Privacy Policy & Caller Rights

Read our comprehensive privacy policy covering data collection, caller voice recording consent, POPIA & GDPR compliance, and your data protection rights.

Other Policies in this Pack

Click to navigate

TALKAI WEBSITE POLICIES PACK

Privacy Policy, Data Processing Agreement, AI Transparency, Call Recording, Telephony, RICA, Referral, Affiliate, Fair Use, Refund and Subprocessor Policies

Last updated: 18 June 2026
Applies to: TalkAI AI receptionist, AI phone assistant, dashboard, telephony, messaging, call routing, transcription, summaries, integrations, referral programme and affiliate programme.
South Africa / Global entity: Llumins (Pty) Ltd (Trading as TalkAI), South Africa.
Germany / EU entity: Noki Group GmbH, Germany, where the Order Form, invoice, checkout page or written agreement says that Noki Group GmbH is the contracting, billing, reseller or support entity.
Privacy email: privacy@talkai.co.za
Legal email: legal@talkai.co.za

Plain-English summary

TalkAI helps businesses answer calls and messages with an AI receptionist. The business using TalkAI controls how the AI is configured, what the AI says, which numbers are connected, whether calls are recorded, and what happens to callers after they contact the business.

Because of this, the business customer is responsible for telling callers that they may be speaking to an AI receptionist and that calls may be recorded, transcribed, summarised and processed. TalkAI provides the software and infrastructure. The business customer remains responsible for legal consent, caller notices, RICA/KYC compliance, marketing permissions, staff instructions, industry rules and the accuracy of its business information.

This policy pack is written to be understandable by normal business users while still protecting TalkAI. It should be read together with the TalkAI Terms and Conditions.

How these policies work with our Terms and Conditions

These policies form part of the agreement between TalkAI and the Customer. If you use TalkAI, you agree to comply with these policies as well as the TalkAI Terms and Conditions, any Order Form, subscription plan, invoice, Data Processing Agreement and written addendum accepted by TalkAI.

If any policy conflicts with a signed custom agreement or Order Form, the signed custom agreement or Order Form will apply first, but only for that specific conflict.

Privacy Policy
Data Processing Agreement (DPA)
Acceptable Use Policy
AI Transparency Statement
Call Recording, Transcription and Consent Policy
Telephony, RICA, Number and Messaging Policy
Invite and Earn Referral Programme Terms
Affiliate Programme Terms
Fair Use, Billing, Refund and Cancellation Policy
Subprocessor and International Transfer Policy
Website publication notices and default scripts
Contact details and legal requests

1. PRIVACY POLICY

1.1 What this Privacy Policy covers

This Privacy Policy explains how TalkAI collects, uses, stores, protects and shares personal information when a business uses the TalkAI platform.

It covers:

business account information;
caller phone numbers and call metadata;
call audio where recording or real-time processing is enabled;
transcripts;
AI summaries;
booking details;
WhatsApp, SMS, email and Telegram message data where enabled;
dashboard usage data;
support requests;
billing information;
referral and affiliate information;
technical logs needed to run and protect the platform.

TalkAI is designed mainly for business use. Customers should not use TalkAI for consumer, medical, legal, financial, emergency or other regulated services unless they have the correct legal basis, professional oversight and written approval from TalkAI where required.

1.2 Who is responsible for what: Customer vs TalkAI

TalkAI has two different privacy roles depending on the type of data.

A. TalkAI as responsible party / controller for account data

When a business owner, administrator, staff member, affiliate or reseller signs up, logs in, pays, contacts support, joins a referral programme or communicates with TalkAI, TalkAI may decide why and how that account data is used.

For this account data, TalkAI may act as the responsible party under POPIA or the controller under GDPR.

Examples include:

account registration details;
business contact details;
billing and payment records;
support messages;
login and security logs;
referral and affiliate records;
product analytics about dashboard use;
legal and compliance records.

B. TalkAI as operator / processor for caller and customer-controlled data

When a caller contacts a business using TalkAI, the business customer decides why the data is collected and how the AI receptionist is used. For this caller data, the business customer is normally the responsible party under POPIA or the controller under GDPR.

TalkAI normally acts only as the operator under POPIA or processor under GDPR.

This means:

the Customer is responsible for giving callers proper notices;
the Customer is responsible for obtaining legally required consent;
the Customer is responsible for deciding whether calls may be recorded, transcribed, summarised, stored or used in its business;
the Customer is responsible for caller data requests, unless TalkAI receives a legally binding request directly;
TalkAI processes caller data only to provide, secure, support and improve the Service, or as required by law.

TalkAI does not take over the Customer's legal duties to its callers, clients, patients, customers, leads, employees or staff.

1.3 Personal information we may process

Depending on how the Customer configures TalkAI, the Service may process the following categories of personal information.

Account and business data

name;
business name;
email address;
phone number;
role or job title;
login details;
account settings;
billing details;
subscription details;
invoices;
payment status;
support tickets;
referral and affiliate records.

Caller and communication data

caller phone number;
caller name if provided;
call date, time, duration and routing information;
call audio where recording or real-time audio processing is enabled;
text transcripts;
AI-generated call summaries;
extracted action items;
booking requests;
message content from WhatsApp, SMS, email, Telegram or other connected channels;
staff handoff notes;
CRM notes;
opt-in and opt-out status where configured.

AI and system data

prompts, scripts, FAQs and business rules configured by the Customer;
AI conversation state;
intent detection results;
routing decisions;
call transfer outcomes;
error logs;
latency and quality metrics;
abuse and security signals;
model response logs where needed for debugging and safety.

Website and dashboard technical data

IP address;
device type;
browser type;
operating system;
approximate location based on IP address;
session logs;
cookies and similar technologies;
pages viewed;
errors and crash logs.

1.4 Why we process personal information

TalkAI processes personal information for these purposes:

to create and manage Customer accounts;
to provide the AI receptionist service;
to answer, route, transfer, record, transcribe and summarise calls where enabled;
to process WhatsApp, SMS, email, Telegram and other messages where enabled;
to book appointments and send notifications;
to connect integrations such as calendars, CRMs and messaging tools;
to provide customer support;
to bill Customers and manage subscriptions;
to prevent fraud, spam, abuse and security incidents;
to monitor and improve service reliability;
to debug technical issues;
to comply with law, carrier rules, tax rules, payment rules and lawful requests;
to run referral and affiliate programmes;
to send service updates and operational notices;
to improve the platform using aggregated, anonymised or de-identified data where allowed.

1.5 Legal bases for processing

Depending on the country and data type, TalkAI may rely on one or more of the following legal bases:

performance of a contract with the Customer;
compliance with legal obligations;
legitimate interests in running, securing, improving and supporting the Service;
consent, where required;
the Customer's lawful instructions as controller or responsible party;
protection of rights, fraud prevention and legal claims.

For caller data, the Customer must decide and document its own lawful basis. TalkAI does not decide whether the Customer has a valid legal basis to record, transcribe, contact, market to, message or store caller data.

1.6 AI voice processing and biometrics

TalkAI may process live voice audio so that the AI receptionist can understand the caller, respond, route the call, create a transcript, create a summary or take an action requested by the Customer.

TalkAI does not use voice data to identify a person uniquely, authenticate a person, verify a person's identity, create a biometric identity profile or compare one caller's voice against another person's voice.

TalkAI processes voice to understand speech and intent, not to perform biometric identification.

Customers may not use TalkAI to create biometric identity systems, voiceprint databases, impersonation systems or voice-cloning systems unless TalkAI has approved the use case in writing and all required legal consents and impact assessments have been completed.

1.7 AI training, improvement and anonymised data

TalkAI may use aggregated, anonymised or de-identified data to maintain, secure, debug, analyse and improve the Service.

TalkAI will not use identifiable caller data, raw audio or personally identifiable transcripts to train public or third-party AI models unless:

the Customer has expressly agreed in writing;
the processing is permitted under the applicable Data Processing Agreement;
the data has been properly anonymised or de-identified; or
the use is legally required or necessary to protect the Service.

Where TalkAI uses transcripts or interaction patterns to improve the platform, TalkAI aims to remove or mask personal identifiers such as names, phone numbers, addresses, email addresses and booking details before using the data for general product improvement.

EU Customers may request an opt-out from non-essential aggregated product-improvement use where required by law or where the dashboard makes this option available. Opt-out may limit some benchmarking, analytics or improvement features.

1.8 Sensitive information

Customers must not configure TalkAI to collect sensitive information unless they have the legal right and appropriate safeguards to do so.

Sensitive information may include:

health or medical information;
children's information;
financial account information;
credit card numbers;
government identifiers;
biometric data;
criminal record information;
information about race, religion, politics, trade union membership or sexual life;
legal advice or litigation information;
insurance, credit, employment or housing decision information.

TalkAI is not responsible for sensitive information volunteered by callers if the Customer has failed to configure the AI receptionist properly or failed to warn callers not to share such information.

1.9 Children

TalkAI is not intended for use by children. Customers must not knowingly use TalkAI to collect information directly from children unless they have all required parental consent, legal basis and safeguards.

1.10 Cookies and website analytics

TalkAI may use cookies, pixels, local storage and similar technologies on its website and dashboard to:

keep users logged in;
remember settings;
secure accounts;
measure website performance;
understand product usage;
improve marketing;
prevent fraud and abuse.

Customers and website visitors may be able to manage cookies through their browser settings. Some cookies are necessary for security and account functionality.

1.11 How long we keep data

Retention depends on the plan, configuration, legal requirements and integration settings.

Unless a different retention period is stated in the Customer's plan or Order Form, TalkAI's default approach is:

raw call audio: normally deleted within 30 days unless extended storage is enabled or required;
transcripts and AI summaries: retained while the Customer account is active and normally deleted from active systems within 60 days after termination;
call metadata: retained as needed for billing, support, fraud prevention, legal compliance and carrier records;
support and billing records: retained as needed for tax, accounting, legal and operational purposes;
backups: deleted or overwritten according to backup cycles;
security logs: retained as needed to protect the platform and investigate abuse.

Customers are responsible for exporting any data they need before cancellation or termination.

1.12 Security

TalkAI uses commercially reasonable technical and organisational measures designed to protect personal information.

These may include:

encryption in transit;
encryption at rest where supported by infrastructure providers;
role-based access controls;
tenant separation;
access logging;
secure cloud hosting;
restricted staff access;
authentication controls;
monitoring for abuse and errors;
backup and recovery processes;
supplier review where commercially reasonable.

No system is perfectly secure. TalkAI cannot guarantee that data will never be lost, accessed, delayed, intercepted, corrupted, disclosed or unavailable, especially where a problem is caused by a Customer, caller, staff member, carrier, cloud provider, payment provider, messaging provider, integration provider or compromised device.

1.13 Data subject rights

Depending on the law that applies, individuals may have rights to:

access their personal information;
correct inaccurate personal information;
request deletion;
object to certain processing;
restrict processing;
receive a copy of data in a portable format;
withdraw consent where consent is the legal basis;
complain to a regulator.

If a caller contacts TalkAI about a business that uses TalkAI, TalkAI may direct the caller to that business because the business is normally the controller or responsible party for caller data. TalkAI will assist the Customer where required by law and where the request is valid.

1.14 Direct marketing by TalkAI

TalkAI may send Customers service emails, billing notices, security notices, onboarding messages and product updates.

TalkAI may send marketing messages where allowed by law. Customers may opt out of marketing messages, but operational and legal messages may still be sent.

Customers are responsible for their own marketing to their callers and clients.

1.15 Complaints

Customers and individuals may contact TalkAI using the details at the end of this policy.

Individuals may also have the right to complain to their local data protection authority, including the Information Regulator in South Africa or the relevant EU supervisory authority.

2. DATA PROCESSING AGREEMENT (DPA)

2.1 When this DPA applies

This Data Processing Agreement applies when TalkAI processes Customer Data on behalf of the Customer as operator under POPIA or processor under GDPR.

This DPA forms part of the agreement between TalkAI and the Customer.

2.2 Roles

For caller data and Customer-controlled business data:

the Customer is the responsible party under POPIA or controller under GDPR;
TalkAI is the operator under POPIA or processor under GDPR;
the Customer decides the purpose and lawful basis of processing;
TalkAI processes the data only to provide the Service, follow Customer instructions, secure the platform, comply with law or protect legal rights.

For TalkAI account, billing, security, product and legal records, TalkAI may act as an independent responsible party or controller.

2.3 Customer instructions

The Customer instructs TalkAI to process Customer Data as necessary to:

provide the Service;
answer and route calls;
process live audio;
create transcripts and summaries;
run AI workflows;
send notifications;
connect integrations;
provide dashboards and analytics;
provide support;
manage billing and usage;
secure and monitor the platform;
prevent abuse;
comply with law and carrier rules;
delete or export data as required.

TalkAI may refuse instructions that are unlawful, technically unreasonable, unsafe, abusive or outside the scope of the Service.

2.4 Customer obligations

The Customer must:

have a lawful basis for processing caller data;
provide all required privacy notices;
obtain all required recording, transcription, AI and marketing consents;
honour opt-out and deletion requests;
keep caller data accurate where required;
ensure staff use TalkAI lawfully;
configure prompts, scripts and workflows lawfully;
avoid collecting unnecessary sensitive information;
comply with POPIA, GDPR, ePrivacy, RICA, telecommunications, consumer, professional and marketing laws that apply to its business;
respond to caller complaints and data requests;
maintain its own records of consent and compliance.

2.5 TalkAI obligations

TalkAI will:

process Customer Data only as described in this policy, the Terms, the Order Form, the Customer's settings or lawful instructions;
use commercially reasonable security measures;
restrict staff and contractor access where appropriate;
require authorised personnel to keep Customer Data confidential;
use subprocessors as described in this policy;
help the Customer respond to valid data requests where required by law and commercially reasonable;
delete or return Customer Data according to the retention rules;
notify the Customer of a confirmed personal data breach where required by law and where the breach affects Customer Data.

2.6 Subprocessors

The Customer authorises TalkAI to use subprocessors needed to provide the Service. The current subprocessor list is included in section 10 of this policy pack.

TalkAI may add, replace or remove subprocessors where commercially necessary. TalkAI will provide notice of material changes where required by law or where the dashboard provides a notification mechanism.

2.7 International transfers

Customer Data may be processed in South Africa, Germany, the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom, the United States or other countries where TalkAI or its subprocessors operate.

Where GDPR applies and data is transferred outside the EEA, TalkAI will use appropriate safeguards where required, such as Standard Contractual Clauses, supplier transfer terms, encryption, access controls and other commercially reasonable protections.

The Customer authorises these transfers to the extent necessary to provide the Service.

2.8 Security incidents

If TalkAI becomes aware of a confirmed security incident affecting Customer Data, TalkAI will notify the Customer without undue delay where required by law.

The notice may include available information about:

the nature of the incident;
the data affected;
likely consequences;
steps taken or proposed;
contact details for follow-up.

TalkAI may delay notice if required by law enforcement, security investigation, legal advice or technical containment.

2.9 Assistance with requests

TalkAI will provide reasonable assistance to the Customer for valid data subject requests, regulator requests and compliance obligations, where required by law and where the request relates to Customer Data processed by TalkAI.

TalkAI may charge reasonable fees for excessive, repeated, complex, manual or out-of-scope assistance.

2.10 Deletion and return of data

On termination, TalkAI may delete or disable access to Customer Data according to the retention rules in this policy and the Terms.

TalkAI may retain data where required for:

legal compliance;
tax and accounting records;
billing disputes;
fraud prevention;
security investigation;
carrier records;
backups;
legal claims;
regulatory requests.

2.11 Audits

Where required by law, TalkAI will make reasonable information available to demonstrate compliance with this DPA.

Audits must be reasonable, pre-arranged, limited in scope, subject to confidentiality, and must not compromise other customers, platform security, trade secrets, infrastructure, employees or third-party systems.

TalkAI may provide security summaries, policies, questionnaires or third-party reports instead of direct inspection.

3. ACCEPTABLE USE POLICY

3.1 Purpose

TalkAI is designed to help legitimate businesses answer and manage calls and messages. Customers must use TalkAI lawfully, honestly and responsibly.

3.2 Prohibited uses

Customers may not use TalkAI to:

break the law;
commit fraud;
impersonate another person or business unlawfully;
mislead callers into thinking they are speaking to a human where AI disclosure is required;
spoof caller ID;
run scams, phishing or social engineering;
send spam or unsolicited marketing;
harass, threaten, abuse or intimidate people;
collect sensitive information unlawfully;
record or transcribe calls without required consent;
contact people who have opted out;
violate Do-Not-Call, telemarketing, SMS, WhatsApp, email or direct marketing rules;
violate RICA, KYC, carrier or telecom rules;
access another customer's data or tenant;
reverse engineer, scrape, overload, attack or bypass the Service;
upload malware or harmful code;
generate artificial call traffic, traffic pumping or abuse traffic;
use the Service for emergency dispatch, crisis response or life-safety functions;
use the Service in a way that could damage TalkAI, its suppliers, carriers or other customers.

3.3 Restricted industries and use cases

TalkAI may refuse, restrict or require written approval for the following use cases:

healthcare, medical triage or mental health;
legal advice;
financial advice, loans, insurance or investments;
debt collection;
employment, recruitment or worker evaluation;
housing or tenant screening;
education admissions;
government services;
political campaigning;
gambling;
adult services;
firearms, weapons or controlled substances;
pharmaceuticals;
services involving children or vulnerable people;
emergency response, security dispatch or crisis communication.

Approval for one use case does not mean approval for another.

3.4 Customer responsibility for staff and users

The Customer is responsible for all staff, contractors, agents, administrators, affiliates and users who access TalkAI through the Customer's account.

The Customer must remove access when staff leave or no longer need access.

3.5 Enforcement

TalkAI may suspend, restrict or terminate any account, number, traffic, feature, integration or message flow if TalkAI believes there is a legal, security, abuse, carrier, reputational or platform risk.

TalkAI may do this without refund where the Customer has breached these policies, the Terms or applicable law.

4. AI TRANSPARENCY STATEMENT

4.1 TalkAI uses AI

TalkAI uses AI systems to understand speech, generate responses, route calls, create transcripts, summarise conversations, classify intent, help schedule appointments and support business workflows.

AI systems are not perfect. They may misunderstand callers, produce wrong information, miss context, route incorrectly, summarise incorrectly or fail during outages.

4.2 Customer must disclose AI use

The Customer is responsible for telling callers when they are interacting with an AI receptionist where required by law or where a reasonable caller should be informed.

This is especially important in the European Union and Germany, where AI transparency obligations may require people to be informed when they interact directly with an AI system unless this is obvious in context.

4.3 Default AI disclosure script

Customers should use a clear opening message such as:

"Hi, I am the AI receptionist for [Business Name]. This call may be recorded, transcribed and summarised to help [Business Name] respond to you. How can I help?"

If the call is not recorded but is still processed in real time, the Customer may use:

"Hi, I am the AI receptionist for [Business Name]. I use AI to understand your request and route your call. How can I help?"

If the Customer operates in a strict consent jurisdiction, the Customer should consider using:

"Hi, I am the AI receptionist for [Business Name]. This call may be recorded, transcribed and summarised. By continuing, you agree to this processing. If you do not agree, please hang up and contact [Business Name] by another method."

Customers must have their own lawyer check the correct script for their industry and country.

4.4 No deception or impersonation

Customers may not configure TalkAI to deceive people into thinking the AI is a specific human person.

Customers may not use TalkAI to clone, imitate or impersonate a person, employee, celebrity, caller, client or public figure unless they have all required rights, permissions and consents and TalkAI has approved the use case in writing.

4.5 Human review

Customers must provide human review for important, sensitive, regulated or high-risk matters.

TalkAI should not be the only decision-maker for legal, medical, financial, employment, housing, insurance, emergency or safety decisions.

5. CALL RECORDING, TRANSCRIPTION AND CONSENT POLICY

5.1 Why this policy matters

TalkAI may process calls by recording, transcribing, analysing, summarising, storing, monitoring and routing conversations. These activities may trigger privacy, call-recording, telecommunications, employment, consumer and industry-specific laws.

The Customer is responsible for complying with those laws.

5.2 Customer is responsible for caller notice and consent

TalkAI provides the software and infrastructure. The Customer decides whether to use recording, transcription, summaries and AI call handling for its business.

The Customer is solely responsible for:

telling callers that they may be speaking to AI;
telling callers that calls may be recorded;
telling callers that calls may be transcribed;
telling callers that calls may be summarised or analysed by AI;
obtaining consent where required;
providing an alternative contact method where required;
keeping records of consent where required;
ensuring staff know the correct process;
configuring the AI receptionist to give the correct notice;
disabling recording or transcription where the Customer cannot lawfully use it.

TalkAI is not responsible if the Customer fails to provide the correct notice or obtain the correct consent.

5.3 Recording and transcription are separate issues

A caller may need to be told not only that the call is recorded, but also that the call may be transcribed, summarised, analysed and processed by AI systems.

Customers must not assume that a general "calls may be recorded" statement is enough for transcription, AI summaries or automated processing in every country.

5.4 Germany and EU caution

Customers in Germany and the EU must be especially careful with call recording and AI transcription. Consent and transparency rules may be stricter than in other countries.

Customers using Noki Group GmbH or serving EU callers must ensure that their AI opening script, privacy notice, recording settings, retention settings and lawful basis are appropriate for EU and German law.

5.5 Staff and employee calls

If the AI receptionist records, transcribes or summarises calls involving Customer staff, the Customer is responsible for employee notices, workplace policies, labour-law compliance and internal consent where required.

5.6 Sensitive calls

Customers should not enable recording or transcription for sensitive calls unless they have a lawful basis and appropriate safeguards.

Sensitive calls may include medical, legal, financial, children, employment, insurance, mental health, debt, family conflict, criminal, emergency or vulnerable-person matters.

5.7 Default caller notice

Recommended default notice:

"You are speaking with the AI receptionist for [Business Name]. This call may be recorded, transcribed, summarised and processed to help us respond to your request. Please do not share sensitive information unless necessary."

Shorter version:

"I am the AI receptionist for [Business Name]. This call may be recorded, transcribed and summarised. How can I help?"

6. TELEPHONY, RICA, NUMBER AND MESSAGING POLICY

6.1 Purpose

TalkAI may provide or connect phone numbers, call forwarding, calling, messaging and email features across supported channels. These services are subject to telecommunications laws, carrier rules, platform rules and identity-verification requirements.

6.2 Free included TalkAI inbound gateway number

As part of certain plans, TalkAI may provide a free or included inbound gateway number. This number is provided for routing and forwarding purposes only.

This gateway number is not a public-facing business number for the Customer.

The Customer may not:

publish the gateway number on a website;
print it on marketing material;
give it directly to clients;
use it in advertisements;
use it for outbound calls;
send SMS or WhatsApp messages from it;
claim ownership of it;
port it away;
use it as the Customer's public business number;
use it for any purpose not approved by TalkAI.

6.3 Approved forwarding numbers only

The included gateway number may be configured to accept forwarded calls only from phone numbers that the Customer has verified and that are lawfully owned, controlled, assigned to or authorised for use by the Customer.

For South African numbers, the Customer must ensure that the forwarding number is properly RICA-registered where required.

Examples of approved forwarding numbers may include:

the business's existing landline;
the business owner's mobile number;
an authorised business mobile number;
another number approved by TalkAI after verification.

6.4 Direct caller blocking or disclosure

If a third party dials the TalkAI gateway number directly, TalkAI may:

block the call;
reject the call;
play a message that the number is operated by TalkAI for routing purposes;
state that the number is used in connection with the relevant business name;
require the caller to contact the business through the business's public number;
take any other action needed to protect TalkAI, the carrier and the Customer.

This protects TalkAI from being treated as the public telecommunications provider for the Customer's clients before the number has been properly assigned, verified and approved for public use.

6.5 Customer-assigned public numbers

If the Customer wants clients to call the AI directly, use outbound calls, send SMS, use WhatsApp from the number, display caller ID, advertise the number or treat the number as a public business number, the Customer must complete the required number assignment and verification process.

This may include:

purchasing or leasing an eligible number through TalkAI or an approved carrier;
RICA/KYC verification;
identity documents;
company registration documents;
proof of address;
beneficial ownership information;
authorised representative confirmation;
carrier approval;
messaging-brand registration where required;
WhatsApp Business approval where required;
payment of number, carrier, messaging and regulatory fees.

6.6 Number rights are usage rights, not absolute ownership

Telecommunications numbers are generally controlled by carriers, regulators and numbering authorities. Even where a Customer pays for a number and completes RICA/KYC, the Customer receives assigned usage rights subject to law, carrier rules, payment, availability, portability rules, acceptable use and continued service availability.

The Customer should not assume that a number is owned like physical property.

TalkAI may suspend, reclaim, release, replace or restrict a number where required by:

law;
regulator instruction;
carrier instruction;
platform rules;
non-payment;
fraud risk;
spam complaints;
RICA/KYC failure;
misuse;
non-use;
technical changes;
termination of service.

6.7 RICA and KYC responsibility

For South African numbers, the Customer is responsible for ensuring that numbers used with TalkAI are properly RICA-registered where required.

For Germany, the EU and other regions, the Customer is responsible for applicable KYC, telecom, carrier, messaging, caller-ID and business-verification requirements.

TalkAI may request documents, reject a number request, suspend a number, block calls or prevent outbound/messaging features if verification is incomplete or if TalkAI believes there is legal or carrier risk.

6.8 Caller ID and outbound use

Customers may not spoof caller ID, misrepresent the calling party, hide the true origin of a call unlawfully or use numbers for spam, scams, harassment, phishing or illegal marketing.

Outbound calling, SMS, WhatsApp and similar features may require extra approval and may be restricted, suspended or charged separately.

6.9 WhatsApp, SMS, Telegram and messaging

If the Customer uses WhatsApp, SMS, Telegram, email or other messaging channels through TalkAI, the Customer must:

have permission to message each recipient;
comply with opt-in and opt-out rules;
honour STOP, unsubscribe, remove-me and similar requests;
comply with WhatsApp, SMS, Telegram, email and carrier rules;
avoid spam and bulk unsolicited messaging;
avoid misleading templates;
keep consent records;
use approved message templates where required.

TalkAI uses third-party messaging, telephony and cloud infrastructure providers to process messages and calls. The identities of these providers are available to Customers on written request under a confidentiality undertaking.

6.10 Customer onboarding confirmation

TalkAI may require the Customer to confirm the following before enabling telephony:

"I confirm that I am authorised to act for the business named in this account. I confirm that any phone number I connect, forward, whitelist, use or request through TalkAI is lawfully owned, controlled, assigned to or authorised for use by the business. I confirm that any South African number I use with TalkAI is RICA-registered to the correct person or business where required. I understand that the included TalkAI inbound gateway number is not a public-facing number and must not be published, advertised, displayed, used for outbound calls, used for SMS, or given to clients unless TalkAI has confirmed that the number has been properly assigned and RICA/KYC-verified for public use. I am responsible for notifying callers that they may be speaking to an AI receptionist and that calls may be recorded, transcribed, summarised and processed. I accept full responsibility for obtaining all required consents and for complying with all privacy, recording, telecommunications, marketing, professional and consumer laws applicable to my business."

7. INVITE AND EARN REFERRAL PROGRAMME TERMS

7.1 Purpose

TalkAI may offer an Invite and Earn referral programme that allows active Customers to invite other businesses to use TalkAI.

Referral rewards may include account credits, free months, discounts, usage credits or other rewards shown on the referral page.

7.2 Eligibility

Only active TalkAI Customers in good standing may participate.

TalkAI may exclude Customers who have overdue payments, suspended accounts, cancelled accounts, fraud indicators, abuse history, duplicate accounts or suspected misuse.

7.3 Valid referrals

A referral is valid only if:

the referred business is new to TalkAI;
the referred business signs up using the correct referral link, code or invitation method;
the referred business provides accurate information;
the referred business becomes a paying Customer;
the referred business remains paid and active for the required qualification period;
the referral is not a self-referral, duplicate, fake business or account controlled by the referrer;
the referral was not already in TalkAI's active sales pipeline unless TalkAI approves it;
TalkAI determines that the referral is legitimate.

TalkAI's decision on referral validity is final.

7.4 Referral rewards

Rewards may include:

one month free;
R500 account credit;
an approximate equivalent foreign-currency credit where offered;
usage credits;
plan discounts;
annual rewards for multiple valid referrals;
other campaign-specific rewards.

Rewards are account credits unless TalkAI expressly says they are cash payments. Credits have no cash value, cannot be withdrawn, cannot be transferred and cannot be exchanged for cash.

7.5 Refer 10 and get a year free

If TalkAI offers a "refer 10, get a year free" promotion, the reward applies only when all 10 referrals are valid, paid, active and approved by TalkAI.

The free year may be capped at the Customer's base subscription fee and may exclude:

overages;
phone number fees;
carrier fees;
messaging fees;
setup fees;
onboarding fees;
taxes;
add-ons;
custom enterprise fees;
professional services.

7.6 Fraud and abuse

Customers may not:

refer themselves;
create duplicate accounts;
create fake businesses;
spam referral links;
mislead people;
offer unauthorised discounts;
advertise using TalkAI trademarks without permission;
use bots or automated signups;
post referral links on coupon sites unless approved;
send unsolicited messages;
violate privacy or marketing laws.

7.7 Clawback

TalkAI may reverse, cancel, deduct or claw back referral rewards if:

the referred Customer cancels;
payment fails;
there is a refund or chargeback;
fraud is suspected;
the referral was invalid;
the reward was issued in error;
the referrer breached these policies or the Terms.

7.8 Programme changes

TalkAI may change, pause, limit or end the referral programme at any time.

8. AFFILIATE PROGRAMME TERMS

8.1 Approval required

Only approved affiliates may promote TalkAI for commission.

TalkAI may approve, reject, suspend or terminate any affiliate at its sole discretion.

8.2 Independent contractor status

Affiliates are independent contractors. They are not employees, agents, franchisees, partners or representatives of TalkAI.

Affiliates may not bind TalkAI, make promises on behalf of TalkAI, sign contracts for TalkAI or represent that they work for TalkAI.

8.3 Commission eligibility

Commissions are payable only on eligible sales that:

are tracked through TalkAI's approved affiliate system;
are made to new Customers;
are not self-referrals;
are not duplicate or fake accounts;
are not existing TalkAI leads unless approved;
become paid accounts;
remain active for the required qualification period;
are not refunded, charged back or cancelled;
comply with all affiliate rules.

TalkAI's tracking, attribution and commission records are final.

8.4 Commission calculation

Commissions are calculated on net revenue actually received by TalkAI unless a written affiliate agreement says otherwise.

Net revenue excludes:

taxes;
VAT;
refunds;
chargebacks;
discounts;
account credits;
carrier fees;
number fees;
SMS, WhatsApp or telecom pass-through fees;
payment processor fees;
professional services unless included;
bad debt;
custom enterprise exclusions.

8.5 Payouts

TalkAI may require:

minimum payout thresholds;
identity verification;
tax information;
invoice submission;
bank details;
fraud review;
expiry of refund and chargeback periods.

TalkAI may withhold, delay or refuse payment where fraud, breach, dispute, legal risk or missing information exists.

8.6 Affiliate marketing rules

Affiliates must not:

send spam;
mislead customers;
make false claims;
guarantee results;
claim TalkAI is error-free;
claim TalkAI replaces all staff in every situation;
claim TalkAI gives legal, medical, financial or emergency advice;
use fake reviews;
hide affiliate disclosures;
bid on TalkAI brand terms without permission;
register confusing domains;
impersonate TalkAI;
offer unauthorised discounts;
promote TalkAI on unlawful, adult, scam, hate, malware, gambling or misleading sites;
violate platform rules or advertising laws.

Affiliates must clearly disclose that they may earn commission where required by law or advertising-platform rules.

8.7 Brand use

TalkAI grants approved affiliates a limited, revocable, non-exclusive licence to use approved TalkAI marketing materials only to promote TalkAI.

TalkAI may revoke this permission at any time.

8.8 Clawbacks and termination

TalkAI may reverse, deduct or claw back commissions if a sale is refunded, charged back, fraudulent, invalid, disputed or in breach of the affiliate rules.

Either party may end affiliate participation at any time. After termination, the affiliate must stop using TalkAI links, logos and marketing materials.

9. FAIR USE, BILLING, REFUND AND CANCELLATION POLICY

9.1 Purpose and billing policy

TalkAI plans may include limits for:

call minutes;
number of calls;
number of users;
number of AI receptionists;
phone numbers;
WhatsApp or SMS messages;
storage;
transcripts;
integrations;
concurrent calls;
transfer minutes;
support level;
onboarding time;
custom workflows.

9.2 Fair use

If a feature is described as unlimited, it is still subject to fair use, technical limits, carrier limits, abuse prevention, security rules and reasonable platform use.

TalkAI may restrict, throttle or require an upgrade if usage is excessive, abusive, technically harmful, unusually expensive, carrier-risky or outside normal business use.

9.3 Overage fees

If the Customer exceeds included usage, TalkAI may charge overage fees or require top-up prepayments to avoid service interruption. Automatic top-ups are off by default.

9.4 No refund policy

Unless required by law or expressly agreed in writing, all fees (monthly, annual, setup, onboarding, overage, etc.) are non-refundable.

9.5 Trials and pilots

Trials, pilots, beta features and discounted testing periods may be changed, limited or ended by TalkAI at any time.

9.6 Cancellation

Customers may cancel according to the cancellation method shown in the dashboard. Cancellation normally takes effect at the end of the current billing period.

9.6A EU and Germany consumer withdrawal right (14 days)

Where the Customer is a consumer under EU or German law, the Customer has the right to withdraw from the contract within 14 days without giving any reason.

9.7 Late payment

If payment fails or invoices are overdue, TalkAI may suspend the Service, disable numbers, and charge reactivation fees where permitted.

9.8 Taxes and pass-through fees

Customers are responsible for taxes, VAT, regulatory fees, telecom fees, carrier fees, payment fees and similar charges.

10. SUBPROCESSOR AND INTERNATIONAL TRANSFER POLICY

10.1 Why subprocessors are used

TalkAI uses third-party providers to host infrastructure, process AI requests, route calls, process messages, store data, provide support, process payments and keep the platform secure.

The Customer authorises TalkAI to use subprocessors as needed to provide the Service.

10.2 Subprocessor categories

TalkAI uses a limited number of vetted third-party providers. The specific identities, locations and contractual details of TalkAI's subprocessors are confidential and commercially sensitive, and can be requested under a confidentiality undertaking at legal@talkai.co.za.

| Category | General purpose | |---|---| | Hosting and storage | Running and storing the Service | | AI processing | Understanding speech and generating AI responses, transcripts and summaries | | Telephony | Connecting and routing calls and phone numbers | | Messaging | Delivering messages on enabled channels | | Email delivery | Sending service and notification emails | | Payment processing | Billing, invoicing and payments | | Analytics and monitoring | Reliability, security and performance | | Customer support | Handling support requests |

10.3 International Transfer Controls

TalkAI enforces data transfer agreements, standard contractual clauses, and encryption protocols when moving any personal or operations data across geographic boundaries.

11. WEBSITE PUBLICATION NOTICES AND DEFAULT SCRIPTS

11.1 Default footer notice

Recommended for Customer websites:

"This website uses cookie tracking, and our phone lines utilize AI receptionist services operated by TalkAI, featuring real-time call recording, transcription, and automated summarizing. By visiting or calling, you consent to these processes in accordance with our Policies."

11.2 Call Recording consent prompt

Ensure to play or speak an interactive notice before active conversation, such as:

"Thanks for calling [Company]. Your call is answered by an AI and may be recorded for transcription and summary purposes. By staying on the line, you agree to these legal terms."

12. CONTACT DETAILS AND LEGAL REQUESTS

12.1 General contact

For standard inquiries, accounts, and billing support:

Email: legal@talkai.co.za or support@talkai.co.za
Location: Cape Town, South Africa / Munich, Germany

12.2 Privacy officer contact

For data access inquiries, POPIA and GDPR compliance, or direct deletion requests:

Email: privacy@talkai.co.za

Policies