Privacy Policy

Garo ("we," "us," or "our") is committed to protecting the privacy and personal information of our clients, website visitors, and users in accordance with the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) and applicable Canadian privacy legislation. This privacy policy explains what personal information we collect, why we collect it, how we use and protect it, and your rights regarding your information.

Privacy Officer & Contact Information

If you have questions, concerns, or complaints about our privacy practices or the handling of your personal information, you may contact our Privacy Officer:

You also have the right to file a complaint with the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada at www.priv.gc.ca if you believe your privacy rights have been violated.

What Personal Information Do We Collect and Why?

We collect personal information only for the purposes identified below, and only to the extent necessary to fulfil those purposes:

• Name (first and last): To identify you, personalize communications, and address you in correspondence related to our services.
• Email address: To respond to inquiries, send project updates, deliver requested information, and (with your consent) send marketing communications.
• Phone number: To contact you about project matters, respond to service requests, and provide support.
• Business/organization name: To understand the context of your inquiry and tailor our service recommendations to your industry.
• Message content: To understand and respond to your specific questions, needs, or project requirements.
• Payment information: No payment information is collected or retained by Garo. Should an application we develop or support process payments, this would be handled by a PCI-compliant payment service.

When Do We Collect Information?

We collect personal information when you:

• Fill out a contact form, chat with our AI GPT, or readiness audit request on our website
• Request a consultation, proposal, or quote
• Enter into a service agreement with us
• Communicate with us via email, phone, or online chat
• Visit our website (through cookies and analytics — see below)

Consent

We obtain your consent before or at the time of collecting your personal information. By submitting a form on our website, contacting us directly, or engaging our services, you consent to the collection, use, and disclosure of your personal information as described in this policy.

You may withdraw your consent at any time by contacting our Privacy Officer at privacy@garo.ca. Upon receiving your withdrawal request, we will inform you of the likely consequences and stop collecting, using, or disclosing your personal information unless otherwise required by law.

For marketing communications, you may opt out at any time by clicking the "unsubscribe" link in any email or by contacting us at privacy@garo.ca.

How Do We Use Your Information?

We use the personal information we collect strictly for the following purposes:

• To respond to your inquiries and provide the services you have requested.
• To deliver project updates, reports, and deliverables related to your engagement.
• To personalize your experience and recommend services relevant to your needs.
• To send periodic emails regarding your project or services you have engaged us for.
• To send marketing communications (only with your explicit consent).
• To improve our website and services based on your feedback and interactions.
• To follow up after correspondence (email, phone, or form submissions).

How Do We Protect Your Information?

Our website is regularly scanned for security vulnerabilities. We use regular malware scanning and implement various security measures to maintain the safety of your personal information.

Your personal information is stored in secured networks, accessible only by a limited number of persons with special access rights who are required to keep the information confidential. All sensitive information is encrypted via SSL technology.

All transactions are processed through a gateway provider and are not stored or processed on our servers.

Do We Use Cookies?

Yes. Cookies are small files that a site transfers to your computer's hard drive through your web browser, enabling the site's systems to recognize your browser and capture and remember certain information. We use cookies to:

• Understand and save user preferences for future visits.
• Keep track of advertisements.

You can disable cookies through your browser settings. If users disable cookies, some features of the site may not function properly.

Third-Party Sharing & Disclosure

We do not sell, trade, or rent your personal information. We may share your personal information only with the following categories of third parties, and only to the extent necessary:

• Website hosting providers: To host and maintain our website infrastructure.
• Analytics providers: To help us understand user interactions and usage patterns. Any third-party providers receive anonymized or pseudonymized data.
• Email service providers: To deliver transactional emails, project communications, and marketing messages you have consented to receive.
• CRM platforms: To manage client relationships and project communications.

All third-party service providers are contractually required to protect your personal information. We may also disclose your personal information where required by law, regulation, or court order.

Data Retention & Destruction

We retain personal information only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes for which it was collected, or as required by law:

• Contact form submissions: Retained for up to 2 years from the date of submission, or until the inquiry is resolved, whichever is later.
• Client project records: Retained for the duration of the client relationship plus 3 years.
• Marketing mailing lists: Retained until you withdraw consent or unsubscribe, at which point your information is removed within 30 days.
• Financial/transaction records: Retained for 7 years as required by Canadian tax law.

When personal information is no longer required, it is securely destroyed, deleted, or anonymized.

Third-Party Links

Our websites and applications may contain links to third-party websites. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of those websites and encourage you to review their privacy policies before providing any personal information.

Your Rights Under PIPEDA

Under Canadian privacy law, you have the right to:

• Know what personal information we hold about you and how it is used.
• Request access to your personal information.
• Request corrections to inaccurate or incomplete personal information.
• Withdraw your consent to the collection, use, or disclosure of your personal information (subject to legal or contractual restrictions).
• File a complaint with our Privacy Officer or with the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada.

To exercise any of these rights, please contact our Privacy Officer at privacy@garo.ca. We will respond to your request within 30 days.

Changes to This Privacy Policy

We will notify you of any changes to this privacy policy on our Privacy Policy page. If you have any questions, please contact our Privacy Officer at privacy@garo.ca.

Contacting Us

If you have any questions regarding this privacy policy, please contact our Privacy Officer: