Privacy Policy

Introduction

Sahid Freight (“we,” “our,” or “us”) operates a freight marketplace that connects cargo senders with truck owners and drivers across Ethiopia, Somalia, and Djibouti. This Privacy Policy explains what personal information we collect when you use our mobile app or website, how we use it, who we share it with, and the rights you have over your information.

This policy applies to the Sahid Freight Android app, the website at sahidfreight.com, and any related services we operate (collectively, the “Service”). By creating an account or using the Service, you agree to the practices described here.

If you do not agree with this policy, please do not use the Service. If you have any questions, contact us at info@sahidfreight.com.

Information We Collect

We only collect information we need to operate the Service. Specifically:

Account and identity information

• Full name — provided at registration.
• Email address — used as the verified channel for your account and for one-time codes.
• Phone number — used as your sign-in identifier and as a contact number for your counterparties in a booking (for example, a driver and sender may need to call each other to coordinate a pickup).
• Password — stored as a one-way bcrypt hash. We never store or transmit your password in plain text; it is stored using one-way encryption (hashing) that cannot be reversed.
• City and country — used to surface relevant loads and trucks in your region.
• Role — whether you registered as a Cargo Sender, Truck Owner, or Driver.

Location information

We collect precise GPS location from a driver’s device only during an active delivery — that is, only while a booking is in the “in-transit” state. Location is sampled while the driver screen is open and posted to our servers so that the cargo sender can see where their shipment is in real time. We stop collecting location when the booking is marked delivered, cancelled, or otherwise no longer in transit.

We do not collect location from cargo senders or from drivers who are not on an active booking. You can revoke the location permission at any time in your device settings; if you do, you will not be able to act as the driver on an in-transit booking.

Photos

• Proof-of-delivery photos — captured or uploaded by the driver to confirm a successful delivery.
• Truck photos — uploaded by truck owners to identify their vehicles.

Identity verification documents

To verify accounts, we ask users to upload documents such as a national ID, driver’s licence, trade licence, and a profile photo. These documents are reviewed by our verification team and are used solely to confirm that the person or business behind an account is who they claim to be. We do not publish these documents anywhere on the Service.

Communications between users

In-app chat messages are sent between users in the context of a specific booking. Message content, the sender and recipient, the timestamp, and read status are stored on our servers so that the conversation history is available to the participants.

Payments

We do not collect or store your card number, bank account, or other financial credentials. Payments are processed by third-party gateways Chapa (Ethiopia) and Waafi (Somalia). When you initiate a payment, we share the transaction amount and your contact information (email and phone) with the gateway so it can complete the transaction. We receive only the status of the payment (succeeded, pending, failed) and a reference identifier.

How We Use Your Information

We use the information described above only to:

• Provide the freight marketplace — let cargo senders post loads, truck owners place bids, and bookings be confirmed and tracked.
• Verify the identity of users so other people on the platform can trust who they are dealing with.
• Enable real-time shipment tracking by streaming driver GPS to the cargo sender during active deliveries.
• Send one-time verification codes to your email when you register or reset your password.
• Pass the necessary contact and amount information to a payment gateway when you choose to pay through the app.
• Respond to support requests and resolve disputes between users.
• Keep the Service secure — detect and prevent fraud, abuse, or unauthorised access.
• Comply with applicable laws and respond to lawful requests from authorities.

We do not use your information for advertising and we do not run third-party advertising networks inside the Service.

How We Share Your Information

We do not sell your personal information. We share information in only the limited cases described below.

With other users you transact with

When you book a load or accept a bid, your name, phone number, and relevant booking details are shared with the counterparties in that transaction (sender, owner, driver) so they can coordinate. While a delivery is in transit, the driver’s live location is shared with the cargo sender on that booking.

With service providers we rely on

• Resend — sends our transactional emails, including the one-time verification codes used to register and reset passwords. Resend receives the recipient email address and the email content.
• Chapa and Waafi — process payments in Ethiopia and Somalia respectively. They receive the transaction amount and your email and phone number so they can complete the payment.
• Cloud infrastructure providers — host our database, application servers, and document storage. Data stored with these providers is encrypted at rest and access is restricted to our team.

For legal reasons

We may disclose information if we are required to by law, court order, or other lawful request from a public authority; or if we reasonably believe disclosure is necessary to protect the rights, property, or safety of Sahid Freight, our users, or the public.

Data Retention

We keep your information for as long as your account is active and as long as we need it to provide the Service or to comply with our legal obligations. Specifically:

• Account information is retained while your account exists.
• Booking, message, and payment records are retained for our records and for any required tax or audit period.
• Location points captured during a delivery are retained as part of that booking’s history so users can review where a shipment travelled.
• Verification documents are retained while your account is verified; they are deleted on account deletion unless we are required to keep them by law.
• One-time verification codes are short-lived (expire within minutes) and are deleted shortly after they are consumed or expire.

When you delete your account, we delete or anonymise your personal information within a reasonable period, except where we are required to keep certain records for legal, accounting, or fraud-prevention purposes.

How We Protect Your Information

We use industry-standard safeguards, including:

• TLS encryption in transit — all traffic between the app or website and our servers is encrypted.
• Hashed passwords — your password is never stored in plaintext. We use bcrypt with a high work factor, and no one on our team can read it.
• Access controls — only authorised members of our operations and verification team can view personal information, and only when their job requires it.
• Encryption at rest — uploaded documents and photos are stored in encrypted object storage.
• Short-lived verification tokens — codes and verification tokens expire quickly to limit the damage of any intercepted credential.

No internet service can guarantee perfect security. If you believe your account has been compromised, please change your password and contact us immediately.

Your Rights

You have the right to:

• Access the personal information we hold about you.
• Correct information that is inaccurate or incomplete — most fields can be edited directly in your profile.
• Delete your account and the personal information we hold about you, subject to limited legal-retention exceptions.
• Withdraw permissions you previously granted to the app — for example, location, camera, or notifications — in your device settings.
• Object or restrict certain uses of your information where applicable law gives you that right.

To exercise any of these rights, write to info@sahidfreight.com from the email address on your account. We may need to verify your identity before we act on a request.

Children

Sahid Freight is intended for adults aged 18 and over. We do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under 18. If you believe a child has provided us with personal information, please contact us at info@sahidfreight.com and we will delete it.

Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time — for example, when we add features or change how we work with service providers. When we do, we will update the “Effective date” at the top of this page and, for material changes, notify you in the app or by email. Continuing to use the Service after a change takes effect means you accept the updated policy.

Contact Us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, your information, or your rights, please contact us:

Sahid Freight
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
info@sahidfreight.com