Privacy Policy

Last updated: May 2026 | AutoQualified — a Cognis Systems product

1. Who We Are

AutoQualified is operated by Cognis Systems, a company based in British Columbia, Canada. We operate the website autoqualified.ca (the "Platform"), which helps Canadian vehicle buyers access manufacturer incentive information and connects qualified buyers with licensed automotive dealer partners.

For privacy inquiries, contact us at: privacy@autoqualified.ca

2. Our Commitment to Your Privacy

AutoQualified is committed to protecting your personal information in accordance with the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA), the Canada Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL), and applicable provincial privacy laws including British Columbia's Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA).

We collect only what is necessary, use it only for stated purposes, and never sell your personal information to third parties outside our licensed dealer network (to which you have explicitly consented).

3. Personal Information We Collect

We may collect the following categories of personal information through our Platform:

Contact Information: First name, last name, email address, and phone number — collected at Stage 1 (initial form submission).

Vehicle Interest Information: Vehicle make, model, trim, condition preference (new or used), purchase method (finance, lease, or cash), and purchase timeline — collected at Stage 2.

Trade-In Information: Year, make, model, odometer reading, and general condition of a vehicle you may wish to trade in — collected at Stage 3, if applicable.

Financial Preference Information: Desired monthly payment range, available down payment, and general credit score range — collected at Stage 4. This is not a credit application and does not result in a credit inquiry.

Technical Information: IP address, browser type, device type, pages visited, and form interaction data — collected automatically for security, fraud prevention, and analytics purposes.

Communication Records: Records of AI voice calls, chat interactions, and email communications with AutoQualified — retained for compliance purposes as described in Section 7.

4. How We Use Your Information

We use your personal information for the following purposes:

To provide you with personalized Canadian manufacturer incentive information
To contact you by phone (including via AI voice agent), SMS, and email regarding vehicle programs you expressed interest in
To match your profile with appropriate licensed dealer partners in your province
To deliver your lead profile to dealer partners you have consented to be connected with
To optimize our services, improve AI agent performance, and measure advertising effectiveness
To comply with our legal obligations under PIPEDA, CASL, and applicable provincial laws
To detect and prevent fraud, unauthorized access, and security incidents

We will not use your personal information for any purpose not listed above without obtaining your explicit consent first.

5. AI Voice and Chat Interactions

AutoQualified uses artificial intelligence (AI) technology for outbound voice calls and chat interactions. Every AI interaction begins with a disclosure that you are speaking with an AI agent, not a human.

AI voice calls to you are made using VAPI technology. These calls may be recorded and transcribed for quality assurance, compliance auditing, and service improvement purposes. Call transcripts are stored securely and retained for a minimum of 7 years as required by our compliance obligations.

If you do not wish to receive AI calls or any further communications from AutoQualified, you may opt out at any time by:

Telling the AI agent "please remove me" or "do not contact me again" during any call
Replying STOP to any SMS message
Emailing privacy@autoqualified.ca

All opt-out requests are processed within 10 business days.

6. Sharing Your Information

We do not sell your personal information. We share your information only in the following circumstances:

Licensed Dealer Partners: When you complete our qualification form and provide explicit consent, your lead profile (contact information, vehicle interest, financial preferences, and credit tier) will be shared with licensed automotive dealer partners in our network. You will be informed of this sharing before it occurs. Dealers in our network are contractually required to comply with applicable privacy laws and to use your information only for the purpose of contacting you about vehicle purchasing.

Service Providers: We use trusted third-party service providers to operate our Platform, including cloud infrastructure, CRM, and communication tools. These providers operate under data processing agreements that restrict their use of your data to service delivery only. Key providers include:

GoHighLevel — CRM and pipeline management
Supabase — Secure database hosting
VAPI — AI voice call infrastructure
Netlify — Website hosting
Meta Platforms and Google — Advertising measurement (hashed, anonymized data only)

Legal Requirements: We may disclose your information when required by law, court order, or government authority, or when necessary to protect the rights, property, or safety of AutoQualified, our users, or the public.

7. Data Retention

We retain personal information for the following periods:

Lead records: 3 years from date of collection or last interaction
AI call recordings and transcripts: 7 years (compliance requirement)
Consent records (CASL): 3 years following the withdrawal of consent
Technical logs: 90 days, then anonymized

After these periods, personal information is securely deleted or anonymized. You may request earlier deletion of your data by contacting us (see Section 10), subject to our legal retention obligations.

8. Credit Information

AutoQualified does not perform credit bureau inquiries without your explicit consent. The credit range you provide on our form is self-reported and used only to match you with appropriate dealer partners — it is not a credit application and does not affect your credit score.

Any formal credit application or bureau inquiry is handled directly by licensed dealer partners through Dealertrack or RouteOne, with your separate written consent, and is governed by the dealer's own privacy policies and applicable federal lending regulations.

9. Security

AutoQualified implements the following security measures to protect your personal information:

All data transmitted between your browser and our servers is encrypted using TLS
Personally identifiable information is hashed (SHA-256) before transmission to advertising platforms
Database access is restricted using Row Level Security policies
API credentials are rotated regularly and never exposed in client-side code
All AI agent interactions are screened for prompt injection attempts
Personal information is never stored in plain text in system logs

No system is completely immune to security risks. If you believe your information has been compromised, contact us immediately at privacy@autoqualified.ca.

10. Your Rights Under PIPEDA

You have the following rights regarding your personal information held by AutoQualified:

Access: Request a copy of the personal information we hold about you
Correction: Request correction of inaccurate or incomplete information
Withdrawal of consent: Withdraw your consent to collection, use, or sharing at any time (subject to legal and contractual restrictions)
Deletion: Request deletion of your personal information, subject to our legal retention obligations
Complaint: File a complaint with the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada at priv.gc.ca

To exercise any of these rights, contact us in writing at privacy@autoqualified.ca. We will respond within 30 days.

11. Cookies and Tracking

AutoQualified uses tracking technologies including cookies, browser storage, and server-side conversion tracking for the following purposes:

Analytics: Understanding how visitors use our Platform (anonymous)
Advertising measurement: Measuring the effectiveness of our advertising campaigns via Meta (Facebook/Instagram) and Google Ads — using hashed, anonymized data transmitted server-side only
Session management: Maintaining your form progress across steps

Conversion events (form submissions) are transmitted server-side only — we do not fire conversion tracking pixels directly from your browser. This minimizes the personal data transmitted to advertising platforms.

12. Children's Privacy

AutoQualified is not directed at individuals under the age of 18. We do not knowingly collect personal information from minors. If you believe a minor has submitted information through our Platform, contact us immediately and we will delete it.

13. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Material changes will be communicated by updating the "Last updated" date at the top of this page and, where appropriate, by direct notification to affected users. Continued use of the Platform after changes constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

14. Contact Us

For any privacy-related questions, requests, or complaints:

AutoQualified | Cognis Systems

British Columbia, Canada

Email: privacy@autoqualified.ca

General inquiries: info@autoqualified.ca

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