | Provider | Purpose | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
_ga, _ga_* | Google Analytics | Distinguishes unique users and sessions for analytics reporting | Analytics |
__cf_bm | Cloudflare | Bot management and DDoS protection | Security |
| hCaptcha cookies | hCaptcha | Spam and bot protection on the contact form | Security |
How to manage cookies: Most web browsers allow you to control cookies through their settings. You can choose to block or delete cookies. Note that disabling certain cookies may affect the functionality of the Site. Instructions for major browsers:
8. Your Rights Under Malawi Data Protection Act
As a data subject in Malawi, you have the following rights under the Data Protection Act:
- Right of Access: You may request confirmation of whether we hold your personal information and request a copy of it.
- Right to Correction: You may request that we correct inaccurate, irrelevant, or incomplete personal information.
- Right to Deletion: You may request that we delete your personal information where there is no lawful basis for retaining it.
- Right to Object: You may object to the processing of your personal information for direct marketing or where our processing is based on legitimate interests.
- Right to Complain: You have the right to lodge a complaint with the Malawi Communications Regulatory Authority (MACRA) if you believe your rights have been violated.
To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at info@malawisolarinstallers.africa. We will respond within 30 days as required by the Data Protection Act.
9. Security of Your Information
We implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your personal information against unauthorised access, accidental loss, destruction, or alteration. These include:
- HTTPS encryption across the entire Site (enforced via Cloudflare).
- DDoS protection and bot mitigation through Cloudflare's security layer.
- Access controls limiting who within our organisation can access personal data.
- Use of reputable, security-audited third-party services.
While we take all reasonable precautions, no system is entirely secure. In the unlikely event of a data breach affecting your rights and freedoms, we will notify you and MACRA as required under the Data Protection Act.
10. Children's Privacy
This Site is not directed at children under the age of 18, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from minors. If you believe we have inadvertently collected information about a child, please contact us immediately so we can delete it.
11. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, legal requirements, or services. When we make material changes, we will update the "Last updated" date at the top of this page. We encourage you to review this policy periodically.
12. Contact Us
If you have any questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us:
- Email: info@malawisolarinstallers.africa
- Phone / WhatsApp: +265 896 574 161
- Location: Blantyre, Malawi