PAIA Manual

This PAIA Manual explains the records Abyssal holds, how those records may be accessed, and the processes that apply to requests made under the Promotion of Access to Information Act 2 of 2000 (PAIA). It also describes Abyssal's Information Officer, categories of records, personal-information processing, transborder flows, security measures and the procedure for requesting access to records.

Prepared in terms of section 51 of the Promotion of Access to Information Act 2 of 2000, as amended. Information Officer registration: No. 2026-067200, registered 19 September 2026.

1. List of acronyms and abbreviations

• IO: Information Officer
• PAIA: Promotion of Access to Information Act 2 of 2000, as amended
• POPIA: Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013
• Regulator: Information Regulator (South Africa)
• Republic: Republic of South Africa

2. Purpose of this PAIA Manual

This Manual is intended to assist members of the public to understand what records Abyssal holds and how a person may request access to those records in terms of PAIA. It describes automatically available records, other records held, the Information Officer, processing of personal information, transborder flows, security measures, and the process for requesting access.

3. Key contact details for access to information

Organisation / trading name	Abyssal
Legal form	Sole proprietorship
Proprietor (head of the private body)	Berenice Ann Wendy Lindeque
Regulator registration no.	2026-067200
Registration date	19 September 2026
Information Officer	Berenice Ann Wendy Lindeque (appointed 18 October 2026)
Designation	Owner & Information Officer
Email	hello@abyssal.co.za
Telephone	071 403 0238
Physical address	1 Ringwood Drive, Parklands, Cape Town, 7441
Postal address	Not separately designated
Website	abyssal.co.za
Deputy Information Officer	None currently designated

4. Guide on how to use PAIA and how to obtain access to the Guide

The Information Regulator publishes the Guide on how to use PAIA. It is available in the official languages of South Africa and in braille at inforegulator.org.za. The Guide may also be requested from Abyssal's Information Officer. Abyssal will make electronic copies available in English and Afrikaans on request.

5. Categories of records available without a formal PAIA request

The following categories of information may be available without a formal PAIA request:

• business and contact information;
• service descriptions;
• this PAIA Manual and the Privacy & POPIA Notice (including its section on cookies and similar technologies), published on abyssal.co.za;
• published marketing and educational content;
• published portfolio, testimonial and case-study material where permission has been granted;
• PAIA request information and resources.

Availability of a category does not mean that every record within that category is public.

6. Records available in accordance with other legislation

Abyssal may hold records under the following legislation, to the extent applicable to its current activities:

• Promotion of Access to Information Act 2 of 2000
• Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013
• Income Tax Act 58 of 1962
• Tax Administration Act 28 of 2011
• Electronic Communications and Transactions Act 25 of 2002
• Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008
• Copyright Act 98 of 1978

7. Subjects on which Abyssal holds records and categories of records held

Abyssal may hold records relating to: business administration; clients and prospects; projects; Web Development; Process Automation; Data Analytics; finance and accounting; suppliers and service providers; security and access; marketing and brand; legal and compliance matters; and information systems.

Access remains subject to PAIA, POPIA, contractual confidentiality obligations, intellectual-property rights and applicable grounds for refusal.

8. Processing of personal information

8.1 Purpose. Abyssal processes personal information for enquiries, project qualification, contracting, onboarding, service delivery, project communication, approvals, billing, accounting, security, authorised system access, portfolio/testimonial permissions, permitted marketing and legal or regulatory purposes.

8.2 Categories of data subjects. These may include prospects, clients, client employees or representatives, persons represented in client datasets, suppliers, service providers, contractors or subcontractors, newsletter or marketing subscribers, and website visitors.

8.3 Recipients. Information may be supplied to authorised client stakeholders, accounting and invoicing providers, financial institutions, approved form providers, cloud-storage and collaboration providers, hosting, deployment, database and development providers, email providers, professional advisers, regulators and authorised subcontractors where necessary. Abyssal does not sell personal information.

8.4 Planned transborder flows. Cloud services used by Abyssal may process or store information outside South Africa, including in countries in the European Economic Area, the United States and other jurisdictions in which approved service providers or subprocessors operate. Enquiries submitted through the abyssal.co.za website are stored by Netlify in the United States. Transfers will be managed in accordance with section 72 of POPIA and applicable contractual requirements.

8.5 Information-security measures. Measures include multi-factor authentication, least-privilege access, secure devices and updates, encryption and authenticated sharing where available, separation of internal and client material, client-hosted storage where appropriate, data minimisation, secure credential handling, backup and recovery where appropriate, incident response, retention and deletion procedures and provider review.

9. How to request access to a record of Abyssal

A requester should use the current Form 02 — Request for Access to Record, available from the Information Regulator at inforegulator.org.za/paia. Requests may be sent to hello@abyssal.co.za.

Under section 50 of PAIA, access to a record of a private body is generally available where the record is required for the exercise or protection of a right, the requester complies with PAIA's procedural requirements, and no applicable ground for refusal applies.

The prescribed private-body request fee is R140.00, subject to exemptions (confirmed against the Regulator's fee schedule on 17 October 2026). Additional access or reproduction fees may apply under the current fee schedule.

There is no internal PAIA appeal process for a private body. A requester may have recourse to the Information Regulator or a competent court.

10. Availability of this Manual

This Manual is available on this website; at Abyssal's principal place of business (1 Ringwood Drive, Parklands, Cape Town, 7441) for inspection during normal business hours by prior arrangement; on request from the Information Officer; and to the Information Regulator on request.

11. Updating of this Manual

Abyssal will review this Manual regularly and when material changes affect the business structure, contact details, Information Officer details, record categories, processing activities, technology providers, or applicable legal and regulatory requirements.

Issued by Berenice Ann Wendy Lindeque, Owner & Information Officer, Abyssal — 18 October 2026. This version replaces version 1.1 (19 September 2026; updated 17 October 2026) following the change of owner and Information Officer.