If you just browse (no account): anonymous usage counts (a listing was viewed, a question answered) tied to a random device identifier — not your name or number. If you use map features that need your position (like placing a house pin), your location places the pin; it is not kept as a movement history and is never shown to home owners.
If you create an account: your phone number and name. Sign-in codes are stored only as one-way hashes and expire in 5 minutes. There are no passwords.
If you register a move-in (students) — shared only with the home owner of the house you chose: your name, phone, student number, programme; next-of-kin name and phone (so someone can be reached in an emergency); anything you choose to add; an identity document (student ID, NRC, or acceptance letter — this is what stops anyone registering a stay under a false name); and your payment claims (amount, reference, screenshot). We record payments; we never process or hold the money.
If you are a home owner: your name and phone; your house's details, photos, prices and availability; an identity document (NRC, passport, or driver's licence) for verification — reviewed by our team only, and required before your house can take bookings; and your own operational records (tenant register, payment confirmations, expenses).
Running the service (connecting students to verified housing), safety and verification (confirming houses and home owners are real), keeping the shared records both sides trust (register, payments, receipts), and notifications you switch on. We do not advertise to you, profile you, or sell or rent anyone's data — to anyone.
| Information | Who can see it |
|---|---|
| Your browsing | No one, as an individual — home owners see anonymous totals only |
| Your move-in details & ID | The one home owner you chose (and their authorised manager) |
| Your payment records & messages | You and that same home owner |
| A home owner's identity document | safdwel's review team only |
| House listings, photos, prices, ratings | Public — that is the point of a listing |
| A home owner's phone number | Public only after the listing is owner-verified or cleared to operate |
We do not share personal data with the university, government bodies, or any third party except where the law requires it. Students who confirm or flag a house are never identifiable to the owner.
Data is stored in a managed PostgreSQL cloud database, currently hosted in the European Union, encrypted in transit. Identity documents and payment screenshots live in private storage that is never publicly addressable — the only access path is a link that expires within an hour, created per authorised view. Every database record is locked down by default (row-level security).
Cross-border note (Zambia Data Protection Act, 2021): because hosting is currently outside Zambia, we treat this as a cross-border transfer made with the safeguards above. We are committed to aligning with the Act — including registration with the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner as required — and will consider Zambian or African hosting where partners require it.
You can ask us, at any time, to see the personal data we hold about you, correct it, delete it (where we have no legal duty to keep a record), or object to a use of it. You can download all your data and delete your account yourself, any time, from the account menu in the app (deletion is refused only while you have an active stay — ask your home owner to mark you moved out first). Deleting erases your name, phone, documents and saved details; past payment records remain with your old home owners without your name. For anything else, contact us — we action requests within 30 days. If you are unsatisfied, you may complain to the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner (Zambia).
SMS is used only for sign-in codes and events about your own tenancy or listing. Push notifications are opt-in and can be switched off any time. safdwel is for tertiary students and adults; we do not knowingly collect data from anyone under 16. If this policy changes materially, the updated version appears here with a new effective date.