Cookie Policy
This Cookie Policy is issued by Ciresta Reputation Advisory (Pty) Ltd, a Private Company (Pty) Ltd registered under number 3393432635 with the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission, and trading as Ciresta. It governs the use of cookies and similar technologies on ciresta.world and should be read together with our Privacy Policy, which sets out how personal information is processed under the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 ("POPIA").
I. Definitions
In this Policy, "Cookie" means a small text file placed on your computer, tablet or telephone when you visit a website, which is read back by the website on later visits. "Similar Technologies" means local storage, session storage, pixels and comparable tools that store or retrieve information on your device. "Responsible Party" means Ciresta Reputation Advisory (Pty) Ltd, being the party that determines the purpose and means of processing personal information, as that term is used in POPIA. "Operator" means a third party that processes personal information on our behalf under a written contract. "Visitor" or "you" means any person who accesses the Website. "Website" means ciresta.world, through which Ciresta presents its services in reputation management in artificial intelligence outputs and in the media. "Consent Banner" means the notice and preference panel displayed on your first visit, through which you may accept or decline each non-essential category of Cookie.
II. Scope and Purpose of this Policy
The Website is operated to present the services of Ciresta and to receive enquiries from prospective clients. Personal information reaches us through two channels: the contact form, by which a Visitor submits a name, email address and message concerning our services, and the email subscription, by which a Visitor provides an email address in order to receive our publications and updates. Cookies are not used to build profiles for the sale of personal information. This Policy explains which Cookies are used in connection with those channels and with general operation of the Website, and the basis on which they are set.
III. Categories of Cookies Used
A. Necessary Cookies
Necessary Cookies are indispensable for the Website to function and for us to honour requests you make. They record your choices in the Consent Banner, maintain session integrity, support security measures against automated abuse of the contact form and subscription form, and balance server load. Because the Website cannot operate securely without them, they are set without your prior consent. Their use is justified under POPIA as necessary for the pursuit of our legitimate interests and for the performance of a request you have made. You may block them in your browser settings, but parts of the Website, including submission of the contact form or confirmation of an email subscription, may then fail.
B. Analytics Cookies
Analytics Cookies collect information on how Visitors reach and use the Website, such as pages viewed, time spent, referring source, approximate location at city or region level, and device and browser type. We use this information in aggregated form to improve content, to understand which of our articles and service pages attract interest, and to measure whether the contact form and subscription form are working as intended. These Cookies are set only after you have given consent through the Consent Banner. Where the analytics provider acts as an Operator, it may process the information only on our instructions.
C. Marketing Cookies
Marketing Cookies record visits to the Website and the content viewed so that communications and advertising presented elsewhere may be made more relevant to you, and so that the effectiveness of our campaigns may be assessed. They are set only with your consent. Declining them has no effect on your ability to use the Website, to submit the contact form, or to subscribe to our emails. We do not make Marketing Cookies a condition of any service.
IV. Schedule of Cookies
The table below describes the classes of Cookie that may be set. The specific names, providers and durations are confirmed in the Consent Banner preference panel, which is updated whenever our tooling changes.
| Category | Purpose | Typical duration | Consent required |
|---|---|---|---|
| Necessary | Stores consent choices, session state and form security | Session to 12 months | No |
| Analytics | Aggregated measurement of Website use | Up to 24 months | Yes |
| Marketing | Audience measurement and relevance of communications | Up to 12 months | Yes |
V. Consent and its Withdrawal
Under section 11 of POPIA, consent must be voluntary, specific and informed. On your first visit, no Analytics or Marketing Cookie is set until you have made a choice. You may accept all categories, decline all non-essential categories, or select categories individually. You may change or withdraw your consent at any time by reopening the preference panel on the Website, or by deleting Cookies in your browser. Withdrawal does not affect the lawfulness of processing carried out before withdrawal. Most browsers also permit you to refuse or delete Cookies through their settings; the means differ by browser, and the help function of your browser will describe them.
VI. Cookies and the Contact Form and Email Subscription
Submission of the contact form transmits to us the information you type into it, which we use solely to respond to your enquiry. Subscription to our emails transmits your email address, which we use to send the publications you requested and to record your consent and its date. Where an email we send contains a tracking pixel or a trackable link, that measurement of opening or clicking is treated as an Analytics technology and is applied only where you have consented. Every subscription email contains a means of unsubscribing, in keeping with section 69 of POPIA and the Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008.
VII. Third Parties and Cross-Border Transfers
Analytics and Marketing providers, together with our hosting and email-delivery providers, may be located outside the Republic of South Africa. Where information is transferred abroad, we do so in accordance with section 72 of POPIA, that is, only where the recipient is subject to a law, binding corporate rules or a binding agreement providing an adequate level of protection, or where you have consented to the transfer.
VIII. Retention
Cookies persist for the periods stated in Part IV, after which they expire or are deleted. Information gathered through Analytics Cookies is retained in identifiable form no longer than necessary for the purpose of analysis and is thereafter deleted or de-identified. Records of your consent choices are kept for as long as needed to demonstrate compliance.
IX. Your Rights
In terms of POPIA you may ask us to confirm whether we hold personal information about you, to access it, and to correct or delete it, and you may object to its processing on reasonable grounds. You may also withdraw consent as described above. Requests may be directed to [email protected] or by telephone to +27 12 171 5205, or by post to 412 Lois Avenue, Menlyn, 0181 Pretoria, South Africa. If you consider that your rights have not been respected, you may lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator of South Africa, whose current contact details are published at inforegulator.org.za, without prejudice to any other remedy available to you.
X. Amendments
We may amend this Policy to reflect changes in law or in the technologies we use. The amended version will be published on this page with immediate effect, and where a change materially affects the categories of Cookie in use, we will request your consent afresh. This Policy was last reviewed in 2026.
XI. Contact
Queries concerning this Policy may be addressed to Ciresta Reputation Advisory (Pty) Ltd, trading as Ciresta, at 412 Lois Avenue, Menlyn, 0181 Pretoria, South Africa, by email to [email protected], or by telephone to +27 12 171 5205.