Privacy Notice  

Introduction

Yantu LTD is committed to protecting the privacy of individuals whose data we collect during the course of our business activities. The processing of personal data is necessary for the functioning of our business and to enable us to provide our services to the public. This policy sets out who we are, what data we collect, how it is used, stored or shared, how your personal data is protected by Yantu LTD and how long we retain it. Yantu LTD is classified as a Controller of your personal data under UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018, in relation to the data we collect, and process. We respect your privacy, and it is our duty to uphold the privacy rights of all individuals who access our services.

This privacy notice governs the use of our website, services, and how we manage your personal data.  Your acceptance of this policy will enable you to access our online services. Our Privacy Notice explains: 

1. Who we are and what we do 

2. What personal data we collect about you 

3. How we obtain your personal data

4. How we use your personal data

5. Who we share your personal data with 

6. How we store your personal data

7. How we protect your personal data  

8. What happens if we change ownership?

9. Your rights in relation to your personal data

10. How long we keep your personal data

11. Contacting us

12. Your right to complain.

13. Changes to our Privacy Notice

You should not continue to use our services if you are not in agreement with its terms on how we use, store, share or process your personal data. By using this website, or signing up to our services, you are providing your explicit consent to the processing of your personal data on the basis of the terms set out in this Privacy Notice.  Should you wish to contact us you may do so using the information provided below.

1. Who we are and what we do

Yantu LTD is a recruitment and research platform solely focused on persons with accessibility needs.  Our services are delivered by partnering with organisations providing paid / or incentivised opportunities for those with disabilities and accessibility needs,  enabling them to gain access to paid or incentivised research opportunities. We therefore recruit participants for: 

• Usability testing – where products and services are being developed by our clients. Participants will be required to provide feedback based on the products or services they agree to test remotely or in person.

• Research opportunities – these opportunities are provided remote or in person and may include the use of a product or service or the answering of questions based on surveys or an experience which the participant has had or which is being investigated by our research partner(s).

• Accessibility Research – our participants are encouraged to assist businesses, government departments and authorities which conduct research relating to accessibility needs associated with their disability to gain useful insights to improve their products or services.

• Surveys and online tasks – to support those with disabilities we aim to secure online tasks, surveys, and research opportunities, the completion of which will enable participants to secure paid incentives.

Yantu LTD(UK) Limited is registered in England and Wales under company number, 12974146, whose registered office is 320 Firecrest Court Park, Warrington, United Kingdom WA1 1RG. 

When we collect your data and determine how it is used, we are the Controllers of your personal data.  

2. What personal data we collect about you.

Personal data has been defined as any information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person (‘data subject’); an identifiable natural person is one who can be identified, directly or indirectly, in particular by reference to an identifier such as a name, an identification number, location data, an online identifier or to one or more factors specific to the physical, physiological, genetic, mental, economic, cultural or social identity of that natural person.

When you use our website, or services Yantu LTD (UK) Limited will, collect the following personal data about you: 

• First and last name; 

• Email address;

• Telephone number

• Location data, city, town, county in which you reside, post code; 

• Age, gender;

• Employment status; 

• Occupation;

• Financial information

• Digital confidence.

We also collect information about you which is deemed sensitive and treated as a special category under the UK GDPR and Data Protection Act 2018 as requiring extra protection. This information includes:

• Accessibility needs

• Disabilities

• Ethnicity 

• Sexual orientation 

• Sex life 

• Religious beliefs 

• Political opinion

• Trade Union Membership

3. How we obtain your personal data

We obtain your personal data when you: 

• access our services

• register your details as a client or participant

• engage with us on social media 

• book an appointment to obtain a service from us 

• tell us about the services you require from us,

• raise a complaint 

• provide us with a review of our services

• phone us or we phone you

• when you consent to the use of your personal data for marketing purposes. 

• when you consent to the use of your personal data for research purposes. 

• when you provide us with personal information.

• when you complete our questionnaires.

4. How we use your personal data

Yantu LTD will always have a lawful basis for using your data and will only use it where we are permitted to do so by applicable law. We use your personal data with your consent to: 

• to provide you with the services you requested from us 

• to allow you to participate in paid research

• to manage your access to our website or services

• to reply to your enquiries 

• reply to emails or telephone calls from you

• to market services to you with your consent.

We also use your personal data in our legitimate interest to: 

• enter into contractual relations with you

• perform our contract with you

• liaise with external parties to provide services to you

• use your information where it may be required to defend, prosecute or make a claim against you or a third party.

• to market our services to you in our legitimate interests. 

• enhance our services through analysis and research

• improve our services and understand the needs of our clients

We use your personal data to comply with our legal obligations

• fulfil our legal, statutory or regulatory obligations

5. Who we share your personal data with

5.1 The personal data which we collect from you during your registration with us is kept and maintained securely by Yantu Ltd.

5.2 Once you agree by explicit consent to participate in a paid research opportunity or incentive, we may provide some of your personal data such as your name and email addresses or telephone number to the company in whose research you have agreed to participate, to enable them to contact you. 

5.3  Where one of our research clients has contacted you based on your explicit consent, that company becomes the data controller of the personal data it holds about you. Their Privacy Notice will explain how they process, and manage your personal data.

5.4 We may compile statistics about the use of our website or services including data on traffic, usage patterns, user numbers, demographics and other information. All such data will be anonymised and will not include any personally identifying data. We may from time to time share such data with third parties such as prospective investors, affiliates, partners, and advertisers. Data will only be shared and used within the bounds of the law.

5.5 In certain circumstances, we may be legally required to share certain data held by Us, which may include your personal data, for example, where We are involved in legal proceedings, where We are complying with legal requirements, a court order, or with a request form government agency and we are required by law to provide the information.

5.6 We may also provide your personal data to our professional advisors such as our legal advisors or our outsourced Data Protection Officer to ensure our compliance with the law. Our outsourced Data Protection Officer is Deborah Bowers who may be contacted by emailing: [email protected]

5.7 Your personal data may be shared with regulators, law enforcement, and government bodies in connection with enquiries or investigations when compelled to do so.

5.8 Yantu LTD does not sell your personal data but may share your personal data with third parties with your consent, to enable you to gain paid or incentive research opportunities or share your views about products or services provided to you as part of research. 

6. How we store your personal data

6.1 Yantu Ltd will only keep your personal data for as long as We need to, in order to use it as described in this Privacy Notice. All our data is retained only for as long as is necessary by law and to protect our legitimate interest. Yantu LTD stores your data in the United Kingdom (UK). Should we decide to store your data outside the United Kingdom we shall ensure that data is stored in countries which provide the same level of data protection as the United Kingdom or which have been granted “Adequacy” by the UK.

6.2 Data security is very important to Us, and to protect your data We have taken suitable measures to safeguard and secure data collected through Our Site. These measures include: 

• Ensuring access to our data security meets industry standards of security.

• Ensure that all financial transactions are conducted over secure links. 

• We only use third – parties who provide a level of data protection which complies with industry standards and complies with our legal obligations.

7. How we protect your personal data

7.1 The privacy of your data is important to us, we implement a range of industry standards to ensure the physical and technical security of the data we collect, process and store. This helps protect our data from unauthorised access, use, disclosure or alteration. 

7.2 We ensure that all our staff are trained to respect the privacy of the data we collect and are contractually bound to respecting the confidentiality of personal data. 

7.3 Our commitment to protecting your confidentiality is demonstrated in allowing our participants to access our website via secure log in. When you create an account on our website, you are responsible for keeping your password safe and secure. We advise that you create a password which is complex but memorable, which should not be shared with anyone else. 

7.4 We apply encryption methods when your data is being transferred and keep your data for no longer than it is required. The combination of these methods ensure that your data is kept secure, and your privacy is protected. 

8 What happens if we change ownership?

8.1 Yantu LTD continues to expand to meet demand, from time to time we may also reduce our business or transfer control or sell part of our business. Any personal data you have provided will be transferred to the new entity as part of our business, to be used for the purpose for which we obtained it from our participants. The new entity will be permitted to use the personal data under the terms of this Privacy Notice, however, should you object to the use of your data, you may make a data subject request notifying us or the new owner of the same. Should there be such a change in ownership we shall notify you of the change giving you an opportunity to express your preference. 

9 Your Rights in relations to your personal data

Your right to access your data

9.1 You have the right to know if Yantu LTD processes your personal information and ask for a copy of the personal data we hold about you. Under the Data Protection Act 2018 and the UK GDPR, no fee is payable, except where an exemption applies. An exception may apply where the request is manifestly unfounded and excessive or further copies of the data provided is being requested. In such circumstances we may charge a fee which covers the cost we will incur in responding to your request. This right is limited to the provision of only your personal data and does not include the provision of data relating to other persons, unless they have granted permission to provide it or based on the circumstances, they may reasonably expect that information relating to them may be shared with you. Should you wish to exercise any of your data protection rights please contact us by sending an email to: [email protected]

Your right to have data rectified

9.2 If you believe that any of the information that Yantu LTD holds about you is inaccurate or out of date, you have a right to request that Yantu LTD restrict the processing of that information and to rectify the inaccurate personal information. We shall need to verify the inaccuracy and may require documentation from you, before the change can be made. 

9.3 We are required by law to ensure the accuracy of our data. We may contact you periodically to verify your information to ensure that our personal data records are up-to-date and accurate.

Your right to withhold information

9.4 You have the right to withhold your personal data from us. However, where you have not provided your personal data when using our website, we may not be able to provide you with the assistance you need if your personal data is required to provide the service requested. 

Your right to be forgotten or have your data erased 

9.5 Yantu LTD only collects personal data when there is a legal basis to do so. We limit the personal data we collect to only want is necessary to provide you with the services which you have requested. You have the right to request that Yantu LTD removes or deletes your personal data from its systems if you believe that:

• Your personal data is no longer needs for the purposes for which it was provided

• You wish to withdraw your consent to the processing of your personal data

• Yantu LTD is not using your information in a lawful manner

• You object to your data being processed.

9.6 Please note that if you request the deletion of your personal data, we may have to suspend the provision of our services to you. We shall require the use of your data to comply with your request. 

9.7 Should you wish to make a request, for the deletion of your data, you may contact us by sending an email to: [email protected]

Your right to restrict the data being processed about you

9.8 You may instruct us to restrict the processing of your personal data if you are concerned with the accuracy of that data and how it is being used. Should you wish to exercise this right, you may make your request to us stating what data you want restricted and why.  

Your right to data portability

9.9 You may request that your data be transferred to a third-party in a machine-readable format where the:

• personal information was provided on the basis of consent

• processing is by automated means

• processing is based on the fulfilment of a contractual obligation.

Your right to object to automated decisions

9.10 Here at Yantu LTD, we do not make automated decisions about our participants or those who use our website. 

10. How long do we keep your personal data for?

10.1 Yantu LTD will keep your personal data for only as long as it is necessary to keep, in compliance with our legal obligations, legitimate interest and our Retention Policy. The retention of your data is determined on the following bases: 

• General enquiries – completion of enquiry plus six months
• Unsuccessful recruitment candidates – six months
• Completed research and participants data is archived for archiving purposes and proper processing of data and record keeping. 
• Dormant participants, being participants from whom the last date of contact is 6 years, we shall delete your data subject to any data being retained for archiving.
• Any other data is kept for as long as is required by applicable law or deleted or destroyed when no longer required or you have made a request for its deletion. 

12. Contacting us

12.1 If you have any questions about Our Site or this Privacy Notice , please contact Us by email at: [email protected], or by post at Yantu LTD, PO Box 5650, MANCHESTER, M61 0YJ. Please ensure that your query is clear, particularly if it is a request for information about the data.

13. Your right to complain

13.1 Should you wish to complain or have a concern about Yantu LTD’s  handling of your personal data you may write to our Data Protection Officer [email protected].

13.2 You are also entitled to complain to the Information Commissioner Office (ICO). We hope that before you do so you would afford us an opportunity to resolve your concern. However, should you feel the need to complain to the ICO, their contact details are provided below:

Information Commissioner’s Office

 Wycliffe House

 Water Lane

 Wilmslow

 Cheshire

 SK9 5AF

0303 123 1113

[email protected]

13.3 Any complaint to the Information Commissioner is without prejudice to your right to seek redress through the courts.

14. Changes to Our Privacy Notice 

14.1 This Privacy Notice is reviewed regularly (for example, if the law changes and annually). Any changes will be immediately posted on our website, and you will be deemed to have accepted the terms of the Privacy Notice on your first use of the site following the alterations. We recommend that you check this page regularly for any updates. 

14.2 This Privacy Notice was last updated in August 2024.