POPIA: achieve compliance with South Africa’s Protection of Personal Information Act

The Usercentrics Consent Management Platform (CMP) helps you to meet the requirements of POPIA compliance.
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What is POPIA?

POPIA is South Africa’s law to protect personal information. Passed in 2013, it is a 12-chapter framework to regulate the processing of personal data. Enactment has been staggered, the latest sections coming into effect in July 1, 2020, and enforcement starting July 1, 2021. POPIA, or the POPI Act, is quite similar to the European Union’s GDPR or Brazil’s LGPD.

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What are the consequences of POPIA noncompliance?

Noncompliance with POPIA can lead to fines of up to ZAR 10 million (approx. EUR 500,000).

Penalties can also include sanctions or prison sentences of up to 10 years for certain violations for responsible individuals.

POPIA requires a legal basis for processing data.

  • You can only process personal data for legitimate, specific, explicit and clearly communicated purposes.
  • User consent to processing data must be voluntary, specific and informed.
  • In order to comply with POPIA, you must maintain a record to be able to demonstrate that consent was collected in accordance with the law.
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Take into account not only POPIA requirements, but also the GDPR, CCPA, LGPD and IAB TCF.

The Usercentrics Consent Management Platform easily integrates with your website or app your favorite third-party services and tools.

Using a Consent Management Platform helps you be transparent with users about data usage, which builds trust. Making them more likely to entrust you with their data and to build ongoing relationships.

Benefit from our special marketing features, like A/B Testing and Contextual Consent, to improve user experiences and build relationships with your brand.

Obtain and store POPIA-compliant consent for data processing by clearly communicating with South African visitors to your website or app.

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Contact our expert team

We’re happy to answer questions and get you acquainted with Usercentrics and our Consent Management Platform.

  • Doing business in South Africa and unsure whether your website is compliant with current privacy laws?
  • Get in touch with us and learn how the Usercentrics Consent Management Platform can help you achieve POPIA compliance.
  • Looking to partner with us?
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How to install Usercentrics CMP

The Usercentrics Consent Management Platform (CMP) stores, manages and signals valid user consent and privacy preferences.

1
Configure your CMP

Choose your legal framework and/or relevant data privacy regulations

Identify the Data Processing Services used on your website and set the correct legal basis for compliance with POPIA

Customize the banner appearance and messaging to meet your needs

2
Implement the CMP

Implement the CMP script tag directly in your website or via your tag manager

Make adjustments to the scripts/tags being used on your website

Determine when and at what frequency your banner message will be displayed

3
Collect explicit user consent

Start collecting consent from all consumers subject to POPIA

Use Usercentrics’ geolocation rules to determine who sees your banner and in what languages

Continuously optimize your consent banner based on extensive data and analytics

“It’s super easy to use with an intuitive dashboard. You can customise the CMP with just a few clicks. A/B testing is easily setup. Legal texts are up to date which saved me a lot of time. ”
— International Expansion Small-Business

Learn more

Apr 14, 2022
South Africa’s POPIA is a data privacy law that preceded the GDPR by five years. We look at how it addresses consumer rights, companies’ responsibilities and enforcement.
Jul 22, 2024
The Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA) mandates data protection compliance for entities in South Africa. Enforced by the Information Regulator, POPIA ensures lawful data processing, consent, and security, compelling organizations to prioritize the security of personal information.
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Aug 30, 2021
What is POPIA compliance, and how does it compare to GDPR compliance? You can learn this and more in our POPIA Vs GDPR article.
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Aug 6, 2024
Privacy-led marketing and compliance with global privacy laws require companies to implement a cookie popup that informs users and asks them for their consent. Here’s what you need to know for great user experience, high-quality data, and privacy compliance.