Your Privacy
Matters

Introduction

Thank you for your interest in the Afghanistan Justice Archive.

The Afghanistan Justice Archive (“AJA”, “we”, “us” or “our”) is an independent, not-for-profit initiative. We respect your privacy and are committed to handling personal information responsibly, securely and transparently.

This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store and disclose personal information relating to visitors and users of our website and associated services.

This includes afghanistanjustice.org and any other AJA-owned or managed websites that link to this Privacy Policy, collectively referred to as the “AJA Services”.

Please read this Privacy Policy carefully to understand how we handle your personal information when you use the AJA Services.

Who Is Responsible for Your Information?

The Afghanistan Justice Archive is responsible for determining how and why personal information collected through the AJA Services is used.

For questions about this Privacy Policy or the way we handle your personal information, contact us at:

Afghanistan Justice Archive
Email: hello@afghanistanjustice.org

Information We Collect

The information we collect depends on how you interact with the AJA Services.

Information You Provide Directly

We may collect information that you provide when you:

  • Subscribe to our newsletter or other email communications
  • Complete or submit a form through our website
  • Contact us by email or through another communication channel
  • Submit an enquiry, request or comment
  • Participate in an event, consultation or other AJA activity

This information may include:

  • Your name
  • Your email address
  • Your organisation or professional role
  • Your communication preferences
  • Information included in correspondence you send to us
  • Any other information you choose to provide

Please do not provide sensitive or confidential personal information through general website forms unless we have specifically requested it and explained how it will be handled.

Information Collected Automatically

When you access or use our website, certain technical information may be collected automatically.

This may include:

  • Your IP address
  • Your browser type and version
  • Your device type and operating system
  • The pages you visit
  • The date and time of your visit
  • The website or link that referred you to our website
  • General information about how you interact with the website
  • Cookie identifiers and similar technical information

Some of this information may be collected using cookies or similar technologies.

Information From Other Sources

We may receive limited information from third parties where it is lawful and appropriate to do so.

This may include information from:

  • Organisations or individuals working with AJA
  • Event organisers or project partners
  • Social media platforms where you interact with AJA
  • Publicly available professional or organisational sources
  • Service providers that support the operation of our website and communications

We will only use information obtained from other sources where we have an appropriate lawful basis and where its use would be reasonable and proportionate.

How We Use Your Information

We may use personal information to:

  • Provide, maintain and administer the AJA Services
  • Respond to enquiries, requests and correspondence
  • Send newsletters and other communications where you have agreed to receive them
  • Provide information about archive records, publications, research, events and related work
  • Manage event registrations, consultations or other activities
  • Understand how visitors use our website
  • Improve the accessibility, performance and effectiveness of our website
  • Protect the security and integrity of the AJA Services
  • Prevent misuse, fraud or other unlawful activity
  • Maintain records relating to consent and communication preferences
  • Comply with legal and regulatory requirements
  • Establish, exercise or defend legal rights
  • Fulfil another purpose explained to you when your information is collected

We may also aggregate or anonymise information so that it can no longer reasonably be used to identify an individual. We may use anonymised or aggregated information for research, reporting, analysis and service improvement.

Our Lawful Bases for Processing

We only process personal information where we have an appropriate lawful basis.

Depending on the circumstances, we may rely on:

Consent

We may rely on your consent where you have made a clear and voluntary choice, such as when you subscribe to our newsletter.

You may withdraw your consent at any time.

Legitimate Interests

We may process information where it is necessary for our legitimate interests or those of another organisation, provided those interests are not overridden by your rights and interests.

These interests may include:

  • Operating and improving the AJA Services
  • Responding to professional or organisational enquiries
  • Maintaining the security of our website
  • Understanding how our services are used
  • Communicating with relevant organisations and professional contacts
  • Supporting AJA’s research, archival and public-interest work

Where we rely on legitimate interests, we consider whether the processing is necessary, proportionate and reasonably expected.

Legal Obligations

We may process information where necessary to comply with a legal or regulatory obligation.

Performance of a Contract

In limited circumstances, we may need to process information to enter into or fulfil an agreement with you.

Public Interest

Where applicable, we may process information where it is necessary for a task carried out in the public interest and where an appropriate legal basis exists.

Email Newsletters and Communications

When you subscribe to the Afghanistan Justice Archive newsletter, we may collect your email address, your name if you choose to provide it, your subscription preferences, the date and source of your subscription, and a record of your consent.

We use this information to:

  • Send you newsletters and updates about the Afghanistan Justice Archive
  • Share information about archive records, publications, research, events and related work
  • Manage your subscription and communication preferences
  • Understand how our newsletters are used and improve our communications
  • Maintain appropriate records of consent and unsubscribe requests

We send newsletters on the basis of your consent. You provide this consent when you voluntarily subscribe through our website or another Afghanistan Justice Archive subscription form.

You can withdraw your consent at any time by selecting the unsubscribe link included in every newsletter or by contacting us at hello@afghanistanjustice.org.

We use EmailOctopus to manage our mailing list and distribute our newsletters. Information provided when you subscribe may therefore be processed by EmailOctopus on our behalf. This may include your email address, subscription status and information about how you interact with our newsletters.

Our newsletters may contain tracking technologies that allow us to understand whether an email has been opened or a link has been selected. We use this information to assess the effectiveness of our communications and improve future newsletters.

We do not sell, rent or trade our mailing list.

We retain your information for as long as you remain subscribed. When you unsubscribe, we may retain limited information, including your email address and unsubscribe status, on a suppression list so that we can respect your request and avoid contacting you again by mistake.

Existing Contacts

We will not automatically treat someone as a newsletter subscriber solely because we have previously corresponded with them or hold their details in a professional contacts database.

Where consent is required, we will only add an individual to our newsletter mailing list where they have agreed to receive those communications.

In certain circumstances, we may contact professional or organisational addresses where the communication is relevant to the recipient’s role and where doing so is permitted by applicable law.

All newsletter communications will clearly identify AJA and provide a straightforward way to unsubscribe.

How We Share Your Information

We do not sell or rent personal information.

We may share personal information with trusted service providers that help us operate the AJA Services.

These may include providers of:

  • Website hosting and maintenance
  • Email newsletter distribution
  • Website analytics
  • Cybersecurity and technical support
  • Online forms and database management
  • Cloud storage and collaboration tools
  • Professional, legal or administrative support

These providers may only use personal information as necessary to provide their services to us and must handle it in accordance with applicable data-protection requirements.

We may also disclose information:

  • Where required by law, regulation or a valid legal process
  • To protect the rights, safety or security of AJA, its users or others
  • To investigate suspected misuse, fraud or unlawful activity
  • In connection with a restructuring, transfer or change in the administration of AJA
  • Where you have specifically agreed to the disclosure

Cookies and Similar Technologies

Our website may use cookies and similar technologies to operate properly, remember preferences, understand website usage and improve the user experience.

Cookies are small text files placed on your device when you visit a website.

Essential Cookies

Essential cookies are necessary for the website to function or to provide a service you have requested. These may be placed without your consent where permitted by law.

Analytics and Other Non-Essential Cookies

We may use analytics cookies to understand how visitors interact with our website. This may include information about pages visited, time spent on the website, general location and device or browser type.

Where required by law, we will ask for your consent before placing analytics or other non-essential cookies.

You can accept, reject or manage non-essential cookies through the cookie controls provided on our website, where available.

You can also control cookies through your browser settings. Blocking some cookies may affect the way certain parts of the website function.

Further information about the cookies used by the AJA Services may be provided in a separate Cookie Policy or through our website’s cookie settings.

Third-Party Links and Embedded Content

The AJA Services may contain links to websites, services or resources operated by third parties.

Our website may also include embedded content such as videos, maps, social media posts or documents. Embedded content may allow the relevant third party to collect technical information or place cookies on your device.

We do not control the privacy or cookie practices of third-party websites and services. We encourage you to review their privacy policies before providing personal information or interacting with their content.

International Data Transfers

Some of the service providers we use may process or store personal information outside the United Kingdom.

The data-protection laws in those locations may differ from those in the United Kingdom.

Where personal information is transferred internationally, we take reasonable steps to ensure that the transfer is made in accordance with applicable data-protection law and that appropriate safeguards are in place.

These safeguards may include:

  • Transfers to countries formally recognised as providing an adequate level of protection
  • Approved contractual safeguards
  • Other lawful transfer mechanisms available under applicable data-protection law

You may contact us for more information about the safeguards that apply to your personal information.

How We Protect Your Information

We use reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect personal information against:

  • Unauthorised access
  • Unlawful use or disclosure
  • Accidental loss
  • Destruction
  • Alteration
  • Misuse

These measures may include access controls, secure systems, restricted administrative access, software updates and appropriate arrangements with service providers.

However, no website, storage system or method of electronic transmission can be guaranteed to be completely secure.

Please contact us promptly if you believe that personal information associated with AJA has been lost, misused or compromised.

How Long We Keep Your Information

We retain personal information only for as long as reasonably necessary for the purpose for which it was collected.

The appropriate retention period may depend on:

  • The nature of the information
  • The purpose for which it is used
  • Whether you remain subscribed to a service
  • Our legal, regulatory and operational obligations
  • The need to establish, exercise or defend legal rights
  • Security and fraud-prevention requirements

When personal information is no longer required, we will delete it, anonymise it or securely restrict its use.

Where you unsubscribe from email communications, we may retain your email address on a suppression list to ensure that we continue to respect your request.

Your Rights

Depending on your location and the laws that apply, you may have the right to:

  • Ask whether we hold personal information about you
  • Request a copy of your personal information
  • Ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete information
  • Ask us to delete your personal information
  • Ask us to restrict the use of your information
  • Object to certain uses of your information
  • Withdraw your consent at any time
  • Request the transfer of certain information in a portable format
  • Complain to a relevant data-protection authority

You have the right to object at any time to the use of your personal information for direct marketing.

These rights may be subject to legal limitations or exemptions. We may need to verify your identity before fulfilling a request.

To exercise your rights, contact us at hello@afghanistanjustice.org.

We will respond within the period required by applicable law.

Complaints

Please contact us first if you have a concern about the way we have handled your personal information. We will take your concern seriously and seek to resolve it.

You may also have the right to complain to the data-protection authority responsible for your location.

In the United Kingdom, this is the Information Commissioner’s Office.

Children’s Privacy

The AJA Services are not directed at children under the age of 16, and we do not knowingly collect personal information directly from children under 16 through our general website services.

If we become aware that personal information has been collected from a child inappropriately, we will take reasonable steps to delete or otherwise protect it.

A parent, guardian or other responsible person who believes that a child has provided us with personal information should contact us at hello@afghanistanjustice.org.

Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes to:

  • Our services and activities
  • The technologies we use
  • Our service providers
  • Our legal or regulatory obligations
  • Our information-handling practices

The latest version will be published on this page and identified by the “Last updated” date at the top.

Where appropriate, we may provide additional notice of significant changes.

Contact Us

For questions, concerns or requests relating to this Privacy Policy or your personal information, contact:

Afghanistan Justice Archive
Email: hello@afghanistanjustice.org