Privacy policy

Who we are

UpMark is a South African online marketplace that matches Grade 8–12 students with independent tutors across Maths, Physical Sciences and 13 more CAPS subjects. In this policy, “we”, “us” and “UpMark” mean the operator of the UpMark platform. We are the responsible party (data controller) for the personal information described here. If you have any questions, email us at support@upmarktutoring.com.

Information we collect

We only collect what we need to run the service:

• Account details — your name, email address, phone number, gender (if you choose to share it), and password (stored only as a secure hash, never in plain text).
• Learner profile — grade, subjects, learning goals and preferences, and general area, so we can match you with a suitable tutor.
• Children’s details — where a parent or guardian manages the account, the child’s name, grade, date of birth and learning preferences, provided by the parent. See “Children’s information” below.
• Tutor details — for tutors, your qualifications, subjects, rates, availability, and the verification documents you upload (ID and proof of results).
• Payment information — bookings are paid in ZAR through Paystack. Paystack processes your card details on their secure systems; we never see or store your full card number. We keep a record of transactions (amounts, dates, status) to manage bookings, payouts and refunds.
• Messages — messages you exchange with a tutor or student through the platform, so the conversation is available to both parties.
• Technical information — basic data needed to keep you signed in and keep the service secure (for example, session cookies and standard server logs).

Why we use it

We use your information to:

• match students with suitable tutors and show relevant profiles;
• set up and manage bookings, lessons and your account;
• process payments, tutor payouts and refunds;
• verify tutors so students and parents can trust who they book;
• let you message the other party about a lesson;
• keep the platform safe and prevent fraud or abuse;
• meet our legal and tax obligations.

We do not sell your personal information, and we do not use children’s information for marketing.

How it's stored and protected

Your data is stored in a Postgres database hosted by Supabase, with row-level security so each account can only reach its own records. Traffic is encrypted in transit, passwords are hashed, and tutor verification documents are kept in private storage accessible only to you and, where needed, our review team. The application is hosted on Vercel. We limit staff access to personal information to what’s needed to operate and support the service.

Who we share it with

We share personal information only where it’s needed to provide the service:

• Tutors and students — when you book, the other party sees the limited details needed for the lesson (for a student, the learner’s first name, grade and relevant preferences; for a tutor, their public profile).
• Paystack — our payments provider, to take payment and pay tutors.
• Supabase — our database, authentication and file-storage provider.
• Vercel — our hosting provider.
• Authorities — if the law requires it, or to protect someone’s safety.

These providers act as our operators (processors) and may store data outside South Africa; where they do, we rely on their security and contractual safeguards. We don’t sell or rent your data to anyone.

Children's information

UpMark is built for high-school learners in Grade 8–12, many of whom are under 18. Under-18s may not open their own account — a parent or guardian must create and hold the account and confirm their consent to their child’s details being processed for tutoring. We collect only what’s needed to arrange and track lessons (the child’s name, grade, date of birth and learning preferences), and we don’t market to children. A parent can view, update or remove their child’s details at any time from Settings, or by emailing us. If you believe a child’s information has been given to us without the right consent, contact us and we’ll remove it.

Your rights under POPIA

You have the right to:

• ask what personal information we hold about you (or your child);
• ask us to correct or update it;
• ask us to delete it, where we’re not required to keep it;
• object to certain processing;
• complain to the Information Regulator (South Africa) if you believe we’ve mishandled your information.

To exercise any of these, email support@upmarktutoring.com. Much of it you can also do yourself from your account settings.

How long we keep it

We keep your information for as long as your account is active and for a reasonable period afterwards, then delete or anonymise it — except where we’re legally required to keep records longer (for example, transaction records for tax and accounting).

Cookies

We use essential cookies to keep you signed in and to keep the service secure. We don’t use advertising or third-party tracking cookies.

Changes to this policy

We may update this policy as the service grows or the law changes. When we make a material change, we’ll update the date at the top and, where appropriate, let you know.

Contact us

Questions about your privacy? Email support@upmarktutoring.com. See also our Terms of Service.