Privacy Policy

Mar. 04, 2024

This privacy policy will explain how our organization uses the personal data we collect from you when you use our website.

 

Table of Contents

• Introduction and Overview
• Scope of application
• Legal basis
• Contact details of the responsible person
• Storage period
• Rights according to the General Data Protection Regulation
• Data transfer to third countries
• Security of data processing
• Communication
• Order processing agreement
• Cookies
• Customer data
• Registration
• Web Hosting
• Web Analytics
• Email Marketing
• Push Messages
• Messenger & Communication Introduction
• Social Media
• Online Marketing
• Cookie Consent Management Platform
• Security & Anti-Spam
• Cloud Services
• External Online Platforms Introduction
• Audio & Video
• Video Conferencing & Streaming
• Explanation of used terms
• Conclusion

 

Introduction and Overview

We have written this privacy statement (version 10.02.2023-312404097) to explain to you, in accordance with the requirements of the General Data Protection Regulation (EU) 2016/679 and applicable national laws, which personal data (data for short) we as the controller - and the processors (e.g. providers) commissioned by us - process, will process in the future and what lawful options you have. The terms used are to be understood as gender-neutral.
In short, we inform you comprehensively about data we process about you.

Privacy statements usually sound very technical and use legal terminology. This privacy statement, on the other hand, is intended to describe the most important things to you as simply and transparently as possible. To the extent that it is conducive to transparency, technical terms are explained in a reader-friendly manner, links to further information are provided. In this way, we inform you in clear and simple language that we only process personal data in the course of our business activities if there is a corresponding legal basis. This is certainly not possible by providing the most concise, unclear and legalistic explanations possible, as is often standard practice on the Internet when it comes to data protection. We hope you find the following explanations interesting and informative, and perhaps there is one or two pieces of information that you did not yet know.
If you still have questions, we would like to ask you to contact the responsible party named below or in the imprint, to follow the available links and to look at further information on third-party sites. Our contact details can of course also be found in the legal notice.

Scope of application

This data protection declaration applies to all personal data processed by us in the company and to all personal data processed by companies commissioned by us (order processors). By personal data, we mean information within the meaning of Art. 4 No. 1 DSGVO, such as a person's name, e-mail address and postal address. The processing of personal data ensures that we can offer and invoice our services and products, whether online or offline. The scope of this privacy policy includes:

• all online presences (websites, online stores) that we operate
• social media presences and email communications
• mobile apps for smartphones and other devices

In short, the data protection declaration applies to all areas in which personal data is processed in the company via the aforementioned channels in a structured manner. If we enter into legal relationships with you outside of these channels, we will inform you separately if necessary.

Legal basis

In the following privacy statement, we provide you with transparent information on the legal principles and regulations, i.e. the legal bases of the General Data Protection Regulation, which enable us to process personal data.
As far as EU law is concerned, we refer to REGULATION (EU) 2016/679 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 27 April 2016, which you can of course read online on EUR-Lex, the access to EU law, at https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/DE/ALL/?uri=celex%3A32016R0679.

We only process your data if at least one of the following conditions applies:

1. Consent (Article 6(1)(a) DSGVO): You have given us your consent to process data for a specific purpose. An example would be the storage of your entered data of a contact form.
2. Contract (Article 6(1) lit. b DSGVO): In order to fulfill a contract or pre-contractual obligations with you, we process your data. For example, if we conclude a purchase contract with you, we need personal information in advance.
3. Legal obligation (Article 6(1)(c) DSGVO): If we are subject to a legal obligation, we process your data. For example, we are legally obliged to keep invoices for accounting purposes. These usually contain personal data.
4. Legitimate interests (Article 6(1)(f) DSGVO): In the case of legitimate interests that do not restrict your fundamental rights, we reserve the right to process personal data. For example, we need to process certain data in order to operate our website in a secure and economically efficient manner. This processing is therefore a legitimate interest.

Other conditions, such as the performance of recordings in the public interest and the exercise of official authority, as well as the protection of vital interests, do not generally arise for us. If such a legal basis should nevertheless be relevant, it will be indicated at the appropriate place.

In addition to the EU Regulation, national laws also apply:

• In Austria, this is the Federal Act on the Protection of Individuals with regard to the Processing of Personal Data (Data Protection Act), or DSG for short.
• In Germany, the Federal Data Protection Act, or BDSG for short, applies.
• If other regional or national laws apply, we will inform you about them in the following sections.

Contact details of the person responsible

If you have any questions about data protection or the processing of personal data, please find below the contact details of the responsible person or body:

VIRTUOS4U GmbH
Stephan Decker, Jessica Nentwich-Itschert
Mozartstr. 14
64347 Griesheim
Germany
Authorized representatives: Stephan Decker, Jessica Nentwich-Itschert
E-mail: virtuos4u@gmail.com
Phone: +49 1711010712
https://www.virtuos4u.com/privacy-policy

Storage period

It is our general policy to store personal data only for as long as is absolutely necessary for the provision of our services and products. This means that we delete personal data as soon as the reason for processing the data no longer exists. In some cases, we are required by law to store certain data even after the original purpose has ceased to exist, for example for accounting purposes.

Should you wish your data to be deleted or revoke your consent to data processing, the data will be deleted as soon as possible and insofar as there is no obligation to store it.

We will inform you about the specific duration of the respective data processing below, provided we have further information on this.

Rights according to the General Data Protection Regulation

Pursuant to Articles 13, 14 DSGVO, we inform you about the following rights you are entitled to in order to ensure fair and transparent processing of data:

According to Article 15 DSGVO, you have the right to information about whether we process data from you. If this is the case, you have the right to receive a copy of the data and to know the following information:

• For what purpose we are processing;
• the categories, i.e. the types of data that are processed;
• who receives this data and if the data is transferred to third countries, how security can be guaranteed;
• how long the data will be stored;
• the existence of the right to rectification, erasure or restriction of processing and the right to object to processing;
• that you can lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority (links to these authorities can be found below);
• The origin of the data if we have not collected it from you;
• Whether profiling is carried out, i.e. whether data is automatically evaluated to arrive at a personal profile of you.

You have a right to rectification of data according to Article 16 GDPR, which means that we must correct data if you find errors.

You have the right to erasure ("right to be forgotten") according to Article 17 GDPR, which specifically means that you may request the deletion of your data.

According to Article 18 of the GDPR, you have the right to restriction of processing, which means that we may only store the data but not use it further.

According to Article 20 of the GDPR, you have the right to data portability, which means that we will provide you with your data in a standard format upon request.

According to Article 21 DSGVO, you have the right to object, which entails a change in processing after enforcement.

If the processing of your data is based on Article 6(1)(e) (public interest, exercise of official authority) or Article 6(1)(f) (legitimate interest), you may object to the processing. We will then check as soon as possible whether we can legally comply with this objection.

If data is used to conduct direct advertising, you may object to this type of data processing at any time. We may then no longer use your data for direct marketing.

If data is used to carry out profiling, you may object to this type of data processing at any time. We may no longer use your data for profiling thereafter.

According to Article 22 of the GDPR, you may have the right not to be subject to a decision based solely on automated processing (for example, profiling).

You have the right to lodge a complaint under Article 77 of the GDPR. This means that you can complain to the data protection authority at any time if you believe that the data processing of personal data violates the GDPR.

In short, you have rights - do not hesitate to contact the responsible party listed above with us!

If you believe that the processing of your data violates data protection law or your data protection rights have been violated in any other way, you can complain to the supervisory authority. For Austria, this is the data protection authority, whose website can be found at https://www.dsb.gv.at/. In Germany, there is a data protection officer for each federal state. For more information, you can contact the Federal Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information (BfDI). The following local data protection authority is responsible for our company:

Hesse Data Protection Authority

State Commissioner for Data Protection:
Prof. Dr. Alexander Roßnagel
Address: P.O. Box 31 63, 65021 Wiesbaden
Phone: 06 11/140 80
E-mail address: poststelle@datenschutz.hessen.de
Website: https://datenschutz.hessen.de/

Data transfer to third countries

We only transfer or process data to countries outside the EU (third countries) if you consent to this processing, if this is required by law or contractually necessary, and in any case only to the extent that this is generally permitted. Your consent is in most cases the most important reason that we have data processed in third countries. Processing personal data in third countries such as the U.S., where many software vendors provide services and have their server locations, may mean that personal data is processed and stored in unexpected ways.

We explicitly point out that according to the opinion of the European Court of Justice, there is currently no adequate level of protection for data transfers to the USA. Data processing by US services (such as Google Analytics) may result in data not being processed and stored anonymously, where applicable. Furthermore, US government authorities may be able to access individual data. In addition, it may happen that collected data is linked to data from other services of the same provider, if you have a corresponding user account. Where possible, we try to use server locations within the EU, if this is offered.

We will inform you in more detail about data transfer to third countries, if applicable, at the appropriate places in this privacy policy.

Security of data processing

To protect personal data, we have implemented both technical and organizational measures. Where possible, we encrypt or pseudonymize personal data. In this way, we make it as difficult as possible, within the scope of our possibilities, for third parties to infer personal information from our data.

Article 25 of the GDPR refers to "data protection by technical design and by data protection-friendly default settings" and thus means that both software (e.g., forms) and hardware (e.g., access to the server room) are always designed with security in mind and that appropriate measures are taken. In the following, we will go into more detail on specific measures, if necessary.

TLS encryption with https

TLS, encryption and https sound very technical and they are. We use HTTPS (Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure stands for "secure hypertext transfer protocol") to transfer data over the Internet in a tap-proof manner.
This means that the complete transmission of all data from your browser to our web server is secured - no one can "listen in".

In this way, we have introduced an additional layer of security and comply with data protection by design of technology (Article 25(1) DSGVO). By using TLS (Transport Layer Security), an encryption protocol for secure data transmission on the Internet, we can ensure the protection of confidential data.
You can recognize the use of this protection of data transmission by the small lock symbol at the top left of the browser, to the left of the Internet address (e.g., beispielseite.de) and the use of the scheme https (instead of http) as part of our Internet address.
If you want to know more about encryption, we recommend a Google search for "Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure wiki" to get good links to further information.

Communication

When you contact us and communicate by phone, email or online form, personal data may be processed.

The data is processed for the handling and processing of your question and the related business transaction. The data is stored for as long as it is required by law.

Persons concerned

All those who seek contact with us via the communication channels provided by us are affected by the aforementioned processes.

Telephone

When you call us, the call data is stored pseudonymously on the respective terminal device and with the telecommunications provider used. In addition, data such as name and telephone number may subsequently be sent by e-mail and stored for the purpose of responding to your inquiry. The data is deleted as soon as the business case has been closed and legal requirements permit.

E-mail

If you communicate with us by e-mail, data may be stored on the respective end device (computer, laptop, smartphone,...) and data is stored on the e-mail server. The data will be deleted as soon as the business case has been closed and legal requirements allow it.

Online forms

If you communicate with us using online forms, data is stored on our web server and may be forwarded to an e-mail address of ours. The data will be deleted as soon as the business case has been terminated and legal requirements permit.

Legal basis

The processing of data is based on the following legal bases:

Art. 6 para. 1 lit. a DSGVO (consent): You give us your consent to store and further use your data for purposes related to the business case;

Art. 6 para. 1 lit. b DSGVO (contract): There is a need for the performance of a contract with you or a processor such as the telephone provider, or we need to process the data for pre-contractual activities, such as preparing an offer;

Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f DSGVO (Legitimate Interests): We want to conduct customer inquiries and business communications in a professional manner. For this purpose, certain technical facilities such as e-mail programs, exchange servers and mobile operators are necessary in order to be able to operate the communication efficiently.

Order processing agreement (AVV)

In this section, we would like to explain what an order processing contract is and why it is needed. Because the word "order processing agreement" is quite a mouthful, we will also use just the acronym AVV more often here in the text. Like most companies, we do not work alone, but also use the services of other companies or individuals ourselves.  Through the involvement of various companies or service providers, it may be that we pass on personal data for processing. These partners then act as processors with whom we conclude a contract, the so-called order processing agreement (AVV). The most important thing for you to know is that the processing of your personal data is carried out exclusively according to our instructions and must be regulated by the GCU.

Who are processors?

As a company and website owner, we are responsible for all the data we process from you. In addition to the responsible parties, there may also be so-called processors. This includes any company or person that processes personal data on our behalf. More precisely and according to the GDPR definition: any natural or legal person, authority, institution or other body that processes personal data on our behalf is considered a processor. Consequently, processors can be service providers such as hosting or cloud providers, payment or newsletter providers, or large companies such as Google or Microsoft, for example.

For a better understanding of the terminology, here is an overview of the three roles in the GDPR:

Data subject (you as a customer or interested party) → controller (we as a company and client) → processor (service provider such as web hoster or cloud provider).

Content of an order processing contract

As mentioned above, we have concluded an AVV with our partners who act as processors. This states, first and foremost, that the processor will process the data to be processed exclusively in accordance with the GDPR. The contract must be concluded in writing, although in this context the electronic conclusion of the contract is also considered "in writing". Only on the basis of the contract will the processing of personal data take place. The contract must contain the following:

• Commitment to us as the controller
• Obligations and rights of the data controller
• Categories of data subjects
• Nature of the personal data
• Nature and purpose of the data processing
• Subject and duration of data processing
• Place of performance of the data processing
• Furthermore, the contract contains all obligations of the processor. The most important obligations are:
• to ensure data security measures
• to take possible technical and organizational measures to protect the rights of the data subject
• to keep a data processing directory
• cooperate with the data protection supervisory authority upon its request
• carry out a risk analysis in relation to the personal data received.

Sub-processors may only be engaged with the written consent of the data controller.

You can see what such an AVV looks like in concrete terms, for example, at https://www.wko.at/service/wirtschaftsrecht-gewerberecht/eu-dsgvo-mustervertrag-auftragsverarbeitung.html. A sample contract is presented here.

Cookies

What are cookies?

Our website uses HTTP cookies to store user-specific data.
Below, we explain what cookies are and why they are used so that you can better understand the following privacy policy.

Whenever you browse the Internet, you use a browser. Popular browsers include Chrome, Safari, Firefox, Internet Explorer, and Microsoft Edge. Most websites store small text files in your browser. These files are called cookies.

One thing can't be denied: Cookies are really useful little helpers. Almost all websites use cookies. More precisely, they are HTTP cookies, as there are other cookies for other applications. HTTP cookies are small files that are stored on your computer by our website. These cookie files are automatically placed in the cookie folder, effectively the "brain" of your browser. A cookie consists of a name and a value. When defining a cookie, one or more attributes must also be specified.

Cookies store certain user data about you, such as language or personal page settings. When you return to our site, your browser transmits the "user-related" information back to our site. Thanks to cookies, our site knows who you are and offers you the setting you are used to. In some browsers each cookie has its own file, in others, such as Firefox, all cookies are stored in a single file.

The following graphic shows a possible interaction between a web browser, such as Chrome, and the web server. In this case, the web browser requests a website and receives a cookie back from the server, which the browser uses again as soon as another page is requested.

 

There are both first-party cookies and third-party cookies. First-party cookies are created directly by our site, third-party cookies are created by partner websites (e.g. Google Analytics). Each cookie must be evaluated individually, as each cookie stores different data. Also, the expiration time of a cookie varies from a few minutes to a few years. Cookies are not software programs and do not contain viruses, Trojans or other "pests". Cookies also cannot access information on your PC.

For example, cookie data may look like this:

Name: _ga Value: GA1.2.1326744211.152312404097-9 Purpose: to distinguish website visitors Expiration date: after 2 years.

A browser should be able to support these minimum sizes

• At least 4096 bytes per cookie
• At least 50 cookies per domain
• At least 3000 cookies in total

What types of cookies are there?

The question of which cookies we use in particular depends on the services we use and is clarified in the following sections of the privacy policy. At this point, we would like to briefly discuss the different types of HTTP cookies.

We can distinguish 4 types of cookies:

Essential cookies These cookies are necessary to ensure basic website functionality. For example, these cookies are needed when a user adds a product to the shopping cart, then continues browsing on other pages, and only later goes to the checkout. These cookies do not delete the shopping cart even if the user closes his browser window.

Purposeful cookies These cookies collect information about user behavior and whether the user receives any error messages. In addition, these cookies are also used to measure the loading time and the behavior of the website with different browsers.

Targeted cookies These cookies provide a better user experience. For example, entered locations, font sizes or form data are stored.

Advertising cookies These cookies are also called targeting cookies. They are used to deliver customized advertising to the user. This can be very convenient, but also very annoying.

Usually, when you visit a website for the first time, you are asked which of these cookie types you want to allow. And of course, this decision is also stored in a cookie.

If you want to know more about cookies and are not afraid of technical documentation, we recommend https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/html/rfc6265, the Request for Comments from the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) called "HTTP State Management Mechanism".

Purpose of processing via cookies

The purpose ultimately depends on the cookie in question. More details can be found below or from the manufacturer of the software that sets the cookie.

What data is processed?

Cookies are little helpers for a lot of different tasks. Unfortunately, it is not possible to generalize what data is stored in cookies, but we will inform you about the processed or stored data in the following privacy policy.

Storage duration of cookies

The storage duration depends on the respective cookie and is specified further below. Some cookies are deleted after less than an hour, others can remain stored on a computer for several years.

You can also influence the storage period yourself. You can manually delete all cookies at any time via your browser (see also "Right to object" below). Furthermore, cookies that are based on consent will be deleted at the latest after revocation of your consent, whereby the legality of the storage remains unaffected until then.

Right of objection - how can I delete cookies?

You decide how and whether you want to use cookies. Regardless of which service or website the cookies originate from, you always have the option to delete, disable or only partially allow cookies. For example, you can block third-party cookies but allow all other cookies.

If you want to find out which cookies have been stored in your browser, if you want to change or delete cookie settings, you can find it in your browser settings:

• Chrome: Delete, enable and manage cookies in Chrome.
• Safari: Manage cookies and website data with Safari.
• Firefox: Delete cookies to remove data that websites have placed on your computer
• Internet Explorer: delete and manage cookies
• Microsoft Edge: delete and manage cookies

If you generally don't want cookies, you can set your browser to notify you whenever a cookie is about to be set. This way, you can decide for each cookie whether to allow it or not. The procedure varies depending on the browser. It is best to search for the instructions in Google using the search term "delete cookies Chrome" or "disable cookies Chrome" in the case of a Chrome browser.

Legal basis

Since 2009, there are the so-called "Cookie Guidelines". This states that saving cookies requires your consent (Article 6 (1) a DSGVO). Within the EU countries, however, there are still very different reactions to these directives. In Austria, however, this directive was implemented in Section 96 (3) of the Telecommunications Act (TKG). In Germany, the Cookie Directives were not implemented as national law. Instead, the implementation of this directive took place largely in § 15 para.3 of the Telemedia Act (TMG).

For absolutely necessary cookies, even in the absence of consent, there are legitimate interests (Article 6 para. 1 lit. f DSGVO), which in most cases are of an economic nature. We want to provide visitors to the website with a pleasant user experience and for this purpose certain cookies are often absolutely necessary.

Insofar as cookies that are not absolutely necessary are used, this is only done in the case of your consent. The legal basis in this respect is Art. 6 para. 1 lit. a DSGVO.

In the following sections, you will be informed in more detail about the use of cookies, insofar as software used uses cookies.

Necessary cookies (managed by HubSpot)
These are essential cookies that do not require consent.

__hs_opt_out

• This cookie is used by the opt-in privacy policy to remember not to ask the visitor to accept cookies again.
• It contains the string "yes" or "no".
• It expires in 6 months.

__hs_do_not_track

• This cookie is set to prevent the tracking code from sending any information to HubSpot.
• It contains the string "yes".
• It expires in 6 months.

__hs_initial_opt_in

• This cookie is used to prevent the banner from always displaying when visitors are browsing in strict mode.
• It contains the string "yes" or "no".
• It expires in seven days.

__hs_cookie_cat_pref

• This cookie is used to record the categories a visitor consented to.
• It contains data on the consented categories.
• It expires in 6 months.

hs_ab_test

• This cookie is used to consistently serve visitors the same version of an A/B test page they’ve seen before.
• It contains the id of the A/B test page and the id of the variation that was chosen for the visitor.
• It expires at the end of the session.

<id>_key

• When visiting a password-protected page, this cookie is set so future visits to the page from the same browser do not require login again.
• The cookie name is unique for each password-protected page.
• It contains an encrypted version of the password so future visits to the page will not require the password again.
• It expires in 14 days.

hs-messages-is-open

• This cookie is used to determine and save whether the chat widget is open for future visits.
• It is set in the visitor's browser when they start a new chat, and resets to re-close the widget after 30 minutes of inactivity.
• If the visitor manually closes the chat widget, it will prevent the widget from re-opening on subsequent page loads in that browser session for 30 minutes.
• It contains a boolean value of True if present.
• It expires in 30 minutes.

hs-messages-hide-welcome-message

• This cookie is used to prevent the chat widget welcome message from appearing again for one day after it is dismissed.
• It contains a boolean value of True or False.
• It expires in one day. 

__hsmem

• This cookie is set when visitors log in to a HubSpot-hosted site.
• It contains encrypted data that identifies the membership user when they are currently logged in.
• It expires in seven days. 

hs-membership-csrf

• This cookie is used to ensure that content membership logins cannot be forged.
• It contains a random string of letters and numbers used to verify that a membership login is authentic.
• It expires at the end of the session.

hs_langswitcher_choice

• This cookie is used to save a visitor’s selected language choice when viewing pages in multiple languages.
• It is set when a visitor selects a language from the language switcher and is used as a language preference to redirect them to sites in their chosen language in the future if they are available.
• It contains a colon delimited string with the ISO639 language code choice on the left and the top level private domain it applies to on the right. An example will be "EN-US:hubspot.com".
• It expires in two years.

__cfruid

This cookie is set by HubSpot’s CDN provider because of their rate limiting policies. It expires at the end of the session. 

__cf_bm

This cookie is set by HubSpot's CDN provider and is a necessary cookie for bot protection. It expires in 30 minutes. 

 

Analytics cookies 

These are non-essential cookies controlled by the cookie banner. If you're a visitor to a site supported by HubSpot, you can opt out of these cookies by not giving consent.

__hstc

• The main cookie for tracking visitors.
• It contains the domain, utk, initial timestamp (first visit), last timestamp (last visit), current timestamp (this visit), and session number (increments for each subsequent session).
• It expires in 6 months.

hubspotutk

• This cookie keeps track of a visitor's identity. It is passed to HubSpot on form submission and used when deduplicating contacts.
• It contains an opaque GUID to represent the current visitor.
• It expires in 6 months.

__hssc

• This cookie keeps track of sessions.
• This is used to determine if HubSpot should increment the session number and timestamps in the __hstc cookie.
• It contains the domain, viewCount (increments each pageView in a session), and session start timestamp.
• It expires in 30 minutes.

__hssrc

• Whenever HubSpot changes the session cookie, this cookie is also set to determine if the visitor has restarted their browser.
• If this cookie does not exist when HubSpot manages cookies, it is considered a new session.
• It contains the value "1" when present.
• It expires at the end of the session.

 

Functionality cookies
Chatflow cookie
This is the cookie used for the chatflows tool. If you're a visitor, this allows you to chat with a representative on the site.
messagesUtk

• This cookie is used to recognize visitors who chat with you via the chatflows tool. If the visitor leaves your site before they're added as a contact, they will have this cookie associated with their browser.
• With the Consent to collect chat cookies setting turned on:
  • If you chat with a visitor who later returns to your site in the same cookied browser, the chatflows tool will load their conversation history.
  • The messagesUtk cookie will be treated as a necessary cookie.
• HubSpot will not drop the messagesUtk cookie for visitors who have been identified through the Visitor Identification API. The analytics cookie banner will not be impacted.
• This cookie will be specific to a subdomain and will not carry over to other subdomains. 
• It contains an opaque GUID to represent the current chat user.
• It expires after 6 months.
  
  Advertisement cookies
  Advertisement cookies are ad pixel cookies (such as Facebook, LinkedIn and Google).
  Facebook may set a cookie in a visitor's browser.
  HubSpot will link the placing of that pixel code to the cookie notification banner. If you require opt-in consent via this banner, the Facebook pixel will not be able to set any cookies until the visitor has have opted in. 
  For additional information, refer to Facebook's business tools terms and Facebook's cookie consent guide. 

 

Customer data

What is customer data?

In order to be able to offer our service or contractual services, we also process data of our customers and business partners. This data always includes personal data. Customer data is all information that is processed on the basis of a contractual or pre-contractual cooperation in order to be able to provide the services offered. Customer data is therefore all collected information that we collect and process about our customers.

Why do we process customer data?

There are many reasons why we collect and process customer data. The most important one is that we simply need various data to provide our services. Sometimes your email address is enough here, but if you purchase a product or service, for example, we also need data such as name, address, bank data or contract data. We also use the data subsequently for marketing and sales optimization, so that we can improve our overall service to our customers. Another important point is our customer service, which is always very important to us. We want you to be able to come to us at any time with questions about our offers, and for this we need at least your e-mail address.

What data is processed?

Which data exactly are stored, can be given here only on the basis of categories. This always depends on which services you receive from us. In some cases, you only give us your e-mail address so that we can contact you, for example, or so that we can answer your questions. In other cases, you purchase a product or service from us and for this we need significantly more information, such as your contact details, payment details and contract details.

Here is a list of possible data we receive from you and process:

• Name
• Contact address
• E-mail address
• Telephone number
• Date of birth
• Payment data (invoices, bank data, payment history etc.)
• Contract data ( duration, content)
• Usage data (websites visited, access data ect.)
• Metadata (IP address, device information)

How long is the data stored?

As soon as we no longer need the customer data to fulfill our contractual obligations and our purposes, and the data is also not necessary for possible warranty and liability obligations, we delete the corresponding customer data. This is the case, for example, when a business contract ends. After that, the statute of limitations is usually 3 years, although longer periods are possible in individual cases. Of course, we also comply with the statutory retention obligations. Your customer data will certainly not be passed on to third parties unless you have explicitly given your consent to do so.

Legal basis

Legal bases for the processing of your data are Art. 6 para 1 lit. a DSGVO (consent), Art. 6 para 1 lit. b DSGVO (contract or pre-contractual measures), Art. 6 para 1 lit. f DSGVO (legitimate interests) and in special cases (e.g. medical services) Art. 9 para 2 lit. a. DSGVO (processing of special categories).

In the case of the protection of vital interests, data processing is carried out in accordance with Art. 9 para. 2 lit. c. DSGVO. For the purposes of health care, occupational medicine, medical diagnosis, health or social care or treatment, or for the management of health or social care systems and services, the processing of personal data is carried out in accordance with Art. 9 (2) lit. h. DSGVO. If you voluntarily provide special category data, the processing is based on Art. 9 (2) lit. a. DSGVO.

Registration

If you register with us, personal data may be processed if you enter personal data or data such as the IP address is collected in the course of processing. You can read below what we mean by the rather unwieldy term "personal data".

Please only enter data that we need for registration and for which you have the approval of a third party, if you are registering on behalf of a third party. If possible, use a secure password that you do not use anywhere else and an email address that you check regularly.

In the following we will inform you about the exact way of data processing, because we want you to feel comfortable with us!

What is a registration?

With a registration we take certain data from you and make it possible for you later to simply log in online and use your account with us. Having an account with us has the advantage that you don't have to re-enter everything every time. Saves time, effort and ultimately prevents errors in the provision of our services.

Why do we process personal data?

In short, we process personal data to enable you to create and use an account with us.
If we didn't do that, you would have to enter all the data each time, wait for us to approve it, and enter it all again. We and many, many customers would not like that. How would you feel about that?

What data is processed?

All the data you provided during registration, enter during registration, or enter during the management of your data in the account.

During registration we process the following types of data: 

• First name
• Last name
• E-mail address
• Company name
• Street + house number
• Residence
• Postal code
• Country

During registration, we process the data you enter during registration, such as username and password, and data collected in the background, such as device information and IP addresses.

During account use, we process data that you enter during account use and which is created in the course of using our services.

Storage period

We store the data entered at least for as long as the account linked to the data exists with us and is used, for as long as contractual obligations exist between us and, if the contract ends, until the respective claims arising from it have lapsed. In addition, we store your data as long as and insofar as we are subject to legal obligations to store it. Thereafter, we retain accounting records pertaining to the contract (invoices, contract documents, account statements, etc.) as well as other relevant business documents for the period required by law (usually several years).

Right of objection

You have registered, entered data and would like to revoke the processing? No problem. As you can read above, the rights under the General Data Protection Regulation also exist during and after registration, login or account with us. Contact the data protection officer above to exercise your rights. If you already have an account with us, you can easily view or manage your data and texts in the account.

Legal basis

By carrying out the registration process, you are entering into a pre-contractual agreement with us to conclude a contract of use via our platform (although this does not automatically give rise to an obligation to pay). You invest time to enter data and register and we provide you with our services after logging into our system and viewing your customer account. We also fulfill our contractual obligations. Finally, we need to keep registered users informed of important changes by email. Thus, Art. 6 para. 1 lit. b DSGVO (performance of pre-contractual measures, fulfillment of a contract) applies.

If necessary, we also obtain your consent, e.g. if you voluntarily provide more than the absolutely necessary data or if we may send you advertising. Art. 6 para. 1 lit. a DSGVO (consent) therefore applies.

We also have a legitimate interest in knowing who we are dealing with in order to contact you in certain cases. In addition, we need to know who is using our services and whether they are being used as specified in our Terms of Use, so Art. 6(1)(f) DSGVO (Legitimate Interests) applies.

Note: the following sections are to be ticked by users (as required):

Registration with clear name

Since we need to know who we are dealing with in business operations, registration is only possible with your real name (clear name) and not with pseudonyms.

Registration with pseudonyms

Pseudonyms can be used for registration, which means that you do not have to register with us using your real name. This ensures that your name cannot be processed by us. 

Storage of the IP address

In the course of registration, login and account use, we store the IP address in the background for security reasons, in order to be able to determine the legitimate use.

Public profile

User profiles are publicly visible, i.e. parts of the profile can be seen on the Internet without entering a user name and password.

2-factor authentication (2FA)

Two-factor authentication (2FA) provides additional security when logging in, as it prevents you from logging in without a smartphone, for example. This technical measure to secure your account thus protects you from data loss or unauthorized access even if username and password were known. You will find out which 2FA is used during registration, login and in the account itself.

Web hosting 

What is web hosting?

Nowadays, when you visit websites, certain information - including personal data - is automatically created and stored, and this website is no exception. This data should be processed as sparingly as possible and only with justification. By website, by the way, we mean the entirety of all web pages on a domain, i.e. everything from the home page (homepage) to the very last subpage (like this one). By domain, we mean, for example, example.de or sampleexample.com.

When you want to view a website on a computer, tablet, or smartphone, you use a program called a web browser to do so. You probably know some web browsers by name: Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Mozilla Firefox, and Apple Safari. We say browser or web browser for short.

To display the website, the browser needs to connect to another computer where the website's code is stored: the web server. Running a web server is a complicated and costly task, which is why this is usually done by professional providers, the providers. These offer web hosting and thus ensure reliable and error-free storage of website data. A whole lot of technical terms, but please stay tuned, it gets better!

When the browser on your computer (desktop, laptop, tablet or smartphone) connects and during data transfer to and from the web server, personal data may be processed. On the one hand, your computer stores data, on the other hand, the web server must also store data for a while to ensure proper operation.

A picture is worth a thousand words, so the following graphic illustrates the interaction between the browser, the Internet and the hosting provider.

 

Why do we process personal data?

The purposes of data processing are:

• Professional hosting of the website and securing its operation.
• To maintain operational and IT security
• Anonymous evaluation of access behavior to improve our offer and, if necessary, for law enforcement or prosecution of claims

What data is processed?

Even while you are visiting our website right now, our web server, which is the computer on which this website is stored, usually automatically stores data such as

• the complete Internet address (URL) of the website you are visiting
• browser and browser version (e.g. Chrome 87)
• the operating system used (e.g. Windows 10)
• the address (URL) of the previously visited page (referrer URL) (e.g. https://www.beispielquellsite.de/vondabinichgekommen/)
• the host name and IP address of the device being accessed (e.g. COMPUTERNAME and 194.23.43.121)
• date and time
• in files, the so-called web server log files

How long is data stored?

As a rule, the above data is stored for two weeks and then automatically deleted. We do not pass on this data, but we cannot rule out the possibility that this data may be viewed by the authorities in the event of unlawful conduct.

In short, your visit is logged by our provider (company that runs our website on special computers (servers)), but we do not share your data without your consent!

Legal basis

The lawfulness of the processing of personal data in the context of web hosting results from Art. 6 (1) lit. f DSGVO (protection of legitimate interests), because the use of professional hosting with a provider is necessary to present the company on the Internet in a secure and user-friendly manner and to be able to pursue attacks and claims from this if necessary.

Between us and the hosting provider there is usually a contract on commissioned processing pursuant to Art. 28 f. DSGVO, which ensures compliance with data protection and guarantees data security.

1&1 IONOS Web Hosting Privacy Policy

We use IONOS by 1&1 to host our website. In Germany, 1&1 IONOS SE is located at Elgendorfer Str. 57, 56410 Montabaur, in Austria you can find 1&1 IONOS SE at Gumpendorfer Straße 142/PF 266, 1060 Vienna. IONOS offers the following web hosting services: Domain, Website & Shop, Hosting & WordPress, Marketing, Email & Office, IONOS Cloud and Server.

If you would like to learn more about data protection for IONOS website, please visit the privacy policy on ionos.de.

IONOS Order Processing Agreement (AVV).

We have entered into a contract processing agreement (CPA) with IONOS in accordance with Article 28 of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). What exactly an AVV is and, in particular, what must be included in an AVV, you can read in our general section "Order Processing Agreement (AVV)".

This contract is required by law because IONOS processes personal data on our behalf. It clarifies that IONOS may only process data they receive from us according to our instructions and must comply with the GDPR. You can find the link to the order processing agreement (AVV) at https://www.ionos.de/hilfe/datenschutz/allgemeine-informationen-zur-datenschutz-grundverordnung-dsgvo/auftragsverarbeitung/.

Web Analytics

What is Web Analytics?

We use software on our website to evaluate the behavior of website visitors, known as web analytics or web analysis for short. This involves collecting data that is stored, managed and processed by the respective analytic tool provider (also known as a tracking tool). The data is used to create analyses of user behavior on our website and made available to us as the website operator. In addition, most tools offer various testing options. For example, we can test which offers or content are best received by our visitors. To do this, we show you two different offers for a limited period of time. After the test (so-called A/B test), we know which product or content our website visitors find more interesting. For such test procedures, as for other analytics procedures, user profiles can also be created and the data stored in cookies.

Why do we use web analytics?

With our website we have a clear goal in mind: we want to deliver the best web offer on the market for our industry. To achieve this goal, we want to offer the best and most interesting offer on the one hand, and on the other hand, we want to make sure that you feel completely comfortable on our website. With the help of web analysis tools, we can take a closer look at the behavior of our website visitors and then improve our web offer for you and us accordingly. For example, we can see how old our visitors are on average, where they come from, when our website is most visited or which content or products are particularly popular. All this information helps us to optimize the website and thus best adapt it to your needs, interests and wishes.

What data is processed?

Exactly what data is stored depends, of course, on the analysis tools used. But as a rule, for example, which content you view on our website, which buttons or links you click on, when you access a page, which browser you use, which device (PC, tablet, smartphone, etc.) you use to visit the website or which computer system you use is stored. If you agreed that location data may also be collected, these may also be processed by the web analytics tool provider.

In addition, your IP address will also be stored. According to the General Data Protection Regulation (DSGVO), IP addresses are personal data. However, your IP address is usually stored pseudonymized (i.e. in an unrecognizable and shortened form). For the purpose of testing, web analysis and web optimization, no direct data, such as your name, age, address or e-mail address are stored as a matter of principle. All this data, if collected, is stored pseudonymously. This means that you cannot be identified as a person.

The following example shows schematically how Google Analytics works as an example of client-based web tracking with Java Script code.

How long the respective data is stored always depends on the provider. Some cookies only store data for a few minutes or until you leave the website again, while other cookies can store data for several years.

Duration of data processing

We will inform you about the duration of data processing below, provided we have further information on this. In general, we only process personal data for as long as is strictly necessary to provide our services and products. If it is required by law, as in the case of accounting, for example, this storage period may also be exceeded.

Right of objection

You also have the right and the possibility to revoke your consent to the use of cookies or third-party providers at any time. This works either via our cookie management tool or via other opt-out functions. For example, you can also prevent data collection through cookies by managing, disabling or deleting cookies in your browser.

Legal basis

The use of web analytics requires your consent, which we have obtained with our cookie popup. According to Art. 6 (1) lit. a DSGVO (consent), this consent constitutes the legal basis for the processing of personal data, as may occur during the collection by web analytics tools.

In addition to consent, there is a legitimate interest on our part to analyze the behavior of website visitors and thus to improve our offer technically and economically. With the help of web analytics, we detect website errors, can identify attacks and improve the economic efficiency. The legal basis for this is Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f DSGVO (Legitimate Interests). Nevertheless, we only use the tools insofar as you have given your consent.

Since web analytics tools use cookies, we also recommend that you read our general privacy policy on cookies. To find out exactly which of your data is stored and processed, you should read the privacy statements of the respective tools.

Information on specific web analytics tools, if available, can be found in the following sections.

Facebook Conversions API privacy policy

We use Facebook Conversions API, a server-side event tracking tool, on our website. The service provider is the American company Meta Platforms Inc. Meta Platforms Ireland Limited (4 Grand Canal Square, Grand Canal Harbour, Dublin 2, Ireland) is responsible for the European region.

Facebook also processes data from you in the USA, among other places. We would like to point out that according to the opinion of the European Court of Justice, there is currently no adequate level of protection for the transfer of data to the USA. This may be associated with various risks to the legality and security of data processing.

As a basis for data processing with recipients located in third countries (outside the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, i.e. in particular in the USA) or a data transfer there, Facebook uses so-called standard contractual clauses (= Art. 46. para. 2 and 3 DSGVO). Standard Contractual Clauses (SCC) are templates provided by the EU Commission and are intended to ensure that your data complies with European data protection standards even if it is transferred to third countries (such as the USA) and stored there. Through these clauses, Facebook undertakes to comply with the European level of data protection when processing your relevant data, even if the data is stored, processed and managed in the US. These clauses are based on an implementing decision of the EU Commission. You can find the decision and the corresponding standard contractual clauses here, among other places: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dec_impl/2021/914/oj?locale=de

Facebook's data processing terms and conditions, which correspond to the standard contractual clauses, can be found at https://www.facebook.com/legal/terms/dataprocessing.

You can learn more about the data processed through the use of Facebook Conversions API in the Privacy Policy at https://www.facebook.com/about/privacy.

Google Analytics Privacy Policy

What is Google Analytics?

We use the analysis tracking tool Google Analytics (GA) of the American company Google Inc. on our website. For the European area, the company Google Ireland Limited (Gordon House, Barrow Street Dublin 4, Ireland) is responsible for all Google services. Google Analytics collects data about your actions on our website. For example, when you click on a link, this action is stored in a cookie and sent to Google Analytics. Using the reports we receive from Google Analytics, we can better tailor our website and service to your preferences. In the following, we will go into more detail about the tracking tool and, in particular, inform you about what data is stored and how you can prevent this.

Google Analytics is a tracking tool used to analyze traffic to our website. In order for Google Analytics to work, a tracking code is built into the code of our website. When you visit our website, this code records various actions you take on our website. Once you leave our website, this data is sent to Google Analytics servers and stored there.

Google processes the data and we receive reports about your user behavior. These reports may include, but are not limited to, the following:

Audience reports: through audience reports, we get to know our users better and know more precisely who is interested in our service.

Ad reports: Ad reports help us analyze and improve our online advertising.

Acquisition reports: Acquisition reports give us helpful information on how to attract more people to our service.

Behavior reports: This is where we learn how you interact with our website. We can track the path you take on our site and which links you click.

Conversion reports: Conversion is when you take a desired action based on a marketing message. For example, you go from being a mere website visitor to a buyer or newsletter subscriber. These reports help us learn more about how our marketing efforts are working for you. This is how we aim to increase our conversion rate.

Real-time reports: Here we always know immediately what is happening on our website. For example, we can see how many users are currently reading this text.

Why do we use Google Analytics on our website?

Our goal with this website is clear: we want to provide you with the best possible service. The statistics and data from Google Analytics help us to achieve this goal.

The statistically evaluated data shows us a clear picture of the strengths and weaknesses of our website. On the one hand, we can optimize our site so that it can be found more easily by interested people on Google. On the other hand, the data helps us to better understand you as a visitor. Thus, we know very well what we need to improve on our website in order to provide you with the best possible service. The data also helps us to carry out our advertising and marketing measures in a more individual and cost-effective way. After all, it only makes sense to show our products and services to people who are interested in them.

What data is stored by Google Analytics?

Google Analytics uses a tracking code to create a random, unique ID that is associated with your browser cookie. This is how Google Analytics recognizes you as a new user. The next time you visit our site, you will be recognized as a "returning" user. All collected data is stored together with this user ID. This makes it possible to evaluate pseudonymous user profiles.

In order to analyze our website with Google Analytics, a property ID must be inserted into the tracking code. The data is then stored in the corresponding property. For each newly created property, the Google Analytics 4 property is standard. Alternatively, you can also create the Universal Analytics property. Depending on the property used, data is stored for different lengths of time.

Labels such as cookies and app instance IDs are used to measure your interactions on our website. Interactions are all types of actions you take on our website. If you also use other Google systems (such as a Google account), data generated through Google Analytics may be linked to third-party cookies. Google does not share Google Analytics data unless we, as the website operator, authorize it. Exceptions may occur if required by law.

The following cookies are used by Google Analytics:

Name: _ga Value: 2.1326744211.152312404097-5 Purpose: By default, analytics.js uses the _ga cookie to store the user ID. Basically, it is used to distinguish website visitors.
Expiration date: after 2 years

Name: _gid Value: 2.1687193234.152312404097-1 Purpose: The cookie is also used to distinguish the website visitors Expiration date: after 24 hours

Name: _gat_gtag_UA_<property-id> Value: 1 Purpose: Used to lower the request rate. If Google Analytics is deployed via Google Tag Manager, this cookie will be named _dc_gtm_ <property-id>.
Expiration date: after 1 minute

Name: AMP_TOKEN Value: not specified Purpose: The cookie has a token that can be used to retrieve a user ID from the AMP client ID service. Other possible values indicate a logout, a request, or an error.
Expiration date: after 30 seconds up to one year.

Name: __utma Value: 1564498958.1564498958.1564498958.1 Purpose: This cookie is used to track your behavior on the website and measure performance. The cookie is updated every time information is sent to Google Analytics.
Expiration date: after 2 years

Name: __utmt Value: 1 Purpose: The cookie is used like _gat_gtag_UA_<property-id> to throttle the request rate.
Expiration date: after 10 minutes

Name: __utmb Value: 3.10.1564498958 Purpose: This cookie is used to determine new sessions. It is updated every time new data or info is sent to Google Analytics.
Expiration date: after 30 minutes

Name: __utmc Value: 167421564 Purpose: This cookie is used to set new sessions for returning visitors. This is a session cookie and is only stored until you close the browser again.
Expiration date: After you close the browser.

Name: __utmz Value: m|utmccn=(referral)|utmcmd=referral|utmcct=/ Purpose: The cookie is used to identify the source of traffic to our website. That is, the cookie stores from where you came to our website. This may have been another page or an advertisement.
Expiration date: after 6 months

Name: __utmv Value: not specified Purpose: The cookie is used to store custom user data. It is updated whenever information is sent to Google Analytics.
Expiration date: after 2 years

Note: This enumeration cannot claim to be complete, as Google is always changing the choice of their cookies as well.

Here we show you an overview of the most important data collected by Google Analytics:

Heatmaps: Google creates so-called heatmaps. Heatmaps allow you to see exactly those areas that you click on. This gives us information about where you are "on the move" on our site.

Session duration: Google defines session duration as the time you spend on our site without leaving. If you have been inactive for 20 minutes, the session ends automatically.

Bounce rate: A bounce is when you view only one page on our site and then leave our site.

Account creation: when you create an account or make an order on our website, Google Analytics collects this data.

IP address: The IP address is only shown in a shortened form so that no clear assignment is possible.

Location: The IP address can be used to determine the country and your approximate location. This process is also referred to as IP- location determination.

Technical information: Technical information includes, but is not limited to, your browser type, internet service provider, or screen resolution.

Source of origin: Google Analytics or we are of course also interested in which website or which advertisement you came to our site from.

Other data include contact details, any ratings, playing media (e.g. if you play a video via our site), sharing content via social media or adding to your favorites. The enumeration does not claim to be complete and only serves as a general orientation of the data storage by Google Analytics.

How long and where is the data stored?

Google has their servers spread all over the world. Most servers are located in America and consequently your data is mostly stored on American servers. You can read exactly where Google's data centers are located here: https://www.google.com/about/datacenters/locations/?hl=de

Your data is distributed on different physical disks. This has the advantage that the data can be accessed more quickly and is better protected against manipulation. In each Google data center, there are corresponding emergency programs for your data. If, for example, the hardware at Google fails or natural disasters paralyze servers, the risk of a service interruption at Google still remains low.

The retention period of the data depends on the properties used. When using the newer Google Analytics 4 properties, the retention period of your user data is fixed at 14 months. For other so-called event data, we have the option to choose a retention period of 2 months or 14 months.

For Universal Analytics properties, Google Analytics defaults to a retention period of 26 months for your user data. Then your user data is deleted. However, we have the option to choose the retention period of user data ourselves. We have five variants available for this purpose:

Deletion after 14 months

Deletion after 26 months

Deletion after 38 months

Deletion after 50 months

No automatic deletion

In addition, there is also an option for data to be deleted only when you no longer visit our website within the time period we have selected. In this case, the retention period will be reset each time you visit our website again within the specified period.

Once the specified period has expired, the data is deleted once a month. This retention period applies to your data associated with cookies, user recognition and advertising IDs (e.g. DoubleClick domain cookies). Reporting results are based on aggregated data and are stored separately from user data. Aggregated data is a merging of individual data into a larger unit.

How can I delete my data or prevent data storage?

According to European Union data protection law, you have the right to obtain information about your data, update it, delete it or restrict it. Using the browser add-on to disable Google Analytics JavaScript (ga.js, analytics.js, dc.js), you can prevent Google Analytics from using your data. You can download and install the browser add-on at https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout?hl=de. Please note that this add-on only disables the collection of data by Google Analytics.

If you generally want to deactivate, delete or manage cookies, you will find the relevant links to the respective instructions for the most popular browsers under the section "Cookies".

Legal basis

The use of Google Analytics requires your consent, which we have obtained with our cookie popup. According to Art. 6 (1) lit. a DSGVO (consent), this consent constitutes the legal basis for the processing of personal data, as may occur during the collection by web analytics tools.

In addition to consent, there is a legitimate interest on our part to analyze the behavior of website visitors and thus to improve our offer technically and economically. With the help of Google Analytics, we detect website errors, can identify attacks and improve the economic efficiency. The legal basis for this is Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f DSGVO (Legitimate Interests). Nevertheless, we only use Google Analytics if you have given your consent.

Google also processes data from you in the USA, among other places. We would like to point out that according to the opinion of the European Court of Justice, there is currently no adequate level of protection for the transfer of data to the USA. This may be associated with various risks to the legality and security of data processing.

As a basis for data processing at recipients located in third countries (outside the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, i.e. in particular in the USA) or a data transfer there, Google uses so-called standard contractual clauses (= Art. 46. para. 2 and 3 DSGVO). Standard Contractual Clauses (SCC) are templates provided by the EU Commission and are intended to ensure that your data complies with European data protection standards even if it is transferred to third countries (such as the USA) and stored there. Through these clauses, Google undertakes to comply with the European level of data protection when processing your relevant data, even if the data is stored, processed and managed in the US. These clauses are based on an implementing decision of the EU Commission. You can find the decision and the corresponding standard contractual clauses here, among other places: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dec_impl/2021/914/oj?locale=de

The Google Ads Data Processing Terms, which refer to the standard contractual clauses, can be found at https://business.safety.google/intl/de/adsprocessorterms/.

We hope we have been able to provide you with the most important information regarding Google Analytics data processing. If you want to learn more about the tracking service, we recommend these two links: https://marketingplatform.google.com/about/analytics/terms/de/ and https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/6004245?hl=de.

Google Analytics order processing agreement (AVV).

We have concluded an order processing agreement (AVV) with Google in accordance with Article 28 of the General Data Protection Regulation (DSGVO). What an AVV exactly is and especially what must be included in an AVV, you can read in our general section "Order processing contract (AVV)".

This contract is required by law because Google processes personal data on our behalf. It clarifies that Google may only process data they receive from us according to our instructions and must comply with the GDPR. The link to the order data processing conditions can be found at https://business.safety.google/intl/de/adsprocessorterms/.

Google Analytics reports on demographic characteristics and interests.

We have enabled promotional reporting features in Google Analytics. The demographic characteristics and interests reports contain information on age, gender and interests. This allows us - without being able to assign this data to individual persons - to get a better picture of our users. You can learn more about advertising features at https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/3450482?hl=de_AT&utm_id=ad.

You can stop the use of the activities and information of your Google account under "Settings for advertising" at https://adssettings.google.com/authenticated via checkbox.

Google Analytics E-commerce measurement

We also use the e-commerce measurement of the web analytics tool Google Analytics for our website. This allows us to analyze very precisely how you and all our other customers interact on our website. E-commerce measurement is primarily about buying behavior. Based on data obtained, we can adapt and optimize our service to your wishes and your expectations. Likewise, we can target our online advertising efforts more effectively so that only people who are also interested in our products or services see our ads. E-commerce measurement records, for example, which orders were placed, how long it took you to purchase the product, what the average order value is, or even how high the shipping costs are. All this data can be collected and stored under a specific ID.

TikTok Pixel Privacy Policy

We use TikTok Pixel, a conversion tracking tool for advertisers, on our website. The service provider is the Chinese company TikTok. The company responsible for the European region is TikTok Technology Limited (10 Earlsfort Terrace, Dublin, D02 T380, Ireland).

TikTok also processes data from you in the USA, among other places. We would like to point out that according to the opinion of the European Court of Justice, there is currently no adequate level of protection for the transfer of data to the USA. This may be accompanied by various risks to the lawfulness and security of data processing.

As a basis for data processing with recipients located in third countries (outside the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, i.e. especially in the USA) or a data transfer there, TikTok uses so-called standard contractual clauses (= Art. 46. para. 2 and 3 DSGVO). Standard Contractual Clauses (SCC) are templates provided by the EU Commission and are intended to ensure that your data complies with European data protection standards even if it is transferred to third countries (such as the USA) and stored there. Through these clauses, TikTok undertakes to comply with the European level of data protection when processing your relevant data, even if the data is stored, processed and managed in the US. These clauses are based on an implementing decision of the EU Commission. You can find the decision and the corresponding standard contractual clauses here, among other places: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dec_impl/2021/914/oj?locale=de

You can learn more about the standard contractual clauses and the data processed through the use of TikTok Pixel in the Privacy Policy at https://www.tiktok.com/legal/privacy-policy-eea?lang=de and https://ads.tiktok.com/i18n/official/policy/controller-to-controller, respectively.

Email Marketing

What is email marketing?

In order to always keep you up to date, we also use the option of email marketing. If you have agreed to receive our e-mails or newsletters, your data will be processed and stored. E-mail marketing is a sub-area of online marketing. It involves sending news or general information about a company, products or services by e-mail to a specific group of people who are interested in them.

If you want to participate in our e-mail marketing (usually via newsletter), you usually just have to register with your e-mail address. To do this, you fill out an online form and submit it. However, it may also happen that we ask you for your title and name, for example, so that we can write to you personally.

In principle, the registration for newsletters works with the help of the so-called "double opt-in procedure". After you have registered for our newsletter on our website, you will receive an e-mail to confirm your newsletter registration. This ensures that the e-mail address belongs to you and that no one has registered with a third-party e-mail address. We or a notification tool we use logs each individual subscription. This is necessary so that we can also prove the legally correct registration process. As a rule, the time of registration, the time of the registration confirmation and your IP address are stored. In addition, it is also logged when you make changes to your stored data.

Why do we use e-mail marketing?

We naturally want to stay in touch with you and always present you with the most important news about our company. To do this, we use, among other things, e-mail marketing - often just referred to as "newsletters" - as an essential part of our online marketing. If you agree to it or if it is permitted by law, we will send you newsletters, system e-mails or other notifications by e-mail. When we use the term "newsletter" in the following text, we mainly mean regularly sent e-mails. Of course, we do not want to bother you in any way with our newsletters. That's why we really always try to provide only relevant and interesting content. For example, you will learn more about our company, our services or products. Since we are always improving our offers, our newsletter will also tell you when there is news or when we are offering special, lucrative promotions. If we use a service provider that offers a professional mailing tool for our e-mail marketing, we do so in order to be able to offer you fast and secure newsletters. The purpose of our email marketing is basically to inform you about new offers and also to get closer to our business goals.

What data is processed?

When you become a subscriber to our newsletter via our website, you confirm by email that you are a member of an email list. In addition to IP address and e-mail address, your salutation, name, address and telephone number may also be stored. However, only if you agree to this data storage. The data marked as such are necessary for you to participate in the service offered. Providing this information is voluntary, but failure to provide it will result in you not being able to use the service. In addition, information about your device or your preferred content on our website may be stored. You can find out more about the storage of data when you visit a website in the section "Automatic data storage". We record your declaration of consent so that we can always prove that this complies with our laws.

Duration of data processing

If you unsubscribe your email address from our email/newsletter distribution list, we may store your address for up to three years based on our legitimate interests so that we can still prove your consent at the time. We may only process this data if we need to defend ourselves against any claims.

However, if you confirm that you have given us your consent to subscribe to the newsletter, you can submit an individual deletion request at any time. If you permanently object to the consent, we reserve the right to store your e-mail address in a blacklist. As long as you have voluntarily subscribed to our newsletter, we will of course also keep your e-mail address.

Right of objection

You have the possibility to cancel your newsletter subscription at any time. All you have to do is revoke your consent to the newsletter subscription. This usually takes only a few seconds or one or two clicks. Most of the time, you will find a link to cancel your newsletter subscription right at the end of each email. If you really can't find the link in the newsletter, please contact us by mail and we will cancel your newsletter subscription immediately.

Legal basis

The sending of our newsletter is based on your consent (Article 6 (1) a DSGVO). This means that we may only send you a newsletter if you have actively signed up for it beforehand. If applicable, we may also send you advertising messages, provided that you have become our customer and have not objected to the use of your email address for direct advertising.

For information on specific email marketing services and how they process personal data, if any, please see the following sections.

Push messages

What are push messages?

We also use so-called push notification services on our website that allow us to keep our users up to date. This means that if you have agreed to the use of such push messages, we can send you short news using a software tool. Push messages are a text message form that appear directly to you on your smartphone or other devices, such as tablets or PCs, if you have signed up for them. You will receive these messages even if you are not on our website or not actively using our service. In the process, data about your location and usage behavior may also be collected and stored.

Why do we use push messages?

On the one hand, we use push messages to be able to fully provide our services that we have contractually agreed with you. On the other hand, the messages also serve our online marketing. We can use these messages to bring you closer to our service or our products. Especially when there is news in our company, we can inform you about it immediately. We want to get to know the preferences and habits of all our users as well as possible in order to continuously improve our offer.

What data is processed?

In order for you to receive push messages, you must also confirm that you want to receive them. The data accumulated during the consent process is also stored, managed and processed. This is necessary so that it can be proven and recognized that a user has agreed to receive the push messages. For this purpose, a so-called device token or push token is stored in your browser. Usually, the data of your location or the location of the terminal device you are using is also stored.

To ensure that we also always send interesting and important push messages, the handling of the messages is also statistically evaluated. For example, we can then see whether and when you open the message. With the help of these insights, we can adapt our communication strategy to your wishes and interests. Although this stored data can be assigned to you, we do not want to check you as an individual. Rather, we are interested in the collected data of all our users so that we can make optimizations. You can find out exactly what data is stored in the data protection declarations of the respective service providers.

Duration of data processing

How long the data is processed and stored depends primarily on the tool we use. You can learn more about the data processing of the individual tools below. The privacy statements of the providers usually state exactly which data is stored and processed and for how long. In principle, personal data is only processed for as long as is necessary to provide our services. If data is stored in cookies, the storage period varies greatly. The data can be deleted immediately after leaving a website, but it can also remain stored for several years. Therefore, you should look at each individual cookie in detail if you want to know more about the data storage. In most cases, you will also find informative information about the individual cookies in the privacy statements of the individual providers.

Legal basis

It may also be that the push messages are necessary so that certain obligations that are in a contract can be fulfilled. For example, so that we can provide you with technical or organizational news. Then the legal basis is Art. 6 para. 1 lit. b DSGVO.

If this is not the case, the push messages will only be sent based on your consent. Our push messages may in particular have promotional content. The push messages may also be sent depending on your location, which your end device displays. The above-mentioned analytical evaluations are also based on your consent to receive such messages. The legal basis in this respect is Art. 6 (1) lit. a DSGVO. Of course, you can revoke your consent or change various settings in the settings at any time.

Messenger & Communication 

What are messenger & communication functions?

We offer various options on our website (such as messenger and chat functions, online or contact forms, e-mail, telephone) to communicate with us. In the process, your data is also processed and stored to the extent necessary to respond to your inquiry and our subsequent actions.

In addition to classic means of communication such as e-mail, contact forms or telephone, we also use chats or messengers. Currently, the most commonly used messenger function is WhatsApp, but there are of course many different providers that offer messenger functions specifically for websites. If content is encrypted end-to-end, this is indicated in the individual privacy texts or in the privacy policy of the respective provider. End-to-end encryption means nothing other than that content of a message itself is not visible to the provider. However, information about your device, location settings and other technical data can still be processed and stored.

Why do we use messenger & communication features?

Communication options with you are of great importance to us. After all, we want to talk to you and answer all possible questions about our service in the best possible way. Well-functioning communication is an important part of our service. With the convenient messenger & communication functions, you can always choose the ones you prefer. In exceptional cases, however, we may not be able to answer certain questions via chat or messenger. This is the case, for example, when it comes to internal contractual matters. In this case, we recommend other means of communication such as e-mail or telephone.

We generally assume that we remain responsible under data protection law, even if we use services of a social media platform. However, the European Court of Justice has ruled that in certain cases the operator of the social media platform may be jointly responsible with us within the meaning of Article 26 of the GDPR. Insofar as this is the case, we point this out separately and work on the basis of an agreement in this regard. The essence of the agreement is reproduced below for the platform concerned.

Please note that when using our built-in elements, data from you may also be processed outside the European Union, as many providers, for example Facebook Messenger or WhatsApp are American companies. This may make it less easy for you to claim or enforce your rights regarding your personal data.

What data is processed?

Exactly what data is stored and processed depends on the respective provider of the messenger & communication functions. Basically, it is data such as name, address, telephone number, e-mail address and content data such as all the information you enter in a contact form. In most cases, information about your device and the IP address are also stored. Data that is collected via a messenger & communication function is also stored on the providers' servers.

If you want to know exactly what data is stored and processed by the respective providers and how you can object to the data processing, you should carefully read the respective privacy policy of the company.

How long is data stored?

How long data is processed and stored depends primarily on the tools we use. Further below, you will learn more about the data processing of the individual tools. The privacy statements of the providers usually state exactly which data is stored and processed and for how long. In principle, personal data is only processed for as long as is necessary to provide our services. If data is stored in cookies, the storage period varies greatly. The data can be deleted immediately after leaving a website, but it can also remain stored for several years. Therefore, you should look at each individual cookie in detail if you want to know more about the data storage. In most cases, you will also find informative information about the individual cookies in the privacy statements of the individual providers.

Right of objection

You also have the right and the option to revoke your consent to the use of cookies or third-party providers at any time. This works either via our cookie management tool or via other opt-out functions. For example, you can also prevent data collection through cookies by managing, disabling or deleting cookies in your browser. For more information, please refer to the consent section.

Since Messenger & Communication features may use cookies, we also recommend that you read our general privacy policy on cookies. To find out exactly what data of yours is stored and processed, you should read through the privacy statements of the respective tools.

Legal basis

If you have consented that data from you can be processed and stored by integrated messenger & communication functions, this consent is considered the legal basis for data processing (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. a DSGVO). We process your request and manage your data in the context of contractual or pre-contractual relationships in order to fulfill our pre-contractual and contractual obligations or to respond to requests. The basis for this is Art. 6 para. 1 p. 1 lit. b. DSGVO. In principle, your data will also be stored and processed on the basis of our legitimate interest (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f DSGVO) in fast and good communication with you or other customers and business partners if consent has been given.

Facebook Messenger privacy policy

We use the communication tool Facebook Messenger on our website. The service provider is the American company Meta Platforms Inc. The company Meta Platforms Ireland Limited (4 Grand Canal Square, Grand Canal Harbour, Dublin 2, Ireland) is responsible for the European region.

Facebook also processes data from you in the USA, among other places. We would like to point out that according to the opinion of the European Court of Justice, there is currently no adequate level of protection for the transfer of data to the USA. This may be associated with various risks to the legality and security of data processing.

As a basis for data processing with recipients located in third countries (outside the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, i.e. in particular in the USA) or a data transfer there, Facebook uses so-called standard contractual clauses (= Art. 46. para. 2 and 3 DSGVO). Standard Contractual Clauses (SCC) are templates provided by the EU Commission and are intended to ensure that your data complies with European data protection standards even if it is transferred to third countries (such as the USA) and stored there. Through these clauses, Facebook undertakes to comply with the European level of data protection when processing your relevant data, even if the data is stored, processed and managed in the US. These clauses are based on an implementing decision of the EU Commission. You can find the decision and the corresponding standard contractual clauses here, among other places: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dec_impl/2021/914/oj?locale=de

Facebook's data processing term, which corresponds to the standard contractual clauses, can be found at https://www.facebook.com/legal/terms/dataprocessing.

You can learn more about the data processed by using Facebook in the Privacy Policy at https://www.facebook.com/about/privacy.

Facebook Messenger order processing agreement (AVV).

We have concluded an order processing agreement (AVV) with Facebook in accordance with Article 28 of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). What exactly an AVV is and, in particular, what must be included in an AVV, you can read in our general section "Order processing agreement (AVV)".

This contract is required by law because Facebook processes personal data on our behalf. It clarifies that Facebook may only process data they receive from us according to our instructions and must comply with the GDPR. You can find the link to the order processing agreement (AVV) at https://www.facebook.com/legal/terms/dataprocessing.

WhatsApp privacy policy

We use the instant messaging service WhatsApp on our website. The service provider is the American company WhatsApp Inc. a subsidiary of Meta Platforms Inc. The company responsible for the European region is WhatsApp Ireland Limited, 4 Grand Canal Square, Grand Canal Harbour, Dublin 2, Ireland.

WhatsApp also processes data from you in the USA, among other places. We would like to point out that according to the opinion of the European Court of Justice, there is currently no adequate level of protection for the transfer of data to the USA. This may be associated with various risks to the legality and security of data processing.

As a basis for data processing with recipients located in third countries (outside the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, i.e. in particular in the USA) or a data transfer there, WhatsApp uses so-called standard contractual clauses (= Art. 46. para. 2 and 3 DSGVO). Standard Contractual Clauses (SCC) are templates provided by the EU Commission and are intended to ensure that your data comply with European data protection standards even if they are transferred to third countries (such as the USA) and stored there. Through these clauses, WhatsApp undertakes to comply with the European level of data protection when processing your relevant data, even if the data is stored, processed and managed in the USA. These clauses are based on an implementing decision of the EU Commission. You can find the decision and the corresponding standard contractual clauses here, among other places: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dec_impl/2021/914/oj?locale=de

For information on WhatsApp's data transfer, which complies with the standard contractual clauses, see https://www.whatsapp.com/legal/business-data-transfer-addendum-20210927

You can learn more about the data processed through the use of WhatsApp in the Privacy Policy at https://www.whatsapp.com/privacy

Social media

What is social media?

In addition to our website, we are also active on various social media platforms. In this context, user data may be processed so that we can target users who are interested in us via the social networks. In addition, elements of a social media platform may also be embedded directly in our website. This is the case, for example, when you click on a so-called social button on our website and are redirected directly to our social media presence. So-called social media or social media are websites and apps through which registered members can produce content, share content openly or in specific groups, and network with other members.

Why do we use social media?

For years, social media platforms have been the place where people communicate and connect online. Our social media presences allow us to promote our products and services to prospective customers. The social media elements embedded on our website help you to be able to switch to our social media content quickly and without complications.

The data that is stored and processed through your use of a social media channel is primarily for the purpose of being able to perform web analyses. The aim of these analyses is to be able to develop more precise and personalized marketing and advertising strategies. Depending on your behavior on a social media platform, appropriate conclusions can be drawn about your interests with the help of the evaluated data and so-called user profiles can be created. This also enables the platforms to present you with tailored advertisements. In most cases, cookies are set in your browser for this purpose, which store data about your usage behavior.

We generally assume that we remain responsible under data protection law, even if we use services of a social media platform. However, the European Court of Justice has ruled that in certain cases the operator of the social media platform may be jointly responsible with us within the meaning of Art. 26 DSGVO. Insofar as this is the case, we point this out separately and work on the basis of an agreement in this regard. The essence of the agreement is then reproduced below for the platform concerned.

Please note that when using the social media platforms or our built-in elements, data from you may also be processed outside the European Union, as many social media channels, for example Facebook or Twitter, are American companies. This may make it less easy for you to claim or enforce your rights regarding your personal data.

What data is processed?

Exactly what data is stored and processed depends on the respective provider of the social media platform. But usually it is data such as phone numbers, email addresses, data you enter in a contact form, user data such as which buttons you click, who you like or follow, when you visited which pages, information about your device and your IP address. Most of this data is stored in cookies. Especially if you yourself have a profile at the visited social media channel and are logged in, data can be linked to your profile.

All data collected via a social media platform is also stored on the servers of the providers. Thus, only the providers also have access to the data and can give you the appropriate information or make changes.

If you want to know exactly what data is stored and processed by the social media providers and how you can object to the data processing, you should carefully read the respective privacy policy of the company. Also, if you have questions about data storage and data processing or want to assert corresponding rights, we recommend that you contact the provider directly.

Duration of data processing

We will inform you about the duration of data processing below, provided we have further information on this. For example, the social media platform Facebook stores data until it is no longer needed for its own purpose. However, customer data that is matched with our own user data is already deleted within two days. In general, we only process personal data for as long as is absolutely necessary for the provision of our services and products. If it is required by law, as in the case of accounting, for example, this storage period may be exceeded.

Right of objection

You also have the right and the possibility to revoke your consent to the use of cookies or third-party providers such as embedded social media elements at any time. This works either via our cookie management tool or via other opt-out functions. For example, you can also prevent data collection through cookies by managing, disabling or deleting cookies in your browser.

Since social media tools may use cookies, we also recommend that you read our general privacy policy on cookies. To find out exactly what data is stored and processed by you, you should read the privacy statements of the respective tools.

Legal basis

If you have consented that data from you can be processed and stored by integrated social media elements, this consent is considered the legal basis for data processing (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. a DSGVO). In principle, if consent is given, your data will also be stored and processed on the basis of our legitimate interest (Art. 6 (1) (f) DSGVO) in fast and good communication with you or other customers and business partners. Nevertheless, we only use the tools insofar as you have given your consent. Most social media platforms also set cookies in your browser to store data. That is why we recommend that you read our privacy text about cookies carefully and view the privacy policy or cookie policy of the respective service provider.

You can find information on specific social media platforms - if available - in the following sections.

Facebook privacy policy

What are Facebook tools?

We use selected tools from Facebook on our website. Facebook is a social media network of the company Meta Platforms Inc. or, for the European region, of the company Meta Platforms Ireland Limited, 4 Grand Canal Square, Grand Canal Harbour, Dublin 2, Ireland. With the help of these tools, we can offer you and people who are interested in our products and services the best possible offer.

If data is collected from you and forwarded via our embedded Facebook elements or via our Facebook page (Fanpage), both we and Facebook Ireland Ltd. are responsible for this. Facebook is solely responsible for the further processing of this data. Our joint obligations have also been set out in a publicly available agreement at https://www.facebook.com/legal/controller_addendum. This states, for example, that we must clearly inform you about the use of Facebook tools on our site. Furthermore, we are also responsible for ensuring that the tools are securely integrated into our website in accordance with data protection law. Facebook, on the other hand, is responsible for the data security of Facebook products, for example. If you have any questions about data collection and data processing by Facebook, you can contact the company directly. If you direct the question to us, we are obliged to forward it to Facebook.

Below we provide an overview of the various Facebook tools, what data is sent to Facebook and how you can delete this data.

Among many other products, Facebook also offers the so-called "Facebook Business Tools". This is the official name of Facebook. However, since the term is hardly known, we have decided to simply call them Facebook Tools. Among them are:

• Facebook Pixel
• Social plug-ins (such as the "Like" or "Share" button).
• Facebook Login
• account kit
• APIs (programming interface)
• SDKs (collection of programming tools)
• Platform integrations
• Plugins
• Codes
• Specifications
• Documentations
• Technologies and services

Through these tools, Facebook extends services and has the ability to obtain information about user activity outside of Facebook.

Why do we use Facebook tools on our website?

We want to show our services and products only to people who are really interested in them. With the help of advertisements (Facebook Ads) we can reach exactly these people. However, in order to show users suitable ads, Facebook needs information about people's wants and needs. Thus, information about user behavior (and contact data) on our website is made available to the company. As a result, Facebook collects better user data and can show interested people the appropriate advertising about our products or services. The tools thus enable customized advertising campaigns on Facebook.

Data about your behavior on our website is called "event data" by Facebook. This is also used for measurement and analysis services. Facebook can thus create "campaign reports" on our behalf about the impact of our advertising campaigns. Furthermore, analytics give us better insight into how you use our services, website or products. As a result, we use some of these tools to optimize your user experience on our website. For example, social plug-ins allow you to share content on our site directly on Facebook.

What data is stored by Facebook tools?

By using individual Facebook tools, personal data (customer data) may be sent to Facebook. Depending on the tools used, customer data such as name, address, phone number and IP address may be sent.

Facebook uses this information to match the data with the data it itself has from you (if you are a Facebook member). Before customer data is sent to Facebook, a process called "hashing" takes place. This means that a data record of any size is transformed into a character string. This also serves to encrypt data.

In addition to contact data, "event data" is also transmitted. Event data" refers to the information that we receive about you on our website. For example, which subpages you visit or which products you buy from us. Facebook does not share the information it receives with third parties (such as advertisers) unless the company has explicit permission or is legally required to do so. "Event data" may also be associated with contact information. This allows Facebook to offer better personalized advertising. After the matching process already mentioned, Facebook deletes the contact data again.

In order to be able to deliver ads in an optimized way, Facebook only uses event data if it has been combined with other data (collected by Facebook in other ways). Facebook also uses this event data for security, protection, development, and research purposes. Much of this data is transferred to Facebook via cookies. Cookies are small text files used to store data or information in browsers. Depending on the tools you use and whether you are a Facebook member, different numbers of cookies are created in your browser. We go into more detail about individual Facebook cookies in the descriptions of each Facebook tool. You can also find general information about the use of Facebook cookies at https://www.facebook.com/policies/cookies.

How long and where is the data stored?

Basically, Facebook stores data until it is no longer needed for its own services and Facebook products. Facebook has servers spread all over the world where its data is stored. However, customer data is deleted within 48 hours after it has been matched with its own user data.

How can I delete my data or prevent data storage?

In accordance with the Basic Data Protection Regulation, you have the right to information, correction, transferability and deletion of your data.

A complete deletion of the data only occurs if you delete your Facebook account completely. And this is how deleting your Facebook account works:

1) On the right side of Facebook, click Settings.

2) Then click on "Your Facebook information" in the left column.

3) Now click "Deactivation and deletion".

4) Now select "Delete account" and then click "Continue and delete account".

5) Now enter your password, click "Continue" and then click "Delete account".

The storage of data that Facebook receives via our site is done, among other things, via cookies (e.g. for social plugins). In your browser, you can disable, delete or manage individual or all cookies. Depending on which browser you use, this works in different ways. Under the section "Cookies" you will find the corresponding links to the respective instructions of the most popular browsers.

If you generally do not want cookies, you can set up your browser so that it always informs you when a cookie is to be set. In this way, you can decide for each individual cookie whether you allow it or not.

Legal basis

If you have consented that data from you can be processed and stored by integrated Facebook tools, this consent is considered the legal basis for data processing (Art. 6 (1) lit. a DSGVO). In principle, your data will also be stored and processed on the basis of our legitimate interest (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f DSGVO) in fast and good communication with you or other customers and business partners. Nevertheless, we only use the tools insofar as you have given your consent. Most social media platforms also set cookies in your browser to store data. That is why we recommend that you read our privacy text about cookies carefully and view Facebook's privacy policy or cookie policy.

Facebook also processes data from you in the USA, among other places. We would like to point out that according to the opinion of the European Court of Justice, there is currently no adequate level of protection for the transfer of data to the USA. This may be associated with various risks to the legality and security of data processing.

As a basis for data processing with recipients located in third countries (outside the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, i.e. in particular in the USA) or a data transfer there, Facebook uses so-called standard contractual clauses (= Art. 46. para. 2 and 3 DSGVO). Standard Contractual Clauses (SCC) are templates provided by the EU Commission and are intended to ensure that your data complies with European data protection standards even if it is transferred to third countries (such as the USA) and stored there. Through these clauses, Facebook undertakes to comply with the European level of data protection when processing your relevant data, even if the data is stored, processed and managed in the US. These clauses are based on an implementing decision of the EU Commission. You can find the decision and the corresponding standard contractual clauses here, among other places: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dec_impl/2021/914/oj?locale=de

Facebook's data processing terms and conditions, which correspond to the standard contractual clauses, can be found at https://www.facebook.com/legal/terms/dataprocessing.

We hope we have brought you closer to the most important information about the use and data processing by Facebook tools. If you want to learn more about how Facebook uses your data, we recommend that you read the data policy at https://www.facebook.com/about/privacy/update.

Facebook Login Privacy Policy

We have integrated the convenient Facebook Login on our site. This allows you to easily log in to our site using your Facebook account without having to create another user account. If you decide to make your registration via the Facebook Login, you will be redirected to the social media network Facebook. There, the registration takes place via your Facebook user data. Through this login process, data about you or your user behavior is stored and transmitted to Facebook.

To store the data, Facebook uses various cookies. Below we show you the most important cookies that are set in your browser or already exist when you log in to our site via the Facebook login:

Name: fr Value: 0jieyh4c2GnlufEJ9..Bde09j...1.0.Bde09j Purpose: This cookie is used to make the social plugin on our website work in the best possible way.
Expiration date: after 3 months

Name: datr Value: 4Jh7XUA2312404097SEmPsSfzCOO4JFFl Purpose: Facebook sets the "datr" cookie when a web browser accesses facebook.com, and the cookie helps identify login activity and protect users.
Expiration date: after 2 years

Name: _js_datr Value: deleted Purpose: This session cookie sets Facebook for tracking purposes, even if you don't have a Facebook account or are logged out.
Expiration date: after session end

Note: The cookies listed are only a small selection of the cookies available to Facebook. Other cookies include _ fbp, sb or wd. A complete enumeration is not possible, as Facebook has a large number of cookies and uses them variably.

On the one hand, the Facebook login offers you a quick and easy registration process, and on the other hand, it gives us the opportunity to share data with Facebook. This allows us to better tailor our offer and promotions to your interests and needs. Data that we receive from Facebook in this way is public data such as

• Your Facebook name
• your profile picture
• a stored e-mail address
• friend lists
• button information (e.g. "Like" button)
• birthday date
• language
• Place of residence

In return, we provide Facebook with information about your activities on our website. This includes information about the device you are using, which subpages you visit on our website or which products you have purchased from us.

By using Facebook Login, you consent to the data processing. You can revoke this agreement at any time. If you want to learn more information about data processing by Facebook, we recommend the Facebook privacy policy at https://www.facebook.com/policy.php?tid=312404097.

Provided you are logged in to Facebook, you can change your settings for advertisements yourself at https://www.facebook.com/adpreferences/advertisers/?entry_product=ad_settings_screen.

Facebook social plug-ins privacy policy

So-called social plug-ins from the company Meta Platforms Inc. are installed on our website. You can recognize these buttons by the classic Facebook logo, such as the "Like" button (the hand with raised thumb) or by a clear "Facebook Plug-in" label. A social plug-in is a small part of Facebook that is integrated into our site. Each plug-in has its own function. The most commonly used functions are the well-known "Like" and "Share" buttons.

• The following social plug-ins are offered by Facebook:
• "Save" button
• "Like" button, share, send and quote.
• Page plug-in
• Comments
• Messenger plug-in
• Embedded posts and video player
• Group plug-in

Visit https://developers.facebook.com/docs/plugins for more information on how each plug-in is used. We use the social plug-ins on the one hand to provide you with a better user experience on our site, and on the other hand because Facebook can optimize our advertisements through them.

If you have a Facebook account or have visited https://www.facebook.com/ before, Facebook has already set at least one cookie in your browser. In this case, your browser sends information to Facebook via this cookie as soon as you visit our site or interact with social plug-ins (e.g. the "Like" button).

The information received is deleted again or anonymized within 90 days. According to Facebook, this data includes your IP address, which website you visited, the date, the time and other information concerning your browser.

To prevent Facebook from collecting a lot of data during your visit to our website and connecting it with Facebook data, you must log out of Facebook during your website visit (log out).

If you are not logged into Facebook or do not have a Facebook account, your browser will send less information to Facebook because you have fewer Facebook cookies. Nevertheless, data such as your IP address or which website you visit may be transmitted to Facebook. We would still like to explicitly point out that we do not know exactly about the exact content of the data. However, we try to inform you as best as possible about the data processing according to our current state of knowledge. You can also read how Facebook uses the data in the company's data policy at https://www.facebook.com/about/privacy/update.

The following cookies are set in your browser as a minimum when you visit a website with social plug-ins from Facebook:

Name: dpr Value: not specified Purpose: This cookie is used to make the social plug-ins on our website work.
Expiration date: after end of session

Name: fr Value: 0jieyh4312404097c2GnlufEJ9..Bde09j...1.0.Bde09j Purpose: The cookie is also necessary for the plug-ins to work properly.
Expiration date:: after 3 months

Note: These cookies were set after a test, even if you are not a Facebook member.

Provided you are logged in to Facebook, you can change your ad settings yourself at https://www.facebook.com/adpreferences/advertisers/. If you are not a Facebook user, you can basically manage your usage-based online advertising at https://www.youronlinechoices.com/de/praferenzmanagement/?tid=312404097. There you have the option to deactivate or activate providers.

If you want to learn more about Facebook's privacy policy, we recommend that you read the company's own data policy at https://www.facebook.com/policy.php?tip=312404097.

Facebook Fanpage Privacy Policy

We also have a Facebook Fanpage for our website. The service provider is the American company Meta Platforms Inc. Meta Platforms Ireland Limited (4 Grand Canal Square, Grand Canal Harbour, Dublin 2, Ireland) is responsible for the European region.

Facebook also processes data from you in the USA, among other places. We would like to point out that according to the opinion of the European Court of Justice, there is currently no adequate level of protection for the transfer of data to the USA. This may be associated with various risks to the legality and security of data processing.

As a basis for data processing with recipients located in third countries (outside the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, i.e. in particular in the USA) or a data transfer there, Facebook uses so-called standard contractual clauses (= Art. 46. para. 2 and 3 DSGVO). Standard Contractual Clauses (SCC) are templates provided by the EU Commission and are intended to ensure that your data complies with European data protection standards even if it is transferred to third countries (such as the USA) and stored there. Through these clauses, Facebook undertakes to comply with the European level of data protection when processing your relevant data, even if the data is stored, processed and managed in the US. These clauses are based on an implementing decision of the EU Commission. You can find the decision and the corresponding standard contractual clauses here, among other places: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dec_impl/2021/914/oj?locale=de

Facebook's data processing term, which corresponds to the standard contractual clauses, can be found at https://www.facebook.com/legal/terms/dataprocessing.

To learn more about the data processed through the use of Facebook, please see the Privacy Policy at https://www.facebook.com/about/privacy.

Instagram Privacy Policy

What is Instagram?

We have incorporated features from Instagram on our website. Instagram is a social media platform of the company Instagram LLC, 1601 Willow Rd, Menlo Park CA 94025, USA. Instagram has been a subsidiary of Meta Platforms Inc. since 2012 and is one of Facebook's products. Embedding Instagram content on our website is called embedding. This allows us to show you content such as buttons, photos or videos from Instagram directly on our website. When you call up web pages on our website that have an Instagram function integrated, data is transmitted to Instagram, stored and processed. Instagram uses the same systems and technologies as Facebook. Your data is thus processed across all Facebook companies.

In the following, we want to give you a more detailed insight into why Instagram collects data, what data it is and how you can largely control the data processing. Since Instagram is part of Meta Platforms Inc., we obtain our information from Instagram's policies on the one hand, but also from Meta's privacy policy itself on the other.

Instagram is one of the most popular social media networks in the world. Instagram combines the advantages of a blog with the advantages of audiovisual platforms such as YouTube or Vimeo. You can upload photos and short videos on "Insta" (as many of the users casually call the platform), edit them with various filters and also distribute them on other social networks. And if you don't want to be active yourself, you can just follow other interesting users.

Why do we use Instagram on our website?

Instagram is that social media platform that really went through the roof in the last few years. And of course, we have also responded to this boom. We want you to feel as comfortable as possible on our website. That's why a varied preparation of our content is a matter of course for us. Through the embedded Instagram features, we can enrich our content with helpful, funny or exciting content from the Instagram world. Since Instagram is a subsidiary of Facebook, the data collected can also serve us for personalized advertising on Facebook. This way, only people who are really interested in our products or services receive our ads.

Instagram also uses the collected data for measurement and analysis purposes. We get aggregate statistics and thus more insight about your preferences and interests. It is important to note that these reports do not identify you personally.

What data is stored by Instagram?

When you come across one of our pages that have Instagram features (such as Instagram images or plug-ins) built in, your browser automatically connects to Instagram's servers. In the process, data is sent to Instagram, stored and processed. And this is regardless of whether you have an Instagram account or not. This includes information about our website, about your computer, about purchases made, about advertisements you see and how you use our offer. Furthermore, the date and time of your interaction with Instagram is also stored. If you have an Instagram account or are logged in, Instagram stores significantly more data about you.

Facebook distinguishes between customer data and event data. We assume that this is exactly the case with Instagram. Customer data is, for example, name, address, phone number and IP address. This customer data will only be transmitted to Instagram if you have been "hashed" beforehand. Hashing means that a data record is transformed into a character string. This makes it possible to encrypt the contact data. In addition, the "event data" mentioned above is also transmitted. By "event data" Facebook - and consequently Instagram - understands data about your user behavior. It may also happen that contact data is combined with event data. The collected contact data is matched with the data that Instagram already has from you.

Via small text files (cookies), which are usually set in your browser, the collected data is transmitted to Facebook. Depending on the Instagram functions used and whether you yourself have an Instagram account, different amounts of data are stored.

We assume that Instagram's data processing works the same way as Facebook's. This means that if you have an Instagram account or have visited www.instagram.com, Instagram has at least set a cookie. If this is the case, your browser sends info to Instagram via the cookie as soon as you come into contact with an Instagram function. At the latest after 90 days (after matching), this data is deleted again or anonymized. Although we have intensively studied Instagram's data processing, we cannot say exactly what data Instagram collects and stores.

In the following, we show you cookies that are set in your browser at least when you click on an Instagram function (such as button or an Insta image). In our test, we assume that you do not have an Instagram account. Of course, if you are logged into Instagram, significantly more cookies are set in your browser.

These cookies were used in our test:

Name: csrftoken Value: "" Purpose: This cookie is most likely set for security reasons, to prevent falsification of requests. However, we could not find out more precisely.
Expiration date: after one year

Name: mid Value: "" Intended use: Instagram sets this cookie to optimize its own services and offers on and off Instagram. The cookie sets a unique user ID.
Expiration date: after the end of the session

Name: fbsr_312404097124024 Value: not specified Intended use: this cookie stores the log-in request for users of the Instagram app.
Expiration date: after the end of the session

Name: rur Value: ATN Purpose: This is an Instagram cookie that ensures functionality on Instagram.
Expiration date: after the end of the session.

Name: urlgen Value:"{"194.96.75.33": 1901}:1iEtYv:Y833k2_UjKvXgYe312404097" Purpose: This cookie is used for Instagram's marketing purposes.
Expiration date: after the end of the session.

Note: We cannot make any claim to completeness here. Which cookies are set in individual cases depends on the embedded features and your use of Instagram.

How long and where is the data stored?

Instagram shares the information received between Facebook companies with external partners and with people you connect with around the world. The data processing is done in compliance with its own data policy. Your data is distributed on Facebook servers around the world, partly for security reasons. Most of these servers are located in the USA.

How can I delete my data or prevent data storage?

Thanks to the Basic Data Protection Regulation, you have the right to information, portability, correction and deletion of your data. You can manage your data in the Instagram settings. If you want to completely delete your data on Instagram, you must permanently delete your Instagram account.

And this is how deleting Instagram account works:

First, open the Instagram app. On your profile page, go down and click on "Help section". Now you will get to the company's website. On the webpage, click "Manage account" and then click "Delete your account".

If you delete your account entirely, Instagram will delete posts such as your photos and status updates. Information that other people have shared about you does not belong to your account and consequently will not be deleted.

As mentioned above, Instagram stores your data primarily via cookies. You can manage, disable or delete these cookies in your browser. Depending on your browser, the management always works a bit differently. Under the section "Cookies" you will find the corresponding links to the respective instructions of the most popular browsers.

You can also basically set up your browser so that you are always informed when a cookie is to be set. Then you can always decide individually whether you want to allow the cookie or not.

Legal basis

If you have consented that data from you can be processed and stored by integrated social media elements, this consent is considered the legal basis of the data processing (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. a DSGVO). In principle, your data will also be stored and processed on the basis of our legitimate interest (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f DSGVO) in fast and good communication with you or other customers and business partners. Nevertheless, we only use the integrated social media elements insofar as you have given your consent. Most social media platforms also set cookies in your browser to store data. That is why we recommend that you read our privacy text about cookies carefully and view the privacy policy or cookie policy of the respective service provider.

Instagram and Facebook, respectively, also process data in the USA, among other places. We would like to point out that according to the opinion of the European Court of Justice, there is currently no adequate level of protection for the transfer of data to the USA. This may be associated with various risks for the legality and security of data processing.

As a basis for data processing at recipients located in third countries (outside the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, i.e. in particular in the USA) or a data transfer there, Facebook uses standard contractual clauses approved by the EU Commission (= Art. 46. para. 2 and 3 DSGVO). These clauses oblige Facebook to comply with the EU level of data protection when processing relevant data outside the EU as well. These clauses are based on an implementing decision of the EU Commission. You can find the decision as well as the clauses here, among other places: https://germany.representation.ec.europa.eu/index_de.

We have tried to bring you closer to the most important information about data processing by Instagram. You can learn more about Instagram's data policies in more detail at https://help.instagram.com/519522125107875.

TikTok Privacy Policy

We also use TikTok, a social media and video channel. The service provider is the Chinese company Beijing Bytedance Technology Ltd. The Irish company TikTok Technology Limited, 10 Earlsfort Terrace, Dublin, D02 T380, Ireland, is responsible for the European region.

TikTok also processes data from you in the USA, among other places. We would like to point out that according to the opinion of the European Court of Justice, there is currently no adequate level of protection for the transfer of data to the USA. This may be accompanied by various risks to the lawfulness and security of data processing.

As a basis for data processing with recipients located in third countries (outside the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, i.e. especially in the USA) or a data transfer there, TikTok uses so-called standard contractual clauses (= Art. 46. para. 2 and 3 DSGVO). Standard Contractual Clauses (SCC) are templates provided by the EU Commission and are intended to ensure that your data complies with European data protection standards even if it is transferred to third countries (such as the USA) and stored there. Through these clauses, TikTok undertakes to comply with the European level of data protection when processing your relevant data, even if the data is stored, processed and managed in the US. These clauses are based on an implementing decision of the EU Commission. You can find the decision and the corresponding standard contractual clauses here, among other places: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dec_impl/2021/914/oj?locale=de

You can learn more about the standard contractual clauses and the data processed through the use of TikTok Pixel in the Privacy Policy at https://www.tiktok.com/legal/privacy-policy-eea?lang=de and https://ads.tiktok.com/i18n/official/policy/controller-to-controller, respectively.

Online Marketing

What is online marketing?

Online marketing refers to all measures carried out online to achieve marketing goals such as increasing brand awareness or closing a deal. Furthermore, our online marketing measures aim to draw people's attention to our website. In order to be able to show our offering to many interested people, we therefore engage in online marketing. This usually involves online advertising, content marketing or search engine optimization. To enable us to use online marketing efficiently and in a targeted manner, personal data is also stored and processed. On the one hand, the data helps us to show our content only to those people who are actually interested in it, and on the other hand, we can measure the advertising success of our online marketing measures.

Why do we use online marketing tools?

We want to show our website to everyone who is interested in what we have to offer. We are aware that this is not possible without consciously set measures. That is why we do online marketing. There are various tools that make it easier for us to work on our online marketing measures and, in addition, always provide suggestions for improvement via data. This allows us to target our campaigns more precisely to our target group. So the purpose of these online marketing tools we use is ultimately to optimize our offering.

What data is processed?

In order for our online marketing to work and the success of the measures to be measured, user profiles are created and data is stored in cookies (these are small text files), for example. With the help of this data, we can not only place advertisements in the classical sense, but also directly on our website, display our content in the way you prefer. For this purpose, there are various third-party tools that offer these functions and accordingly also collect and store data from you. In the named cookies are stored, for example, which web pages you have visited on our website, how long you have looked at these pages, which links or buttons you click or from which website you have come to us. In addition, technical information may also be stored. For example, your IP address, which browser you use, from which device you visit our website or the time when you accessed our website and when you left it again. If you have consented that we may also determine your location, we may also store and process this.

Your IP address is stored in pseudonymized form (i.e. shortened). Unique data that directly identifies you as a person, such as your name, address or e-mail address, is also only stored in pseudonymized form as part of the advertising and online marketing processes. We can therefore not identify you as a person, but we have only the pseudonymized stored information in the user profiles.

Under certain circumstances, the cookies can also be deployed on other websites that work with the same advertising tools, analyzed and used for advertising purposes. The data may then also be stored on the servers of the advertising tools providers.

In exceptional cases, unique data (name, e-mail address, etc.) may also be stored in the user profiles. This storage occurs, for example, if you are a member of a social media channel that we use for our online marketing measures and the network links previously received data with the user profile.

With all the advertising tools we use that store data from you on their servers, we only ever receive aggregated information and never data that makes you recognizable as an individual. The data only shows how well set advertising measures worked. For example, we see which measures have persuaded you or other users to come to our website and purchase a service or product there. Based on the analyses, we can improve our advertising offer in the future and adapt it even more precisely to the needs and wishes of interested persons.

Duration of data processing

We will inform you about the duration of data processing below, provided we have further information on this. In general, we process personal data only as long as it is absolutely necessary for the provision of our services and products. Data that is stored in cookies is stored for different lengths of time. Some cookies are deleted as soon as you leave the website, others may be stored in your browser for several years. In the respective privacy statements of the individual providers, you will usually receive detailed information about the individual cookies used by the provider.

Right of objection

You also have the right and the possibility to revoke your consent to the use of cookies or third-party providers at any time. This works either via our cookie management tool or via other opt-out functions. For example, you can also prevent data collection through cookies by managing, disabling or deleting cookies in your browser. The lawfulness of the processing until the revocation remains unaffected.

Since online marketing tools may generally use cookies, we also recommend that you read our general privacy policy on cookies. To find out exactly which of your data is stored and processed, you should read the privacy statements of the respective tools.

Legal basis

If you have consented to third-party providers being used, the legal basis for the corresponding data processing is this consent. According to Art. 6 (1) lit. a DSGVO (consent), this consent constitutes the legal basis for the processing of personal data as it may occur when collected by online marketing tools.

On our part, there is also a legitimate interest in measuring online marketing measures in anonymized form in order to optimize our offer and our measures with the help of the data obtained. The corresponding legal basis for this is Art. 6 Para. 1 lit. f DSGVO (Legitimate Interests). Nevertheless, we only use the tools if you have given your consent.

Information on specific online marketing tools - if available - can be found in the following sections.

Facebook Custom Audiences privacy policy

We use Facebook Custom Audiences, a server-side event tracking tool, on our website. The service provider is the American company Meta Platforms Inc. Meta Platforms Ireland Limited (4 Grand Canal Square, Grand Canal Harbour, Dublin 2, Ireland) is responsible for the European region.

Facebook also processes data from you in the USA, among other places. We would like to point out that according to the opinion of the European Court of Justice, there is currently no adequate level of protection for the transfer of data to the USA. This may be associated with various risks to the legality and security of data processing.

As a basis for data processing with recipients located in third countries (outside the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, i.e. in particular in the USA) or a data transfer there, Facebook uses so-called standard contractual clauses (= Art. 46. para. 2 and 3 DSGVO). Standard Contractual Clauses (SCC) are templates provided by the EU Commission and are intended to ensure that your data complies with European data protection standards even if it is transferred to third countries (such as the USA) and stored there. Through these clauses, Facebook undertakes to comply with the European level of data protection when processing your relevant data, even if the data is stored, processed and managed in the US. These clauses are based on an implementing decision of the EU Commission. You can find the decision and the corresponding standard contractual clauses here, among other places: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dec_impl/2021/914/oj?locale=de

Facebook's data processing terms and conditions, which correspond to the standard contractual clauses, can be found at https://www.facebook.com/legal/terms/dataprocessing.

To learn more about the data processed through the use of Facebook Custom Audiences, please see the Privacy Policy at https://www.facebook.com/about/privacy . 

HubSpot Privacy Policy

We use HubSpot, a digital marketing tool, on our website. The service provider is the American company HubSpot, Inc, 25 First St 2nd Floor Cambridge, MA, USA. The company also has a registered office in Ireland, among other places, with the address 1 Sir John Rogerson's Quay, Dublin 2, Ireland.

HubSpot also processes data from you in the USA, among other places. We would like to point out that according to the opinion of the European Court of Justice, there is currently no adequate level of protection for the transfer of data to the USA. This may be associated with various risks to the legality and security of data processing.

As a basis for data processing with recipients located in third countries (outside the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, i.e. in particular in the USA) or a data transfer there, HubSpot uses so-called standard contractual clauses (= Art. 46. para. 2 and 3 DSGVO). Standard Contractual Clauses (SCC) are templates provided by the EU Commission and are intended to ensure that your data complies with European data protection standards even if it is transferred to third countries (such as the USA) and stored there. Through these clauses, HubSpot undertakes to comply with the European level of data protection when processing your relevant data, even if the data is stored, processed and managed in the US. These clauses are based on an implementing decision of the EU Commission. You can find the decision and the corresponding standard contractual clauses here, among other places: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dec_impl/2021/914/oj?locale=de

The Data Processing Agreement, which corresponds to the standard contractual clauses, can be found at https://legal.hubspot.com/dpa.

You can learn more about the data processed by using HubSpot in the Privacy Policy at https://legal.hubspot.com/de/privacy-policy . 

HubSpot order processing agreement (AVV).

In accordance with Article 28 of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), we have entered into a Data Processing Order (GCU) with HubSpot. What exactly an AVV is and, in particular, what must be included in an AVV, you can read in our general section "Order processing agreement (AVV)".

This contract is required by law because HubSpot processes personal data on our behalf. It clarifies that HubSpot may only process data they receive from us according to our instructions and must comply with the GDPR. You can find the link to the order processing agreement (AVV) at https://legal.hubspot.com/dpa.

LinkedIn Insight Tag Privacy Policy

We use the conversion tracking tool LinkedIn Insight-Tag on our website. The service provider is the American company LinkedIn Corporation, 2029 Stierlin Court, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA. The company LinkedIn Ireland Unlimited (Wilton Place, Dublin 2, Ireland) is responsible for the data protection-relevant aspects in the European Economic Area (EEA), the EU and Switzerland.

LinkedIn also processes data from you in the USA, among other places. We would like to point out that according to the opinion of the European Court of Justice, there is currently no adequate level of protection for the transfer of data to the USA. This may be associated with various risks to the lawfulness and security of data processing.

As a basis for data processing with recipients located in third countries (outside the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, i.e. in particular in the USA) or a data transfer there, LinkedIn uses so-called standard contractual clauses (= Art. 46. para. 2 and 3 DSGVO). Standard Contractual Clauses (SCC) are templates provided by the EU Commission and are intended to ensure that your data comply with European data protection standards even if they are transferred to third countries (such as the USA) and stored there. Through these clauses, LinkedIn undertakes to comply with the European level of data protection when processing your relevant data, even if the data is stored, processed and managed in the US. These clauses are based on an implementing decision of the EU Commission. You can find the decision and the corresponding standard contractual clauses here, among other places: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dec_impl/2021/914/oj?locale=de

More information on the standard contractual clauses at LinkedIn can be found at https://de.linkedin.com/legal/l/dpaoder https://www.linkedin.com/legal/l/eu-sccs

To learn more about LinkedIn Insight Tag, visit https://www.linkedin.com/help/linkedin/answer/a427660. You can also learn more about the data processed through the use of LinkedIn Insight-Tag in the privacy policy at https://de.linkedin.com/legal/privacy-policy.

Cookie Consent Management Platform

What is a cookie consent management platform?

We use a Consent Management Platform (CMP) software on our website to help us and you deal correctly and safely with scripts and cookies used. The software automatically creates a cookie popup, scans and controls all scripts and cookies, provides cookie consent for you as required by data protection laws, and helps us and you keep track of all cookies. With most cookie consent management tools, all existing cookies are identified and categorized. You as a website visitor then decide for yourself whether and which scripts and cookies you allow or do not allow. The following graphic illustrates the relationship between browser, web server and CMP.

Why do we use a cookie management tool?

Our goal is to provide you with the best possible transparency in the area of data protection. In addition, we are also legally obligated to do so. We want to educate you as much as possible about all tools and all cookies that can store and process data from you. It is also your right to decide for yourself which cookies you accept and which you do not. In order to give you this right, we first need to know exactly which cookies ended up on our website in the first place. Thanks to a cookie management tool that regularly scans the website for all existing cookies, we know about all cookies and can provide you with DSGVO-compliant information about them. You can then accept or reject cookies via the consent system.

What data is processed?

Within our cookie management tool, you can manage each cookie yourself and have complete control over the storage and processing of your data. The declaration of your consent is stored so that we do not have to query you each time you visit our website again and so that we can also prove your consent if required by law. This is stored either in an opt-in cookie or on a server. Depending on the provider of the cookie management tool, the storage period of your cookie consent varies. In most cases, this data (such as pseudonymous user ID, time of consent, details of cookie categories or tools, browser, device information) is stored for up to two years.

Duration of data processing

We will inform you about the duration of data processing below, provided we have further information on this. In general, we process personal data only as long as it is strictly necessary for the provision of our services and products. Data that is stored in cookies is stored for different lengths of time. Some cookies are already deleted after you leave the website, others may be stored in your browser for several years. The exact duration of data processing depends on the tool used; in most cases, you should be prepared for a storage period of several years. In the respective privacy statements of the individual providers, you will usually receive precise information about the duration of data processing.

Right of objection

You also have the right and the possibility to revoke your consent to the use of cookies at any time. This works either via our cookie management tool or via other opt-out functions. For example, you can also prevent data collection through cookies by managing, disabling or deleting cookies in your browser.

Information on specific cookie management tools, if available, can be found in the following sections.

Legal basis

If you consent to cookies, personal data about you will be processed and stored via these cookies. If we are allowed to use cookies through your consent (Article 6 (1) (a) DSGVO), this consent is also the legal basis for the use of cookies or the processing of your data. In order to be able to manage the consent to cookies and to enable you to give your consent, cookie consent management platform software is used. The use of this software enables us to efficiently operate the website in a legally compliant manner, which constitutes a legitimate interest (Article 6 (1) (f) DSGVO).

Security & Anti-Spam

What is security & anti-spam software?

With so-called security & anti-spam software, you can protect yourself and we can protect ourselves from various spam or phishing emails and possible other cyberattacks. Spam means advertising mails from a mass mailing, which you did not ask for yourself. Such mails are also called data garbage and can also cause costs. Phishing mails, on the other hand, are messages that aim to build trust via fake news or websites in order to obtain personal data. Anti-spam software usually protects against unwanted spam messages or malicious mails that could introduce viruses into our system, for example. We also use general firewall and security systems that protect our computers from unwanted network attacks.

Why do we use security & anti-spam software?

We place special emphasis on security on our website. After all, it is not only about our security, but also about yours. Unfortunately, cyber threats have become part of everyday life in the world of IT and the Internet. Hackers often try to steal personal data from an IT system with the help of a cyberattack. And that is why a good defense system is absolutely necessary. A security system monitors all incoming and outgoing connections to our network or computer. In order to achieve even greater security against cyber attacks, we also use other external security services in addition to the standardized security systems on our computer. Unauthorized data traffic is thus better prevented and we protect ourselves against cybercrime.

What data is processed by security & anti-spam software?

Exactly what data is collected and stored depends, of course, on the service in question. However, we always try to use only programs that collect data very sparingly or store only data that is necessary for the fulfillment of the service offered. Basically, the service may store data such as name, address, IP address, e-mail address and technical data such as browser type or browser version. Also, any performance and log data may be collected in order to detect possible incoming threats in a timely manner. This data is processed within the scope of the services and in compliance with applicable laws. This also includes the DSGVO in the case of US providers (via the standard contractual clauses). These security services also work in some cases with third-party providers who may store and/or process data under instruction and in accordance with the privacy policy and other security measures. The data storage is mostly done via cookies.

Duration of data processing

We will inform you about the duration of data processing below, if we have further information about it. For example, security programs store data until you or we revoke the data storage. In general, personal data is only stored as long as it is absolutely necessary for the provision of services. In many cases, unfortunately, we lack precise information from the providers about the length of storage.

Right of objection

You also have the right and the possibility to revoke your consent to the use of cookies or third-party security software providers at any time. This works either via our cookie management tool or via other opt-out functions. For example, you can also prevent data collection through cookies by managing, disabling or deleting cookies in your browser.

Since such security services may also use cookies, we recommend that you read our general privacy policy on cookies. To find out exactly which of your data is stored and processed, you should read the privacy statements of the respective tools.

Legal basis

We use security services mainly on the basis of our legitimate interests (Art. 6(1)(f) DSGVO) in a good security system against various cyberattacks.

Certain processing, in particular the use of cookies as well as the use of security functions require your consent. If you have consented that data from you can be processed and stored by integrated security services, this consent is considered the legal basis of the data processing (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. a DSGVO). Most of the services we use set cookies in your browser to store data. That is why we recommend that you read our privacy text about cookies carefully and view the privacy policy or cookie policy of the respective service provider.

Information about specific tools - if available - can be found in the following sections.

Google reCAPTCHA Privacy Policy

What is reCAPTCHA?

Our primary goal is to make our website as secure and safe as possible for you and for us. To ensure this, we use Google reCAPTCHA of the company Google Inc. For the European area, the company Google Ireland Limited (Gordon House, Barrow Street Dublin 4, Ireland) is responsible for all Google services. With reCAPTCHA we can determine whether you are really a flesh and blood human being and not a robot or other spam software. By spam we mean any unsolicited information sent to us electronically. With the classic CAPTCHAS, you usually had to solve text or image puzzles to verify the information. With reCAPTCHA from Google, we usually don't have to bother you with such puzzles. Here, in most cases, it is enough to simply check a box to confirm that you are not a bot. With the new Invisible reCAPTCHA version, you don't even have to set a checkmark anymore. You'll learn exactly how this works and, more importantly, what data is used to do it later in this privacy policy.

reCAPTCHA is a free captcha service from Google that protects websites from spam software and abuse by non-human visitors. Most commonly, this service is used when you fill out forms on the web. A captcha service is a kind of automatic Turing test, designed to ensure that an action on the Internet is performed by a human and not by a bot. In the classic Turing test (named after computer scientist Alan Turing), a human determines the distinction between a bot and a human. In captchas, the computer or a software program also does this. Classic captchas work with small tasks that are easy for humans to solve, but present significant difficulties for machines. With reCAPTCHA, you no longer have to actively solve puzzles. The tool uses modern risk techniques to distinguish humans from bots. Here, you only need to check the "I am not a robot" text box, or with Invisible reCAPTCHA, even that is no longer necessary. With reCAPTCHA, a JavaScript element is included in the source code and then the tool runs in the background and analyzes your user behavior. From these user actions, the software calculates a so-called captcha score. Google uses this score to calculate even before the captcha is entered how likely you are to be a human. reCAPTCHA, or captchas in general, are always used when bots could manipulate or abuse certain actions (such as registrations, surveys, etc.).

Why do we use reCAPTCHA on our website?

We only want to welcome flesh and blood people to our site. Bots or spam software of any kind may safely stay at home. That's why we pull out all the stops to protect ourselves and offer the best possible user experience for you. For this reason we use Google reCAPTCHA from Google. This way we can be pretty sure that we remain a "bot-free" website. By using reCAPTCHA, data is sent to Google to determine whether you are actually human. reCAPTCHA therefore serves the security of our website and, by extension, your security. For example, without reCAPTCHA, it could happen that a bot registers as many e-mail addresses as possible during registration in order to "spam" forums or blogs with unwanted advertising content. With reCAPTCHA we can avoid such bot attacks.

What data is stored by reCAPTCHA?

reCAPTCHA collects personal data from users to determine whether actions on our website really originate from humans. Thus, the IP address and other data required by Google for the reCAPTCHA service may be sent to Google. IP addresses are almost always shortened beforehand within the member states of the EU or other contracting states to the Agreement on the European Economic Area before the data ends up on a server in the USA. The IP address is not combined with other data from Google unless you are logged in with your Google account while using reCAPTCHA. First, the reCAPTCHA algorithm checks whether Google cookies from other Google services (YouTube. Gmail, etc.) are already placed on your browser. Then, reCAPTCHA places an additional cookie on your browser and collects a snapshot of your browser window.

The following list of collected browser and user data, does not claim to be exhaustive. Rather, it is examples of data that, to our knowledge, Google processes:

• Referrer URL (the address of the page from which the visitor came)
• IP address (e.g. 256.123.123.1)
• Information about the operating system (the software that enables the operation of your computer. Known operating systems are Windows, Mac OS X or Linux)
• Cookies (small text files that store data in your browser)
• Mouse and keyboard behavior (every action you perform with the mouse or keyboard is stored)
• Date and language settings (which language or date you have preset on your PC is saved)
• All JavaScript objects (JavaScript is a programming language that allows websites to adapt to the user. JavaScript objects can collect all kinds of data under one name)
• Screen resolution (shows how many pixels the image display consists of)

It is undisputed that Google uses and analyzes this data even before you click the "I am not a robot" checkbox. With the Invisible reCAPTCHA version even the ticking is omitted and the whole recognition process runs in the background. How much and which data Google stores exactly, Google does not tell you in detail.

The following cookies are used by reCAPTCHA: Here we refer to the reCAPTCHA demo version from Google at https://www.google.com/recaptcha/api2/demo. All these cookies require a unique identifier for tracking purposes. Here is a list of cookies that Google reCAPTCHA has set on the demo version:

Name: IDE Value: WqTUmlnmv_qXyi_DGNPLESKnRNrpgXoy1K-pAZtAkMbHI-312404097-8 Purpose: This cookie is set by the DoubleClick company (also owned by Google) to register and report a user's actions on the website when dealing with advertisements. In this way, advertising effectiveness can be measured and appropriate optimization measures can be taken. IDE is stored in browsers under the domain doubleclick.net.
Expiration date: after one year

Name: 1P_JAR Value: 2019-5-14-12 Purpose: This cookie collects statistics on website usage and measures conversions. A conversion occurs, for example, when a user becomes a buyer. The cookie is also used to display relevant advertisements to users. Furthermore, the cookie can be used to prevent a user from seeing the same ad more than once.
Expiration date: after one month

Name: ANID Value: U7j1v3dZa3124040970xgZFmiqWppRWKOr Purpose: We could not find out much information about this cookie. Google's privacy policy mentions the cookie in the context of "advertising cookies" such as "DSID", "FLC", "AID", "TAID". ANID is stored under domain google.com.
Expiration date: after 9 months

Name: CONSENT Value: YES+AT.en+20150628-20-0 Purpose: The cookie stores the status of a user's consent to use different services from Google. CONSENT is also used for security purposes to verify users, prevent credential fraud, and protect user data from unauthorized attacks.
Expiration date: after 19 years

Name: NID Value: 0WmuWqy3124097zILzqV_nmt3sDXwPeM5Q Purpose: NID is used by Google to match ads to your Google searches. With the help of the cookie, Google "remembers" your most typed search queries or your previous interaction with ads. This way, you always get tailored ads. The cookie contains a unique ID to collect personal settings of the user for advertising purposes.
Expiration date: after 6 months

Name: DV Value: gEAABBCjJMXcI0dSAAAANbqc312404097-4 Purpose: Once you tick the "I am not a robot" box, this cookie is set. The cookie is used by Google Analytics for personalized advertising. DV collects information in anonymous form and is further used to make user distinctions.
Expiration date: after 10 minutes

Note: This list cannot claim to be exhaustive, as Google's experience shows that the choice of cookies is always changing.

How long and where is the data stored?

By inserting reCAPTCHA, data is transferred from you to the Google server. Where exactly this data is stored, Google does not make clear, even after repeated inquiries. Without having received confirmation from Google, it can be assumed that data such as mouse interaction, time spent on the website or language settings are stored on Google's European or American servers. The IP address that your browser transmits to Google is generally not merged with other Google data from other Google services. However, if you are logged into your Google account while using the reCAPTCHA plug-in, the data will be merged. The deviating data protection provisions of the Google company apply to this.

How can I delete my data or prevent data storage?

If you do not want any data about you and your behavior to be transmitted to Google, you must log out of Google completely and delete all Google cookies before you visit our website or use the reCAPTCHA software. Basically, as soon as you visit our site, the data is automatically transmitted to Google. To delete this data again, you must contact Google support at https://support.google.com/?hl=de&tid=312404097.

So, when you use our website, you agree that Google LLC and its agents automatically collect, process and use data.

Please note that when you use this tool, data about you may be stored and processed outside the EU. Most third countries (including the USA) are not considered secure under current European data protection law. Data to insecure third countries may therefore not simply be transferred, stored and processed there unless there are suitable safeguards (such as EU standard contractual clauses) between us and the non-European service provider.

Legal basis

If you have consented to Google reCAPTCHA being used, the legal basis for the corresponding data processing is this consent. According to Art. 6 (1) lit. a DSGVO (consent), this consent constitutes the legal basis for the processing of personal data as may occur when Google reCAPTCHA is used.

From our side, there is also a legitimate interest in using Google reCAPTCHA to optimize our online service and make it more secure. The corresponding legal basis for this is Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f DSGVO (Legitimate Interests). Nevertheless, we only use Google reCAPTCHA if you have given your consent.

Google also processes data from you in the USA, among other places. We would like to point out that according to the opinion of the European Court of Justice, there is currently no adequate level of protection for the transfer of data to the USA. This may be associated with various risks to the legality and security of data processing.

As a basis for data processing at recipients located in third countries (outside the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, i.e. in particular in the USA) or a data transfer there, Google uses so-called standard contractual clauses (= Art. 46. para. 2 and 3 DSGVO). Standard Contractual Clauses (SCC) are templates provided by the EU Commission and are intended to ensure that your data complies with European data protection standards even if it is transferred to third countries (such as the USA) and stored there. Through these clauses, Google undertakes to comply with the European level of data protection when processing your relevant data, even if the data is stored, processed and managed in the US. These clauses are based on an implementing decision of the EU Commission. You can find the decision and the corresponding standard contractual clauses here, among other places: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dec_impl/2021/914/oj?locale=de

The Google Ads Data Processing Terms, which refer to the standard contractual clauses, can be found at https://business.safety.google/intl/de/adsprocessorterms/.

You can learn a bit more about reCAPTCHA on Google's web developer page at https://developers.google.com/recaptcha/. Google does go into more detail about the technical development of reCAPTCHA here, but you will search in vain for precise information about data storage and privacy-related issues there as well. A good overview of Google's basic use of data can be found in the company's own privacy policy at https://www.google.com/intl/de/policies/privacy/.

Cloud services

What are cloud services?

Cloud services provide us as website operators with storage space and computing power via the Internet. Data can be transferred to an external system, processed and stored via the Internet. The corresponding cloud provider takes over the management of this data. Depending on the requirements, an individual person or even a company can choose the storage space size or computing power. Cloud storage is accessed via an API or via storage protocols. API stands for Application Programming Interface, meaning a programming interface that connects software components with hardware components.

Why do we use cloud services?

We use cloud services for several reasons. A cloud service provides us with the ability to store our data securely. It also allows us to access the data from different locations and devices, giving us more flexibility and making our work processes easier. A cloud storage also saves us money because we don't have to build and manage our own infrastructure for data storage and data security. By storing our data centrally in the cloud, we can also expand our fields of application and manage our information much better.

So, as a website operator or as a company, we use cloud services primarily for our own purposes. For example, we use the services to manage our calendar, to store documents or other important information in the cloud. However, personal data about you may also be stored in the process. This is the case, for example, if you provide us with your contact details (such as name and email address) and we store our customer data with a cloud provider. Consequently, data that we process from you may also be stored and processed on external servers. If we offer certain forms or content from cloud services on our website, cookies may also be set for web analytics and advertising purposes. Furthermore, such cookies remember your settings (such as the language used) so that the next time you visit our website, you will find your familiar web environment.

What data is processed by cloud services?

Much of the data we store in the cloud does not have a personal reference, but some data counts as personal data, as defined by the GDPR. This is often customer data such as name, address, IP address or telephone number or technical device information. Furthermore, videos, images and audio files can also be stored in the cloud. Exactly how the data is collected and stored depends on the service in question. We try to use only services that are very trustworthy and professional with the data. Basically, the services, such as Amazon Drive, have access to the stored files in order to offer their own service accordingly. For this, however, the services need permissions, such as the right to copy files due to security aspects. This data is processed and managed within the scope of the services and in compliance with the applicable laws. This also includes the DSGVO for US providers (via the standard contractual clauses). These cloud services also work in some cases with third-party providers who may process data under instruction and in accordance with privacy policies and further security measures. We would like to reiterate here that all known cloud services (such as Amazon Drive, Google Drive or Microsoft Onedrive) obtain the right to access stored content in order to offer and optimize their own service accordingly.

Duration of data processing

We will inform you about the duration of data processing below, provided we have further information on this. In general, cloud services store data until you or we revoke the data storage or delete the data again. In general, personal data is only stored as long as it is absolutely necessary for the provision of the services. However, a final data deletion from the cloud may take several months. This is the case because the data is usually not only stored on one server, but is distributed on different servers.

Right of objection

You also have the right and the possibility to revoke your consent to data storage in a cloud at any time. If cookies are used, you also have a right of revocation here. This works either via our cookie management tool or via other opt-out functions. For example, you can also prevent data collection through cookies by managing, deactivating or deleting cookies in your browser. We also recommend that you read our general privacy policy on cookies. To find out exactly what data is stored and processed by you, you should read the privacy statements of the respective cloud providers.

Legal basis

We use cloud services mainly on the basis of our legitimate interests (Art. 6(1)(f) DSGVO) in a good security and storage system.

Certain processing, in particular the use of cookies as well as the use of storage functions require your consent. If you have consented that data from you can be processed and stored at cloud services, this consent is considered the legal basis of the data processing (Art. 6 (1) lit. a DSGVO). Most of the services we use set cookies in your browser to store data. That is why we recommend that you read our privacy text about cookies carefully and view the privacy policy or cookie policy of the respective service provider.

You can find information about specific tools - if available - in the following sections.

Apple iCloud privacy policy

We use Apple iCloud, a cloud service for data storage and exchange, for our website. The service provider is the American company Apple Inc, Infinite Loop, Cupertino, CA 95014, USA.

Apple also processes data in the USA, among other places. We would like to point out that according to the opinion of the European Court of Justice, there is currently no adequate level of protection for the transfer of data to the USA. This may be associated with various risks to the lawfulness and security of data processing.

As a basis for data processing with recipients located in third countries (outside the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, i.e. in particular in the USA) or a data transfer there, Apple uses standard contractual clauses approved by the EU Commission (= Art. 46. para. 2 and 3 DSGVO). These clauses oblige Apple to comply with the EU level of data protection when processing relevant data outside the EU. These clauses are based on an implementing decision of the EU Commission. You can find the decision and the clauses, among others, here: https://germany.representation.ec.europa.eu/index_de.

You can learn more about the data processed through the use of Apple iCloud in the Privacy Policy at https://www.apple.com/legal/privacy/de-ww/.

External online platforms

What are external online platforms?

In order to offer our services or products outside of our website, we also use external platforms. These are mostly online marketplaces such as Amazon or eBay. In addition to our responsibility of data protection, the data protection provisions of the external platforms we use also apply. This is specifically the case if our products are purchased via the platform. So if there is a payment transaction. Furthermore, most platforms also use your data to optimize their own marketing measures. For example, the platform can, with the help of collected data, tailor advertisements precisely to the interests of customers and website visitors.

Why do we use external online platforms?

In addition to our website, we also want to offer our products and services on other platforms in order to bring more customers closer to our offering. External online marketplaces, such as Amazon, Ebay, and even Digistore24, offer large sales websites that offer our products to people who may not be familiar with our website. It may also happen that built-in elements on our site redirect to an external online platform. Data that is processed and stored by the online platform used serves the company on the one hand to log the payment process, but also to be able to perform web analyses.

The aim of these analyses is to be able to develop more precise and personalized marketing and advertising strategies. Depending on your behavior on a platform, appropriate conclusions can be drawn about your interests with the help of the evaluated data and so-called user profiles can be created. This also enables the platforms to present you with tailored advertisements or products. In most cases, cookies are set in your browser for this purpose, which store data about your usage behavior.

Please note that when using the platforms or our built-in elements, data about you may also be processed outside the European Union, as online platforms, for example Amazon or eBay, are American companies. As a result, you may not be able to claim or enforce your rights with regard to your personal data as easily.

What data is processed?

Exactly what data is stored and processed depends on the external platform in question. But usually it is data such as phone numbers, email addresses, data you enter in a contact form, user data such as which buttons you click, when you visited which pages, information about your device and your IP address. Very often, most of this data is stored in cookies. If you have your own profile on an external platform and are also logged in there, data can be linked to the profile. The collected data is stored on the servers of the platforms used and processed there. You can find out exactly how an external platform stores, manages and processes data in the respective privacy policy. If you have any questions about data storage and data processing or wish to assert corresponding rights, we recommend that you contact the platform directly.

Duration of data processing

We will inform you about the duration of data processing below, provided we have further information on this. For example, Amazon stores data until it is no longer needed for its own purpose. In general, we only process personal data for as long as it is absolutely necessary for the provision of our services and products.

Right of objection

You also have the right and the possibility to revoke your consent to the use of cookies at any time. This works either via our cookie management tool or via opt-out functions at the respective external platform. Furthermore, you can also prevent data collection through cookies by managing, deactivating or deleting cookies in your browser.

Since cookies may be used, we also recommend our general privacy policy on cookies. To find out exactly what data is stored and processed by you, you should read the privacy statements of the respective external platforms.

Legal basis

If you have consented that data from you can be processed and stored by external platforms, this consent is considered the legal basis for the data processing (Art. 6 (1) lit. a DSGVO). In principle, if consent has been given, your data will also be stored and processed on the basis of a legitimate interest (Art. 6 (1) (f) DSGVO) in fast and good communication with you or other customers and business partners. If we have integrated elements of external platforms on our website, we will nevertheless only use these if you have given your consent.

Information on specific external platforms - if available - can be found in the following sections.

Audio & Video 

What are audio and video elements?

We have included audio or video elements on our website so that you can, for example, watch videos or listen to music/podcasts directly via our website. The content is provided by service providers. All content is therefore also obtained from the corresponding servers of the providers.

These are embedded functional elements of platforms such as YouTube, Vimeo or Spotify. The use of these portals is usually free of charge, but paid content can also be published. With the help of these embedded elements, you can listen to or view the respective content via our website.

If you use audio or video elements on our website, personal data of you may also be transmitted to the service providers, processed and stored.

Why do we use audio & video elements on our website?

Of course, we want to provide you with the best experience on our website. And we are aware that content is no longer conveyed merely in text and static images. Instead of just giving you a link to a video, we offer audio and video formats directly on our website that are entertaining or informative, and ideally both. This expands our service and makes it easier for you to access interesting content. Thus, in addition to our text and images, we also offer video and/or audio content.

What data is stored by audio & video elements?

When you access a page on our website that has an embedded video, for example, your server connects to the service provider's server. This also transfers data from you to the third-party provider and stores it there. Some data is collected and stored quite independently of whether or not you have an account with the third-party provider. This usually includes your IP address, browser type, operating system, and other general information about your terminal device. Furthermore, most providers also collect information about your web activity. This includes session duration, bounce rate, which button you clicked on, or which website you used to access the service. All this information is usually stored via cookies or pixel tags (also called web beacons). Pseudonymized data is mostly stored in cookies in your browser. You can always find out exactly what data is stored and processed in the privacy policy of the respective provider.

Duration of data processing

You can find out exactly how long the data is stored on the servers of the third-party providers either below in the data protection text of the respective tool or in the provider's data protection declaration. In principle, personal data is always processed only as long as it becomes absolutely necessary for the provision of our services or products. As a rule, this also applies to third-party providers. In most cases, you can assume that certain data will be stored on the servers of third-party providers for several years. Data can be stored for different lengths of time specifically in cookies. Some cookies are deleted as soon as you leave the website, others may be stored in your browser for several years.

Right of objection

You also have the right and the possibility to revoke your consent to the use of cookies or third-party providers at any time. This works either via our cookie management tool or via other opt-out functions. For example, you can also prevent data collection through cookies by managing, disabling or deleting cookies in your browser. The lawfulness of the processing until the revocation remains unaffected.

Since the embedded audio and video functions on our site usually also use cookies, you should also read our general privacy policy on cookies. In the privacy statements of the respective third-party providers, you can find out more about the handling and storage of your data.

Legal basis

If you have consented that data from you can be processed and stored by embedded audio and video elements, this consent is considered the legal basis of the data processing (Art. 6 (1) lit. a DSGVO). In principle, your data will also be stored and processed on the basis of our legitimate interest (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f DSGVO) in fast and good communication with you or other customers and business partners. Nevertheless, we only use the integrated audio and video elements if you have given your consent.

Vimeo Privacy Policy

What is Vimeo?

We also use videos from the company Vimeo on our website. The video portal is operated by Vimeo LLC, 555 West 18th Street, New York, New York 10011, USA. With the help of a plug-in, we can show you interesting video material directly on our website. In the process, certain data may be transferred from you to Vimeo. In this privacy policy, we will show you what data is involved, why we use Vimeo and how you can manage or prevent your data or the data transfer.

Vimeo is a video platform that was founded in 2004 and has made it possible to stream videos in HD quality since 2007. Since 2015, it has also been possible to stream in 4k Ultra HD. The portal is free to use, but paid content can also be published. Compared to the market leader YouTube, Vimeo prioritizes high-quality content. Thus, on the one hand, the portal offers a lot of artistic content such as music videos and short films, but on the other hand, it also offers documentaries worth knowing about a wide variety of topics.

Why do we use Vimeo on our website?

The goal of our web presence is to provide you with the best possible content. And to do so as easily accessible as possible. Only when we have achieved this, we are satisfied with our service. The video service Vimeo helps us to achieve this goal. Vimeo gives us the opportunity to present you with high-quality content directly on our website. Instead of just giving you a link to an interesting video, you can watch the video right there on our site. This expands our service and makes it easier for you to access interesting content. Thus, in addition to our texts and images, we also offer video content.

What data is stored on Vimeo?

When you call up a page on our website that has a Vimeo video embedded, your browser connects to Vimeo's servers. This results in a data transmission. This data is collected, stored and processed on the Vimeo servers. Regardless of whether you have a Vimeo account or not, Vimeo collects data about you. This includes your IP address, technical info about your browser type, operating system or very basic device information. Furthermore, Vimeo stores information about which website you use the Vimeo service and which actions (web activities) you perform on our website. These web activities include, for example, session duration, bounce rate or which button you clicked on our website with built-in Vimeo function. Vimeo may track and store these actions using cookies and similar technologies.

If you are logged into Vimeo as a registered member, more data can usually be collected because more cookies may have already been set in your browser. In addition, your actions on our website are directly linked to your Vimeo account. To prevent this, you must log out of Vimeo while "surfing" our website.

Below we show you cookies that are set by Vimeo when you are on a website with an integrated Vimeo function. This list is not exhaustive and assumes that you do not have a Vimeo account.

Name: player Value: "" Purpose: This cookie saves your settings before you play an embedded Vimeo video. This will give you your preferred settings again the next time you watch a Vimeo video.
Expiration date: after one year

Name: vuid Value: pl1046149876.614422590312404097-4 Purpose: This cookie collects information about your actions on websites that have embedded a Vimeo video.
Expiration date: after 2 years

Note: These two cookies are always set once you are on a web page with an embedded Vimeo video. When you watch the video and click the button to "share" or "like" the video, for example, other cookies are set. These are also third-party cookies such as _ga or _gat_UA-76641-8 from Google Analytics or _fbp from Facebook. Exactly which cookies are set here depends on your interaction with the video.

The following list shows a sample of possible cookies that are set when you interact with the Vimeo video:

Name: _abexps Value: %5B%5D Purpose: This Vimeo cookie helps Vimeo remember the settings you have made. For example, it may be a preset language, region, or username. In general, the cookie stores data about how you use Vimeo.
Expiration date: after one year

Name: continuous_play_v3 Value: 1 Purpose: This cookie is a first-party cookie from Vimeo. The cookie collects information about how you use the Vimeo service. For example, the cookie stores when you pause or replay a video.
Expiration date: after one year

Name: _ga Value: GA1.2.1522249635.1578401280312404097-7 Purpose: This cookie is a third-party cookie from Google. By default, analytics.js uses the _ga cookie to store the user ID. Basically, it is used to distinguish website visitors.
Expiration date: after 2 years

Name: _gcl_au Value: 1.1.770887836.1578401279312404097-3 Purpose: This third-party cookie from Google AdSense is used to improve the efficiency of ads on websites.
Expiration date: after 3 months

Name: _fbp Value: fb.1.1578401280585.310434968 Purpose: This is a Facebook cookie. This cookie is used to display ads or advertising products from Facebook or other advertisers.
Expiration date: after 3 months

Vimeo uses this data, among other things, to improve its own service, to communicate with you and to set its own targeted advertising measures. Vimeo emphasizes on its website that only first-party cookies (i.e. cookies from Vimeo itself) are used for embedded videos, as long as you do not interact with the video.

How long and where is the data stored?

Vimeo is headquartered in White Plains in the state of New York (USA). However, the services are offered worldwide. In doing so, the company uses computer systems, databases and servers in the USA and also in other countries. Your data can therefore also be stored and processed on servers in America. The data remains stored by Vimeo until the company no longer has an economic reason for storing it. Then the data will be deleted or anonymized.

How can I delete my data or prevent data storage?

You always have the option to manage cookies in your browser according to your wishes. For example, if you do not want Vimeo to set cookies and thus collect information about you, you can always delete or disable cookies in your browser settings. Depending on your browser, this works a bit differently. Please note that various functions may no longer be available to the full extent after disabling/deleting cookies. Under the section "Cookies" you will find the corresponding links to the respective instructions of the most popular browsers.

If you are a registered Vimeo member, you can also manage the cookies used in the settings at Vimeo.

Legal basis

If you have consented that data from you can be processed and stored by embedded Vimeo elements, this consent is considered the legal basis for data processing (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. a DSGVO). In principle, your data will also be stored and processed on the basis of our legitimate interest (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f DSGVO) in fast and good communication with you or other customers and business partners. Nevertheless, we only use the integrated Vimeo elements if you have given your consent. Vimeo also sets cookies in your browser to store data. Therefore, we recommend that you carefully read our privacy text about cookies and view the privacy policy or cookie policy of the respective service provider.

Vimeo also processes data from you in the USA, among other places. We would like to point out that according to the opinion of the European Court of Justice, there is currently no adequate level of protection for the transfer of data to the USA. This may be associated with various risks to the lawfulness and security of data processing.

As a basis for data processing with recipients located in third countries (outside the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, i.e. in particular in the USA) or a data transfer there, Vimeo uses so-called standard contractual clauses (= Art. 46. para. 2 and 3 DSGVO). Standard Contractual Clauses (SCC) are templates provided by the EU Commission and are intended to ensure that your data complies with European data protection standards even if it is transferred to third countries (such as the USA) and stored there. Through these clauses, Vimeo undertakes to comply with the European level of data protection when processing your relevant data, even if the data is stored, processed and managed in the US. These clauses are based on an implementing decision of the EU Commission. You can find the decision and the corresponding standard contractual clauses here, among other places: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dec_impl/2021/914/oj?locale=de

More information about the standard contractual clauses at Vimeo can be found at https://vimeo.com/privacy#international_data_transfers_and_certain_user_rights.

You can learn more about Vimeo's use of cookies at https://vimeo.com/cookie_policy, and you can read information about Vimeo's privacy policy at https://vimeo.com/privacy.

YouTube Privacy Policy

What is YouTube?

We have incorporated YouTube videos on our website. This allows us to present interesting videos directly on our site. YouTube is a video portal that has been a subsidiary of Google since 2006. The video portal is operated by YouTube, LLC, 901 Cherry Ave, San Bruno, CA 94066, USA. When you call up a page on our website that has a YouTube video embedded, your browser automatically connects to the YouTube or Google servers. In the process, various data are transferred (depending on the settings). Google Ireland Limited (Gordon House, Barrow Street Dublin 4, Ireland) is responsible for all data processing in the European area.

In the following, we would like to explain in more detail which data is processed, why we have integrated YouTube videos and how you can manage or delete your data.

On YouTube, users can watch, rate, comment on and upload videos themselves free of charge. Over the last few years, YouTube has become one of the most important social media channels in the world. In order for us to display videos on our website, YouTube provides a code snippet that we have built into our site.

Why do we use YouTube videos on our website?

YouTube is the video platform with the most visitors and the best content. We are committed to providing you with the best possible user experience on our website. And of course, interesting videos can't be missing from that. With the help of our embedded videos, we provide you with other helpful content in addition to our text and images. In addition, the embedded videos make our website easier to find on the Google search engine. Also, when we run ads through Google Ads, Google - thanks to the data it collects - can really only show these ads to people who are interested in what we have to offer.

What data is stored by YouTube?

As soon as you visit one of our pages that has a YouTube video embedded, YouTube sets at least one cookie that stores your IP address and our URL. If you are logged into your YouTube account, YouTube can usually assign your interactions on our website to your profile using cookies. This includes data such as session duration, bounce rate, approximate location, technical information such as browser type, screen resolution or your internet provider. Other data may include contact details, any ratings, sharing content via social media or adding to your favorites on YouTube.

If you are not logged into a Google account or a YouTube account, Google stores data with a unique identifier associated with your device, browser, or app. For example, your preferred language setting is retained. But a lot of interaction data can't be stored because fewer cookies are set.

In the following list, we show cookies that were set in a test in the browser. On the one hand, we show cookies that are set without a logged-in YouTube account. On the other hand, we show cookies that are set with a logged-in account. The list cannot claim to be complete because the user data always depends on the interactions on YouTube.

Name: YSC Value: b9-CV6ojI5Y312404097-1 Purpose: This cookie registers a unique ID to store statistics of the video watched.
Expiration date: after session end

Name: PREF Value: f1=50000000 Purpose: This cookie also registers your unique ID. Google gets statistics about how you use YouTube videos on our website through PREF.
Expiration date: after 8 months

Name: GPS Value: 1 Purpose: This cookie registers your unique ID on mobile devices to track GPS location.
Expiration date: after 30 minutes

Name: VISITOR_INFO1_LIVE Value: 95Chz8bagyU Purpose: This cookie tries to estimate the user's bandwidth on our web pages (with embedded YouTube video).
Expiration date: after 8 months

Other cookies set when you are logged in with your YouTube account:

Name: APISID Value: zILlvClZSkqGsSwI/AU1aZI6HY7312404097- Purpose: This cookie is used to create a profile about your interests. Used for personalized advertisements.
Expiration date: after 2 years

Name: CONSENT Value: YES+AT.en+20150628-20-0 Purpose: The cookie stores the status of a user's consent to use various services from Google. CONSENT is also used for security purposes to verify users and protect user data from unauthorized attacks.
Expiration date: after 19 years

Name: HSID Value: AcRwpgUik9Dveht0I Purpose: This cookie is used to create a profile about your interests. This data helps to display personalized advertising.
Expiration date: after 2 years

Name: LOGIN_INFO Value: AFmmF2swRQIhALl6aL... Purpose: This cookie is used to store information about your login details.
Expiration date: after 2 years

Name: SAPISID Value: 7oaPxoG-pZsJuuF5/AnUdDUIsJ9iJz2vdM Purpose: This cookie works by uniquely identifying your browser and device. It is used to create a profile about your interests.
Expiration date: after 2 years

Name: SID Value: oQfNKjAsI312404097- Purpose: This cookie stores your Google account ID and your last login time in digitally signed and encrypted form.
Expiration date: after 2 years

Name: SIDCC Value: AN0-TYuqub2JOcDTyL Purpose: This cookie stores information about how you use the site and what advertisements you may have seen before visiting our site.
Expiration date: after 3 months

How long and where is the data stored?

The data that YouTube receives from you and processes is stored on Google servers. Most of these servers are located in America. You can see exactly where Google data centers are located at https://www.google.com/about/datacenters/locations/?hl=de. Your data is distributed across the servers. Thus, the data can be retrieved more quickly and is better protected against manipulation.

Google stores the collected data for different lengths of time. Some data you can delete at any time, others are automatically deleted after a limited time, and still others are stored by Google for a longer period of time. Some data (such as items from "My Activity", photos or documents, products) stored in your Google Account will remain stored until you delete it. Even if you are not signed into a Google Account, you can delete some data associated with your device, browser, or app.

How can I delete my data or prevent data storage?

Basically, you can delete data in Google Account manually. With the automatic deletion feature of location and activity data introduced in 2019, information will be stored depending on your decision - either 3 or 18 months and then deleted.

Whether you have a Google account or not, you can configure your browser to delete or disable cookies from Google. Depending on which browser you use, this works in different ways. Under the section "Cookies" you will find the corresponding links to the respective instructions of the most popular browsers.

If you generally do not want cookies, you can set up your browser so that it always informs you when a cookie is to be set. In this way, you can decide for each individual cookie whether you allow it or not.

Legal basis

If you have consented that data from you can be processed and stored by embedded YouTube elements, this consent is considered the legal basis for data processing (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. a DSGVO). In principle, your data will also be stored and processed on the basis of our legitimate interest (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f DSGVO) in fast and good communication with you or other customers and business partners. Nevertheless, we only use the embedded YouTube elements if you have given your consent. YouTube also sets cookies in your browser to store data. Therefore, we recommend that you read our privacy text about cookies carefully and view the privacy policy or cookie policy of the respective service provider.

YouTube also processes data in the USA, among other places. We would like to point out that according to the opinion of the European Court of Justice, there is currently no adequate level of protection for the transfer of data to the USA. This may be associated with various risks to the legality and security of data processing.

As a basis for data processing with recipients located in third countries (outside the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, i.e. in particular in the USA) or a data transfer there, YouTube uses standard contractual clauses approved by the EU Commission (= Art. 46. para. 2 and 3 DSGVO). These clauses oblige YouTube to comply with the EU level of data protection when processing relevant data outside the EU as well. These clauses are based on an implementing decision of the EU Commission. You can find the decision as well as the clauses here, among other places: https://germany.representation.ec.europa.eu/index_de.

Since YouTube is a subsidiary of Google, there is a joint privacy policy. If you want to learn more about how your data is handled, we recommend the privacy policy at https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=de.

YouTube Subscribe Button Privacy Policy

We have implemented the YouTube Subscribe button on our website. You can usually recognize the button by the classic YouTube logo. The logo shows the words "Subscribe" or "YouTube" in white letters against a red background and the white "Play" icon to the left. However, the button can also be displayed in a different design.

Our YouTube channel always offers you funny, interesting or exciting videos. With the built-in "Subscribe" button, you can subscribe to our channel directly from our website and do not have to go to the YouTube website specifically. In this way, we want to make it as easy as possible for you to access our extensive content. Please note that YouTube may store and process data about you as a result.

If you see a built-in subscribe button on our site, YouTube sets - according to Google - at least one cookie. This cookie stores your IP address and our URL. YouTube can also learn information about your browser, your approximate location and your preset language this way. In our test, the following four cookies were set without being logged into YouTube:

Name: YSC Value: b9-CV6ojI5312404097Y Purpose: This cookie registers a unique ID to store statistics of the video watched.
Expiration date: after session end

Name: PREF Value: f1=50000000 Purpose: This cookie also registers your unique ID. Google gets statistics about how you use YouTube videos on our website through PREF.
Expiration date: after 8 months

Name: GPS Value: 1 Purpose: This cookie registers your unique ID on mobile devices to track GPS location.
Expiration date: after 30 minutes

Name: VISITOR_INFO1_LIVE Value: 31240409795Chz8bagyU Purpose: This cookie tries to estimate the user's bandwidth on our web pages (with embedded YouTube video).
Expiration date: after 8 months

Note: These cookies were set after a test and cannot claim to be complete.

If you are logged into your YouTube account, YouTube can store many of your actions/interactions on our website using cookies and assign them to your YouTube account. YouTube thereby receives, for example, information on how long you surf our site, which browser type you use, which screen resolution you prefer or which actions you perform.

YouTube uses this data on the one hand to improve its own services and offers, and on the other hand to provide analyses and statistics for advertisers (who use Google Ads).

Video Conferencing & Streaming

What are video conferencing & streaming?

We use software programs that allow us to hold video conferences, online meetings, webinars, display sharing and/or streaming. In a videoconference or streaming, information is transmitted simultaneously via sound and moving image. With the help of such video conferencing or streaming tools, we can communicate with customers, business partners, clients and also employees quickly and easily over the Internet. Of course, we pay attention to the specified legal framework when selecting the service provider.

Basically, third-party providers can process data as soon as you interact with the software program. Third-party providers of the video conferencing or streaming solutions use your data and metadata for different purposes. For example, the data helps to make the tool more secure and to improve the service. In most cases, the data may also be used for the third-party provider's own marketing purposes.

Why do we use video conferencing & streaming on our website?

We want to communicate with you, with our customers and business partners also digitally in a fast, uncomplicated and secure way. This works best with video conferencing solutions that are very easy to use. Most tools also work directly via your browser and after just a few clicks you are right in the middle of a video meeting. The tools also offer helpful additional features such as a chat and screensharing function or the ability to share content between meeting participants.

What data is processed?

When you participate in our video conference or in a streaming, data about you is also processed and stored on the servers of the respective service provider.

Exactly what data is stored depends on the solutions used. Each provider stores and processes different and varying amounts of data. But as a rule, most providers store your name, address, contact data such as your e-mail address or phone number, and your IP address. Furthermore, information about the device you are using, usage data such as which websites you visit, when you visit a website or which buttons you click on may also be stored. Data shared within the video conference (photos, videos, texts) may also be stored.

Duration of data processing

We will inform you about the duration of data processing below in connection with the service used, provided we have further information on this. In general, we process personal data only as long as it is strictly necessary for the provision of our services and products. It may be that the provider stores data from you according to its own specifications, over which we then have no influence.

Right of objection

You always have the right to information, correction and deletion of your personal data. If you have any questions, you can also contact responsible persons of the video conferencing or streaming tool used at any time. Contact details can be found either in our specific privacy policy or on the website of the relevant provider.

You can delete, disable or manage cookies that providers use for their functions in your browser. Depending on which browser you use, this works in different ways. Please note, however, that all functions may then no longer work as usual.

Legal basis

If you have consented that data from you can be processed and stored by the video or streaming solution, this consent is considered the legal basis of the data processing (Art. 6 (1) lit. a DSGVO). In addition, we may also offer a video conference as part of our services if this has been contractually agreed with you in advance (Art. 6 (1) lit. b DSGVO). In principle, your data will also be stored and processed on the basis of our legitimate interest (Art. 6 (1) lit. f DSGVO) in fast and good communication with you or other customers and business partners, but only if you have at least consented to this. Most video or streaming solutions also set cookies in your browser to store data. Therefore, we recommend that you read our privacy text about cookies carefully and view the privacy policy or cookie policy of the respective service provider.

For information on specific video conferencing and streaming solutions, please refer to the following sections, if available.

Microsoft Teams Privacy Policy

We use Microsoft Teams, an online meeting and video conferencing service, on our website. The service provider is the American company Microsoft Corporation, One Microsoft Way, Redmond, WA 98052-6399, USA.

Microsoft also processes data from you in the USA, among other places. We would like to point out that according to the opinion of the European Court of Justice, there is currently no adequate level of protection for the transfer of data to the USA. This may be associated with various risks to the legality and security of data processing.

As a basis for data processing at recipients located in third countries (outside the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, i.e. in particular in the USA) or a data transfer there, Microsoft uses so-called standard contractual clauses (= Art. 46. para. 2 and 3 DSGVO). Standard Contractual Clauses (SCC) are templates provided by the EU Commission and are intended to ensure that your data complies with European data protection standards even if it is transferred to third countries (such as the USA) and stored there. Through these clauses, Microsoft undertakes to comply with the European level of data protection when processing your relevant data, even if the data is stored, processed and managed in the United States. These clauses are based on an implementing decision of the EU Commission. You can find the decision and the corresponding standard contractual clauses here, among other places: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dec_impl/2021/914/oj?locale=de

More information about the standard contractual clauses at Microsoft can be found at https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/compliance/regulatory/offering-eu-model-clauses.

You can learn more about the data processed by using Microsoft in the privacy policy at https://privacy.microsoft.com/de-de/privacystatement.

Skype Privacy Policy

We use Skype, a service for chat and video conferencing solutions, on our website. The service provider is the American company Microsoft Corporation, One Microsoft Way, Redmond, WA 98052-6399, USA.

Microsoft also processes data from you in the USA, among other places. We would like to point out that according to the opinion of the European Court of Justice, there is currently no adequate level of protection for the transfer of data to the USA. This may be associated with various risks to the legality and security of data processing.

As a basis for data processing at recipients located in third countries (outside the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, i.e. in particular in the USA) or a data transfer there, Microsoft uses so-called standard contractual clauses (= Art. 46. para. 2 and 3 DSGVO). Standard Contractual Clauses (SCC) are templates provided by the EU Commission and are intended to ensure that your data complies with European data protection standards even if it is transferred to third countries (such as the USA) and stored there. Through these clauses, Microsoft undertakes to comply with the European level of data protection when processing your relevant data, even if the data is stored, processed and managed in the United States. These clauses are based on an implementing decision of the EU Commission. You can find the decision and the corresponding standard contractual clauses here, among other places: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dec_impl/2021/914/oj?locale=de

More information about the standard contractual clauses at Microsoft can be found at https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/compliance/regulatory/offering-eu-model-clauses.

You can learn more about the data processed by using Microsoft in the privacy policy at https://privacy.microsoft.com/de-de/privacystatement.

Zoom Privacy Policy

What is Zoom?

We use the Zoom video conferencing tool from the American software company Zoom Video Communications for our website. The company is headquartered in San Jose, California, 55 Almaden Boulevard, 6th Floor, CA 95113. Thanks to "Zoom", we can easily hold a video conference with customers, business partners, clients and also employees without having to install any software. In this privacy statement, we go into more detail about the service and inform you about the most important privacy-relevant aspects.

Zoom is one of the world's best-known video conferencing solutions. With the "Zoom Meetings" service, we can hold an online video conference with you, for example, but also with employees or other users via a digital conference room. This makes it very easy for us to get in touch digitally, exchange information on various topics, send text messages or even talk on the phone. Furthermore, Zoom also allows us to share the screen, exchange files and use a whiteboard.

Why do we use Zoom on our website?

It is important for us to be able to communicate with you quickly and easily. And this is exactly what Zoom offers us. The software program also works directly through a browser. This means that we can simply send you a link and start the video conference. Of course, additional functions such as screen sharing or file exchange are also very practical.

What data does Zoom store?

When you use Zoom, data is also collected from you so that Zoom can provide their services. On the one hand, this is data that you consciously provide to the company. This includes, for example, name, telephone number or your e-mail address. However, data is also automatically transmitted to Zoom and stored. This includes, for example, technical data of your browser or your IP address. In the following, we will go into more detail about the data that Zoom may collect from you and store:

If you provide data such as your name, user name, email address or phone number, this data will be stored by Zoom. Content that you upload while using Zoom is also stored. This includes files or chat logs, for example.

In addition to the IP address already mentioned above, the technical data that Zoom automatically stores includes the MAC address, other device IDs, device type, which operating system you are using, which client you are using, camera type, microphone type, and speaker type. Your approximate location is also determined and stored. Furthermore, Zoom also stores information about how you use the service. So, for example, whether you "zoom" via desktop or smartphone, whether you use a phone call or VoIP, whether you participate with or without video, or whether you request a password. Zoom also records so-called metadata such as duration of the meeting/call, start and end of meeting participation, meeting name and chat status.

Zoom mentions in its own privacy policy that it does not use advertising cookies or tracking technologies for its services. Only its own marketing websites, such as https://explore.zoom.us/docs/de-de/home.html, use these tracking methods. Zoom does not resell personal data or use it for advertising purposes.

How long and where is the data stored?

Zoom does not disclose a specific time frame in this regard, but emphasizes that the collected data is stored for as long as it is necessary to provide the services or for its own purposes. Data is only stored longer if this is required for legal reasons.

In principle, Zoom stores the collected data on American servers, but data can arrive at different data centers around the world.

How can I delete my data or prevent data storage?

If you do not want data to be stored during the Zoom meeting, you must opt out of the meeting. However, you always have the right and option to have all your personal data deleted. If you have a Zoom account, please visit https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/201363243-How-Do-I-Delete-Terminate-My-Account for instructions on how to delete your account.

Please note that when using this tool, data about you may be stored and processed outside the EU. Most third countries (including the US) are not considered secure under current European data protection law. Data to insecure third countries may therefore not simply be transferred, stored and processed there unless there are suitable guarantees (such as EU standard contractual clauses) between us and the non-European service provider.

Legal basis

If you have consented that data from you can be processed and stored by the video or streaming solution, this consent is considered the legal basis of the data processing (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. a DSGVO). In addition, we may also offer a video conference as part of our services if this has been contractually agreed with you in advance (Art. 6 (1) lit. b DSGVO). In principle, your data will also be stored and processed on the basis of our legitimate interest (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f DSGVO) in fast and good communication with you or other customers and business partners, but only if you have at least consented to this.

Zoom also processes data from you in the USA, among other places. We would like to point out that according to the opinion of the European Court of Justice, there is currently no adequate level of protection for the transfer of data to the USA. This may be associated with various risks to the lawfulness and security of data processing.

As a basis for data processing with recipients located in third countries (outside the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, i.e. in particular in the USA) or a data transfer there, Zoom uses so-called standard contractual clauses (= Art. 46. para. 2 and 3 DSGVO). Standard Contractual Clauses (SCC) are templates provided by the EU Commission and are intended to ensure that your data complies with European data protection standards even if it is transferred to third countries (such as the USA) and stored there. Through these clauses, Zoom undertakes to comply with the European level of data protection when processing your relevant data, even if the data is stored, processed and managed in the US. These clauses are based on an implementing decision of the EU Commission. You can find the decision and the corresponding standard contractual clauses here, among other places: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dec_impl/2021/914/oj?locale=de

We hope to have provided you with an overview of data processing by Zoom. Of course, it is always possible that the company's privacy policy will change. Therefore, for more information on the data processed and the standard contractual clauses, we also recommend that you read Zoom's privacy policy at https://explore.zoom.us/de/privacy/?tid=312404097.

Zoom order processing agreement (AVV)

We have entered into a data processing order (GCU) with Zoom in accordance with Article 28 of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). You can read more about what exactly an AVV is and, in particular, what must be included in an AVV in our general section "Order Processing Agreement (AVV)".

This contract is required by law because Zoom processes personal data on our behalf. It clarifies that Zoom may only process data they receive from us according to our instructions and must comply with the GDPR. You can find the link to the order processing agreement (AVV) at https://explore.zoom.us/docs/doc/Zoom_GLOBAL_DPA.pdf.

Explanation of terms used

We always try to write our privacy policy as clear and understandable as possible. However, this is not always easy, especially when it comes to technical and legal topics. It often makes sense to use legal terms (such as personal data) or certain technical terms (such as cookies, IP address). However, we do not want to use these without explanation. Below you will now find an alphabetical list of important terms used that we may not have sufficiently addressed in the previous privacy policy. If these terms are taken from the GDPR and are definitions, we will also cite the GDPR texts here and add our own explanations if necessary.

Processor

Definition according to Article 4 of the GDPR.

For the purposes of this Regulation, the term:

"processor" means a natural or legal person, public authority, agency or other body which processes personal data on behalf of the controller;

Explanation: as a company and website owner, we are responsible for all data we process from you. In addition to data controllers, there may also be so-called processors. This includes any company or person that processes personal data on our behalf. Consequently, in addition to service providers such as tax advisors, processors can also be, for example, hosting or cloud providers, payment or newsletter providers or large companies such as Google or Microsoft.

Restriction of processing

Definition according to Article 4 of the GDPR.

For the purposes of this Regulation, the term:

"restriction of processing" means the marking of stored personal data with the aim of limiting their future processing;

Explanation: it is one of your rights to be able to require processors to restrict your personal data for further processing operations at any time. To do this, specific personal data, such as your name, date of birth or address, will be marked in such a way that full further processing is no longer possible. For example, you could restrict processing so that your data may no longer be used for personalized advertising.

Consent

Definition according to Article 4 of the GDPR.

For the purposes of this Regulation, the term:

"consent" of the data subject means any freely given specific, informed and unambiguous indication of his or her wishes in the form of a statement or other unambiguous affirmative act by which the data subject signifies his or her agreement to the processing of personal data relating to him or her;

Explanation: as a rule, such consent is given on websites via a cookie consent tool. You are probably familiar with this. Whenever you visit a website for the first time, you are usually asked via a banner whether you agree or consent to data processing. In most cases, you can also make individual settings and thus decide for yourself which data processing you allow and which you do not. If you do not consent, no personal data of yours may be processed. In principle, consent can of course also be given in writing, i.e. not via a tool.

Personal data

Definition according to Article 4 of the GDPR

For the purposes of this Regulation, the term:

"personal data" means any information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person (hereinafter "data subject"); an identifiable natural person is one who can be identified, directly or indirectly, in particular by reference to an identifier such as a name, an identification number, location data, an online identifier or to one or more factors specific to the physical, physiological, genetic, mental, economic, cultural or social identity of that natural person;

Explanation: personal data are therefore all those data that can identify you as a person. This is usually data such as:

• Name
• Address
• E-mail address
• Postal address
• Telephone number
• Date of birth
• Identification numbers such as social security number, tax identification number, identity card number or matriculation number
• Bank data such as account number, credit information, account balances, and more.

According to the European Court of Justice (ECJ), your IP address also counts as personal data. IT experts can use your IP address to determine at least the approximate location of your device and, subsequently, you as the connection owner. Therefore, the storage of an IP address also requires a legal basis within the meaning of the GDPR. There are also still so-called "special categories" of personal data that also require special protection. These include:

• racial and ethnic origin
• political opinions
• religious or ideological convictions
• trade union membership
• genetic data, such as data taken from blood or saliva samples
• biometric data (which is information about mental, physical, or behavioral characteristics that can identify an individual).
  health data
• data on sexual orientation or sexual life

Processing

Definition under Article 4 of the GDPR.

For the purposes of this Regulation, the term:

"processing" means any operation or set of operations which is performed upon personal data, whether or not by automatic means, such as collection, recording, organization, filing, storage, adaptation or alteration, retrieval, consultation, use, disclosure by transmission, dissemination or otherwise making available, alignment or combination, restriction, erasure or destruction;

Note: When we refer to processing in our Privacy Policy, we mean any type of data processing. This includes, as mentioned above in the original GDPR statement, not only collecting but also storing and processing data.

Conclusion

Congratulations! If you are reading these lines, you have really "fought" your way through our entire privacy policy, or at least scrolled all the way to here. As you can see from the scope of our privacy policy, we take the protection of your personal data, anything but lightly.
It is important to us to inform you to the best of our knowledge and belief about the processing of personal data. However, we do not only want to tell you which data is processed, but also to explain the reasons for the use of various software programs. As a rule, privacy statements sound very technical and legalistic. However, since most of you are not web developers or lawyers, we also wanted to take a different approach linguistically and explain the facts in simple and clear language. Of course, this is not always possible due to the subject matter. Therefore, the most important terms are explained in more detail at the end of the privacy policy.
If you have any questions about data protection on our website, please do not hesitate to contact us or the responsible office. We wish you a pleasant time and hope to welcome you on our website again soon.

All texts are protected by copyright.

Source: Created with the privacy generator from AdSimple