Last updated: 28 September 2026
Who We Are
ForgeAstute (forgeastute.com) is run by Tefo Buthelezi in Johannesburg, South Africa. This policy explains what personal information we collect, why, and how we protect it, in line with the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA). For any privacy question, email hello@forgeastute.com.
What We Collect
- Contact form: your name, email address and message, used only to reply to you.
- Comments: your name, email and comment, plus your IP address and browser details to help detect spam. Your comment and name are shown publicly.
- Usage data: pages visited, device type, browser and approximate location, collected through Google Analytics only if you accept analytics cookies. We use this to understand which content is useful and to improve the site.
- Cookies: see below.
We do not sell your personal information.
Cookies
We use essential cookies to make the site work. With your consent, we also use analytics cookies (Google Analytics) and affiliate partners may set cookies (see below). Until you accept, Google Analytics runs in a restricted mode that does not set analytics cookies. You can accept or decline non-essential cookies in our cookie banner and change your choice at any time.
Affiliate Links
Some links on ForgeAstute are affiliate links. When you click one, the partner company may set a cookie to record that you came from our site, so we can earn a commission if you buy. That partner handles the data under its own privacy policy. We don’t receive your payment or personal details from these purchases.
Third Parties
Your information may be processed by our hosting provider, email delivery service, Google Analytics and affiliate partners, only as far as they need it to provide their services. Some of these providers may store data outside South Africa. Where they do, we rely on them to protect it to a standard comparable to POPIA.
Newsletter
If you subscribe to our newsletter, we collect your email address and, if you choose to give it, your first name. We use this only to send you the ForgeAstute newsletter and related updates.
We use a double opt-in process: after you sign up, we send an email asking you to confirm your subscription, and you won’t receive newsletters until you do. We also record the date and time you subscribed and confirmed, as evidence of your consent.
Our newsletter is sent using Brevo (Sendinblue SAS), an email service provider based in the European Union. Brevo stores and processes your subscription details on our behalf and may record whether emails are opened or links are clicked, so we can understand what’s useful. This means your newsletter data is transferred to and processed outside South Africa, including in France and other European Union countries. You can read how Brevo handles data in its privacy policy.
You can unsubscribe at any time using the link at the bottom of every email, or by contacting us. When you unsubscribe, we stop sending you newsletters. We keep your details only as long as you remain subscribed, plus any short period needed to honour your unsubscribe request.
How Long We Keep It
We keep contact messages for as long as we need them to respond, and comments for as long as they stay published. We delete or anonymise information when we no longer need it.
Your Rights
Under POPIA you can ask to see, correct or delete the personal information we hold about you, or object to how we use it. Email hello@forgeastute.com and we’ll respond within a reasonable time. You can also complain to South Africa’s Information Regulator at inforegulator.org.za.
Security
We use reasonable safeguards, including SSL encryption and restricted admin access, to protect your information. No website is completely secure, though.
Children
ForgeAstute is not aimed at children under 18, and we don’t knowingly collect their information.
Changes
We may update this policy from time to time. The date at the top shows when it last changed.