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Privacy Policy

Preamble

With the following privacy policy we would like to inform you which types of your personal data (hereinafter also abbreviated as "data") we process for which purposes and in which scope. The privacy statement applies to all processing of personal data carried out by us, both in the context of providing our services and in particular on our websites, in mobile applications and within external online presences, such as our social media profiles (hereinafter collectively referred to as "online services").

The terms used are not gender-specific.

Last Update: 8. October 2021

Table of contents

Controller

CODE-ZERO BV
Uiterweg 153, 1431AD Aalsmeer
The Netherlands

Authorised Representatives: Marc Blees, Nico Heer.

E-mail address: ahoy@code-zero.com.

Overview of processing operations

The following table summarises the types of data processed, the purposes for which they are processed and the concerned data subjects.

Categories of Processed Data

  • Contact Information (Facebook) ("Contact Information" is data that (clearly) identifies data subjects, such as names, email addresses and phone numbers, that can be transmitted to Facebook, e.g. via Facebook pixels or uploads for matching purposes to form Custom Audiences; After the matching to create target groups, the Contact Information is deleted).
  • Inventory data (e.g. names, addresses).
  • Job applicant details (e.g. Personal data, postal and contact addresses and the documents pertaining to the application and the information contained therein, such as cover letter, curriculum vitae, certificates, etc., as well as other information on the person or qualifications of applicants provided with regard to a specific job or voluntarily by applicants).
  • Content data (e.g. text input, photographs, videos).
  • Contact data (e.g. e-mail, telephone numbers).
  • Meta/communication data (e.g. device information, IP addresses).
  • Usage data (e.g. websites visited, interest in content, access times).
  • Contract data (e.g. contract object, duration, customer category).
  • Payment Data (e.g. bank details, invoices, payment history).

Categories of Data Subjects

  • Employees (e.g. Employees, job applicants).
  • Job applicants.
  • Business and contractual partners.
  • Prospective customers.
  • Communication partner (Recipients of e-mails, letters, etc.).
  • Customers.
  • Users (e.g. website visitors, users of online services).
  • Participants in sweepstakes and competitions.

Purposes of Processing

  • A/B Tests.
  • Affiliate Tracking.
  • Provision of our online services and usability.
  • Conversion tracking (Measurement of the effectiveness of marketing activities).
  • Job Application Process (Establishment and possible later execution as well as possible later termination of the employment relationship).
  • Office and organisational procedures.
  • Clicktracking.
  • Content Delivery Network (CDN).
  • Direct marketing (e.g. by e-mail or postal).
  • Conducting sweepstakes and contests.
  • Affiliate Tracking.
  • Heatmaps ("Heatmaps" are mouse movements of the users, which are combined to an overall picture.).
  • Marketing.
  • Contact requests and communication.
  • Profiles with user-related information (Creating user profiles).
  • Remarketing.
  • Web Analytics (e.g. access statistics, recognition of returning visitors).
  • Security measures.
  • Provision of contractual services and customer support.
  • Managing and responding to inquiries.
  • Custom Audiences (Selection of relevant target groups for marketing purposes or other output of content).

Legal Bases for the Processing

In the following, you will find an overview of the legal basis of the GDPR on which we base the processing of personal data. Please note that in addition to the provisions of the GDPR, national data protection provisions of your or our country of residence or domicile may apply. If, in addition, more specific legal bases are applicable in individual cases, we will inform you of these in the data protection declaration.

  • Consent (Article 6 (1) (a) GDPR) - The data subject has given consent to the processing of his or her personal data for one or more specific purposes.
  • Performance of a contract and prior requests (Article 6 (1) (b) GDPR) - Performance of a contract to which the data subject is party or in order to take steps at the request of the data subject prior to entering into a contract.
  • Compliance with a legal obligation (Article 6 (1) (c) GDPR) - Processing is necessary for compliance with a legal obligation to which the controller is subject.
  • Legitimate Interests (Article 6 (1) (f) GDPR) - Processing is necessary for the purposes of the legitimate interests pursued by the controller or by a third party, except where such interests are overridden by the interests or fundamental rights and freedoms of the data subject which require protection of personal data.
  • Job application process as a pre-contractual or contractual relationship (Article 9 (2)(b) GDPR) - If special categories of personal data within the meaning of Article 9 (1) GDPR (e.g. health data, such as severely handicapped status or ethnic origin) are requested from applicants within the framework of the application procedure, so that the responsible person or the person concerned can carry out the obligations and exercising specific rights of the controller or of the data subject in the field of employment and social security and social protection law, their processing shall be carried out in accordance with Article 9 (2)(b) GDPR , in the case of the protection of vital interests of applicants or other persons on the basis of Article 9 (2)(c) GDPR or for the purposes of preventive health care or occupational medicine, for the assessment of the employee's ability to work, for medical diagnostics, care or treatment in the health or social sector or for the administration of systems and services in the health or social sector in accordance with Article 9 (2)(d) GDPR. In the case of a communication of special categories of data based on voluntary consent, their processing is carried out on the basis of Article 9 (2)(a) GDPR.

Security Precautions

We take appropriate technical and organisational measures in accordance with the legal requirements, taking into account the state of the art, the costs of implementation and the nature, scope, context and purposes of processing as well as the risk of varying likelihood and severity for the rights and freedoms of natural persons, in order to ensure a level of security appropriate to the risk.

The measures include, in particular, safeguarding the confidentiality, integrity and availability of data by controlling physical and electronic access to the data as well as access to, input, transmission, securing and separation of the data. In addition, we have established procedures to ensure that data subjects' rights are respected, that data is erased, and that we are prepared to respond to data threats rapidly. Furthermore, we take the protection of personal data into account as early as the development or selection of hardware, software and service providers, in accordance with the principle of privacy by design and privacy by default.

Masking of the IP address: If IP addresses are processed by us or by the service providers and technologies used and the processing of a complete IP address is not necessary, the IP address is shortened (also referred to as "IP masking"). In this process, the last two digits or the last part of the IP address after a full stop are removed or replaced by wildcards. The masking of the IP address is intended to prevent the identification of a person by means of their IP address or to make such identification significantly more difficult.

SSL encryption (https): In order to protect your data transmitted via our online services in the best possible way, we use SSL encryption. You can recognize such encrypted connections by the prefix https:// in the address bar of your browser.

Transmission of Personal Data

In the context of our processing of personal data, it may happen that the data is transferred to other places, companies or persons or that it is disclosed to them. Recipients of this data may include, for example, service providers commissioned with IT tasks or providers of services and content that are embedded in a website. In such a case, the legal requirements will be respected and in particular corresponding contracts or agreements, which serve the protection of your data, will be concluded with the recipients of your data.

Data Transmission within the Group of Companies: We may transfer personal data to other companies within our group of companies or otherwise grant them access to this data. Insofar as this disclosure is for administrative purposes, the disclosure of the data is based on our legitimate business and economic interests or otherwise, if it is necessary to fulfill our contractual obligations or if the consent of the data subjects or otherwise a legal permission is present.

Data Processing in Third Countries

If we process data in a third country (i.e. outside the European Union (EU), the European Economic Area (EEA)) or the processing takes place in the context of the use of third party services or disclosure or transfer of data to other persons, bodies or companies, this will only take place in accordance with the legal requirements.

Subject to express consent or transfer required by contract or law, we process or have processed the data only in third countries with a recognised level of data protection, on the basis of special guarantees, such as a contractual obligation through so-called standard protection clauses of the EU Commission or if certifications or binding internal data protection regulations justify the processing (Article 44 to 49 GDPR, information page of the EU Commission: https://ec.europa.eu/info/law/law-topic/data-protection/international-dimension-data-protection_en).

Erasure of data

The data processed by us will be erased in accordance with the statutory provisions as soon as their processing is revoked or other permissions no longer apply (e.g. if the purpose of processing this data no longer applies or they are not required for the purpose).

If the data is not deleted because they are required for other and legally permissible purposes, their processing is limited to these purposes. This means that the data will be restricted and not processed for other purposes. This applies, for example, to data that must be stored for commercial or tax reasons or for which storage is necessary to assert, exercise or defend legal claims or to protect the rights of another natural or legal person.

In the context of our information on data processing, we may provide users with further information on the deletion and retention of data that is specific to the respective processing operation.

Use of Cookies

Cookies are text files that contain data from visited websites or domains and are stored by a browser on the user's computer. A cookie is primarily used to store information about a user during or after his visit within an online service. The information stored can include, for example, the language settings on a website, the login status, a shopping basket or the location where a video was viewed. The term "cookies" also includes other technologies that fulfil the same functions as cookies (e.g. if user information is stored using pseudonymous online identifiers, also referred to as "user IDs").

The following types and functions of cookies are distinguished:

  • Temporary cookies (also: session cookies): Temporary cookies are deleted at the latest after a user has left an online service and closed his browser.
  • Permanent cookies: Permanent cookies remain stored even after closing the browser. For example, the login status can be saved or preferred content can be displayed directly when the user visits a website again. The interests of users who are used for range measurement or marketing purposes can also be stored in such a cookie.
  • First-Party-Cookies: First-Party-Cookies are set by ourselves.
  • Third party cookies: Third party cookies are mainly used by advertisers (so-called third parties) to process user information.
  • Necessary (also: essential) cookies: Cookies can be necessary for the operation of a website (e.g. to save logins or other user inputs or for security reasons).
  • Statistics, marketing and personalisation cookies: Cookies are also generally used to measure a website's reach and when a user's interests or behaviour (e.g. viewing certain content, using functions, etc.) are stored on individual websites in a user profile. Such profiles are used, for example, to display content to users that corresponds to their potential interests. This procedure is also referred to as "tracking", i.e. tracking the potential interests of users. If we use cookies or "tracking" technologies, we will inform you separately in our privacy policy or in the context of obtaining consent.

Information on legal basis: The legal basis on which we process your personal data with the help of cookies depends on whether we ask you for your consent. If this applies and you consent to the use of cookies, the legal basis for processing your data is your declared consent. Otherwise, the data processed with the help of cookies will be processed on the basis of our legitimate interests (e.g. in a business operation of our online service and its improvement) or, if the use of cookies is necessary to fulfill our contractual obligations.

Retention period: Unless we provide you with explicit information on the retention period of permanent cookies (e.g. within the scope of a so-called cookie opt-in), please assume that the retention period can be as long as two years.

General information on Withdrawal of consent and objection (Opt-Out): Respective of whether processing is based on consent or legal permission, you have the option at any time to object to the processing of your data using cookie technologies or to revoke consent (collectively referred to as "opt-out"). You can initially explain your objection using the settings of your browser, e.g. by deactivating the use of cookies (which may also restrict the functionality of our online services). An objection to the use of cookies for online marketing purposes can be raised for a large number of services, especially in the case of tracking, via the websites https://www.aboutads.info/choices/ and https://www.youronlinechoices.com. In addition, you can receive further information on objections in the context of the information on the used service providers and cookies.

Processing Cookie Data on the Basis of Consent: We use a cookie management solution in which users' consent to the use of cookies, or the procedures and providers mentioned in the cookie management solution, can be obtained, managed and revoked by the users. The declaration of consent is stored so that it does not have to be retrieved again and the consent can be proven in accordance with the legal obligation. Storage can take place server-sided and/or in a cookie (so-called opt-out cookie or with the aid of comparable technologies) in order to be able to assign the consent to a user or and/or his/her device.Subject to individual details of the providers of cookie management services, the following information applies: The duration of the storage of the consent can be up to two years. In this case, a pseudonymous user identifier is formed and stored with the date/time of consent, information on the scope of the consent (e.g. which categories of cookies and/or service providers) as well as the browser, system and used end device.

  • Processed data types: Usage data (e.g. websites visited, interest in content, access times), Meta/communication data (e.g. device information, IP addresses).
  • Data subjects: Users (e.g. website visitors, users of online services).
  • Legal Basis: Consent (Article 6 (1) (a) GDPR), Legitimate Interests (Article 6 (1) (f) GDPR).

Business services

We process data of our contractual and business partners, e.g. customers and interested parties (collectively referred to as "contractual partners") within the context of contractual and comparable legal relationships as well as associated actions and communication with the contractual partners or pre-contractually, e.g. to answer inquiries.

We process this data in order to fulfil our contractual obligations, safeguard our rights and for the purposes of the administrative tasks associated with this data and the business-related organisation. We will only pass on the data of the contractual partners within the scope of the applicable law to third parties insofar as this is necessary for the aforementioned purposes or for the fulfilment of legal obligations or with the consent of data subjects concerned (e.g. telecommunications, transport and other auxiliary services as well as subcontractors, banks, tax and legal advisors, payment service providers or tax authorities). The contractual partners will be informed about further processing, e.g. for marketing purposes, as part of this privacy policy.

Which data are necessary for the aforementioned purposes, we inform the contracting partners before or in the context of the data collection, e.g. in online forms by special marking (e.g. colors), and/or symbols (e.g. asterisks or the like), or personally.

We delete the data after expiry of statutory warranty and comparable obligations, i.e. in principle after expiry of 4 years, unless the data is stored in a customer account or must be kept for legal reasons of archiving (e.g., as a rule 10 years for tax purposes). In the case of data disclosed to us by the contractual partner within the context of an assignment, we delete the data in accordance with the specifications of the assignment, in general after the end of the assignment.

If we use third-party providers or platforms to provide our services, the terms and conditions and privacy policies of the respective third-party providers or platforms shall apply in the relationship between the users and the providers.

Customer Account: Contractual partners can create a customer or user account. If the registration of a customer account is required, contractual partnerswill be informed of this as well as of the details required for registration. The customer accounts are not public and cannot be indexed by search engines. In the course of registration and subsequent registration and use of the customer account, we store the IP addresses of the contractual partners along with the access times, in order to be able to prove the registration and prevent any misuse of the customer account.

If customers have terminated their customer account, their data will be deleted with regard to the customer account, subject to their retention is required for legal reasons. It is the responsibility of the customer to secure their data upon termination of the customer account.

Economic Analyses and Market Research: For economic reasons and in order to be able to recognise market trends, wishes of contractual partners and users, we analyse the data available to us on business transactions, contracts, enquiries, etc., whereby the persons concerned may include contractual partners, interested parties, customers, visitors and users of our online service.

The analyses are carried out for the purpose of business evaluations, marketing and market research (for example, to determine customer groups with different characteristics). If available, we can take into account the profiles of registered users with information, e.g. on the services they have used. The analyses serve us alone and are not disclosed externally unless they are anonymous analyses with summarised, i.e. anonymised values. Furthermore, we respect the privacy of the users and process the data for analysis purposes as pseudonymously as possible and if possible anonymously (e.g. as summarized data).

Online Shop and E-Commerce: We process the data of our customers in order to enable them to select, purchase or order the selected products, goods and related services, as well as their payment and delivery, or performance of other services. If necessary for the execution of an order, we use service providers, in particular postal, freight and shipping companies, in order to carry out the delivery or execution to our customers. For the processing of payment transactions we use the services of banks and payment service providers. The required details are identified as such in the course of the ordering or comparable purchasing process and include the details required for delivery, or other way of making the product aviable and invoicing as well as contact information in order to be able to hold any consultation.

  • Processed data types: Inventory data (e.g. names, addresses), Payment Data (e.g. bank details, invoices, payment history), Contact data (e.g. e-mail, telephone numbers), Contract data (e.g. contract object, duration, customer category), Usage data (e.g. websites visited, interest in content, access times), Meta/communication data (e.g. device information, IP addresses).
  • Data subjects: Prospective customers, Business and contractual partners, Customers.
  • Purposes of Processing: Provision of contractual services and customer support, Contact requests and communication, Office and organisational procedures, Managing and responding to inquiries, Security measures, Conversion tracking (Measurement of the effectiveness of marketing activities), Profiles with user-related information (Creating user profiles).
  • Legal Basis: Performance of a contract and prior requests (Article 6 (1) (b) GDPR), Compliance with a legal obligation (Article 6 (1) (c) GDPR), Legitimate Interests (Article 6 (1) (f) GDPR).

Payment Procedure

Within the framework of contractual and other legal relationships, due to legal obligations or otherwise on the basis of our legitimate interests, we offer data subjects efficient and secure payment options and use other service providers for this purpose in addition to banks and credit institutions (collectively referred to as "payment service providers").

The data processed by the payment service providers includes inventory data, such as the name and address, bank data, such as account numbers or credit card numbers, passwords, TANs and checksums, as well as the contract, total and recipient-related information. The information is required to carry out the transactions. However, the data entered is only processed by the payment service providers and stored with them. I.e. we do not receive any account or credit card related information, but only information with confirmation or negative information of the payment. Under certain circumstances, the data may be transmitted by the payment service providers to credit agencies. The purpose of this transmission is to check identity and creditworthiness. Please refer to the terms and conditions and data protection information of the payment service providers.

The terms and conditions and data protection information of the respective payment service providers apply to the payment transactions and can be accessed within the respective websites or transaction applications. We also refer to these for further information and the assertion of revocation, information and other data subject rights.

  • Processed data types: Inventory data (e.g. names, addresses), Payment Data (e.g. bank details, invoices, payment history), Contract data (e.g. contract object, duration, customer category), Usage data (e.g. websites visited, interest in content, access times), Meta/communication data (e.g. device information, IP addresses), Contact data (e.g. e-mail, telephone numbers).
  • Data subjects: Customers, Prospective customers.
  • Purposes of Processing: Provision of contractual services and customer support.
  • Legal Basis: Performance of a contract and prior requests (Article 6 (1) (b) GDPR), Legitimate Interests (Article 6 (1) (f) GDPR).

Services and service providers being used:

Provision of online services and web hosting

In order to provide our online services securely and efficiently, we use the services of one or more web hosting providers from whose servers (or servers they manage) the online services can be accessed. For these purposes, we may use infrastructure and platform services, computing capacity, storage space and database services, as well as security and technical maintenance services.

The data processed within the framework of the provision of the hosting services may include all information relating to the users of our online services that is collected in the course of use and communication. This regularly includes the IP address, which is necessary to be able to deliver the contents of online services to browsers, and all entries made within our online services or from websites.

E-mail Sending and Hosting: The web hosting services we use also include sending, receiving and storing e-mails. For these purposes, the addresses of the recipients and senders, as well as other information relating to the sending of e-mails (e.g. the providers involved) and the contents of the respective e-mails are processed. The above data may also be processed for SPAM detection purposes. Please note that e-mails on the Internet are generally not sent in encrypted form. As a rule, e-mails are encrypted during transport, but not on the servers from which they are sent and received (unless a so-called end-to-end encryption method is used). We can therefore accept no responsibility for the transmission path of e-mails between the sender and reception on our server.

Collection of Access Data and Log Files: We, ourselves or our web hosting provider, collect data on the basis of each access to the server (so-called server log files). Server log files may include the address and name of the web pages and files accessed, the date and time of access, data volumes transferred, notification of successful access, browser type and version, the user's operating system, referrer URL (the previously visited page) and, as a general rule, IP addresses and the requesting provider.

The server log files can be used for security purposes, e.g. to avoid overloading the servers (especially in the case of abusive attacks, so-called DDoS attacks) and to ensure the stability and optimal load balancing of the servers .

Content-Delivery-Network: We use a so-called "Content Delivery Network" (CDN). A CDN is a service with whose help contents of our online services, in particular large media files, such as graphics or scripts, can be delivered faster and more securely with the help of regionally distributed servers connected via the Internet.

  • Processed data types: Content data (e.g. text input, photographs, videos), Usage data (e.g. websites visited, interest in content, access times), Meta/communication data (e.g. device information, IP addresses).
  • Data subjects: Users (e.g. website visitors, users of online services).
  • Purposes of Processing: Provision of our online services and usability, Content Delivery Network (CDN).
  • Legal Basis: Legitimate Interests (Article 6 (1) (f) GDPR).

Services and service providers being used:

Registration, Login and User Account

Users can create a user account. Within the scope of registration, the required mandatory information is communicated to the users and processed for the purposes of providing the user account on the basis of contractual fulfilment of obligations. The processed data includes in particular the login information (name, password and an e-mail address).

Within the scope of using our registration and login functions as well as the use of the user account, we store the IP address and the time of the respective user action. The storage is based on our legitimate interests, as well as the user's protection against misuse and other unauthorized use. This data will not be passed on to third parties unless it is necessary to pursue our claims or there is a legal obligation to do so.

Users may be informed by e-mail of information relevant to their user account, such as technical changes.

Registration with a real name: Due to the nature of our community, we ask users to use our services only with their real names. This means that the use of pseudonyms is not permitted.

Deletion of data after termination: If users have terminated their user account, their data relating to the user account will be deleted, subject to any legal permission, obligation or consent of the users.

  • Processed data types: Inventory data (e.g. names, addresses), Contact data (e.g. e-mail, telephone numbers), Content data (e.g. text input, photographs, videos), Meta/communication data (e.g. device information, IP addresses).
  • Data subjects: Users (e.g. website visitors, users of online services).
  • Purposes of Processing: Provision of contractual services and customer support, Security measures, Managing and responding to inquiries.
  • Legal Basis: Performance of a contract and prior requests (Article 6 (1) (b) GDPR), Legitimate Interests (Article 6 (1) (f) GDPR).

Blogs and publication media

We use blogs or comparable means of online communication and publication (hereinafter "publication medium"). Readers' data will only be processed for the purposes of the publication medium to the extent necessary for its presentation and communication between authors and readers or for security reasons. For the rest, we refer to the information on the processing of visitors to our publication medium within the scope of this privacy policy.

Comment subscriptions: When users leave comments or other contributions, their IP addresses may be stored based on our legitimate interests. This is done for our safety, if someone leaves illegal contents (insults, forbidden political propaganda, etc.) in comments and contributions. In this case, we ourselves can be prosecuted for the comment or contribution and are therefore interested in the author's identity.

Furthermore, we reserve the right to process user data for the purpose of spam detection on the basis of our legitimate interests.

On the same legal basis, in the case of surveys, we reserve the right to store the IP addresses of users for the duration of the surveys and to use cookies in order to avoid multiple votes.

The personal information provided in the course of comments and contributions, any contact and website information as well as the content information will be stored permanently by us until the user objects.

Comment subscriptions: Follow-up comments can be subscribed to by users with their consent. Users will receive a confirmation email to verify that they are the owner of the email address entered. Users can unsubscribe from current comment subscriptions at any time. The confirmation email will contain information on the cancellation options. For the purposes of proving the users' consent, we store the time of registration along with the users' IP address and delete this information when users unsubscribe from the subscription.

You can cancel the receipt of our subscription at any time, i.e. revoke your consent. We may store the unsubscribed email addresses for up to three years based on our legitimate interests before deleting them to provide evidence of prior consent. The processing of these data is limited to the purpose of a possible defense against claims. An individual deletion request is possible at any time, provided that the former existence of a consent is confirmed at the same time.

  • Processed data types: Inventory data (e.g. names, addresses), Contact data (e.g. e-mail, telephone numbers), Content data (e.g. text input, photographs, videos), Usage data (e.g. websites visited, interest in content, access times), Meta/communication data (e.g. device information, IP addresses).
  • Data subjects: Users (e.g. website visitors, users of online services).
  • Purposes of Processing: Provision of contractual services and customer support, Feedback (e.g. collecting feedback via online form), Security measures, Managing and responding to inquiries, Contact requests and communication.
  • Legal Basis: Performance of a contract and prior requests (Article 6 (1) (b) GDPR), Legitimate Interests (Article 6 (1) (f) GDPR), Consent (Article 6 (1) (a) GDPR).

Contact and Inquiry Management

When contacting us (e.g. via contact form, e-mail, telephone or via social media) as well as in the context of existing user and business relationships, the information of the inquiring persons is processed to the extent necessary to respond to the contact requests and any requested measures.

The response to the contact inquiries as well as the management of contact and inquiry data in the context of contractual or pre-contractual relationships is carried out to fulfill our contractual obligations or to respond to (pre)contractual inquiries and otherwise on the basis of legitimate interests in responding to the inquiries and maintaining user or business relationships.

  • Processed data types: Inventory data (e.g. names, addresses), Contact data (e.g. e-mail, telephone numbers), Content data (e.g. text input, photographs, videos).
  • Data subjects: Communication partner (Recipients of e-mails, letters, etc.).
  • Purposes of Processing: Contact requests and communication.
  • Legal Basis: Performance of a contract and prior requests (Article 6 (1) (b) GDPR), Legitimate Interests (Article 6 (1) (f) GDPR).

Services and service providers being used:

Communication via Messenger

We use messenger services for communication purposes and therefore ask you to observe the following information regarding the functionality of the messenger services, encryption, use of the metadata of the communication and your objection options.

You can also contact us by alternative means, e.g. telephone or e-mail. Please use the contact options provided to you or use the contact options provided within our online services.

In the case of encryption of content (i.e. the content of your message and attachments), we point out that the communication content (i.e. the content of the message and attachments) is encrypted end-to-end. This means that the content of the messages is not visible, not even by the messenger service providers themselves. You should always use a current version of the messenger service with activated encryption, so that the encryption of the message contents is guaranteed.

However, we would like to point out to our communication partners that although messenger service providers do not see the content, they can find out that and when communication partners communicate with us and process technical information on the communication partner's device used and, depending on the settings of their device, also location information (so-called metadata).

Information on Legal basis: If we ask communication partners for permission before communicating with them via messenger services, the legal basis of our processing of their data is their consent. Otherwise, if we do not request consent and you contact us, for example, voluntarily, we use messenger services in our dealings with our contractual partners and as part of the contract initiation process as a contractual measure and in the case of other interested parties and communication partners on the basis of our legitimate interests in fast and efficient communication and meeting the needs of our communication partners for communication via messenger services. We would also like to point out that we do not transmit the contact data provided to us to the messenger service providers for the first time without your consent.

Withdrawal, objection and deletion: You can withdraw your consent or object to communication with us via messenger services at any time.In the case of communication via messenger services, we delete the messages in accordance with our general data retention policy (i.e. as described above after the end of contractual relationships, archiving requirements, etc.) and otherwise as soon as we can assume that we have answered any information provided by the communication partners, if no reference to a previous conversation is to be expected and there are no legal obligations to store the messages to prevent their deletion.

Reservation of reference to other means of communication: Finally, we would like to point out that we reserve the right, for reasons of your safety, not to answer inquiries about messenger services. This is the case if, for example, internal contractual matters require special secrecy or if an answer via the messenger services does not meet the formal requirements. In such cases we refer you to more appropriate communication channels.

  • Processed data types: Contact data (e.g. e-mail, telephone numbers), Usage data (e.g. websites visited, interest in content, access times), Meta/communication data (e.g. device information, IP addresses).
  • Data subjects: Communication partner (Recipients of e-mails, letters, etc.).
  • Purposes of Processing: Contact requests and communication, Direct marketing (e.g. by e-mail or postal).
  • Legal Basis: Consent (Article 6 (1) (a) GDPR), Legitimate Interests (Article 6 (1) (f) GDPR).

Services and service providers being used:

Job Application Process

The application process requires applicants to provide us with the data necessary for their assessment and selection. The information required can be found in the job description or, in the case of online forms, in the information contained therein.

In principle, the required information includes personal information such as name, address, a contact option and proof of the qualifications required for a particular employment. Upon request, we will be happy to provide you with additional information.

If made available, applicants can submit their applications via an online form. The data will be transmitted to us encrypted according to the state of the art. Applicants can also send us their applications by e-mail. Please note, however, that e-mails on the Internet are generally not sent in encrypted form. As a rule, e-mails are encrypted during transport, but not on the servers from which they are sent and received. We can therefore accept no responsibility for the transmission path of the application between the sender and the reception on our server. For the purposes of searching for applicants, submitting applications and selecting applicants, we may make use of the applicant management and recruitment software, platforms and services of third-party providers in compliance with legal requirements. Applicants are welcome to contact us about how to submit their application or send it to us by regular mail.

Processing of special categories of data: If special categories of personal data within the meaning of Article 9 (1) GDPR (e.g. health data, such as severely handicapped status or ethnic origin) are requested from applicants within the framework of the application procedure, so that the responsible person or the person concerned can exercise his/her rights arising from labour law and social security and social protection law and fulfil his/her duties in this regard, their processing shall be carried out in accordance with Article 9 (1)(b) GDPR, in the case of the protection of vital interests of applicants or other persons pursuant to Article 9 (1)(c) GDPR or for the purposes of preventive health care or occupational medicine, for the assessment of the employee's ability to work, for medical diagnostics, care or treatment in the health or social sector or for the administration of systems and services in the health or social sector in accordance with Article 9 (1)(h) GDPR. In the case of a communication of special categories of data based on voluntary consent, their processing is carried out on the basis of Article 9 (1)(a) GDPR.

Ereasure of data: In the event of a successful application, the data provided by the applicants may be further processed by us for the purposes of the employment relationship. Otherwise, if the application for a job offer is not successful, the applicant's data will be deleted. Applicants' data will also be deleted if an application is withdrawn, to which applicants are entitled at any time. Subject to a justified revocation by the applicant, the deletion will take place at the latest after the expiry of a period of six months, so that we can answer any follow-up questions regarding the application and comply with our duty of proof under the regulations on equal treatment of applicants. Invoices for any reimbursement of travel expenses are archived in accordance with tax regulations.

Admission to a talent pool - Admission to an talent pool, if offered, is based on consent. Applicants are informed that their consent to be included in the talent pool is voluntary, has no influence on the current application process and that they can revoke their consent at any time for the future.

  • Processed data types: Job applicant details (e.g. Personal data, postal and contact addresses and the documents pertaining to the application and the information contained therein, such as cover letter, curriculum vitae, certificates, etc., as well as other information on the person or qualifications of applicants provided with regard to a specific job or voluntarily by applicants).
  • Data subjects: Job applicants.
  • Purposes of Processing: Job Application Process (Establishment and possible later execution as well as possible later termination of the employment relationship).
  • Legal Basis: Job application process as a pre-contractual or contractual relationship (Article 9 (2)(b) GDPR).

Services and service providers being used:

Cloud Services

We use Internet-accessible software services (so-called "cloud services", also referred to as "Software as a Service") provided on the servers of its providers for the following purposes: document storage and administration, calendar management, e-mail delivery, spreadsheets and presentations, exchange of documents, content and information with specific recipients or publication of websites, forms or other content and information, as well as chats and participation in audio and video conferences.

Within this framework, personal data may be processed and stored on the provider's servers insofar as this data is part of communication processes with us or is otherwise processed by us in accordance with this privacy policy. This data may include in particular master data and contact data of data subjects, data on processes, contracts, other proceedings and their contents. Cloud service providers also process usage data and metadata that they use for security and service optimization purposes.

If we use cloud services to provide documents and content to other users or publicly accessible websites, forms, etc., providers may store cookies on users' devices for web analysis or to remember user settings (e.g. in the case of media control).

Information on legal basis - If we ask for permission to use cloud services, the legal basis for processing data is consent. Furthermore, their use can be a component of our (pre)contractual services, provided that the use of cloud services has been agreed in this context. Otherwise, user data will be processed on the basis of our legitimate interests (i.e. interest in efficient and secure administrative and collaboration processes).

  • Processed data types: Inventory data (e.g. names, addresses), Contact data (e.g. e-mail, telephone numbers), Content data (e.g. text input, photographs, videos), Usage data (e.g. websites visited, interest in content, access times), Meta/communication data (e.g. device information, IP addresses).
  • Data subjects: Customers, Employees (e.g. Employees, job applicants), Prospective customers, Communication partner (Recipients of e-mails, letters, etc.).
  • Purposes of Processing: Office and organisational procedures.
  • Legal Basis: Consent (Article 6 (1) (a) GDPR), Performance of a contract and prior requests (Article 6 (1) (b) GDPR), Legitimate Interests (Article 6 (1) (f) GDPR).

Services and service providers being used:

Newsletter and Electronic Communications

We send newsletters, e-mails and other electronic communications (hereinafter referred to as "newsletters") only with the consent of the recipient or a legal permission. Insofar as the contents of the newsletter are specifically described within the framework of registration, they are decisive for the consent of the user. Otherwise, our newsletters contain information about our services and us.

In order to subscribe to our newsletters, it is generally sufficient to enter your e-mail address. We may, however, ask you to provide a name for the purpose of contacting you personally in the newsletter or to provide further information if this is required for the purposes of the newsletter.

Double opt-in procedure: The registration to our newsletter takes place in general in a so-called Double-Opt-In procedure. This means that you will receive an e-mail after registration asking you to confirm your registration. This confirmation is necessary so that no one can register with external e-mail addresses.

The registrations for the newsletter are logged in order to be able to prove the registration process according to the legal requirements. This includes storing the login and confirmation times as well as the IP address. Likewise the changes of your data stored with the dispatch service provider are logged.

Deletion and restriction of processing: We may store the unsubscribed email addresses for up to three years based on our legitimate interests before deleting them to provide evidence of prior consent. The processing of these data is limited to the purpose of a possible defense against claims. An individual deletion request is possible at any time, provided that the former existence of a consent is confirmed at the same time. In the case of an obligation to permanently observe an objection, we reserve the right to store the e-mail address solely for this purpose in a blocklist.

Information on legal bases: The sending of the newsletter is based on the consent of the recipients or, if consent is not required, on the basis of our legitimate interests in direct marketing. Insofar as we engage a service provider for sending e-mails, this is done on the basis of our legitimate interests. The registration procedure is recorded on the basis of our legitimate interests for the purpose of demonstrating that it has been conducted in accordance with the law.

Contents: Information about us, our services, promotions and offers.

Measurement of opening rates and click rates: The newsletters contain a so-called "web-beacon", i.e. a pixel-sized file, which is retrieved from our server when the newsletter is opened or, if we use a mailing service provider, from its server. Within the scope of this retrieval, technical information such as information about the browser and your system, as well as your IP address and time of retrieval are first collected.

This information is used for the technical improvement of our newsletter on the basis of technical data or target groups and their reading behaviour on the basis of their retrieval points (which can be determined with the help of the IP address) or access times. This analysis also includes determining whether newsletters are opened, when they are opened and which links are clicked. This information is assigned to the individual newsletter recipients and stored in their profiles until the profiles are deleted. The evaluations serve us much more to recognize the reading habits of our users and to adapt our content to them or to send different content according to the interests of our users.

The measurement of opening rates and click rates as well as the storage of the measurement results in the profiles of the users and their further processing are based on the consent of the users.

A separate objection to the performance measurement is unfortunately not possible, in this case the entire newsletter subscription must be cancelled or objected to. In this case, the stored profile information will be deleted.

  • Processed data types: Inventory data (e.g. names, addresses), Contact data (e.g. e-mail, telephone numbers), Meta/communication data (e.g. device information, IP addresses), Usage data (e.g. websites visited, interest in content, access times).
  • Data subjects: Communication partner (Recipients of e-mails, letters, etc.), Users (e.g. website visitors, users of online services).
  • Purposes of Processing: Direct marketing (e.g. by e-mail or postal), Web Analytics (e.g. access statistics, recognition of returning visitors), Conversion tracking (Measurement of the effectiveness of marketing activities), Profiles with user-related information (Creating user profiles).
  • Legal Basis: Consent (Article 6 (1) (a) GDPR), Legitimate Interests (Article 6 (1) (f) GDPR).
  • Opt-Out: You can cancel the receipt of our newsletter at any time, i.e. revoke your consent or object to further receipt. You will find a link to cancel the newsletter either at the end of each newsletter or you can otherwise use one of the contact options listed above, preferably e-mail.

Services and service providers being used:

Commercial communication by E-Mail, Postal Mail, Fax or Telephone

We process personal data for the purposes of promotional communication, which may be carried out via various channels, such as e-mail, telephone, post or fax, in accordance with the legal requirements.

The recipients have the right to withdraw their consent at any time or to object to the advertising communication at any time.

After withdrawal or objection, we may store the data required to prove consent for up to three years on the basis of our legitimate interests before we delete them. The processing of these data is limited to the purpose of a possible defense against claims. An individual deletion request is possible at any time, provided that the former existence of a consent is affirmed.

  • Processed data types: Inventory data (e.g. names, addresses), Contact data (e.g. e-mail, telephone numbers).
  • Data subjects: Communication partner (Recipients of e-mails, letters, etc.).
  • Purposes of Processing: Direct marketing (e.g. by e-mail or postal).
  • Legal Basis: Consent (Article 6 (1) (a) GDPR), Legitimate Interests (Article 6 (1) (f) GDPR).

Sweepstakes and Contests

We process the personal data of participants in We process personal data of participants in competitions, contents, raffles, prize-draws or sweepstakes (hereinafter referred to as "competitions") only in compliance with the relevant data protection regulations and if the processing is contractually necessary for the provision, execution and handling of the competition, the participants have consented to the processing or the processing serves our legitimate interests (e.g. in the security of the competition or the protection of our interests against misuse by possible recording of IP addresses when submitting entries to the competition.

In the event that entries are published as part of the competitions (e.g. as part of a vote or presentation of the competition entries, or the winner or reporting on the competition), we would like to point out that the names of participants may also be published in this context. The participants can object to this at any time.

If the competitions take place within an online platform or a social network (e.g. Facebook or Instagram, hereinafter referred to as "online platform"), the usage and data protection provisions of the respective online platforms also apply. In such cases, we would like to point out that we are responsible for the information provided by the participants as part of the competition and that we must be contacted with regard to the competitions.

The data of the participants will be deleted as soon as the competition has ended and the data is no longer required to inform the winners or because questions about the competition can be expected. In general, the data of the participants will be deleted at the latest 6 months after the end of the competition. Winners' data can be retained for a longer period of time, e.g. in order to answer questions about the prizes or to fulfil the prizes; in this case, the retention period depends on the type of prize and is up to three years for items or services, e.g. in order to be able to process warranty claims. Furthermore, the participants' data may be stored for longer, e.g. in the form of coverage of the competition in online and offline media.

Insofar as data was collected for other purposes as part of the competition, its processing and storage period shall be governed by the privacy information for this use (e.g. in the case of registration for a newsletter as part of a competition).

  • Processed data types: Inventory data (e.g. names, addresses), Content data (e.g. text input, photographs, videos).
  • Data subjects: Participants in sweepstakes and competitions.
  • Purposes of Processing: Conducting sweepstakes and contests.
  • Legal Basis: Performance of a contract and prior requests (Article 6 (1) (b) GDPR).

Surveys and Questionnaires

The surveys and questionnaires ("surveys") carried out by us are evaluated anonymously. Personal data is only processed insofar as this is necessary for the provision and technical execution of the survey (e.g. processing the IP address to display the survey in the user's browser or to enable a resumption of the survey with the aid of a temporary cookie (session cookie)) or participants have consented.

Information on legal basis: If we ask the participants for their consent to the processing of their data, this is the legal basis for the processing, otherwise the processing of the participants' data is based on our legitimate interests in conducting an objective survey.

  • Processed data types: Contact data (e.g. e-mail, telephone numbers), Content data (e.g. text input, photographs, videos), Usage data (e.g. websites visited, interest in content, access times), Meta/communication data (e.g. device information, IP addresses).
  • Data subjects: Communication partner (Recipients of e-mails, letters, etc.).
  • Purposes of Processing: Contact requests and communication, Direct marketing (e.g. by e-mail or postal).
  • Legal Basis: Consent (Article 6 (1) (a) GDPR), Legitimate Interests (Article 6 (1) (f) GDPR).

Services and service providers being used:

Web Analysis, Monitoring and Optimization

Web analysis is used to evaluate the visitor traffic on our website and may include the behaviour, interests or demographic information of users, such as age or gender, as pseudonymous values. With the help of web analysis we can e.g. recognize, at which time our online services or their functions or contents are most frequently used or requested for repeatedly, as well as which areas require optimization.

In addition to web analysis, we can also use test procedures, e.g. to test and optimize different versions of our online services or their components.

For these purposes, so-called user profiles can be created and stored in a file (so-called "cookie") or similar procedures in which the relevant user information for the aforementioned analyses is stored. This information may include, for example, content viewed, web pages visited and elements and technical data used there, such as the browser used, computer system used and information on times of use. If users have consented to the collection of their location data, these may also be processed, depending on the provider.

The IP addresses of the users are also stored. However, we use any existing IP masking procedure (i.e. pseudonymisation by shortening the IP address) to protect the user. In general, within the framework of web analysis, A/B testing and optimisation, no user data (such as e-mail addresses or names) is stored, but pseudonyms. This means that we, as well as the providers of the software used, do not know the actual identity of the users, but only the information stored in their profiles for the purposes of the respective processes.

Information on legal basis: If we ask the users for their consent to the use of third party providers, the legal basis of the processing is consent. Furthermore, the processing can be a component of our (pre)contractual services, provided that the use of the third party was agreed within this context. Otherwise, user data will be processed on the basis of our legitimate interests (i.e. interest in efficient, economic and recipient friendly services). In this context, we would also like to refer you to the information on the use of cookies in this privacy policy.

  • Processed data types: Usage data (e.g. websites visited, interest in content, access times), Meta/communication data (e.g. device information, IP addresses).
  • Data subjects: Users (e.g. website visitors, users of online services).
  • Purposes of Processing: Web Analytics (e.g. access statistics, recognition of returning visitors), Profiles with user-related information (Creating user profiles), Conversion tracking (Measurement of the effectiveness of marketing activities), Clicktracking, A/B Tests, Heatmaps ("Heatmaps" are mouse movements of the users, which are combined to an overall picture.), Provision of our online services and usability.
  • Security measures: IP Masking (Pseudonymization of the IP address).
  • Legal Basis: Consent (Article 6 (1) (a) GDPR), Legitimate Interests (Article 6 (1) (f) GDPR).

Services and service providers being used:

Online Marketing

We process personal data for the purposes of online marketing, which may include in particular the marketing of advertising space or the display of advertising and other content (collectively referred to as "Content") based on the potential interests of users and the measurement of their effectiveness.

For these purposes, so-called user profiles are created and stored in a file (so-called "cookie") or similar procedure in which the relevant user information for the display of the aforementioned content is stored. This information may include, for example, content viewed, websites visited, online networks used, communication partners and technical information such as the browser used, computer system used and information on usage times. If users have consented to the collection of their sideline data, these can also be processed.

The IP addresses of the users are also stored. However, we use provided IP masking procedures (i.e. pseudonymisation by shortening the IP address) to ensure the protection of the user's by using a pseudonym. In general, within the framework of the online marketing process, no clear user data (such as e-mail addresses or names) is secured, but pseudonyms. This means that we, as well as the providers of online marketing procedures, do not know the actual identity of the users, but only the information stored in their profiles.

The information in the profiles is usually stored in the cookies or similar memorizing procedures. These cookies can later, generally also on other websites that use the same online marketing technology, be read and analyzed for purposes of content display, as well as supplemented with other data and stored on the server of the online marketing technology provider.

Exceptionally, clear data can be assigned to the profiles. This is the case, for example, if the users are members of a social network whose online marketing technology we use and the network links the profiles of the users in the aforementioned data. Please note that users may enter into additional agreements with the social network providers or other service providers, e.g. by consenting as part of a registration process.

As a matter of principle, we only gain access to summarised information about the performance of our advertisements. However, within the framework of so-called conversion measurement, we can check which of our online marketing processes have led to a so-called conversion, i.e. to the conclusion of a contract with us. The conversion measurement is used alone for the performance analysis of our marketing activities.

Unless otherwise stated, we kindly ask you to consider that cookies used will be stored for a period of two years.

Information on legal basis: If we ask users for their consent (e.g. in the context of a so-called "cookie banner consent"), the legal basis for processing data for online marketing purposes is this consent. Otherwise, user data will be processed on the basis of our legitimate interests (i.e. interest in the analysis, optimisation and economic operation of our online services. In this context, we would also like to refer you to the information on the use of cookies in this privacy policy.

With the help of the Facebook pixel (or equivalent functions, to transfer Event-Data or Contact Information via interfaces or other software in apps), Facebook is on the one hand able to determine the visitors of our online services as a target group for the presentation of ads (so-called "Facebook ads"). Accordingly, we use Facebook pixels to display Facebook ads placed by us only to Facebook users and within the services of partners cooperating with Facebook (so-called "audience network" https://www.facebook.com/audiencenetwork/ ) who have shown an interest in our online services or who have certain characteristics (e.g. interests in certain topics or products that are determined on the basis of the websites visited) that we transmit to Facebook (so-called "custom audiences"). With the help of Facebook pixels, we also want to ensure that our Facebook ads correspond to the potential interest of users and do not appear annoying. The Facebook pixel also enables us to track the effectiveness of Facebook ads for statistical and market research purposes by showing whether users were referred to our website after clicking on a Facebook ad (known as "conversion tracking").

We are jointly responsible (so-called "joint-controllership") with Facebook Ireland Ltd. for the collection or transmission (but not the further processing) of "event data" that Facebook collects or receives as part of a transmission for the following purposes using the Facebook pixel and comparable functions (e.g. APIs) that are implemented in our online services: a) displaying content advertising information that matches users' presumed interests; b) delivering commercial and transactional messages (e.g. b) delivering commercial and transactional messages (e.g., addressing users via Facebook Messenger); c) improving ad delivery and personalizing features and content (e.g., improving recognition of which content or advertising information is believed to be of interest to users). We have entered into a special agreement with Facebook ("Controller Addendum", https://www.facebook.com/legal/controller_addendum), which specifically addresses the security measures that Facebook must take (https://www.facebook.com/legal/terms/data_security_terms) and in which Facebook has agreed to comply with the rights of data subjects (i.e., users can, for example, submit information access or deletion requests directly to Facebook). Note: If Facebook provides us with measurements, analyses and reports (which are aggregated, i.e. do not contain information on individual users and are anonymous to us), then this processing is not carried out within the scope of joint responsibility, but on the basis of a DPA ("Data Processing Terms", https://www.facebook.com/legal/terms/dataprocessing), the "Data Security Conditions" (https://www.facebook.com/legal/terms/data_security_terms) and, with regard to processing in the USA, on the basis of Standard Contractual Clauses ("Facebook EU Data Transfer Addendum, https://www.facebook.com/legal/EU_data_transfer_addendum). The rights of users (in particular to access to information, erasure, objection and complaint to the competent supervisory authority) are not restricted by the agreements with Facebook.

In addition to the processing of Event Data in the context of the use of the Facebook Pixel (or equivalent functions, e.g. in apps), Contact Information (data identifying individual persons, names, email addresses and telephone numbers) is also collected by Facebook within our online offer or transmitted to Facebook. The processing of contact information serves to form target groups (so-called " Custom Audiences") for the display of content and advertising information based on the presumed interests of users. The collection, or transmission and matching with data available on Facebook is not in plain text, but as so-called "hash values", i.e. mathematical representations of the data (this method is used, for example, in the storage of passwords). After the matching to create target groups, the Contact Information is deleted. The Contact Information is processed on the basis of a DPA with Facebook Ireland Ltd. ("Data Processing Terms", https://www.facebook.com/legal/terms/dataprocessing), the "Data Security Terms" (https://www.facebook.com/legal/terms/data_security_terms) and, with regard to processing in the USA, on the basis of Standard Contractual Clauses ("Facebook-EU Data Transfer Addendum", https://www.facebook.com/legal/EU_data_transfer_addendum). For more information on the processing of contact information, please refer to the "Facebook Business Tools Terms", https://www.facebook.com/legal/technology_terms.

We submit Contact Information (names, email addresses and phone numbers) to Facebook in list form for the purpose of creating Custom Audiences for content and advertising information based on the presumed interests of users. The transmission and matching with data available on Facebook is not in plain text, but as so-called "hash values", i.e. mathematical representations of the data (this method is used, for example, in the storage of passwords). After the matching to create target groups, the Contact Information is deleted. The Contact Information is processed on the basis of a DPA with Facebook Ireland Ltd. ("Data Processing Terms", https://www.facebook.com/legal/terms/dataprocessing), the "Data Security Terms" (https://www.facebook.com/legal/terms/data_security_terms) and, with regard to processing in the USA, on the basis of Standard Contractual Clauses ("Facebook-EU Data Transfer Addendum", https://www.facebook.com/legal/EU_data_transfer_addendum). Further information on the processing of contact information can be found in the "Facebook Business Tools Terms", https://www.facebook.com/legal/terms/customaudience

  • Processed data types: Usage data (e.g. websites visited, interest in content, access times), Meta/communication data (e.g. device information, IP addresses), Event Data (Facebook) ("Event Data" is data that can be transmitted from us to Facebook, e.g. via Facebook pixels (via apps or other means) and relates to persons or their actions; the data includes, for example, information about visits to websites, interactions with content, functions, installations of apps, purchases of products, etc.; Event data is processed for the purpose of creating target groups for content and advertising information (Custom Audiences); Event Data does not include the actual content (such as written comments), login information, and Contact Information (such as names, email addresses, and phone numbers). Event Data is deleted by Facebook after a maximum of two years, the Custom Audiences created from them with the deletion of our Facebook account), Contact Information (Facebook) ("Contact Information" is data that (clearly) identifies data subjects, such as names, email addresses and phone numbers, that can be transmitted to Facebook, e.g. via Facebook pixels or uploads for matching purposes to form Custom Audiences; After the matching to create target groups, the Contact Information is deleted).
  • Data subjects: Users (e.g. website visitors, users of online services).
  • Purposes of Processing: Marketing, Profiles with user-related information (Creating user profiles), Remarketing, Custom Audiences (Selection of relevant target groups for marketing purposes or other output of content), Conversion tracking (Measurement of the effectiveness of marketing activities), Affiliate Tracking.
  • Security measures: IP Masking (Pseudonymization of the IP address).
  • Legal Basis: Consent (Article 6 (1) (a) GDPR), Legitimate Interests (Article 6 (1) (f) GDPR).
  • Opt-Out: We refer to the privacy policies of the respective service providers and the possibilities for objection (so-called "opt-out"). If no explicit opt-out option has been specified, it is possible to deactivate cookies in the settings of your browser. However, this may restrict the functions of our online offer. We therefore recommend the following additional opt-out options, which are offered collectively for each area: a) Europe: https://www.youronlinechoices.eu. b) Canada: https://www.youradchoices.ca/choices. c) USA: https://www.aboutads.info/choices. d) Cross-regional: https://optout.aboutads.info.

Services and service providers being used:

Affiliate-Programms und Affiliate-Links

Within our online services, we include so-called affiliate links or other references (which for example may include search forms, widgets or discount codes) to the offers and services of third parties (collectively referred to as "affiliate links"). When users follow affiliate links or subsequently take advantage of offers, we may receive commission or other benefits (collectively referred to as "commission") from these third parties.

In order to be able to track whether the users have followed the offers of an affiliate link used by us, it is necessary for the respective third party to know that the users have followed an affiliate link used within our online services. The assignment of affiliate links to the respective business transactions or other actions (e.g., purchases) serves the sole purpose of commission settlement and is removed as soon as it is no longer required for this purpose.

For the purposes of the aforementioned affiliate link assignment, the affiliate links may be supplemented by certain values that may be a component of the link or otherwise stored, for example, in a cookie. The values may include in particular the source website (referrer), time, an online identifier of the operator of the website on which the affiliate link was located, an online identifier of the respective offer, the type of link used, the type of offer and an online identifier of the user.

Information on legal basis: If we ask the users for their consent to the use of third party providers, the legal basis of the processing is consent. Furthermore, the processing can be a component of our (pre)contractual services, provided that the use of the third party was agreed within this context. Otherwise, user data will be processed on the basis of our legitimate interests (i.e. interest in efficient, economic and recipient friendly services). In this context, we would also like to refer you to the information on the use of cookies in this privacy policy.

  • Processed data types: Contract data (e.g. contract object, duration, customer category), Usage data (e.g. websites visited, interest in content, access times), Meta/communication data (e.g. device information, IP addresses).
  • Data subjects: Users (e.g. website visitors, users of online services).
  • Purposes of Processing: Affiliate Tracking.
  • Legal Basis: Consent (Article 6 (1) (a) GDPR), Performance of a contract and prior requests (Article 6 (1) (b) GDPR), Legitimate Interests (Article 6 (1) (f) GDPR).

Services and service providers being used:

Affiliate Program

We offer an affiliate program, i.e. we offer commissions or other benefits (collectively referred to as "Commission") to users (collectively referred to as "Affiliates") who refer to our offers and services. The reference is made through a link associated with the Affiliate or other methods (e.g., discount codes) that allow us to recognize that the use of our services was based on the reference (collectively referred to as "Affiliate Links").

In order to track whether users have perceived our services based on affiliate links used by affiliates, it is necessary for us to know that users have followed an affiliate link. The assignment of affiliate links to the respective business transactions or other use of our services serves solely the purpose of Commission billing and will be cancelled as soon as it is no longer necessary for the purpose.

For the purposes of the aforementioned affiliate link assignment, the affiliate links may be supplemented by certain values that may be a component of the link or otherwise stored, for example, in a cookie. The values may include in particular the source website (referrer), time, an online identifier of the operator of the website on which the affiliate link was located, an online identifier of the respective service, the type of link used, the type of service and an online identifier of the user.

Information on legal basis: If we ask the users for their consent to the use of third party providers, the legal basis of the processing is consent. Furthermore, the processing can be a component of our (pre)contractual services, provided that the use of the third party was agreed within this context. Otherwise, user data will be processed on the basis of our legitimate interests (i.e. interest in efficient, economic and recipient friendly services). In this context, we would also like to refer you to the information on the use of cookies in this privacy policy.

  • Processed data types: Contract data (e.g. contract object, duration, customer category), Usage data (e.g. websites visited, interest in content, access times).
  • Data subjects: Users (e.g. website visitors, users of online services), Business and contractual partners.
  • Purposes of Processing: Provision of contractual services and customer support, Affiliate Tracking.
  • Legal Basis: Consent (Article 6 (1) (a) GDPR), Performance of a contract and prior requests (Article 6 (1) (b) GDPR), Legitimate Interests (Article 6 (1) (f) GDPR).

Customer Reviews and Ratings

We participate in review and rating procedures to evaluate, optimise and advertise our performance. If users rate us via the participating rating platforms or methods or otherwise provide feedback, the General Terms and Conditions of Business or Use and the data protection information of the providers also apply. As a rule, the rating also requires registration with the respective provider.

In order to ensure that the evaluators have actually made use of our services, we transmit, with the consent of the customer, the necessary data relating to the customer and the service or products used to the respective rating platform (this includes the name, e-mail address, order number or article number). This data is used solely to verify the authenticity of the user.

Rating Widget: We include so-called " rating widgets " in our online services. A widget is a functional and content element integrated within our online services that displays variable information (e.g. a widget can be displayed in the form of a seal or a badge). Although the corresponding content of the widget is displayed within our online services, it is retrieved from the servers of the respective widget provider at this moment. This is the only way to always show the current content, especially the current rating. For this purpose, a data connection must be established from the website accessed within our online service to the widget provider's server and the widget provider receives certain technical data (access data, including the IP address) that is necessary for the content of the widget to be delivered to the user's browser.

In addition, the widget provider receives information that users have visited our online services. This information may be stored in a cookie and used by the widget provider to identify which online offerings participating in the rating process have been visited by the user. The information can be stored in a user profile and used for advertising or market research purposes.

  • Processed data types: Contract data (e.g. contract object, duration, customer category), Usage data (e.g. websites visited, interest in content, access times), Meta/communication data (e.g. device information, IP addresses).
  • Data subjects: Customers, Users (e.g. website visitors, users of online services).
  • Purposes of Processing: Feedback (e.g. collecting feedback via online form), Marketing.
  • Legal Basis: Consent (Article 6 (1) (a) GDPR), Legitimate Interests (Article 6 (1) (f) GDPR).

Services and service providers being used:

Profiles in Social Networks (Social Media)

We maintain online presences within social networks and process user data in this context in order to communicate with the users active there or to offer information about us.

We would like to point out that user data may be processed outside the European Union. This may entail risks for users, e.g. by making it more difficult to enforce users' rights.

In addition, user data is usually processed within social networks for market research and advertising purposes. For example, user profiles can be created on the basis of user behaviour and the associated interests of users. The user profiles can then be used, for example, to place advertisements within and outside the networks which are presumed to correspond to the interests of the users. For these purposes, cookies are usually stored on the user's computer, in which the user's usage behaviour and interests are stored. Furthermore, data can be stored in the user profiles independently of the devices used by the users (especially if the users are members of the respective networs or will become members later on).

For a detailed description of the respective processing operations and the opt-out options, please refer to the respective data protection declarations and information provided by the providers of the respective networks.

Also in the case of requests for information and the exercise of rights of data subjects, we point out that these can be most effectively pursued with the providers. Only the providers have access to the data of the users and can directly take appropriate measures and provide information. If you still need help, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Facebook: We are jointly responsible (so called "joint controller") with Facebook Ireland Ltd. for the collection (but not the further processing) of data of visitors to our Facebook page. This data includes information about the types of content users view or interact with, or the actions they take (see "Things that you and others do and provide" in the Facebook Data Policy: https://www.facebook.com/policy), and information about the devices used by users (e.g., IP addresses, operating system, browser type, language settings, cookie information; see "Device Information" in the Facebook Data Policy: https://www.facebook.com/policy). As explained in the Facebook Data Policy under "How we use this information?" Facebook also collects and uses information to provide analytics services, known as "page insights," to site operators to help them understand how people interact with their pages and with content associated with them. We have concluded a special agreement with Facebook ("Information about Page-Insights", https://www.facebook.com/legal/terms/page_controller_addendum), which regulates in particular the security measures that Facebook must observe and in which Facebook has agreed to fulfill the rights of the persons concerned (i.e. users can send information access or deletion requests directly to Facebook). The rights of users (in particular to access to information, erasure, objection and complaint to the competent supervisory authority) are not restricted by the agreements with Facebook. Further information can be found in the "Information about Page Insights" (https://www.facebook.com/legal/terms/information_about_page_insights_data).

  • Processed data types: Contact data (e.g. e-mail, telephone numbers), Content data (e.g. text input, photographs, videos), Usage data (e.g. websites visited, interest in content, access times), Meta/communication data (e.g. device information, IP addresses).
  • Data subjects: Users (e.g. website visitors, users of online services).
  • Purposes of Processing: Contact requests and communication, Feedback (e.g. collecting feedback via online form), Marketing.
  • Legal Basis: Legitimate Interests (Article 6 (1) (f) GDPR).

Services and service providers being used:

Plugins and embedded functions and content

Within our online services, we integrate functional and content elements that are obtained from the servers of their respective providers (hereinafter referred to as "third-party providers"). These may, for example, be graphics, videos or city maps (hereinafter uniformly referred to as "Content").

The integration always presupposes that the third-party providers of this content process the IP address of the user, since they could not send the content to their browser without the IP address. The IP address is therefore required for the presentation of these contents or functions. We strive to use only those contents, whose respective offerers use the IP address only for the distribution of the contents. Third parties may also use so-called pixel tags (invisible graphics, also known as "web beacons") for statistical or marketing purposes. The "pixel tags" can be used to evaluate information such as visitor traffic on the pages of this website. The pseudonymous information may also be stored in cookies on the user's device and may include technical information about the browser and operating system, referring websites, visit times and other information about the use of our website, as well as may be linked to such information from other sources.

Information on legal basis: If we ask users for their consent (e.g. in the context of a so-called "cookie banner consent"), the legal basis for processing is this consent. Otherwise, user data will be processed on the basis of our legitimate interests (i.e. interest in the analysis, optimisation and economic operation of our online services. We refer you to the note on the use of cookies in this privacy policy.

Integration of third-party software, scripts or frameworks: We incorporate into our online services software which we retrieve from servers of other providers (e.g. function libraries which we use for the purpose of displaying or user-friendliness of our online services). The respective providers collect the user's IP address and can process it for the purposes of transferring the software to the user's browser as well as for security purposes and for the evaluation and optimisation of their services.

  • Processed data types: Usage data (e.g. websites visited, interest in content, access times), Meta/communication data (e.g. device information, IP addresses), Inventory data (e.g. names, addresses), Contact data (e.g. e-mail, telephone numbers), Content data (e.g. text input, photographs, videos).
  • Data subjects: Users (e.g. website visitors, users of online services).
  • Purposes of Processing: Provision of our online services and usability, Provision of contractual services and customer support.
  • Legal Basis: Legitimate Interests (Article 6 (1) (f) GDPR), Consent (Article 6 (1) (a) GDPR), Performance of a contract and prior requests (Article 6 (1) (b) GDPR).

Services and service providers being used:

  • Google Fonts: We integrate the fonts ("Google Fonts") of the provider Google, whereby the data of the users are used solely for purposes of the representation of the fonts in the browser of the users. The integration takes place on the basis of our legitimate interests in a technically secure, maintenance-free and efficient use of fonts, their uniform presentation and consideration of possible licensing restrictions for their integration. Service provider: Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland, parent company: Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA; Website: https://fonts.google.com/; Privacy Policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy.
  • Google Maps: We integrate the maps of the service "Google Maps" from the provider Google. The data processed may include, in particular, IP addresses and location data of users, which are not collected without their consent (usually within the framework of the settings of their mobile devices); Service provider: Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland, parent company: Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA; Website: https://cloud.google.com/maps-platform; Privacy Policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy; Opt-Out: Opt-Out-Plugin: https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout?hl=en, Settings for the Display of Advertisements: https://adssettings.google.com/authenticated.
  • Google Maps APIs and SDKs: Interfaces to the map and location services provided by Google, which, for example, allow the addition of address entries, location determinations, distance calculations or the provision of supplementary information on locations and other places; Service provider: Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland, parent company: Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA; Website: https://cloud.google.com/maps-platform; Privacy Policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy.
  • reCAPTCHA: We integrate the "reCAPTCHA" function to be able to recognise whether entries (e.g. in online forms) are made by humans and not by automatically operating machines (so-called "bots"). The data processed may include IP addresses, information on operating systems, devices or browsers used, language settings, location, mouse movements, keystrokes, time spent on websites, previously visited websites, interactions with ReCaptcha on other websites, possibly cookies and results of manual recognition processes (e.g. answering questions asked or selecting objects in images). Service provider: Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland, , parent company: Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA; Website: https://www.google.com/recaptcha/; Privacy Policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy; Opt-Out: Opt-Out-Plugin: https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout?hl=en, Settings for the Display of Advertisements: https://adssettings.google.com/authenticated.
  • YouTube videos: Video contents; Service provider: Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland, , parent company: Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA; Website: https://www.youtube.com; Privacy Policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy; Opt-Out: Opt-Out-Plugin: https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout?hl=en, Settings for the Display of Advertisements: https://adssettings.google.com/authenticated.

Management, Organization and Utilities

We use services, platforms and software from other providers (hereinafter referred to as " third-party providers") for the purposes of organizing, administering, planning and providing our services. When selecting third-party providers and their services, we comply with the legal requirements.

Within this context, personal data may be processed and stored on the servers of third-party providers. This may include various data that we process in accordance with this privacy policy. This data may include in particular master data and contact data of users, data on processes, contracts, other processes and their contents.

If users are referred to the third-party providers or their software or platforms in the context of communication, business or other relationships with us, the third-party provider processing may process usage data and metadata that can be processed by them for security purposes, service optimisation or marketing purposes. We therefore ask you to read the data protection notices of the respective third party providers.

Information on legal basis: If we ask the users for their consent to the use of third party providers, the legal basis of the processing is consent. Furthermore, the processing can be a component of our (pre)contractual services, provided that the use of the third party was agreed within this context. Otherwise, user data will be processed on the basis of our legitimate interests (i.e. interest in efficient, economic and recipient friendly services). In this context, we would also like to refer you to the information on the use of cookies in this privacy policy.

  • Processed data types: Inventory data (e.g. names, addresses), Contact data (e.g. e-mail, telephone numbers), Content data (e.g. text input, photographs, videos), Usage data (e.g. websites visited, interest in content, access times), Meta/communication data (e.g. device information, IP addresses).
  • Data subjects: Communication partner (Recipients of e-mails, letters, etc.), Users (e.g. website visitors, users of online services).
  • Purposes of Processing: Contact requests and communication.
  • Legal Basis: Consent (Article 6 (1) (a) GDPR), Performance of a contract and prior requests (Article 6 (1) (b) GDPR), Legitimate Interests (Article 6 (1) (f) GDPR).

Services and service providers being used:

Changes and Updates to the Privacy Policy

We kindly ask you to inform yourself regularly about the contents of our data protection declaration. We will adjust the privacy policy as changes in our data processing practices make this necessary. We will inform you as soon as the changes require your cooperation (e.g. consent) or other individual notification.

If we provide addresses and contact information of companies and organizations in this privacy policy, we ask you to note that addresses may change over time and to verify the information before contacting us.

Rights of Data Subjects

As data subject, you are entitled to various rights under the GDPR, which arise in particular from Articles 15 to 21 of the GDPR:

  • Right to Object: You have the right, on grounds arising from your particular situation, to object at any time to the processing of your personal data which is based on letter (e) or (f) of Article 6(1) GDPR , including profiling based on those provisions.

    Where personal data are processed for direct marketing purposes, you have the right to object at any time to the processing of the personal data concerning you for the purpose of such marketing, which includes profiling to the extent that it is related to such direct marketing.

  • Right of withdrawal for consents: You have the right to revoke consents at any time.
  • Right of access: You have the right to request confirmation as to whether the data in question will be processed and to be informed of this data and to receive further information and a copy of the data in accordance with the provisions of the law.
  • Right to rectification: You have the right, in accordance with the law, to request the completion of the data concerning you or the rectification of the incorrect data concerning you.
  • Right to Erasure and Right to Restriction of Processing: In accordance with the statutory provisions, you have the right to demand that the relevant data be erased immediately or, alternatively, to demand that the processing of the data be restricted in accordance with the statutory provisions.
  • Right to data portability: You have the right to receive data concerning you which you have provided to us in a structured, common and machine-readable format in accordance with the legal requirements, or to request its transmission to another controller.
  • Complaint to the supervisory authority: In accordance with the law and without prejudice to any other administrative or judicial remedy, you also have the right to lodge a complaint with a data protection supervisory authority, in particular a supervisory authority in the Member State where you habitually reside, the supervisory authority of your place of work or the place of the alleged infringement, if you consider that the processing of personal data concerning you infringes the GDPR.