Privacy Policy

Last updated: December 1, 2025

Our Commitment to Data Protection

At Phongsali Silence, we understand that trust forms the foundation of meaningful relationships—whether connecting collectors with ancient tea trees or partnering with communities who steward these resources. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, protect, and respect your personal information.

We believe in transparency about data practices and give you control over your information. This policy applies to all interactions with our website and services, and we are committed to upholding the highest standards of data protection.

Information We Collect

Information You Provide Directly

When you interact with our services, you may choose to provide:

• Contact Information: Name, email address, phone number when you submit inquiries through our contact forms
• Professional Details: Information about your tea collecting interests, business affiliations, or conservation goals
• Communication Content: Messages, questions, and preferences shared during correspondence
• Service Requests: Details about specific tea materials, partnerships, or consultation needs

Information Collected Automatically

When you visit our website, we may collect:

• Technical Data: IP address, browser type, operating system, device information
• Usage Information: Pages visited, time spent on site, navigation patterns, referral sources
• Cookie Data: Information stored through cookies and similar technologies (see our Cookie Policy for details)

Legal Basis for Processing

We process your personal data based on: your explicit consent when you submit forms or accept cookies, legitimate business interests in maintaining our operations and improving services, contractual necessity when fulfilling service agreements, and compliance with legal obligations where applicable.

How We Use Your Information

Service Delivery: We use your information to respond to inquiries, coordinate tea sourcing services, facilitate partnerships, and provide consultation on aging practices. Your contact details enable us to communicate about availability, documentation, and logistics.

Relationship Building: Understanding your interests helps us match you with appropriate materials and opportunities. Professional details allow us to tailor communications to your specific needs, whether you're a collector, business, or conservation partner.

Website Improvement: Analytics data helps us understand how visitors engage with our content, which pages are most valuable, and where we can enhance the user experience. This information guides decisions about content, design, and functionality.

Marketing Communications: With your consent, we may send information about new materials, harvest updates, or conservation initiatives. You can opt out of marketing communications at any time while continuing to receive service-related messages.

Legal Compliance: We may use and retain information as required by law, to enforce our terms, protect our rights, or respond to legal processes.

Information Sharing and Disclosure

Community Partners: When coordinating sourcing or conservation projects, we may share relevant details with harvesting families or community organizations in Laos. This sharing is limited to information necessary for fulfilling service requests.

Service Providers: We work with trusted third-party services for website hosting, email communication, and analytics. These providers access personal data only as needed to perform their functions and are contractually obligated to protect it.

Business Transfers: In the event of a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets, personal information may be transferred to the new entity, with continued protection under this privacy policy or an equivalent.

Legal Requirements: We may disclose information when required by law, court order, or governmental request, or when necessary to protect our rights, your safety, or the safety of others.

With Your Consent: We may share information in other circumstances with your explicit permission.

How We Protect Your Data

Security Measures: We implement industry-standard security practices to protect personal information from unauthorized access, alteration, disclosure, or destruction. This includes secure data transmission, encrypted storage, and access controls.

Data Minimization: We collect only the information necessary for our stated purposes and retain it only as long as needed. Unnecessary data is regularly reviewed and deleted.

Access Controls: Personal information is accessible only to authorized personnel who require it for their work. Our team is trained on data protection principles and confidentiality obligations.

Monitoring and Updates: We regularly review our security practices and update them to address emerging threats and evolving best practices in data protection.

Breach Notification: In the unlikely event of a data breach affecting your personal information, we will notify you and relevant authorities as required by applicable law.

Data Retention

We retain personal information for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes outlined in this policy, unless a longer retention period is required by law. Specific retention periods depend on the type of information and our relationship with you.

• Inquiry Data: Contact form submissions are retained for up to two years unless you become an active client
• Client Information: Data related to ongoing relationships is retained for the duration of the relationship plus applicable legal periods
• Analytics Data: Aggregated and anonymized usage data may be retained indefinitely for statistical purposes

Your Privacy Rights

Right to Access: You can request a copy of the personal information we hold about you, including details about how it's being processed.

Right to Rectification: If you believe any information we have about you is inaccurate or incomplete, you can request corrections.

Right to Erasure: You can request deletion of your personal data, subject to certain exceptions (such as legal retention requirements or legitimate business needs).

Right to Data Portability: You can request your personal information in a structured, commonly used format that can be transferred to another service provider.

Right to Object: You can object to processing of your personal data for marketing purposes or where processing is based on legitimate interests.

Right to Restrict Processing: You can request that we limit how we use your information in certain circumstances.

Right to Withdraw Consent: Where processing is based on consent, you can withdraw that consent at any time, though this won't affect processing that occurred before withdrawal.

Exercising Your Rights: To exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the information provided on this page or through our contact page. We will respond to your request within a reasonable timeframe and as required by applicable law.

Your Rights and Opt-Out Instructions

You are not required to provide any personal information when using this website. If you prefer not to share your data, you may:

• Avoid filling out contact forms, account registrations, or any data-submitting features
• Disable cookies through your browser settings (see our Cookie Policy for more details)
• Contact us directly to request the deletion of any previously shared personal data

We respect your privacy choices. If you would like us to delete your data, please reach out to us at the contact details provided above. We will process your request promptly and in accordance with applicable data protection laws.

Third-Party Websites

Our website may contain links to external sites not operated by us. We have no control over and assume no responsibility for the content, privacy policies, or practices of third-party websites. We encourage you to review the privacy policy of any site you visit through our links.

Children's Privacy

Our services are not directed to individuals under the age of 18. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe we have inadvertently collected information from a minor, please contact us immediately so we can delete it.

International Data Transfers

Our operations are based in Laos, and your information may be transferred to and processed in countries outside your residence. These countries may have different data protection laws than your jurisdiction.

When we transfer data internationally, we ensure appropriate safeguards are in place to protect your information in accordance with this privacy policy and applicable law.

Updates to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy periodically to reflect changes in our practices, technology, legal requirements, or other factors. We will post the updated version on this page with a revised "Last updated" date. For material changes, we may provide additional notice such as email notification or a prominent website announcement. Your continued use of our services after changes take effect constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.