Effective Date: June 17, 2026
Welcome to the Cheddar mobile application (hereinafter referred to as "the App"). The App is operated by Cheddar (hereinafter referred to as "we", "us", or "our"). We understand the paramount importance of your personal information and are committed to protecting your privacy and data security in accordance with applicable laws.
As a customer, it is essential that you carefully read, understand, and accept all the terms and conditions outlined in this Privacy Policy. This Privacy Policy constitutes a legally binding agreement between you and Cheddar, governing how your personal information is collected, used, stored, shared, and protected when you access or use the products and services provided by Cheddar.
By clicking "Loan Registration", creating an account, submitting personal profiles, or initiating any transaction within the App, you acknowledge that you have fully read, understood, and agreed to the entire content of this Privacy Policy (hereinafter referred to as "this Policy"). If you do not agree with any part of this Policy, please immediately stop using our services and uninstall the App.
Cheddar collects personal information about you that may be provided directly by you (when you open an account to use our services through the App) or collected automatically when you use the App.
To accurately assess credit risks, prevent fraud, and determine loan limits, the App will collect the following information after obtaining your explicit authorization. All private data is encrypted using advanced security technologies and securely transmitted to our dedicated server: https://api.cheddar-app.com. Cheddar will never share the collected data with any third party without your prior consent.
All data processing operations strictly comply with applicable Nigerian data protection laws, including but not limited to the Nigeria Data Protection Act (NDPA), 2023. We always obtain explicit user consent before collecting any information, and we regularly review and update our privacy policy to ensure compliance and safeguard your data.
Scope of Collection: Device operating system, Android version, hardware serial number, Android ID, screen size, and other hardware-related technical specifications.
Core Purpose: To bind a unique and secure device to your loan account, preventing others from misappropriating your account and blocking automated mass-fraud attempted via device farms or emulators. This information is collected solely to uniquely identify the device and ensure unauthorized devices cannot operate on your behalf, thereby preventing fraud.
Scope of Collection: You grant us permission to access the SMS messages on your device. We only extract and analyze messages related to financial transactions (such as bank transaction alerts, repayment reminders, and credit line notifications).
Core Purpose: To evaluate your debt-to-income ratio and actual repayment capability, thereby speeding up the loan approval process. This data is used exclusively for risk assessment and analysis to expedite your loan application and enhance your borrowing experience.
Privacy Commitment: We utilize intelligent filtering algorithms and strictly do not read or collect your private social chats, general OTP verification codes, or any other non-financial messages. Collected SMS data will not be shared with any third party.
Scope of Collection: When you use the Cheddar App, we may request your explicit consent to access your approximate or coarse location. We only collect coarse geographical area data while the App is active and running in the foreground. We do not collect, nor do we require, your precise GPS track.
Core Purpose: To verify whether you are within the financial service coverage area of Nigeria, and to timely detect and block anomalies such as out-of-province logins or unauthorized network fraud. This data is strictly used for credit analysis, eligibility assessment, fraud prevention, and risk evaluation related to your loan application and network service usage.
Privacy Commitment: We will not disclose, sell, rent, transfer, or otherwise reveal your approximate or coarse location information to any third party. All location data collected is encrypted, securely transmitted, and stored. This information will never be used for commercial advertising.
Interaction Logic: We promise never to access, download, or back up the complete contact list or call logs natively stored on your phone system.
Collection Method: Upon your explicit consent, we may request you to provide alternative phone numbers or designate emergency contacts. The App provides text input fields only, relying entirely on you to voluntarily and manually enter the name and phone number of the alternative contacts. Please ensure you have obtained prior informed consent from the respective contacts before entering their details.
We process your personal information based on the necessity of providing credit services to you and fulfilling our legal obligations, which specifically include:
Identity Verification and Compliance: To identify your identity, complete user registration, and manage, maintain, or verify your account and credit standing (including performing necessary "Know Your Customer" (KYC) and anti-money laundering compliance checks prior to registration).
Credit Evaluation: To construct credit models and perform credit scoring to assess your loan eligibility and credit limit.
Service Management: To process loan disbursements, collect service payments, track repayment progress, and provide customer support.
Security & Defense: To monitor abnormal activities, prevent hacking attacks, and intercept illegal financial behaviors.
Marketing & Communication: To communicate with you and provide information regarding your use of the App; notify you of any updates to the App or changes in services (including interest rates, transaction fees, etc.); and respond to your inquiries and feedback.
Product Optimization: To develop, test, enhance, and personalize the App to better match your needs and preferences.
Security Standard: We employ industry-standard HTTPS/SSL protocols to encrypt all collected data and securely transmit it to our dedicated server at [https://api.cheddar-app.com](https://api.cheddar-app.com).
Encrypted Storage: Your data undergoes advanced encryption processing during storage to prevent unauthorized access, leakage, or tampering. We will never share your personal information with any third party without your explicit permission.
Retention Period: Identification info, loan agreements, and credit assessment data will be retained until the expiration of the relevant statute of limitations for legal proceedings to resolve potential legal claims.
Legal Compliance: In accordance with Nigerian laws (such as tax and anti-money laundering mandates), we are legally required to retain necessary transaction records within the statutory period even after you stop using Cheddar.
Eligibility Restriction: To comply with Cheddar's internal policies and data protection laws, you acknowledge that Cheddar and/or its partners will exclusively provide services to individuals who are at least eighteen (18) years of age and reside within the Federal Republic of Nigeria. You warrant that the information you provide to Cheddar is accurate and assume full responsibility for its accuracy.
In accordance with Nigerian data protection laws, you retain complete control and autonomy over your personal information and App usage data (by default, we only collect relevant data upon your explicit authorization). You possess the following rights:
(a) Request Correction: You may request the correction of any incomplete or inaccurate data held about you, though verification of the accuracy of the new data may be required.
(b) Request Deletion/Account Closure: You may directly contact our email customer service to request the cancellation and closure of your account, and demand the deletion of personal data that Cheddar has no legal justification to continue processing. Please note that certain legal obligations (such as the aforementioned statutory transaction records retention period required by Nigerian law) may prevent Cheddar from immediately fulfilling your entire deletion request.
(c) Object to Processing: You may object to the processing of your data based on legitimate interests. Under certain circumstances permitted by applicable laws, Cheddar may continue processing.
(d) Request Transfer: You may request the transmission of your personal data to you or a third party in a structured, machine-readable format.
(e) Withdraw Consent: You may withdraw your consent to data processing at any time; however, doing so may restrict your access to certain products or services.
Marketing Communications: We may send you marketing communications via the application, mail, phone calls, SMS, email, online chats, or push notifications regarding specific offers, promotions, or benefits provided by us, our partners, sponsors, or advertisers.
Unsubscribe: You may opt out of receiving such marketing communications at any time by clicking the "Unsubscribe" link within the messages or by contacting us through the contact channels provided below.
Important Notices: Even if you choose to unsubscribe from marketing communications, you will continue to receive non-promotional messages related to your account, loan transactions, and other critical matters (such as loan disbursement notifications or repayment receipts).
Our services are not directed to individuals under the age of 18. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 18.
If we discover that we have inadvertently collected personal information from a child under 18, we will take immediate steps to delete such information as quickly as possible.
You are responsible for safeguarding your account information and password. Cheddar assumes no responsibility or liability for any information you provide to unofficial links or platforms not operated by Cheddar.
By continuing to use our website or application and utilizing our products and services, you confirm that you have read, understood, and agreed to all the terms of this Privacy Policy, including any future amendments or updates. If you do not agree with any part of this Privacy Policy, we advise you to stop using our services immediately. Your continued use of our services will be deemed as your complete acceptance of our Privacy Policy, including any changes made in the future.
Cheddar reserves the right to modify this Privacy Policy at its sole discretion and will upload the amended version to the website/application. Your continued use of the services after such revisions indicates your agreement to abide by the modified terms.
If you do not agree to any amendments, you have the right to terminate this agreement by providing seven (7) days' prior written notice to Cheddar. For any questions or concerns, please contact Cheddar customer service.