Access shouldn’t be a maze.

01

The short version

02

About this manual

This is the section 51 PAIA manual of Ruan de Witt trading as Phoenix Photography, a private body for purposes of the Promotion of Access to Information Act 2 of 2000 (PAIA).

The purpose of the manual is to help a person understand what records Phoenix Photography may hold, what information is already available, how personal information is processed, and how to make a request for access to a record.

In this manual, PAIA means the Promotion of Access to Information Act 2 of 2000, POPIA means the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013, and Regulator means the Information Regulator (South Africa).

03

Key contact details

As a sole proprietor, Ruan de Witt is the head of the private body and acts as Phoenix Photography’s Information Officer. A Deputy Information Officer has also been designated and registered with the Information Regulator.

04

The Regulator’s guide to PAIA

The Information Regulator publishes a guide explaining how PAIA and related access-to-information rights work, including the request process, available remedies and the prescribed forms.

The guide and current PAIA forms are available from the Information Regulator’s PAIA page. The Regulator makes the guide available in the official languages.

Phoenix Photography will also make the required copies of the guide available for inspection as required by the applicable PAIA regulations.

05

Records already available without a formal request

Records that are intentionally published may be accessed directly without submitting a PAIA request. These currently include:

This list does not make private client records, private galleries, unpublished photographs or confidential business records automatically available.

06

Records held in accordance with other legislation

Depending on the record and the circumstances, Phoenix Photography may create or retain records in accordance with legislation including:

This is not intended to be an exhaustive statement of every law that may apply to a particular record.

07

Subjects and categories of records Phoenix may hold

The records actually held will change over time. They may include the following categories:

08

Processing of personal information

Phoenix Photography processes personal information for the purposes described in the Privacy & POPIA Notice, including responding to enquiries, managing bookings, providing photography services, delivering photographs, maintaining business and tax records, protecting systems, and measuring website use where optional analytics has been allowed.

Categories of people and information

Recipients or categories of recipients

Personal information may be supplied only where reasonably necessary and lawful, including to:

• Domains.co.za and other infrastructure providers used to host the website or provide business email;
• Google Analytics when a website visitor has actively allowed optional analytics;
• a communication service chosen by the person, such as WhatsApp, Instagram or Facebook, when they use that channel to contact Phoenix Photography;
• professional advisers, accountants, legal representatives, insurers or technical service providers where reasonably necessary; and
• regulators, courts, law-enforcement bodies or other authorities where disclosure is required or permitted by law.

Transborder processing

Some third-party services, including Google services used by the website, may process or route information outside South Africa. Where Phoenix Photography makes use of a service involving cross-border processing, it will take reasonable steps to use the service consistently with POPIA’s requirements.

Phoenix Photography does not currently rely on permanent third-party cloud storage as the primary archive for client photographic files. If that changes, the Privacy Notice and this manual will be updated before the new arrangement becomes part of normal client processing.

General security measures

Security measures are selected according to the sensitivity of the information and may include restricted account and device access, passwords and account-security controls, maintained software and anti-malware protection, website security controls, controlled gallery access, backups, and limiting access to client information to people who reasonably need it.

09

How to request access to a record

A request for access to a record of a private body must meet the requirements of PAIA. In general, the requested record must be required for the exercise or protection of a right, the procedural requirements must be followed, and the request must not fall within a lawful ground for refusal.

To make a formal request:

• use the current Form 2: Request for Access to Record published by the Information Regulator;
• identify the record requested clearly enough for it to be located;
• identify the right you seek to exercise or protect and explain why the requested record is required for that purpose;
• provide sufficient contact and identity / authority details as required by the form; and
• send the completed request to privacy@phoenixphotography.co.za.

The current prescribed forms are available from the Information Regulator.

10

Fees, timing and possible refusal

Prescribed PAIA request, access, reproduction, search or preparation fees may apply where the law permits them. If a fee is payable, the requester will be notified in accordance with PAIA before the relevant processing or access proceeds.

Phoenix Photography will decide a properly completed private-body request as soon as reasonably possible and, subject to the Act’s exceptions, within the period prescribed by PAIA. The normal decision period is 30 days, and PAIA allows a single extension of up to a further 30 days in specified circumstances.

PAIA contains grounds on which access must or may be refused. These include protection of third-party privacy, confidential or commercial information, safety and property, legally privileged records, and certain confidential business or research information. Where only part of a record is protected and the remainder can reasonably be separated, PAIA provides for severability.

If a request is refused, the requester will be given the reasons required by PAIA and information about the available complaint or court process.

11

Availability and updating of this manual

The current online version of this PAIA Manual is available on phoenixphotography.co.za/paia.php. A copy will also be made available for inspection or supplied on request in the manner required by PAIA and its regulations.

Phoenix Photography will review and update this manual when the business, its records, service providers or information-processing practices materially change.

Before publication: the final manual still needs the formal physical / postal address.