Privacy and data protection

Privacy and data protection

The Ministry of Commerce has an Information Privacy Protection Policy for the e-portal and for the relevant systems and their solutions. This policy is compatible with the legislation of users’ Personal Data Protection, and they are subject to the Personal Data Protection Law. This policy aims to define and specify the controls related to the privacy of personal identification information and all other sensitive information, taking into consideration the necessary protection. This is for the Ministry of Commerce customers and their saved information.

The MCI Portal takes the confidentiality of its users and visitors as a top priority, and the portal management makes every effort in order to provide high-quality services for those benefitting from it. Thus, the privacy and confidentiality, herein illustrated, are considered part of the usage terms and provisions of the MCI Portal and its provisions.

The Ministry of Commerce and investment (MCI) does not gather personal information about you when you visit its portal unless you specifically and knowingly opted to provide such information for us. And if you opted to provide such information, we would only use it to respond to your request for information or services in line with what is mentioned with regard to these policies. And by using the MCI Portal, that means you have complied with such a privacy and confidentiality policy.

Visitors and beneficiaries of the Portal should keep taking a look at the terms and principles of privacy and confidentiality every now and then, in order to be updated and informed of any modifications to them, bearing in mind that the Portal Administration is not to be liable to announce any updates applied to these terms and principles. And using the portal means that you have viewed and complied with these terms and principles and the continuous recurrent modifications applied to them.

The Ministry of Commerce and investment is under no circumstances accountable for any direct, non-direct, accidental, consequential, or exceptional harm taking place from using or the inability to use the portal.

Security of the Personal Information:

- The Privacy and Confidentiality code has been prepared to help the visitors and users understand the nature of data gathered from them when they visit the Portal and how to deal with it.

- The Portal Administration takes the proper, appropriate procedures and measures in order to maintain the personal information which it has in a safe way guaranteeing its protection against loss or unlicensed access, or abuse, or unlicensed modification and disclosure. And among the most important measures applied at the MCI in order to protect the visitor's personal information are the following:

Strict procedures and measures in order to protect the information security, and the technology used to shield from fraud and unlicensed access to our systems.
Regular and periodical updating of protection procedures and regulations which meet or are more than standards.
Our employees are qualified and trained to respect the confidentiality of our visitors' personal information.

Agreement on the privacy and data protection

As a User of the Mc.gov.sa , you accept the privacy and data protection policies and regulations of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; that control the Platform . This agreement becomes effective immediately upon first using or accessing the Platform.

Users Data Collection

Once the user visits the MCI Portal, its server registers the internet protocol (IP) of the user, and the date, time of the visit, and the URL address of any website from which links you to the Portal.

Most websites, once visited, put a small file on the hard disc of visitor's computer (browser). This file is called Cookies; which are files are text files. These text files contain information availing the website which put it to retrieve it when necessity, during the user's forthcoming visit to the website. The saved information includes:

Remembering username and password.
Saving page settings in case this was available at the portal.
Saving colors chosen by the user.
Unavailability of voting more than once for the same user.

- The visitor may not have to enter the password at every time they visit the website, as the system of the website will be able to detect it via cookie files. Or it could prevent the user from re-voting if they previously voted, and so forth. Accordingly, the MCI Portal is to use the information existing on the cookies files for technical purposes related to it, and this is when it is visited more than once. Also, the portal can change the information existing on cookie files or adding new information when you visit the MCI Portal.

- If you used a direct application or sent an email to us via the MCI Portal providing us with your personal information, we would share the necessary information with other bodies or departments; in order to serve you in a more effective way. And we will not share your personal information with non-governmental bodies unless it is licensed from concerned bodies to perform specific governmental services. Providing your personal information via the MCI Portal means that you fully agree to storing, treating, and using such information by the Saudi authorities. And we keep the right at all times to disclose any information for concerned bodies, when necessary, in order to abide by any law, system, or governmental request.

- You are fully accountable for the validity and honesty of the information sent via this Portal.

Terms of Use

By using the Ministry of Commerce Portal, you approve of refraining from the following:

• Not to provide or download files containing software, materials, data, or other information that you do not own or you are not licensed to use them.

• Not to use this portal in any way whatsoever to send an electronic or undesired email; or any misuse of that sort for the Ministry of Commerce Portal.

• Not to provide or download files at this portal containing viruses or damaged data.

• Not to publish, announce, distribute, or circulate materials or information containing defamation, law violation, or sexual, obscene, and against Islamic rulings or code of ethics materials; or illegal materials or information via the portal of the Ministry of Commerce>

• Not to participate via the Ministry of Commerce Portal in illegal or unlawful activities in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

• Not to announce at the portal of the Ministry of Commerce any product or service make us appear violating any law or system applied in any field.

• Not to use any means, program, or procedure to intercept or an attempt to intercept the proper operation for the Ministry of Commerce Portal.

• Not to make an action that puts tremendous, big, or inappropriate load on the infrastructure of the Ministry of Commerce Portal.

Links to Ministry of Commerce portal:

When using links to the Ministry of Commerce Portal, except for the below-mentioned cases, it is banned to transfer or copy any of the Ministry of Commerce Portal content, or create any electronic links related to it, or display any of it in a frame.

• It is feasible to put the links of the Portal's pages at any other website which does not conflict with regard to its goals and orientation with the goals, policies, frameworks of the Ministry of Commerce.

• Under no circumstances is the Ministry of Commerce considered participating or linked in any way whatsoever with any trademarks, logos, or brands, or other means used or appear at the websites linked to these pages or any of their content.

• The Ministry of Commerce preserves its right with regard to suspending or intercepting any links whatsoever from any website containing inappropriate, flagrant, defamatory, obscene, sexual, or illegal topics. Nor will the Portal accept publishing any names, materials, or information that violate any law or breach any intellectual property rights, privacy rights, or public rights.

• The Ministry of Commerce will have the right to intercept any link whatsoever if unlicensed, and it is not to be accountable for the content available at any website that is accessed via this portal or through it to this portal.

Links from the Ministry of Commerce portal:

Communication links related to portals and / or other websites are provided with the aim of facilitating visitors' access. The Ministry of Commerce Portal is not liable for the content or plausibility of the portals and /or websites, and/ or the pages which are linked to it and it does not approve of its content. Therefore, you are fully responsible for using any of these links to access these websites, portals, or pages. Hence, the Ministry of Commerce Portal aim at replacing disconnected electronic links, which do not work, at other websites. And as long as we cannot control these links, we do not, any way, guarantee that these links will work continuously.

Usage termination

We are authorized, according to our absolute evaluation, to terminating, restricting, or suspending your right with regard to accessing the Portal and its usage without notice, and for any reason, including the violation of with terms and conditions. Or for any other behavior that is considered according to our own evaluation unlawful or harmful to others. And in case of terminating your access to the Portal, you will not be licensed to access this portal.

Disclaimer

The portal of the Ministry of Commerce in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, herein referred to as “Ministry of Commerce Portal" / “the Portal", is available for your personal usage, and your entry and usage for this portal are subjected to usage items and terms and the rules of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Also, your access and entry to this portal is an unconditional or unrestricted acceptance or to the items and terms of usage whether you were a registered user or not. This acceptance is in force as of the first date of your usage for this portal.

And it is clear with regard to the portal's vision and mission, that one of its most important objectives is to increase communication with audience and present a wide range of information and services which help enrich how to deal with the Ministry of Commerce with regard to the portal's visitors and those surfing it.

Usage of the Portal governed by a set of terms and conditions that undergo continuous updates and modifications when necessary. And any modification or update for any of these terms and conditions is in force once it is approved by the Portal Administration, this requires you to continuously review the usage terms and disclaimer principles in order to be updated with any modifications introduced. As such, using this portal repeatedly means that you have fully viewed and accepted any modification made to its usage items and terms; bearing in mind that these terms and conditions involve property rights. Further, the Portal Administration is not liable to announcing any updates made to these terms.

Protection against Viruses:

The Ministry of Commerce Portal makes every effort to check and test this Portal's content at every production phase. You'd better continuously run anti-virus programs to all the materials downloaded from the internet. The portal is not responsible for any loss, disconnection, or damage to your data or your computer, or any device used for surfing, which could take place during accessing this portal or when using material downloaded from this portal.

Waiver of claims

The Ministry of Commerce Portal, and the services, information, materials, and jobs it provides or that can be accessed via the Portal; are provided for your personal usage “as is" and “as is available", without any approval, promises, or guarantees whatsoever. We cannot guarantee or bear the responsibility for any failures, errors, or encroachments that could arise from their usage or their content, or any website linked to it, whether we were on the knowing side or not.

When conducting any communications or sending any information via the Portal, the user will not have the right to own them or guarantee their confidentiality. Also, any usage or interactive usage the Portal involves does not guarantee for the user any rights, licensing, or any concessions whatsoever. Additionally, the Ministry of Commerce waive any claim within its reach, and determined as part of these terms under any circumstances does not mean automatic or permanent waiver of any of its rights under other circumstances.

Limits of responsibility

The e-services which the Ministry of Commerce Portal presents via the internet and obtaining information about the various governmental entities and bodies, it is provided to facilitate the manual procedures. Herein you knowingly approve that the communications via the internet may be vulnerable for interception or may be intercepted by others. And the Portal does not replace the information available through the official bodies, and the administrative requests and procedures can be directly taken before concerned bodies. Accordingly, accessing this Portal remains your own responsibility. Also, we are not under any circumstances responsible for any loss or harm whatsoever you may sustain because of your usage or your visit to the Portal, or relying on any statement, opinion, advertisement at the Portal. Or what may occur because of operation delay, disconnection, problems accessing to the internet, device or program failures, not to mention the behavior and thoughts of any person accessing this Portal. Thus, you approve and accept that your only exclusive means to address any harm or loss that might occur as a result of accessing or using this Portal is to be prevented from their usage or accessing them, or to discontinue doing so.

Compensation

Herein you approve that you will not take any procedure against the Ministry of Commerce or any of its departments, and compensate and secure it from any responsibility, as well as any bodies, employees, or agents in charge of managing, maintaining, updating, or providing the Ministry of Commerce Portal. This is with regard to all the commitments and responsibilities which could arise in terms of any claim taking place from any violation of the usage items and terms on your part, or any of the laws in force whether in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia or the place in which you live.

Copyright Notice

This Portal is technically supervised by the Information Technology Department; a department affiliated to the Saudi Ministry of Commerce. And all the materials available at this Portal with information and graphics included (content) are protected by virtue of publishing rights, trademarks, and other property right forms.

Since one of the main objectives of the Portal is to increase awareness and enrich culture for the Portal's users and visitors, it is only allowed for personal and non-profit usage to benefit from the content of the portal and any information published at it, meanwhile underscoring the fact that the Ministry of Commerce Portal is the source of that content and information.

Furthermore, it is not allowed under any circumstances to sell, license, rent, modify, copy, imitate, re-print, download, advertise, transfer, distribute, publicly display, edit, or create works derived from any of this portal's materials or content for audience or commercial purposes without obtaining a previous written acceptance from the Ministry of Commerce in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Also, it is strictly banned to modify any of the content materials. Additionally, the drawings and images at these pages are protected by virtue of publishing rights, and it is not allowed to imitate or exploit them in any way whatsoever without a previous written acceptance from the Ministry of Commerce in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Judicial reference

You herein accept to be exclusively subjugated to the judiciary authorities of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia with regard to all the claims and disputes that arise from your usage for this portal; bearing in mind that the Arabic language is to be the official language used to settle any disputes arising from your usage for the portal or any of its content.

The Privacy and data protection policy Updates

mc.gov.sa has the right to update and change its privacy and data protection policy as needed. We’ll update this policy when our data and information handling practices change.

Contact Us

Phone: 1900

E-mail: cs@mc.gov.sa

Contact Form: Here

Working hours: From Sunday to Thursday from 8 am to 4 pm

Response time: Your requests will be answered within 3 working days

Personal Data Protection Regulations

Other relevant legislation and regulations

Children and Incompetents’ Privacy Protection Policy

The Children and Incompetents’ Privacy Protection Policy sets the legal basis for preserving the children and protecting their rights in relation to collecting and processing their personal data by any means. The Policy is in accordance with the provision of the Data Protection Regulation and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and its optional protocols. The objectives are to protect children from the:

Negative effects of inappropriate content and advertisements spread on the Internet.
Helping the competent authorities protect children from potential risks - violence, abuse, abuse, threat, harm or exploitation, resulting from the collection and processing of their personal data through websites and digital applications.
Finding a balance between negative effects, potential risks and the need to collect and process personal data children.

General rules for transfer of personal data outside the Kingdom

The General rules for transfer of personal data outside the Kingdom set the rules and the standards for the transfer of personal data outside the geographical borders of the Kingdom to ensure the preservation of national sovereignty over this data, as well as maintaining the privacy of personal data owners and protecting their rights by defining the obligations of the controllers and processors regarding transfers of personal data outside the Kingdom.

General terms and conditions:

A) All the materials and information available at the portal is for education and do not seek profit.

B) The Arabic language is the main language for the portal usage and benefit from all the materials published at them, and translating any of these materials aims at presenting an additional service. Hence, you cannot depend on the available translation to interpret any dispute on what the portal includes with regard to content

C) All the regulations and laws published at the portal whether they are related to the Ministry of Commerce or other bodies may get subjected to translation to interpret its meanings with the aim of increasing its benefit.

D) The portal includes a number of electronic channels and participation tools such as forums, questionnaires, comments on all what is published, blogging, voting, visitors' comments, subscription, SMS, and free-toll telephone lines around the clock.

E) The Portal Administration set a number of measures and restrictions related to the usage of electronic participation channels in a way that guarantees the highest desired benefit in terms of the electronic participation. And using these channels is a permanent acceptance to the measures and restrictions related to its usage.

F) The Ministry of Commerce has full right to delete or not to publish any comments or participations for the portal's users, seen by the Portal Administration as inappropriate.

G) You can have a look on all the measures and restrictions of electronic participation channels via this page.

H) In case there are any inquiries or opinions on the privacy and disclaim terms, you can communicate with the Portal Administration through the Contact Us form at Contact us page.

1. Usage of the Ministry of Commerce portal:

2. Restrictions on usage