Privacy Policy

Last Updated: February 2026

Effective Date: February 2026

The Online Knowledge Company Limited ("The OK Company," "we," "us," or "our") operates The Online Kenyan website at https://www.theonlinekenyan.com. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, and protect your information when you use our service.

This policy is governed by the Kenya Data Protection Act, 2019 as the primary applicable law, along with the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) for users in the European Economic Area and United Kingdom.

1. Our Commitment to Privacy

Your privacy is fundamental to our mission. We believe in providing valuable news services while collecting only the minimum data necessary.

• Minimal Data Collection: We collect only what is essential for our service
• No Data Sales: We never sell, rent, or trade your personal information
• Transparency: We clearly explain what data we collect and why
• User Control: You have control over your data and privacy settings
• Security: We implement appropriate measures to protect your information
• No AI Training on User Data: Your personal data and usage patterns are never used to train AI models

2. Information We Collect

2.1 Information You Provide Directly

Social Login Information: When you create an account using social authentication (Google, Twitter), we collect:

• Your unique social media identifier (not your username or handle)
• Basic profile information necessary to create your account
• Email address (if provided by the social platform and needed for our service)

We only request the minimum permissions necessary and do not access your social media posts, friends lists, or other personal data.

Preferences and Favourites: When you use our service, we may store:

• Stories you bookmark or mark as favourites
• Reading preferences and customisation settings
• Audio playback preferences (voice selection, speed)

2.2 Information Collected Automatically

Usage Analytics: We use Vercel Analytics, a privacy-friendly, cookieless analytics service. Vercel Analytics does not use cookies, does not track users across sites, and does not collect personally identifiable information. It provides us with:

• Aggregate page view counts
• General geographic data (country level)
• Device type and browser category
• Referral sources

Because Vercel Analytics is cookieless and collects no personal data, it is GDPR-compliant by default and requires no user consent.

Technical Information: Our hosting infrastructure (Vercel) may collect:

• IP addresses for security and performance optimisation
• Request logs for debugging and service improvement
• Performance metrics to ensure fast loading times

2.3 Cookies and Local Storage

We use only essential cookies required for the site to function:

• Authentication Cookies: Required for user login and session management
• Local Storage: Browser-side storage for your reading preferences and settings

We do not use tracking cookies, advertising cookies, or any third-party analytics cookies. No cookie consent banner is required because we only use strictly necessary cookies.

3. How We Use Your Information

3.1 Service Provision

• Provide personalised news content and recommendations
• Enable user accounts and save your preferences
• Deliver AI-powered features like summaries and audio content
• Remember your reading history and favourites

3.2 Service Improvement

• Analyse aggregate usage patterns to improve our platform
• Optimise content organisation and recommendation algorithms
• Enhance performance and fix technical issues
• Understand which features are most valuable to users

3.3 Communication

• Send important service updates and security notifications
• Respond to your questions and support requests
• Notify you of new features that might interest you (optional)

4. AI Services and Third-Party Processing

4.1 AI Content Processing

We use artificial intelligence services to enhance our content:

• OpenAI: Content summarisation and text-to-speech generation
• Google Gemini: Content analysis, summaries, and voice synthesis
• OpenRouter: AI model routing and optimisation

Important: We send only news content (articles, headlines) to these AI services, not your personal data or usage information. Your personal data is never used to train, fine-tune, or improve any AI model.

4.2 Generated Content Storage

• AI-generated summaries are stored on our servers for performance
• Audio files (TTS) are cached on Cloudflare R2 storage for faster delivery
• This cached content contains no personal information about users

4.3 Automated Decision-Making

We use automated systems to organise and recommend news content. These systems determine which stories appear in topic categories, daily briefs, and content recommendations. No automated decision we make produces legal effects or similarly significant effects on any user (Article 22, GDPR). You may contact us if you have questions about how content is selected.

4.4 YouTube API Services

Our Live TV directory feature integrates with YouTube Data API v3 to provide real-time broadcast status for Kenyan television channels:

• Data Collected: We retrieve live streaming status, viewer counts, and broadcast titles from public YouTube channels
• No Personal Data: We do not collect or access any personal information from YouTube users or your YouTube account
• Caching: Live status data is cached temporarily for performance optimisation
• Third-Party Terms: When you click through to watch YouTube streams, you are subject to YouTube's Terms of Service and Google's Privacy Policy

Our use of YouTube API Services complies with the YouTube API Services Terms of Service and Google's privacy requirements.

5. Sub-Processors

We use the following third-party service providers to operate our platform:

6. Information Sharing and Disclosure

6.1 We Do Not Sell Your Data

We never sell, rent, lease, or trade your personal information to third parties for marketing or any other purposes.

6.2 Limited Sharing

We may share information only in these specific circumstances:

• Service Providers: With the sub-processors listed above, solely to operate our service
• Legal Requirements: When required by law, regulation, or valid legal process
• Safety: To prevent fraud, abuse, or harm to our users or service
• Business Transfer: In the event of a merger or sale (with the same privacy protections)

6.3 Aggregated Data

We may share aggregated, anonymised statistics about our service that cannot identify individual users.

7. Advertising

We may display advertisements to support our service. Our approach:

• Contextual Ads: Advertisements based on the content you are reading, not your personal profile
• No Behavioural Tracking: We do not create detailed profiles for advertising purposes
• Clear Labelling: All advertisements are clearly marked

If we use third-party advertising services (such as Google Ads), those services may use their own cookies for ad delivery and fraud prevention. You can opt out of personalised advertising through your Google account settings. We do not share personal user data with advertising partners.

8. Data Retention

8.1 YouTube API Data

• Live broadcast status data is cached for short periods for performance
• No personal YouTube user data is collected or stored
• Cached data includes only public information (live status, viewer counts, titles)

8.2 Account Data

• We keep your account information while your account is active
• You can delete your account and associated data at any time
• After account deletion, we may retain some data for legal or security purposes (up to 30 days)

8.3 Usage Data

• Analytics data (aggregate, non-personal) is retained for up to 2 years
• Server log files are retained for 90 days for security and debugging
• Cached content (summaries, audio) may be retained indefinitely for performance

9. Your Rights

9.1 Under the Kenya Data Protection Act, 2019

As a data subject under Kenyan law, you have the right to:

• Be informed of the use to which your personal data is to be put
• Access your personal data in our custody
• Object to the processing of your personal data
• Correct false or misleading data
• Delete false or misleading data

9.2 Under the GDPR (EU/UK Users)

For users in the European Economic Area or United Kingdom, you have additional rights:

• Lawful Basis: We process your data based on legitimate interests (service provision) and consent
• Right to Access: Request details about data we hold about you
• Right to Rectification: Correct inaccurate or incomplete data
• Right to Erasure: Request deletion of your personal data
• Right to Restrict Processing: Limit how we use your data
• Right to Data Portability: Export your data in a machine-readable format
• Right to Object: Object to certain types of data processing

To exercise any of these rights, contact us at info@theok.co.ke.

10. Data Security

10.1 Security Measures

• Industry-standard encryption for data transmission (HTTPS/TLS)
• Secure hosting infrastructure through Vercel and Cloudflare
• Regular security monitoring and updates
• Limited access to personal data on a need-to-know basis
• Secure storage of cached content and user preferences

10.2 Data Breach Notification

In the event of a personal data breach that is likely to result in a risk to your rights and freedoms, we will notify the relevant supervisory authority within 72 hours of becoming aware of the breach. Where the breach is likely to result in a high risk, we will also notify affected users without undue delay.

10.3 Your Responsibility

• Keep your social media accounts secure (since we use social login)
• Log out of shared or public computers
• Report any suspected security issues to us immediately

11. Children's Privacy

Our service is designed for general audiences and does not specifically target children. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13 (or under 16 in the EU/UK).

Since we aggregate news content that may cover mature topics, we recommend parental guidance for younger users.

If you believe we have inadvertently collected information from a child, please contact us immediately at info@theok.co.ke.

12. International Data Transfers

The Online Kenyan primarily serves users in Kenya and East Africa. However, our service providers (listed in Section 5) may process data in other jurisdictions. Where personal data is transferred outside Kenya or the EEA, we ensure appropriate safeguards are in place in accordance with the Kenya Data Protection Act and GDPR.

13. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy to reflect changes in our practices or for legal reasons. When we make material changes:

• We will post the updated policy on our website
• We will update the "Last Updated" date at the top
• For significant changes, we may notify users via email or website notice

14. Contact Us

If you have questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us:

The Online Knowledge Company Limited
Address: Langata Road, Langata, Jamhuri Heights Apartment
Nairobi 00100, Kenya
Email: info@theok.co.ke
Website: https://theok.co.ke

See also: Terms of Service