Privacy Policy

 Privacy Policy

ALTERO INNOVATIONS MADE THIS FOR YOU. 

PLEASE NOTICE WHAT IT SAYS.

PRIVACY STATEMENT

This page is a letter to you from us, the team at Altero. It is written in plain language to be readable even if you are not a lawyer. 

It is called a “notice” because you are intended to notice what it says. 

By giving Altero information, whether through the Altero web page, software, or app, you are consenting to let Altero use that information sensibly and responsibly in connection with your relationship to Altero. 

That may seem obvious, but for good reasons, we want you to be aware.

You are entitled to have notice from companies about how the companies interact with your information and protect your privacy. Companies like ours use information like yours, daily, to do a job. We agree with the activists and regulators who decided that companies should notify individuals like you about how your information is gathered and treated.

Note: this notice will be revised from time to time.

WHO IS ALTERO?

Altero is our company’s nickname. So that is what you call it: Altero. But its full given name is Altero Innovations Ltd., we use 'Altero' so that you don't have to keep on reading the 'Innovations Ltd' bit as you go through.

Altero is a UK Limited Company, located at 219 Kensington High Street

Kensington, London, W8 6BD. UK.

It is a software company. It partners with other companies. Those partnerships help Altero's software to do the thing it does, which we call the Altero Service. Where we find a cool system we also white-label (which means we use their system, but adapt it to particular local circumstances. Our home is Africa, which is very different from Silicon Valley where much of our systems are built, so we adapt and innovate to suit.

WHY SHOULD I TAKE NOTICE?

Just like you do, we (the private individuals who make up the Altero team) sometimes wonder or forget how some random company got our name, personal email, or phone number. Altero does not want to be that company. So this page is meant to help you know what is going on. Because some companies benefit from incomplete transparency, the people trying to improve things now require companies like Altero to inform you (in a way that is likely to inform you) about how we use your information. If you are unlikely to notice what this says, then this is an ineffective notice.

WHO, ME?

Yes, you. If you are an individual natural person, that means you are more valuable than money, laws, or companies. So you have rights. (If you are a robot, skip this part. If you are unsure whether you are a robot, there is probably a captcha for that.)

WHAT IS MEANT BY “MY INFORMATION”?

When Altero says “your information,” we are referring to “Personal Information.” (For short, say “PI.” Some call it “Personally Identifiable Information,” or “PII”). PI is legalese for any information that could be used to personally identify the individual, i.e., you. Any PI is important for your privacy. You deserve to know what Altero might collect, why, and the basis on which Altero justifies keeping it and using it.

WHEN AND FROM WHERE DOES ALTERO GET MY INFORMATION?

If you interact with Altero, Altero almost certainly has some information from and about that interaction. If you are reading this, you probably interacted with Altero in one of a few ways, maybe in a professional capacity. For instance, if you exchanged business cards with a Altero team member at a conference, we almost certainly entered the information you gave us into our customer relations management (“CRM”) software. Otherwise, you may have interacted with us through electronic means: by visiting or using one of our web pages, by visiting another company’s webpage that says “powered by Altero,” by directly using our app, or by electronically contacting us, such as by email.

IF YOU GAVE INFORMATION DIRECTLY, OFFLINE, IN-PERSON, OR BY MESSAGE

If a Altero team member received your information offline, such as in person, their procedure is to enter the information in the CRM, so we do not forget about you. In keeping with all the latest standards designed to protect your privacy, Altero made it impossible for its team members to save your information until they have included a note about how they received your information, and why we have the information. For instance, it might say “business card given at a conference, requested a demo.”

If you have a Altero team member’s contact information, such as a cell phone number or email address, PLEASE DO NOT directly message (e.g., text, email, “DM”, etc.) or tell sensitive information to Altero team members, no matter how excited you are to begin using the Altero service. Please do not send credit card information, bank or other financial account information, personal identification, tax or other government identification numbers, birthdates, or other such sensitive information directly to a Altero team member. Altero appreciates your enthusiasm and trust. One of the ways we protect you is by communicating through the proper channels, and building procedures that remove as much error as possible from the way we manage your information.

IF YOU VISITED ALTERO ONLINE

Online web site visitors can be identified by their IP address. Collection of IP addresses is standard practice, and facilitates normal online management functions. Altero may also ascertain your location by your IP address.

Cookies, explained below, are the normal way that all your favourite websites interact with you. They make your life more convenient. They make your favourite companies better by allowing those companies to understand how people like you prefer to interact with their company web pages and products. Altero operates similarly.

On Altero web page(s), Altero currently uses only cookies from Google and Facebook. (If you use a browser that tracks cookies, you will see one from Facebook and four from Google: two YouTube and two from doubleclick.net, which is associated with Google Ads.) So if you visit our website, we will receive some of the information their cookies gather. Most information gathered is rather impersonal. But since some of it might be used to figure out who you are, we take precautions to treat it as PI.

Google says “A cookie is a small piece of text sent to your browser by a website you visit. It helps the website to remember information about your visit, like your preferred language and other settings. That can make your next visit easier and the site more useful to you. Cookies play an important role. Without them, using the web would be a much more frustrating experience.” Google says it uses cookies “for many purposes. We use them, for example, to remember your safe search preferences, to make the ads you see more relevant to you, to count how many visitors we receive to a page, to help you sign up for our services, to protect your data, or to remember your ad settings.” It explains more at the following address, which also has a link to their privacy policy. https://policies.google.com/technologies/cookies

Facebook’s cookie policy explains that “Cookies are small pieces of text used to store information on web browsers. Cookies are used to store and receive identifiers and other information on computers, phones, and other devices. Other technologies, including data we store on your web browser or device, identifiers associated with your device, and other software, are used for similar purposes.” They explain that they use such technologies “if you visit other websites and apps that use the Facebook Products (including the Like button or other Facebook Technologies). Cookies enable Facebook to offer the Facebook Products to you and to understand the information we receive about you, including information about your use of other websites and apps, whether or not you are registered or logged in.” You can read more about their cookies at the following address. https://www.facebook.com/policy/cookies/

Altero uses these cookies for the usual purposes: to better understand how people like you interact with our business, and to find ways to serve and communicate with people like you, and to improve the security, navigation ease, and any personalized attributes of your experience on our webpage. The information gathered is of the usual kind, such as what kind of browsers people like you use to view our web pages, how long people like you spend on a page, etc.

There are many ways you can use browser settings to disable cookies, and many online resources on how best to calibrate those settings to your preferences. Altero encourages you to disable cookies if cookies make you uncomfortable. However, if you disable cookies, you might experience a sub-optimal browsing experience whenever you come back to our website.

IF YOU REGISTERED WITH ALTERO

If you used a Altero web page to register for access, Altero received the email address and stored it in a secure list that Altero uses to keep you updated. If you would like to be removed from the list you can simply contact us at https://Altero.io . Altero is not in the business of selling contact information or lists, and will never sell your email address. To manage the list on which you placed your email by signing up, Altero uses a secure third party CRM software platform and a third party secure email campaign administration company. Altero does not disclose information for third parties’ marketing purposes under any circumstance.

If you onboard yourself to Altero’ software platform, whether on a computer or via the mobile app, Altero will be required to gather much more personal information. This is gathered in order to verify that you are who you say you are, that you work for the company you say you do, and that your employer or company authorizes you to use the Altero Service on your company’s behalf (in other words, as a representative or agent of your company). Altero needs to work with other companies as part of the Altero Service; the Altero Service is impossible without them. When you give your information to Altero, so you can receive the Altero Service, you agree to let Altero send (“disclose”) that information to the other companies with whom Altero works to provide you the Altero Service. Third parties involved in the Altero Service are multiple licensed secure payment processors, banks, and currency conversion services.

WHY ALTERO COLLECTS PERSONAL INFORMATION & HOW ALTERO USES IT

Altero is required to explain to you that we use your PI for legitimate business purposes. These purposes are what you would expect, so some of this next part might seem obvious. The way the law talks about this is that Altero must have a lawful basis for using your PI. Among the businesses you encounter every day, two of the most common forms of lawful basis are “consent” and “legitimate interests.” Consent means you permit Altero to have and use your PI. Legitimate interests means Altero can identify a lawful, reasonable business reason to have and use your PI.

TO INTERACT AND DO BUSINESS WITH YOU, ALTERO NEEDS YOUR INFORMATION

Altero cannot provide the Altero Service without having, storing, and using your PI. Altero needs to identify you to provide customer service and to reply to your requests or feedback. Similarly, without having your PI, Altero could not respond to your requests or communications or technical answers. Also, Altero may need to contact you to give you administrative information such as updates to the Altero Service or the terms. Altero also needs to keep your PI in order to obey the law, and to maintain our contractual relationship with you.

TO MARKET OUR PRODUCT TO YOU, ALTERO NEEDS YOUR INFORMATION

Especially if you signed up for updates or early access, if you are an existing customer, or if you are an investor, Altero needs to keep and use your PI to contact you with marketing materials, company news and updates, and newsletters. Altero is always finding better ways in our startup to track concrete, intentional consent. Altero will keep your PI to contact you only where there is a legitimate business interest in keeping your PI to contact you.

ALTERO NEEDS TO USE INFORMATION LIKE YOURS TO REPORT ON ITS BUSINESS

The Altero team spends a fair amount of effort understanding how to better serve users, like you, of the Altero Service. Sometimes this means information will be gathered internally to show trend reports. Much of this information will not be PI, or at least will not be identifiable as presented. For instance, if we know what country your small business (SME) is in, that might be classified as PI. Knowing how SMEs in your country use the Altero Service will help Altero better serve small businesses in your country.

Altero will sometimes anonymize and aggregate information that includes your PI. You will no longer be identifiable, so the aggregate information will not be PI. Altero can use and disclose this information for its business purposes.

YOUR INFORMATION HELPS ALTERO PERSONALIZE THE ALTERO SERVICE TO YOU

Altero may use your PI to identify you and differentiate you from other users of the Altero Service in order to personalize interactions with you, provide better service to you in particular, and improve your individual efficiency and profitability in using the Altero Service.

When applicable, Altero will seek your consent to offer these personalized services. Altero will always offer these personalizations in connection with a legitimate business interest. In other words, Altero will offer you personalized services that are relevant to your business and your relationship with Altero.

YOUR INFORMATION MAY BE REQUIRED FOR BUSINESS AND LEGAL REASONS

Altero may need to use information that includes your PI in order to find ways to improve the Altero Service through data analysis and modeling. Altero may need to undergo audits, to make sure its internal processes are functional and compliant with the law. Without using PI of our customers, it would be impossible to prevent fraud and ensure security. The development of new or existing products may require us to use information that could be used to identify who you are. Altero will use information, sometimes including PI, to fine tune the Altero Service and the way we communicate about that service to people like you. This also applies to expanding the Altero Service based on what we learn about how you most prefer to use the Altero Service.

WHERE DOES ALTERO STORE MY INFORMATION?

Altero stores all of its data in secure servers in the cloud. Altero obviously does not have control of what you do with your own login information. Please keep your password or other login information confidential. Please do not use one login for more than one person, employee, or coworker. Unfortunately no internet transmission of information is entirely secure. When you send Altero information, Altero cannot be responsible for its security until it is on Altero’ servers. Altero takes appropriate and extensive measures to protect the security of your PI, but Altero cannot guarantee that your PI will never be disclosed, altered, or destroyed in some way inconsistent with this notice.

Note that Altero is a blockchain-technology based company. The blockchain is a transparent, immutable (unchangeable), distributed ledger. During design phase of the software underlying the Altero Service, measures were taken to ensure that none of your PI will be logged to the blockchain. Your use of the Service will be logged to the distributed ledger, but you will not be personally identifiable by the information Altero logs to the blockchain.

DOES ALTERO DISCLOSE OR SHARING MY INFORMATION?

Altero’ subsidiary, Altero UK, mutually shares information. So your PI may be shared with one or the other.

Third party companies will receive your information if you have engaged with Altero. As mentioned above, third party companies have cookies on our webpages. Third party payment processors, banks, and financial services are integral to the portion of the Altero Service that provides multiple payment processor options. The third party cloud server company, CRM company, email list administrator, receive your information only as needed and in compliance with relevant privacy laws and Altero’ privacy policy, which is reflected in this notice. If you send an invoice through the Altero Service, the information in the invoice, including PI, will be sent to your recipient. Your PI may also be shared with a third party invoice purchaser should you choose to seek trade finance. Of course our employees, contractors, and the like will have access to your PI, and will operate according to strict rules designed to protect your privacy. If Altero should be acquired, your PI will be acquired by the acquiring company. Altero is not responsible or liable for the privacy policies or practices of third party companies, but Altero holds high standards for the privacy compliance of its third party parters.

HOW LONG DOES ALTERO RETAIN MY INFORMATION?

Altero will keep your PI for at least the minimum amount of time sensible for carrying out the contractual relationship between you and Altero. Altero may also keep the information longer if it is necessary for records, like for taxes or audits. Altero may also keep your PI as legally advisable for litigation or regulatory inspections.

YES YOU CAN

If you would like to access, correct or change, or delete your PI, please contact us using the Contact page on our website. Our data protection officer is in-house at our UK office as of this notice. We will respond to your request in accordance with the applicable laws. More importantly, Altero will do its best to accommodate your right to access, correction, and deletion. Please understand that some PI may not be legally deleted, such as records of transactions that need to be available for audit.