This notice explains what personal information Whew collects when you use getwhew.ca, why we collect it, who we share it with and how you can reach us about it. Whew is an Alberta business and this notice is written to meet Alberta's Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA) and, where it applies, the federal Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA).
We collect only what the service needs. We do not buy personal information about you, and we do not sell it.
If this option is available, you can choose to keep a temporary copy of an unfinished job request in this browser tab so you can restore it after a refresh. It is off until you turn it on. The copy contains your job description, postal code, preferred timing and category hint, together with an expiry time, format version, a retry identifier and an account identifier or signed-out marker used to check whether restoration is allowed. It does not contain your name, email address, photos, sign-in credentials or answers to follow-up questions. You must select photos again after a refresh.
This copy uses your browser's session storage. Whew does not encrypt this browser copy: scripts running on Whew's website can access it, and someone using the same browser session may be able to access it. Avoid this option on a shared device and do not include sensitive information in your description. Keeping the browser copy does not by itself send those copied fields to Whew's servers. Continuing to save your job uses the service's normal submission process.
The copy is available for recovery for up to 30 minutes from when you turn the option on. Editing or restoring does not extend that period. When the page runs, Whew rejects expired copies and attempts to remove them; an active tab also attempts removal at expiry. This is a recovery time limit, not a guarantee that stored bytes are deleted at that instant: a suspended or restored browser session may retain them until Whew's code next runs.
You can use Remove copy or Discard to remove it without saving a job. Whew also attempts to remove the copy when it cannot confirm the matching account or signed-out state, when that state changes, or when the corresponding saved job page is reached. A signed-out copy is not transferred to a signed-in account. Restoring requires your choice and a matching identity check; it does not replace details you have already started typing. This option is limited to the browser tab and does not offer cross-device recovery. If your browser blocks storage, you can continue without a recovery copy. Clearing this browser copy does not delete a job you have already saved with Whew.
By creating an account you consent to the collection, use and disclosure described here. Marketing email is separate: we send it only if you opt in, and every such email carries a way to stop. Service emails about your own jobs, quotes and bookings are not marketing and are sent as long as your account is open.
We keep personal information only as long as we reasonably need it for the purposes above and to meet legal obligations — records of bookings and payments are kept for the period tax and consumer law require. Credential documents are kept for the period stated in the credential custody notice and then destroyed. When you close your account we delete or de-identify what we no longer need.
You may ask to see the personal information we hold about you, and ask us to correct it. Write to the contact below; we answer within 45 days as PIPA requires. If you are not satisfied with our answer, you may complain to the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Alberta (oipc.ab.ca).
Information held in Whew's service systems is encrypted in transit and at rest. The optional browser-tab copy described above is not encrypted by Whew. Access inside Whew is limited to what each role needs, and every change to a booking or payment record is logged. No system is perfectly secure; if a breach creates a real risk of significant harm to you, we will tell you and the Commissioner as the law requires.
If we change this notice we will publish the new version at getwhew.ca/legal/privacy_notice with its effective date; your account records which version you accepted. Whew's Privacy Officer — the founder — is the person responsible for privacy at Whew and the person who can answer your questions about how our service providers outside Canada handle your information; reach them at support@getwhew.ca.