1. Introduction

We are committed to protecting your privacy and ensuring the security of any information associated with your use of this website (the "Website"). This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, and protect information when you visit and use our Website.

Our Website is designed with privacy in mind. We do not require user accounts, and we minimize data collection to what is strictly necessary for the operation and improvement of our services.

This Website is operated from the Cook Islands. While not legally required to comply with the European Union's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), we have adopted privacy practices that align with GDPR principles as a matter of best practice and respect for our users' privacy.

2. Data Controller

The operators of this Website are responsible for the processing of any personal data collected through this Website. For any privacy-related inquiries, please contact us at:

Email: [email protected]

3. Information We Do NOT Collect

We have designed our service to minimize data collection for general browsing. For users who do not submit forms, we do NOT collect:

Account information: We do not have user accounts, logins, or registration systems
Payment information: We do not process payments or store any financial data such as credit card numbers or bank details
Social media data: We do not use social login or collect data from social media profiles
Location data: We do not track or store your precise geographic location

4. Information Collected Through Forms

When you voluntarily submit a form on our Website (such as inquiry forms, consultation requests, or service interest forms), we collect the personal information you provide. This may include:

Contact information: Name, email address, phone number
Business information: Company name, job title, industry, business type
Service preferences: Jurisdictions of interest, services needed, budget range, timeline
Additional details: Any other information you choose to provide in free-text fields

Important: By submitting a form, you explicitly consent to the collection, processing, and sharing of your information as described in this Privacy Policy, including sharing with our third-party service partners who may contact you regarding the services you expressed interest in.

5. Information Collected Automatically

5.1 Local Browser Storage

Our Website uses your browser's local storage to save certain preferences and selections you make while using the site. This data is stored entirely on your device and is NOT transmitted to our servers. This includes:

Theme preference: Your choice of light or dark mode
Comparison selections: Countries you have selected for comparison
Wizard progress: Your progress in the jurisdiction finder wizard

You can clear this data at any time by clearing your browser's local storage or using your browser's "clear site data" function.

5.2 Server Logs

Like most websites, our servers automatically collect certain technical information when you visit the Website. This may include:

IP address (which may be anonymized or truncated)
Browser type and version
Operating system
Referring URL (the page that linked you to our site)
Pages visited and time spent on each page
Date and time of access

This information is used solely for maintaining the security and operation of the Website and is typically deleted within 30 days.

5.3 Analytics Data

We may use analytics services to understand how visitors use our Website. If we use such services, they may collect anonymized or aggregated data including:

Pages viewed and navigation paths
Time spent on the Website
Device type (desktop, mobile, tablet)
General geographic region (country or city level)
Traffic sources (search engines, direct visits, referrals)

Where possible, we configure analytics services to anonymize IP addresses and minimize data collection. See our Cookie Policy for more information about analytics cookies.

5.4 Geo-Location Services

To improve your experience when using our contact forms, we may automatically detect your country to pre-fill the country code for phone numbers. This detection is performed using the following third-party services:

Cloudflare: We use Cloudflare's CDN trace endpoint to detect your approximate location based on your IP address. This request is made directly from your browser to Cloudflare's servers. Cloudflare's privacy policy is available at cloudflare.com/privacypolicy
ipapi.co: As a fallback, we may use ipapi.co to determine your country. This service receives your IP address to provide country detection. Their privacy policy is available at ipapi.co/privacy

These services only detect your country (a two-letter country code) and do not provide us with your precise location or IP address. The detection happens client-side in your browser, and only the detected country code is used locally to pre-fill form fields. We do not store or transmit this information to our servers.

6. Legal Basis for Processing

Where applicable under data protection laws, our legal basis for processing any data includes:

Consent: When you submit a form on our Website, you provide explicit consent for us to process and share your personal information with third-party service providers who may fulfill your request or contact you regarding services
Legitimate interests: We have a legitimate interest in maintaining the security and proper operation of our Website, understanding how it is used to make improvements, and protecting against malicious activity
Performance of a contract: When you request information or services through our forms, processing your data is necessary to respond to your inquiry and connect you with appropriate service providers

7. Cookies and Similar Technologies

Our use of cookies and similar technologies is detailed in our Cookie Policy. In summary:

We primarily use browser local storage rather than cookies for storing preferences
Any cookies used are either strictly necessary for site operation or are analytics-related
We do not use advertising or marketing cookies
We do not use social media tracking cookies

8. How We Use Information

Any information we collect is used for the following purposes:

Service fulfillment: Processing and responding to your inquiries submitted through our forms, and connecting you with appropriate third-party service providers
Lead referrals: Sharing your contact and service preference information with our partner service providers (such as corporate formation agents, legal consultants, and other professional service providers) who can assist with your stated needs
Communication: Contacting you regarding the services you have expressed interest in, either by us or by our third-party partners
Website operation: Ensuring the Website functions properly and securely
Security: Detecting and preventing malicious activity, attacks, or fraud
Improvement: Understanding usage patterns to improve the Website's content and functionality
Legal compliance: Meeting any legal obligations that may apply to us

We do NOT:

Sell your data to unrelated third parties for their independent marketing purposes
Use data for profiling or automated decision-making
Use data for targeted advertising unrelated to your inquiry

9. Data Sharing and Disclosure

We share data with the following categories of recipients:

9.1 Third-Party Service Partners (Lead Referrals)

When you submit a form expressing interest in services (such as company formation, legal services, accounting, or other professional services), we share your information with carefully selected third-party service providers who may be able to assist you. This includes:

Corporate service providers: Companies that provide business formation, registered agent, and corporate administration services
Professional service firms: Law firms, accounting firms, tax advisors, and other licensed professionals
Financial service providers: Banks, payment processors, and other financial institutions
Consulting firms: Business consultants and advisory firms specializing in international business

Important: Once your information is shared with a third-party service provider, their use of your information is governed by their own privacy policies. We encourage you to review their privacy practices. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of these third parties.

These partners may contact you directly via phone, email, or other means to discuss your inquiry and offer their services. By submitting a form, you consent to being contacted by these third parties.

9.2 Infrastructure Service Providers

Hosting providers: Our Website is hosted by third-party infrastructure providers who may have access to server logs as part of their services
Analytics providers: If we use analytics services, they may process aggregated usage data

These service providers are contractually obligated to protect any data they process on our behalf and to use it only for the specified purposes.

9.3 Legal Requirements

We may disclose information if required by law, including:

To comply with legal processes, court orders, or government requests
To enforce our Terms of Use
To protect our rights, property, or safety, or that of our users or the public

10. International Data Transfers

Our Website is operated from the Cook Islands, but our infrastructure and service providers may be located in various countries. If data is transferred internationally, we ensure appropriate safeguards are in place, which may include:

Adequacy decisions by relevant authorities
Standard contractual clauses
Other legally recognized transfer mechanisms

11. Data Retention

We retain data only for as long as necessary for the purposes described in this policy:

Form submission data: Retained for up to 3 years from the date of submission, or until you request deletion
Server logs: Typically deleted within 30 days
Analytics data: Retained according to the analytics provider's policies (typically 14-26 months)
Local storage data: Remains on your device until you clear it

Note: Once your data has been shared with third-party service partners, their retention of your data is governed by their own privacy policies and retention schedules. You may need to contact them directly to request deletion of your data from their systems.

12. Your Rights

Depending on your location and applicable laws, you may have certain rights regarding data associated with your use of the Website. These may include:

Right of access: The right to request information about what data we hold about you
Right to rectification: The right to correct any inaccurate data
Right to erasure: The right to request deletion of your data ("right to be forgotten")
Right to restrict processing: The right to limit how we use your data
Right to data portability: The right to receive your data in a structured, machine-readable format
Right to object: The right to object to certain types of processing
Right to withdraw consent: Where processing is based on consent, the right to withdraw it at any time

Please note that because we collect minimal personal data and do not maintain user accounts, our ability to respond to certain requests may be limited. For instance, we cannot identify which server logs relate to a specific individual without additional information.

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at [email protected].

13. Children's Privacy

This Website is not directed at children under the age of 16, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you are a parent or guardian and believe that your child has provided us with personal information, please contact us immediately, and we will take steps to delete such information.

14. Third-Party Links

Our Website may contain links to third-party websites, including affiliate partners. This Privacy Policy applies only to our Website. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of third-party websites, and we encourage you to review their privacy policies before providing any personal information.

When you click on a link to a third-party website, you are leaving our Website and entering a site governed by different terms and privacy practices.

15. Security Measures

We implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect information associated with your use of the Website, including:

Encryption in transit: All data transmitted between your browser and our servers is encrypted using HTTPS/TLS
Minimal data collection: Our primary security measure is collecting as little data as possible
Access controls: Access to any data is restricted to authorized personnel only
Regular updates: We keep our systems and software up to date with security patches

While we strive to protect information, no method of transmission over the Internet or electronic storage is 100% secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security.

16. Do Not Track Signals

Some browsers offer a "Do Not Track" (DNT) feature that signals to websites that you do not want to be tracked. There is no industry standard for responding to DNT signals. Currently, our Website does not specifically respond to DNT signals, but our minimal data collection practices mean that tracking is already limited.

17. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or for other operational, legal, or regulatory reasons. When we make changes, we will:

Update the "Last updated" date at the top of this page
For material changes, we may provide notice through a prominent announcement on our Website

We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically to stay informed about how we protect your privacy.

18. Supervisory Authority

If you are located in a jurisdiction that provides for a right to lodge complaints with a supervisory authority (such as a data protection authority), you may have the right to do so if you believe our processing of your data violates applicable law.

19. Contact Us

If you have any questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us at:

Email: [email protected]

We will respond to your inquiry within a reasonable timeframe and in accordance with applicable law.