Privacy Policy
Version 1.4 · updated 26 October 2026
This policy explains what personal data Sankofa Carpool collects, why we collect it, who we share it with, and what you can ask us to do with it. We have written it in plain English rather than legal language. It is a working draft under review by Ghanaian counsel; if anything here is unclear, please ask us before you rely on it.
1. Who is responsible for your data
Sankofa Carpool is the data controller for the personal data described in this policy. That means we decide what is collected and why, and we are accountable for how it is handled under Ghana’s Data Protection Act, 2012 (Act 843). You can reach us about anything in this policy through the in-app support channel or by replying to any message we send you. We are not currently registered with the Data Protection Commission; when that registration is completed we will state it here.
2. What we collect
Account and identity: your name, phone number, and (if you choose to add one) your email address. If you verify as a student or as a member of an organisation, we also keep the university or work email address you verify with, and we email that address a short-lived code to confirm it is yours. Verification: your Ghana Card or other national ID, a selfie, and — if you offer rides — your driving licence, vehicle registration, roadworthy certificate and insurance certificate. Travel: the corridors and stops you select, the rides you post or join, your bookings, and your live location while a trip is running. Communications: in-app chat messages, and a record that an SMS or a call took place. Money: your subscription status and the reference for any payment. Device and usage: basic technical information such as app version and error reports. On our public website pages we count visits with cookieless analytics that we host ourselves; it sets no cookies and is not used to identify you.
3. Why we collect it, and on what basis
We collect identity and verification data to confirm that the people you travel with are real and are who they say they are — that is the whole basis of trusting a stranger’s car. We collect travel data to match you with people going the same way, to price the cost share, and to let a trip be followed while it is happening. We use your phone number to send you the messages the service depends on. We process this data because it is necessary to provide the service you asked for, because you have consented where we ask for consent, and because we have a legitimate interest in keeping the platform safe. Where the law requires your consent, we ask for it and you can withdraw it.
4. Location, and when it is shared
Your live location is collected only while a trip is in progress, and it is visible to the other party on that trip. It is not shared with anyone else unless you choose to share a trip link, or unless you press the SOS button — in which case your trusted contact is sent an alert with a link to follow the trip. Your trusted contact is contacted for SOS alone. They are not told about your ordinary journeys.
5. Who we share it with
We share the minimum needed with the services that make the platform work: Paystack (subscription payments), Smile Identity (identity verification), Africa’s Talking (SMS delivery), Google Maps and Google Directions (maps and routing), Amazon Web Services (secure document and file storage), Cloudflare (the connection used for in-app calls), Sentry (error reporting), and Resend (the email service that delivers a verification code). We also share what the law requires us to share with the police or a court where we are legally obliged to. We do not sell your personal data, and we do not share it with advertisers.
6. Where your data is held
Some of the services above store or process data on servers outside Ghana. Where that happens, we rely on the contractual protections those providers offer and we share only what the service needs to do its job. If you would rather not have your data leave Ghana, that unfortunately means we cannot verify your identity or deliver messages to you, and we will say so plainly rather than pretend otherwise.
7. How long we keep it
We keep your account and trip records for as long as your account is open, and for a period afterwards where we need them to resolve a dispute, meet a legal obligation, or defend a claim. Source images used for identity and driving-document verification are deleted 30 days after the document is verified; we retain the verification result, document type and expiry date while the verification remains valid. Chat messages are kept with the booking they belong to. When we no longer need something, we delete it or reduce it to a form that no longer identifies you.
8. How we protect it
Identity documents are stored in access-controlled storage rather than in the app. Chat messages are encrypted where they are stored. Access to personal data inside Sankofa Carpool is limited to the people who need it to do their job, and administrative actions are recorded. Phone numbers, codes and identity fields are stripped from our logs and error reports before they leave our systems. No system is perfect, and we will tell you if something happens that affects your data.
9. Your rights
Under Act 843 you can ask us for a copy of the personal data we hold about you, ask us to correct anything that is wrong, ask us to delete your data, object to how we are using it, or withdraw a consent you gave us. You can delete your account yourself in Settings under Privacy & safety. That removes your identity documents and anonymises the account immediately; trip, payment and ledger records that must remain for another person’s history, dispute handling or a legal obligation are retained without your account contact details. You can also ask us to stop sending you messages that are not essential to a trip you are on. Ask us through the in-app support channel if you cannot sign in or need another right exercised; we will respond within a reasonable time and will tell you if there is something we cannot delete and why.
10. Complaints
If you are not satisfied with how we have handled your data, please raise it with us first so we have a chance to put it right. You also have the right to complain to Ghana’s Data Protection Commission.
11. Children
Sankofa Carpool is for people aged 18 and over. We do not knowingly collect personal data from anyone under 18. If you believe a child has an account, tell us and we will remove it.
12. Community Chat
Community Chat is our topic-grouped question-and-answer board. By default, your posts there show your name the same way it appears to a co-traveller or commuter you are matched with. You can instead post anonymously (shown as a rotating letter, e.g. "Commuter A") or under a single-word handle of your choosing, and either option hides your name and phone number from other users. We do, however, keep the link between your account and everything you post internally, at all times, regardless of which option you choose. That is what lets us moderate reported content, prevent abuse such as spam or repeat harassment, and respond to a lawful request — the same basis on which every other feature on this platform explains its data use.
13. Changes to this policy
We may update this policy as the service changes. The version and date at the top tell you which one you are reading, and the current version is always available in the app and on our website. Where a change materially affects you, we will tell you rather than rely on you noticing.