Applicant Privacy Notice

01 Scope and responsible entity

This notice applies to applications for employment, contract work, internships, and other work opportunities; recruitment inquiries and referrals; interviews; assessments; and related hiring communications. It supplements ADCO's general Privacy Policy. Additional notices may apply to a particular country, assessment, or hiring activity and will identify any additional processing or protections.

The ADCO entity determining the purposes and means of the recruitment activity is responsible for that processing. ADCO AI LLC administers its own recruitment and relevant group coordination. The prospective employing or engaging entity is identified in the role information, recruitment communications, or offer. Corporate affiliation does not make every ADCO entity your employer or permit unrestricted access to your application. Contact privacy@adcohq.com for assistance identifying the responsible entity.

If you join ADCO, necessary information may move into your personnel or contractor record. Applicable workforce notices explain ongoing employment administration, compensation, benefits, access, and workplace processing. This notice does not constitute an offer or guarantee of work.

02 Information you provide

Depending on the role and stage, we handle your name, contact details, location, professional website or profile, resume, education, training, qualifications, certifications, languages, skills, employment history, availability, and lawful compensation expectations. Applications may also include cover messages, work samples, portfolios, references, and information you choose to provide about your suitability.

We handle correspondence, scheduling details, interview notes, assessment responses, results, reviewer observations, and hiring decisions. Identity and eligibility information may be requested at the appropriate stage to establish lawful working eligibility or prepare an engagement. Bank details and payroll documentation belong in the authorized onboarding process, rather than an initial public application.

We explain which requested information is necessary and which is optional. If information essential to evaluating a requirement or meeting a legal obligation is unavailable, we may be unable to complete that part of the process. Declining unrelated optional information does not, by itself, justify adverse treatment.

03 Other sources and technical information

We may receive relevant information from recruiters, referrals, references you nominate, assessment providers, and professional sources you identify or make publicly available. We may verify relevant qualifications or employment information through authorized sources where lawful. We do not treat public availability as permission for unrestricted collection of private-life information.

Application systems may generate submission timestamps, Internet Protocol addresses, browser and device details, access records, and diagnostic or security information. These records support reliable submission, troubleshooting, and protection against abuse. Our Cookies Policy explains relevant website technologies and choices.

When information is obtained indirectly, we provide information about the source, categories, and intended use within the period required by applicable law, unless a lawful exception applies. Please ensure references know that you have provided their contact details for recruitment.

04 Recruitment purposes

We use applicant information to receive and administer applications; communicate about opportunities; arrange interviews and assessments; assess relevant skills, experience, and suitability; check information where lawful; make and communicate recruitment decisions; prepare offers; and complete necessary hiring administration.

Related uses include arranging reasonable accommodations, meeting employment and equality obligations, maintaining decision records, protecting the recruitment process against impersonation or misuse, resolving complaints, and establishing, exercising, or defending legal claims. Access to information for these activities is limited according to the purpose.

Submitting an application does not enroll you in marketing or authorize publication of your resume, sale of your information, or use of your application and assessment materials to train general-purpose AI models. We do not sell applicant information or share it for cross-context behavioral advertising. Any materially different proposed use requires a valid basis and further notice or permission where required.

05 Legal grounds

Where a legal basis is required, we identify it for the relevant purpose. Taking steps you request toward a potential employment or contractor agreement may rely on contractual necessity. Assessing candidates, administering recruitment, preventing misuse, and protecting legal rights may rely on legitimate interests where necessary and where applicants' rights and interests do not override those interests.

Applicable employment, equality, immigration, recordkeeping, and other obligations may require particular processing. We rely on consent where required or appropriate for a genuinely optional activity, such as a separately offered talent pool or recording permission. Consent must be specific and freely given; an application is not blanket consent for every use.

You may withdraw consent for future processing without affecting earlier lawful processing. We explain any resulting impact on the particular optional activity. Sensitive information requires an additional legal condition where applicable, beyond an ordinary legal basis. Contact us for the basis relevant to your circumstances.

06 Sensitive information and accommodations

Please do not include unnecessary government identifiers, financial-account details, health records, family medical history, or other sensitive information in an initial application. If sensitive information is necessary, we explain the specific purpose, applicable requirement, and appropriate submission channel before requesting it.

Requests for an accommodation are handled confidentially and limited to information needed to arrange an accessible recruitment process. Health or disability information is not used to exclude an applicant unlawfully and is restricted from ordinary assessment records where appropriate. Medical inquiries and examinations are subject to the stage and conditions permitted by local law.

Where lawful equality monitoring is undertaken, we explain whether answers are voluntary and limit use to the disclosed monitoring or legal purpose. Information about protected characteristics must not be used to discriminate. Providing a photograph or voice recording does not, by itself, authorize biometric identification or an inference about sensitive characteristics.

07 Verification and background checks

Any verification or background screening must be lawful, relevant to the role, proportionate, and conducted at an appropriate stage. Criminal-record, credit, medical, or other restricted checks are not authorized merely by submitting an application. Required notices, permissions, and additional safeguards must be provided before a check begins.

Where a U.S. employment consumer report is used, the applicable separate disclosure, written authorization, and pre-adverse and adverse-action procedures apply. This notice does not replace those documents. Applicants receive the opportunity to address inaccurate or incomplete information as required by law. Checks must not be selectively applied on a discriminatory basis.

08 Assessments, interviews, and AI tools

Assessments are intended to evaluate skills relevant to the opportunity, such as following instructions, reasoning, communication, accuracy, and quality review. We explain material assessment requirements and any permitted use of external tools. Applicants should use only materials they are authorized to share and should not include confidential client or former-employer information.

Our recruitment standard requires meaningful human consideration for hiring decisions. Automated scores or AI assistance must be assessed for relevance, reliability, and unfair bias, and must not substitute for the required human review. Applicant information must not be submitted to unapproved public AI tools or personal accounts.

Profiling or automated assistance in recruitment requires a lawful basis, appropriate transparency, and the safeguards required in the relevant jurisdiction before use. ADCO's hiring decisions must retain meaningful human consideration; automation does not replace that requirement. Applicants receive applicable information about the decision process and consequences and available routes to human intervention, to express their views, and to challenge a decision. Interview recording requires prior disclosure and any legally required permission.

09 Who receives applicant information

Authorized recruitment staff, relevant managers, assessors, and participating ADCO entities may receive information needed for the hiring activity. Providers supporting application hosting, communications, assessments, storage, and recruitment administration receive access only for authorized services and subject to appropriate confidentiality, security, and data-use restrictions.

Professional advisers and authorities may receive necessary information for legal advice, compliance, or a valid legal process. Necessary records may also be involved in a corporate transaction, subject to appropriate confidentiality and privacy protections.

For a role involving client selection or assignment, any disclosure of an identifiable candidate profile or assessment to a client must have a specific recruitment purpose and valid basis. We explain the relevant disclosure and obtain permission where required. A client does not receive unrestricted access to ADCO applicant files. We limit shared profiles to the information needed for the stated evaluation.

10 International processing

ADCO operates in the United States and Ethiopia. Authorized recruitment personnel and providers may process applicant information in those countries and other locations relevant to their services. Access from another country may constitute an international transfer even if the information remains stored in its original location.

Where a transfer is restricted by law, a permitted transfer mechanism and necessary safeguards must be in place. Depending on the transfer, these may include an applicable adequacy decision, approved contractual clauses, a UK transfer agreement or addendum, and required assessments or additional protections. Submitting an application does not waive transfer protections. Contact us for information about relevant locations or a copy or description of applicable safeguards, subject to lawful redactions.

11 Retention and future opportunities

Recruitment information is retained while an application is active and for the period needed to document the outcome and satisfy applicable recordkeeping, complaint, or legal-claim requirements. The appropriate period depends on the hiring jurisdiction, role, decision, information sensitivity, and relevant legal obligations or limitation periods.

Keeping a profile for future opportunities requires a disclosed purpose, valid basis, and a defined retention period or meaningful criteria. We explain the arrangement when offering it and respect applicable objections or withdrawal of consent. Unspecified possible future usefulness does not justify indefinite retention.

When information is no longer required, it must be securely deleted or genuinely anonymized. A legal hold is limited to necessary records and reviewed when its reason ends. Backup copies remain protected from ordinary use and expire through the relevant backup lifecycle. Contact us for the retention period or criteria applicable to your application.

12 Security and confidentiality

Applicant information is subject to administrative, technical, organizational, and physical safeguards appropriate to its sensitivity and risks. Our standards require authorized access, confidentiality, approved systems, secure transfer, proportionate access review, and appropriate disposal. Providers must protect information entrusted to them for recruitment support.

No system can guarantee complete security. Report a suspected recruitment privacy incident to privacy@adcohq.com, including only the details needed to identify the issue. Do not send passwords or unnecessary identity documents. We assess incidents and make required notifications according to applicable law and our responsibilities.

13 Your rights and choices

Depending on applicable law, you may request confirmation and access, a copy of your information, correction, deletion, restriction, or portability. You may also object to processing based on legitimate interests, withdraw consent, and exercise applicable rights concerning significant automated decisions. Rights are subject to lawful conditions and exceptions, including necessary legal retention and the rights of other individuals.

Send requests to privacy@adcohq.com and identify the role or recruitment interaction concerned. We seek only verification reasonably necessary for the request and do not require an account solely to exercise a right. An authorized representative may act where permitted. We respond within applicable statutory periods and explain any permitted extension or refusal.

You may challenge our response by contacting the same address with 'Privacy Appeal' in the subject line. You may also complain directly to a competent privacy authority or regulator without contacting ADCO first. Exercising privacy rights must not result in unlawful discrimination or retaliation.

14 Contact and changes

For applicant privacy questions, requests, concerns, or assistance identifying the responsible ADCO entity, contact ADCO AI LLC at privacy@adcohq.com. This contact also routes matters to the participating subsidiary or affiliated entity responsible for the recruitment activity. An accessible copy of this notice is available on request.

We review this notice when recruitment practices or applicable requirements change. Revisions are made available through the website, and material changes receive additional notice where required. A revised notice does not retrospectively authorize incompatible uses or remove existing rights.