Your information and choices
Respect for information.
Clear choices.
Last updated: 13 October 2026
This notice explains how ITS International Marine Surveyors Ltd (“ITS”, “we”, “us” or “our”), based in Mombasa, Kenya, handles personal data in connection with its public website, enquiries, survey assignments and password-protected operations portal. ITS handles personal data in accordance with the Kenya Data Protection Act, 2019 and applicable regulations. The information below describes the systems and functions currently used; it should be read alongside any assignment-specific privacy information ITS gives you.
Who is responsible and how to contact us
ITS International Marine Surveyors Ltd is the data controller for the personal data described in this notice. For a privacy request, question or complaint to ITS, contact itsinternationalsurveyors@gmail.com or +25411 668 1049, or write to ITS International Marine Surveyors Ltd, Mombasa, Kenya. Please do not send identity documents or sensitive personal data unless ITS has explained why they are needed and how to send them securely.
Personal data we may handle
Depending on how you interact with ITS, the information may include:
- Enquiry and contact details: name, company, phone number or email, and the content of messages or instructions.
- Assignment details: vessel name and IMO number, port, cargo type, requested service, proposed attendance time and other information relevant to a survey or inspection.
- Operational records: client or portal account details, job and assignment references, reports, observations, draft readings or tally information, invoice status, photographs, video, device capture times and, where enabled and permitted, location coordinates.
- Technical and security information: information needed to operate and protect the website or portal, such as basic request and access logs.
- Browser preferences: local storage used on this website to remember the order of promotional panels and when a panel was last dismissed. These values are stored in your browser and are not designed to identify you.
ITS does not ask you to submit sensitive personal data through the public enquiry form. Please avoid including health, identity-document, financial-account or other sensitive information unless it is necessary for an agreed assignment and ITS has provided a suitable channel. If you provide information about another person, you are responsible for having authority to share it and for giving any notice required by law.
Where information comes from and what is required
ITS generally receives information directly from you, your employer or client, an authorized representative, or a person giving assignment instructions. Information may also be recorded by an ITS surveyor while performing an agreed assignment, including data from the surveyor’s device. Fields marked as required in the enquiry form are needed to identify the request and enable follow-up; optional fields can be left blank. If required information is not provided, ITS may be unable to respond or assess the proposed assignment. You can also choose to contact ITS by phone or email instead of using the form.
Why we use information and the legal grounds
ITS uses personal data only for relevant, specified purposes. Depending on the circumstances, the applicable ground under the Data Protection Act may be taking steps at your request before entering into a contract, performing a contract, pursuing legitimate interests that are not overridden by your rights, complying with a legal obligation, or consent where consent is the appropriate ground. For example, ITS may use information to:
- Respond to a survey enquiry, clarify instructions, assess availability and prepare or administer an agreed assignment.
- Coordinate attendance, communicate with the client and assigned surveyor, record observations, prepare and deliver reports, and maintain relevant client and assignment records.
- Operate portal accounts, control role- and job-based access, protect systems, maintain security and audit records, and investigate suspected misuse or incidents.
- Manage invoices, respond to queries or disputes, and meet applicable accounting, legal or regulatory requirements.
- Use optional device location for a field record only when the surveyor enables the feature and grants the device permission. Location can be declined; the device may still provide capture time information.
Where ITS relies on consent, you may withdraw it. Withdrawal does not affect processing already carried out lawfully or processing that has another applicable legal ground.
Website enquiry form and WhatsApp
When the ITS website is connected to its Node.js service and you are online, submitting the form sends the details you entered to ITS’s server and records the enquiry in the operations database for authorized staff to review. This may include your name, company, reply contact, vessel and IMO details, port, cargo, service, preferred attendance date and time, and assignment description. A successful submission is an enquiry, not a confirmed booking. If the backend is unavailable, or you open the website as a local file or while offline, the form may prepare a WhatsApp message instead. Nothing is sent through WhatsApp until you review and choose to send that message. WhatsApp/Meta then processes the information under its own terms and privacy notice; ITS does not control that processing.
Operations portal and field records
The password-protected portal is separate from the public enquiry form. According to the user’s role and assigned work, it processes account name and email, client organization, vessel and IMO details, port and cargo information, service instructions, job progress, invoice status, field observations, draft readings or tally values, reports, photographs or video, and device-provided capture times. The portal uses role- and job-based access. ITS personnel with an operational need may review enquiry and assignment records; clients and assigned surveyors may access records made available to their portal role and job.
When a surveyor chooses offline field capture, unsynchronized observations and media may remain in that browser’s IndexedDB until they synchronize or browser site data is cleared. Geolocation is optional and requires device permission. Device times and locations are supplied by the device and are not independent proof of when or where an observation was made. Surveyors should use an assigned, locked device and synchronize pending records promptly. Public certificate verification may process an uploaded PDF in order to compare it with ITS’s stored certificate fingerprint.
Who may receive personal data
ITS may make relevant information available to authorized ITS staff and surveyors, the client or other recipients designated for an assignment, and service providers that support hosting, communications, email, system maintenance, storage or backups. Information may also be disclosed to professional advisers or public authorities where necessary for legal claims or required by law. ITS seeks to limit disclosures to information relevant to the purpose. Third-party services you choose to use, including WhatsApp, map services and Google Fonts, operate under their own privacy notices and may receive technical information from your browser.
Transfers outside Kenya
Some external communications or technology providers may process information outside Kenya. When ITS arranges a transfer of personal data outside Kenya, it must do so in accordance with the Data Protection Act and applicable transfer requirements and safeguards. The location and terms of a particular provider can change; contact ITS for information relevant to a specific assignment or service before sending sensitive material through an external channel.
Retention and security
ITS keeps personal data for as long as reasonably necessary for the purpose for which it was collected, including handling an enquiry, completing and documenting an assignment, addressing a dispute, and meeting applicable legal or accounting requirements. Retention depends on the type of record and circumstances. ITS has not published a single fixed retention period for all website, enquiry and portal records; contact ITS to ask about the period applicable to a particular record. When information is no longer required, it should be securely deleted or anonymized in line with applicable obligations.
ITS uses access controls and operational safeguards intended to protect information against unauthorized access, loss, misuse or alteration. No internet transmission or storage system can be guaranteed to be completely secure. If you believe information sent to ITS has been exposed or misused, contact ITS promptly using the details above.
Cookies, local storage and automated decisions
The public website uses browser local storage for limited campaign-display preferences; this is not an advertising profile and is not used to identify you. You can clear local storage through your browser settings. The password-protected portal uses browser storage for its login session and, when offline capture is used, pending field records in IndexedDB. Clearing site data may sign you out or remove unsynchronized records. The portal may generate workflow notifications or threshold alerts, but ITS does not use solely automated decision-making to make a decision with legal or similarly significant effects about you.
Your rights and how to raise a concern
Subject to the conditions and exceptions in the Data Protection Act, you may have the right to be informed about the use of your data, request access to it, object to processing, request correction of inaccurate or misleading data, request deletion where the law permits, request restriction in applicable circumstances, request data portability where applicable, and withdraw consent where processing is based on consent. These rights are not absolute; for example, ITS may need to retain some information to meet a legal obligation or establish, exercise or defend a legal claim.
To exercise a right, contact ITS using the email address above and identify the record or assignment concerned. ITS may ask for information reasonably needed to verify your identity and locate the record. You may also lodge a complaint with Kenya’s Office of the Data Protection Commissioner at odpc.go.ke.
Changes to this notice
ITS may update this notice when its services, systems or legal obligations change. The date at the top indicates when the notice was last updated. If a material change affects how ITS handles information already collected, ITS will provide any notice required by law.