Privacy Policy
This privacy policy explains how the Public Complaint Assistance Service (PCAS) collects, uses, and protects your personal information.
About PCAS: We are an independent, non-profit organization that helps citizens make complaints against the Ghana Police Service. We are not part of the government or the PPSB.
Last updated: August 2025
1. Information We Collect
Personal information you provide
When you use our service, we collect information you provide directly, including:
- Complainant details: Name, contact information, Ghana Card number (optional)
- Incident information: Details about the complaint, location, date and time
- Supporting evidence: Documents, photos, audio, or video files you upload
- Contact preferences: How you prefer to be contacted about your complaint
- Correspondence: Messages you send us through contact forms or email
Information collected automatically
When you visit our website, we automatically collect:
- Technical information: IP address, browser type, device information
- Usage data: Pages visited, time spent on site, referral sources
- Cookies: Small files stored on your device (see our Cookies Policy)
2. How We Use Your Information
We use your personal information to:
Provide our service
- Process and submit your complaint to the appropriate authorities
- Generate formal complaint documents and letters
- Provide you with access to your complaint information
- Send updates about your complaint status
Communicate with you
- Respond to your enquiries and provide support
- Send important service notifications
- Provide guidance on the complaint process
Improve our service
- Analyze usage patterns to enhance user experience
- Monitor service performance and reliability
- Develop new features and improvements
Legal and regulatory compliance
- Comply with legal obligations and court orders
- Protect against fraud and abuse
- Maintain records as required by law
3. Legal Basis for Processing
We process your personal information based on:
- Consent: You have given clear consent for specific processing activities
- Legitimate interests: Processing is necessary for our legitimate interests in providing complaint assistance
- Legal obligation: Processing is required to comply with legal requirements
- Public interest: Processing serves the public interest in police accountability
4. Who We Share Information With
We may share your information with:
Authorities and official bodies
- Ghana Police PPSB: We share complaint information as part of the formal complaint process
- Relevant police departments: Information is shared with appropriate police units for investigation
- Legal authorities: When required by law or court order
Service providers
- Technology providers: Hosting, database, and security services
- Communication services: Email and messaging platforms
- Document services: PDF generation and document processing
5. Data Security
We take the security of your personal information seriously and implement:
- Encryption: Data is encrypted in transit and at rest
- Access controls: Limited access to authorized personnel only
- Regular monitoring: Continuous monitoring for security threats
- Secure infrastructure: Use of reputable, secure hosting providers
- Staff training: Regular security awareness training for our team
6. Data Retention
We retain your personal information for different periods depending on the type:
- Complaint data: Retained for 7 years after complaint resolution
- Contact enquiries: Retained for 2 years after resolution
- Website analytics: Anonymized after 2 years
- Legal records: Retained as required by law
After the retention period, we securely delete or anonymize your information.
7. Your Rights
Under data protection law, you have the right to:
- Access: Request a copy of the personal information we hold about you
- Rectification: Ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete information
- Erasure: Request deletion of your personal information (subject to legal requirements)
- Restriction: Ask us to limit how we use your information
- Portability: Request your data in a portable format
- Objection: Object to certain types of processing
- Withdraw consent: Withdraw consent where processing is based on consent
How to exercise your rights
To exercise any of these rights, contact us:
- Email: privacy@pcas.org.gh
- Phone: +233 (0) 302 555 0123
- Post: Data Protection Officer, PCAS, P.O. Box CT 1234, Cantonments, Accra, Ghana
8. International Transfers
Your personal information is primarily processed within Ghana. If we need to transfer data internationally, we ensure:
- Adequate protection measures are in place
- Transfers comply with applicable data protection laws
- Appropriate safeguards protect your information
9. Children's Privacy
Our service is not intended for children under 16. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If we become aware that we have collected information from a child, we will take steps to delete it promptly.
10. Cookies and Tracking
We use cookies and similar technologies to improve your experience. For detailed information about our use of cookies, please see our Cookies Policy.
11. Changes to This Policy
We may update this privacy policy from time to time. When we do:
- We will update the "Last updated" date at the top of this page
- Significant changes will be highlighted on our website
- We may notify you directly of important changes
12. Contact Us
If you have questions about this privacy policy or how we handle your personal information:
- Data Protection Officer: privacy@pcas.org.gh
- General enquiries: support@pcas.org.gh
- Phone: +233 (0) 302 555 0123
- Address: PCAS, P.O. Box CT 1234, Cantonments, Accra, Ghana
Complaints
If you're not satisfied with how we handle your personal information, you can complain to the Data Protection Commission of Ghana or other relevant regulatory authority.