Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy explains how Virtual Buyers Agent Pty Ltd (ACN 694 217 046) ("we", "us", "our") collects, uses, discloses, and protects personal information when you use virtualbuyersagent.com.au and related services. It also explains the optional analytics and advertising choices available in the product. Using necessary features is not treated as consent to optional tracking. This implementation-aligned policy is scheduled for review by Australian legal counsel and is not a claim of compliance in every jurisdiction.

We collect several categories of information: (a) Account Information: name, email, password (securely hashed), and profile photo when you register; (b) Investor Profile: experience, main goal, target price range, deposit, finance position, property types, target locations, hold period, maximum weekly shortfall, and optional modelling defaults that you choose to provide; (c) Financial Context: finance limits and assumptions you provide for transparent property modelling; (d) Property Activity: properties, evidence notes, document-checklist status, tasks, reminders, workflow progress, assumptions, and decisions you record; Virtual Buyers Agent does not operate a document file vault; (e) Behavioural Data: pages visited, features used, session duration, and interaction patterns; (f) Device Data: browser type, operating system, IP address, and device identifiers; (g) Payment Data: handled by Stripe—we do not store full card numbers; (h) Communication Data: support conversations, feedback you send us, email engagement metrics, and your notification preferences; (i) Operational and Transactional Events: limited server-generated records of requested account, subscription, delivery, security and technical outcomes. This processing is separate from the optional client-analytics choice described in clause 12 and is minimised to the operational or transactional purpose.

We use your information to: (a) Provide the Service: authenticate your account, organise property information, calculate transparent modelled figures, and present the guided workflow in the context of information you provide; (b) Improve the Service: analyse usage patterns to enhance features, fix bugs, and optimise performance; (c) Communicate with You: send transactional emails, product updates, and marketing communications (with your consent); (d) Process Payments: manage subscriptions, process transactions, and send invoices; (e) Ensure Security: detect fraud, prevent abuse, and protect user accounts; (f) Comply with Law: meet legal obligations and respond to lawful requests. We do NOT use your data for automated decision-making that has legal effects on you.

To provide property maps and location context, we send limited property location data to mapping and data services: • Property addresses and coordinates are sent to Mapbox for geocoding, address search, and map display. These requests are made from your browser, so they carry standard technical data such as your IP address, handled under Mapbox's own privacy policy; • Property coordinates are sent to the OpenStreetMap Overpass API for nearby amenity lookups. These requests are made by our servers, not by your browser, so your IP address is not sent to the Overpass API. We do not send your name, email, or account details with these location requests. Census demographics are sourced from the Australian Bureau of Statistics and the published cash rate target from the Reserve Bank of Australia, through aggregate, non-personal queries. Modelled figures in the guided workflow use transparent, rule-based calculations and stated assumptions. Map data is © OpenStreetMap contributors, licensed under the Open Database Licence (ODbL), and © Mapbox. Statistical data is sourced from the Australian Bureau of Statistics © Commonwealth of Australia, licensed under CC BY 4.0.

We share your data only as follows: (a) Service Providers: trusted third parties who help us operate the Service (see Third-Party Services section below); (b) Legal Requirements: when required by law, court order, or government request; (c) Business Transfers: in connection with a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets (you will be notified of any change in data controller); (d) With Your Consent: for any purpose you explicitly authorise. We NEVER sell your personal information to advertisers, data brokers, or any third party for their marketing purposes.

We retain information only while it is needed for the purposes described in this policy, to operate requested account or subscription features, or where a lawful retention obligation applies. Different providers may apply their own retention settings to information they receive. You can request account deletion in the product after signing in again to verify your identity. The deletion surface shows the request status and target date, provides a retry path when attention is needed, and reports subscription-cancellation handling after a request. Some records may be retained where the law requires it; the deletion status must identify retained categories rather than claiming every record was removed. Contact the privacy officer if you need an explanation of retention that applies to your account.

We use technical and organisational safeguards designed for the service, including encrypted network connections, managed authentication, access controls, and operational monitoring. Our hosting and service providers maintain their own security programmes. No online service can guarantee absolute security. If a data breach occurs, we will assess it and make notifications where required by applicable law.

Core account data is hosted using Supabase infrastructure in the Sydney region. Other providers named in this policy may process information outside Australia, including through global delivery networks. Overseas recipients may be subject to different privacy laws. Provider locations and contractual safeguards can change, so this disclosure and the supporting vendor review require ongoing operator and legal review.

You can ask us to provide access to personal information we hold about you, correct inaccurate information, explain our handling, or process an account-deletion request subject to lawful retention. You can also ask us to provide your information in a portable format. You can unsubscribe from marketing communications and change optional analytics or advertising choices separately. You may also make a privacy complaint to us and, where applicable, contact the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC). Access and portability requests are handled by email, not by a button in the product. The "Export communication data" control in the dashboard returns your marketing-email consent and recent in-app notifications only; it is not a copy of the information we hold about you. Contact info@virtualbuyersagent.com.au to make a request. The rights and response periods that apply depend on the relevant law; nothing in this summary limits a right provided by law.

Virtual Buyers Agent is not intended for users under 18 years of age. We do not knowingly seek personal information from children. If you believe a child has provided us with personal information, contact info@virtualbuyersagent.com.au so we can investigate and take the steps required by applicable law.

With your consent, we may send you product updates, educational property content, promotional offers, or subscription information. You can opt-out at any time by: • Clicking "unsubscribe" in any marketing email; • Updating preferences in your account dashboard; • Contacting support at info@virtualbuyersagent.com.au. We process unsubscribe requests through the available email and account controls. Transactional emails (receipts, security alerts, account updates) are not affected by marketing opt-outs.

We use cookies and similar technologies for authentication, requested product features, analytics, advertising measurement, and payment processing. Necessary services remain available to operate sign-in and requested features. For a known country outside the EEA, United Kingdom and Switzerland, Product analytics and Advertising measurement are both on by default until you opt out. For detected EEA, UK and Swiss users, and when country cannot be determined, both stay off until you choose them. Each category is saved as a separate choice, so turning one off never changes the other, and a Global Privacy Control signal keeps Advertising measurement off regardless of the regional default. The persistent “Privacy choices” control lets you reject or change optional categories on this device. The decision is stored under vba:client-consent:v1. For complete details, see our Cookie Policy.

We may update this Privacy Policy to reflect changes in our practices, providers, or legal obligations. The “Last Updated” date at the top identifies the latest operative revision. We will provide any additional notice or obtain a new choice where applicable law requires it.

For privacy-related inquiries, requests, or complaints: Privacy Officer, Virtual Buyers Agent Pty Ltd Email: info@virtualbuyersagent.com.au For general support: info@virtualbuyersagent.com.au We will handle requests within the period required by applicable law. If you are not satisfied with our response, you may be able to lodge a complaint with the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) at www.oaic.gov.au.