Controller

HRS
Hurler Str 62
46459 Rees
Germany
E-Mail: hello[at]patrycjagolla.com

Overview of Processing Activities

The following overview summarizes the types of processed data and the purposes of their processing, and refers to the data subjects involved.

Types of Processed
Data Inventory data.
Payment data.
Content data.
Contract data.
Usage data.
Meta, communication, and procedural data.

Special Categories of Data
Health data.

Categories of Data Subjects
Customers.
Prospects.
Communication partners.
Users.
Contest and competition participants.
Business and contractual partners.
Students/Participants.

Purposes of Processing
Providing contractual services and fulfilling contractual obligations.
Handling contact inquiries and communication.
Security measures.
Direct marketing.
Reach measurement.
Tracking.
Office and organizational procedures.
Conversion tracking.
Affiliate tracking.
Management and response to inquiries.
Conducting contests and competitions.
Feedback.
Marketing.
Profiles with user-related information.
Providing our online offerings and user-friendliness.
Information technology infrastructure.

Relevant Legal Bases

Relevant Legal Bases according to GDPR: Below you will find an overview of the legal bases of the GDPR on which we process personal data. Please note that in addition to the provisions of the GDPR, national data protection regulations may apply in your or our country of residence or domicile. Furthermore, if more specific legal bases are relevant in individual cases, we will inform you of these in the privacy policy.

Consent (Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR) – The data subject has given consent to the processing of their personal data for one or more specific purposes.

Contract Performance and Pre-contractual Inquiries (Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR) – Processing is necessary for the performance of a contract to which the data subject is party or in order to take steps at the request of the data subject prior to entering into a contract.

Legal Obligation (Art. 6(1)(c) GDPR) – Processing is necessary for compliance with a legal obligation to which the controller is subject.

Legitimate Interests (Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR) – Processing is necessary for the purposes of the legitimate interests pursued by the controller or by a third party, except where such interests are overridden by the interests or fundamental rights and freedoms of the data subject which require protection of personal data.

National Data Protection Regulations in Germany: In addition to the data protection regulations of the GDPR, there are national data protection regulations in Germany. This includes in particular the Federal Data Protection Act (Bundesdatenschutzgesetz – BDSG). The BDSG contains special regulations regarding the right to information, the right to deletion, the right to object, the processing of special categories of personal data, processing for other purposes, transmission, and automated decision-making in individual cases, including profiling. Furthermore, state data protection laws of the individual federal states may apply.

Security Measures

We implement appropriate technical and organizational measures in accordance with legal requirements, taking into account the state of the art, implementation costs, the nature, scope, circumstances, and purposes of processing, as well as the varying probabilities of occurrence and the extent of the threat to the rights and freedoms of natural persons, to ensure a level of security appropriate to the risk.

These measures include, in particular, ensuring the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of data by controlling physical and electronic access to the data, as well as access, input, transmission, availability, and separation of data. Furthermore, we have established procedures to ensure the exercise of data subjects’ rights, deletion of data, and responses to data breaches. Additionally, we consider the protection of personal data during the development or selection of hardware, software, and procedures in accordance with the principle of data protection, through privacy by design and by default settings.

TLS/SSL Encryption (https): To protect user data transmitted through our online services, we use TLS/SSL encryption. Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) is the standard technology for securing internet connections by encrypting data transmitted between a website or app and a browser (or between two servers). Transport Layer Security (TLS) is an updated and more secure version of SSL. Hyper Text Transfer Protocol Secure (HTTPS) is indicated in the URL when a website is secured by an SSL/TLS certificate.

Rights of Data Subjects

Rights of Data Subjects under the GDPR: As data subjects, you have various rights under the GDPR, particularly arising from Articles 15 to 21 of the GDPR:

Right to Object: You have the right to object, on grounds relating to your particular situation, at any time to processing of personal data concerning you which is based on Article 6(1)(e) or (f) GDPR, including profiling based on those provisions. Where personal data concerning you are processed for direct marketing purposes, you have the right to object at any time to processing of personal data concerning you for such marketing, which includes profiling to the extent that it is related to such direct marketing.

Right to Withdraw Consent: You have the right to revoke consent given at any time.

Right to Information: You have the right to obtain confirmation as to whether or not personal data concerning you is being processed, and, where that is the case, access to the personal data and further information and a copy of the data according to legal requirements.

Right to Rectification: You have the right, in accordance with legal requirements, to request the completion of your personal data or the rectification of inaccurate personal data concerning you.

Right to Erasure and Restriction of Processing: Subject to legal requirements, you have the right to request the immediate deletion of personal data concerning you, or alternatively, to request restriction of processing of the data.

Right to Data Portability: You have the right, in accordance with legal requirements, to receive the personal data concerning you that you have provided to us in a structured, commonly used, and machine-readable format, or to request transmission of those data to another controller.

Right to Lodge a Complaint with a Supervisory Authority: Without prejudice to any other administrative or judicial remedy, you have the right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority, in particular in the Member State of your habitual residence, place of work, or place of the alleged infringement if you believe that the processing of personal data concerning you violates the provisions of the GDPR.

Use of Cookies

Cookies are small text files or other storage mechanisms that store information on end devices and retrieve information from end devices. For example, to store the login status in a user account, the contents of a shopping cart in an e-shop, the accessed content, or the functions used in an online offering. Cookies can also be used for various purposes, such as ensuring the functionality, security, and convenience of online offerings, as well as for analyzing visitor traffic.

Consent Information: We use cookies in accordance with legal regulations. Therefore, we obtain prior consent from users, unless it is not legally required. Consent is particularly not necessary if storing and retrieving information, including cookies, is absolutely necessary to provide users with a telemedia service (i.e., our online offering) expressly requested by them. Essential cookies typically include cookies with functions related to the display and operation of the online offering, load balancing, security, storing user preferences and choices, or similar purposes related to providing the main and ancillary functions of the online offering requested by users. Revocable consent is clearly communicated to users and includes information about the respective cookie usage.

Legal Basis for Data Processing: The legal basis for processing users’ personal data using cookies depends on whether we ask users for consent. If users consent, the legal basis for processing their data is the consent provided. Otherwise, the data processed using cookies are based on our legitimate interests (e.g., in the commercial operation of our online offering and improving its usability) or, if it is necessary to fulfill our contractual obligations, when the use of cookies is required to fulfill our contractual obligations. We provide information about the purposes for which cookies are processed in this privacy policy or as part of our consent and processing processes.

Storage Period: With regard to the storage period, the following types of cookies are distinguished:

Temporary Cookies (also known as session cookies): Temporary cookies are deleted at the latest after a user leaves an online offering and closes their end device (e.g., browser or mobile application).

Persistent Cookies: Persistent cookies remain stored even after the end device is closed. For example, the login status can be stored, or preferred content can be displayed directly when the user revisits a website. Likewise, data collected with the help of cookies can be used for measuring reach. If we do not provide users with explicit information about the type and storage duration of cookies (e.g., as part of obtaining consent), users should assume that cookies are persistent and the storage duration can be up to two years.

General Information on Revocation and Objection (so-called „Opt-Out”): Users can revoke their consent given at any time and object to processing in accordance with legal requirements. To do this, users can, among other things, restrict the use of cookies in their browser settings (although this may also restrict the functionality of our online offering). Objection to the use of cookies for online marketing purposes can also be made via the websites https://optout.aboutads.info and https://www.youronlinechoices.com/.

Legal Bases: Legitimate Interests (Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR). Consent (Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR).

Further Information on Processing Procedures, Procedures, and Services:

Processing of Cookie Data based on Consent: We use a consent management solution to obtain user consent for the use of cookies or for the procedures and providers mentioned within the consent management solution. This procedure is used for obtaining, logging, managing, and revoking consent, particularly regarding the use of cookies and similar technologies used to store, read, and process information on users’ devices. Within this procedure, user consent for the use of cookies and the associated processing of information, including specific processes and providers mentioned in the consent management procedure, is obtained. Users also have the option to manage and revoke their consent. The consent declarations are stored to avoid repeated queries and to be able to provide evidence of consent in accordance with legal requirements. Storage occurs server-side and/or in a cookie (known as an opt-in cookie) or through similar technologies to associate consent with a specific user or their device. If there are no specific details about the providers of consent management services, the following general information applies: The duration of consent storage is up to two years. A pseudonymous user identifier is created, which is stored along with the time of consent, details of the scope of consent (e.g., relevant categories of cookies and/or service providers), and information about the browser, system, and device used. Legal Basis: Consent (Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR).

Business Services

We process data of our contractual and business partners, e.g., customers and prospects (collectively referred to as „contractual partners”) as part of contractual and comparable legal relationships and associated measures and in the context of communication with contractual partners (or pre-contractually), e.g., to respond to inquiries.

We process this data to fulfill our contractual obligations. This includes, in particular, obligations to provide the agreed services, any updating obligations, and remedying warranty and other service disruptions. Furthermore, we process the data to safeguard our rights and for the purposes of the administrative tasks associated with these obligations and corporate organization. In addition, we process the data on the basis of our legitimate interests in proper and businesslike management as well as security measures to protect our contractual partners and our business operations from misuse, endangerment of their data, secrets, information, and rights (e.g., for the involvement of telecommunications, transport, and other auxiliary services as well as subcontractors, banks, tax and legal advisors, payment service providers, or financial authorities).

In accordance with applicable law, we only disclose the data of contractual partners to third parties to the extent necessary for the aforementioned purposes or to fulfill legal obligations. Contractual partners are informed about further processing, e.g., for marketing purposes, within the scope of this privacy policy.

We inform contractual partners before or during data collection, e.g., in online forms, through special labeling (e.g., colors) or symbols (e.g., asterisks or similar), or personally, about which data is required for the aforementioned purposes.

We delete the data after the expiration of statutory warranty and comparable obligations, i.e., generally after 4 years, unless the data is stored in a customer account, e.g., as long as it must be retained for legal reasons. The statutory retention period is ten years for tax-relevant documents as well as for commercial books, inventories, opening balances, annual financial statements, the work instructions required to understand these documents, and other organizational documents and booking vouchers, and six years for received commercial and business letters and copies of sent commercial and business letters. The period begins at the end of the calendar year in which the last entry was made in the book, the inventory, the opening balance, the annual financial statement, or the management report was prepared, the commercial or business letter was received or sent, or the booking voucher was created, and also when the recording was made or the other documents were created.

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

Processed types of data: Inventory data (e.g., names, addresses); Payment data (e.g., bank details, invoices, payment history); Contact data (e.g., email, phone numbers); Contract data (e.g., subject matter of the contract, duration, customer category); Usage data (e.g., visited websites, interest in content, access times); Meta, communication, and procedural data (e.g., IP addresses, timestamps, identification numbers, consent status).

Special categories of personal data: Health data.

Affected individuals: Customers; Prospects; Business and contractual partners; Students/Participants.

Purposes of processing: Provision of contractual services and fulfillment of contractual obligations; Security measures; Contact inquiries and communication; Office and organizational procedures; Administration and response to inquiries; Conversion measurement (measurement of the effectiveness of marketing measures). Profiles with user-related information (creation of user profiles).

Legal bases: Fulfillment of contract and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. b) GDPR); Legal obligation (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. c) GDPR). Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. f) GDPR).

Further information on processing procedures, methods, and services:

Customer Account: Customers can create an account within our online offering (e.g., customer or user account, abbreviated as „customer account”). If the registration of a customer account is required, customers will be notified of this as well as the information required for registration. Customer accounts are not public and cannot be indexed by search engines. As part of the registration, as well as subsequent logins and use of the customer account, we store the IP addresses of customers along with the access times to verify the registration and prevent any misuse of the customer account. If the customer account is terminated, the data of the customer account will be deleted after the termination date, unless they need to be retained for purposes other than provision in the customer account or for legal reasons (e.g., internal storage of customer data, order processes, or invoices). It is the responsibility of the customers to secure their data upon termination of the customer account; Legal Basis: Contractual performance and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. b) GDPR).

Economic Analyses and Market Research: For business reasons and to recognize market trends and the desires of contractual partners and users, we analyze the data available to us regarding business transactions, contracts, inquiries, etc., whereby contractual partners, prospects, customers, visitors, and users of our online offering may be included in the group of affected persons. The analyses are carried out for the purpose of business evaluations, marketing, and market research (e.g., to determine customer groups with different characteristics). We may consider the profiles of registered users, along with their information, e.g., on services used. The analyses are conducted solely for our purposes and are not disclosed externally unless they are anonymous analyses with aggregated, i.e., anonymized values. Furthermore, we respect the privacy of users and process the data for analytical purposes as pseudonymously as possible and, where feasible, anonymously (e.g., as aggregated data); Legal Basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. f) GDPR).

Online Shop, Order Forms, E-Commerce, and Delivery: We process the data of our customers to enable them to select, purchase, or order the chosen products, goods, and related services, as well as their payment and delivery or execution. If necessary for the execution of an order, we use service providers, especially postal, freight, and shipping companies, to carry out delivery or execution to our customers. For the processing of payment transactions, we use the services of banks and payment service providers. The necessary information is marked as such within the framework of the order or comparable acquisition process and includes the information required for delivery, provision, and invoicing, as well as contact information to enable any queries to be made; Legal Basis: Contractual performance and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. b) GDPR).

Agency Services: We process the data of our customers as part of our contractual services, which may include conceptual and strategic consulting, campaign planning, software and design development/consulting or maintenance, implementation of campaigns and processes, handling, server administration, data analysis/consulting services, and training services; Legal Basis: Contractual performance and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. b) GDPR).

Educational and Training Services: We process the data of participants in our educational and training offerings (uniformly referred to as „trainees”), to provide them with our training services. The processed data, the type, scope, purpose, and necessity of their processing are determined by the underlying contractual and training relationship. Processing methods also include performance evaluation and evaluation of our services and those of the instructors. As part of our activities, we may also process special categories of data, particularly information about the health of trainees, as well as data revealing ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs. We obtain explicit consent from the trainees if necessary and process special categories of data only if necessary for the provision of training services, for health prevention purposes, social protection, or the protection of the vital interests of the trainees; Legal Basis: Contractual performance and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. b) GDPR).

Coaching Services: We process the data of our clients, as well as prospects and other clients or contractual partners (uniformly referred to as „clients”), to provide them with our services. The processed data, the type, scope, purpose, and necessity of their processing are determined by the underlying contractual and client relationship.

As part of our activities, we may also process special categories of data, particularly information about the health of clients, if necessary, with reference to their sexual life or sexual orientation, as well as data revealing racial and ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, or trade union membership. We obtain explicit consent from the clients if necessary and process special categories of data only if it serves the health of the clients, the data are public, or other legal permissions exist.

If it is necessary for our contractual performance, to protect vital interests or is legally required, or if consent from the clients exists, we disclose or transmit the data of the clients to third parties or agents in compliance with professional regulations, such as authorities, medical facilities, laboratories, billing centers, as well as in the area of IT, office, or comparable services; Legal Basis: Contractual performance and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. b) GDPR).

Event Management: We process the data of participants in the events, events, and similar activities offered or organized by us (hereinafter uniformly referred to as „participants” and „events”) to enable them to participate in the events and to avail themselves of the services or actions associated with participation.

If we process health-related data, religious, political, or other special categories of data in this context, this is done in the context of obviousness (e.g., for thematically oriented events or serves health prevention, security, or with the consent of the data subjects).

The necessary information is marked as such within the framework of the order, booking, or comparable conclusion of a contract and includes the information required for performance and invoicing, as well as contact information to enable any queries to be made. To the extent that we have access to information from end customers, employees, or other persons, we process this information in accordance with legal and contractual requirements; Legal Basis: Contractual performance and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. b) GDPR).

Provision of the online offering and web hosting

We process user data in order to provide them with our online services. For this purpose, we process the user’s IP address, which is necessary to transmit the content and functionality of our online services to the user’s browser or device.

Processed types of data: Usage data (e.g., visited websites, interest in content, access times); Meta, communication, and procedural data (e.g., IP addresses, timestamps, identification numbers, consent status); Content data (e.g., inputs in online forms).

Affected individuals: Users (e.g., website visitors, users of online services).

Purposes of processing: Provision of our online offering and user-friendliness; Information technology infrastructure (operation and provision of information systems and technical devices (computers, servers, etc.)); Security measures.

Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. f) GDPR).

Further information on processing procedures, methods, and services:

Provision of online offering on rented storage spaceFor the provision of our online offering, we use storage space, computing capacity, and software that we rent or otherwise obtain from a corresponding server provider (also called „web hoster”); Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. f) GDPR).

Collection of access data and log files: Access to our online offering is logged in the form of so-called „server log files.” Server log files may include the address and name of the accessed websites and files, date and time of access, transmitted data volumes, message about successful access, browser type and version, user’s operating system, referrer URL (the previously visited page), and usually IP addresses and the requesting provider. Server log files can be used for security purposes, e.g., to avoid overloading the servers (especially in the case of abusive attacks, so-called DDoS attacks), and also to ensure the load and stability of the servers; Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. f) GDPR). Data Deletion: Log file information is stored for a maximum of 30 days and then deleted or anonymized. Data whose further storage is necessary for evidence purposes are excluded from deletion until the respective incident is finally clarified.

Email delivery and hosting: The web hosting services we use also include the sending, receiving, and storage of emails. For these purposes, the addresses of the recipients and senders, as well as further information concerning email delivery (e.g., the involved providers), and the contents of the respective emails are processed. The aforementioned data may also be processed for the purpose of detecting spam. Please note that emails are generally not encrypted when sent over the Internet. In most cases, emails are encrypted during transmission, but (unless a so-called end-to-end encryption method is used) not on the servers from which they are sent and received. Therefore, we cannot assume responsibility for the transmission path of emails between the sender and the recipient on our server; Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. f) GDPR).

Content Delivery Network (CDN): We use a Content Delivery Network (CDN). A CDN is a service that helps deliver content of an online offering, especially large media files such as graphics or program scripts, faster and more securely using regionally distributed servers connected via the Internet; Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. f) GDPR).

ZENBOX: Services in the field of providing information technology infrastructure and related services (e.g., storage space and/or computing capacities); Service provider: zenbox sp. z o.o., ul. Franklina Roosevelta 22, 60-829 Poznań, Poland; NIP: PL949-219-10-21 REGON: 242888558 KRS: 0000414281Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. f) GDPR); Website: https://www.zenbox.pl; Privacy Policy: https://zenbox.pl/ochrona-danych-osobowych/. Data Processing Agreement: Provided by the service provider.

Registration, login, and user account

Users can create a user account. During registration, users are provided with the necessary mandatory information and processed for the purpose of providing the user account based on contractual obligations. The processed data includes, in particular, the login information (username, password, and email address).

In the context of using our registration and login functions, as well as the use of the user account, we store the IP address and the timestamp of the respective user action. Storage is based on our legitimate interests as well as those of the users in protecting against misuse and unauthorized use. Generally, these data are not disclosed to third parties unless necessary to pursue our claims or there is a legal obligation to do so.

Users may be informed via email about activities relevant to their user account, such as technical changes.

Processed types of data: Inventory data (e.g., names, addresses); Contact data (e.g., email, phone numbers); Content data (e.g., inputs in online forms); Meta, communication, and procedural data (e.g., IP addresses, timestamps, identification numbers, consent status).

Affected individuals: Users (e.g., website visitors, users of online services).

Purposes of processing: Provision of contractual services and fulfillment of contractual obligations; Security measures; Management and response to inquiries; Provision of our online offering and user-friendliness.

Legal basis: Fulfillment of contract and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. b) GDPR); Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. f) GDPR).

Further information on processing operations, procedures and services:

Registration with real names: Due to the nature of our community, we ask users to use our service only with their real names. That means the use of pseudonyms is not permitted; Legal basis: Fulfillment of contract and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. b) GDPR).

User profiles are not public: User profiles are not publicly visible or accessible.

Deletion of data after termination: When users have terminated their user account, their data regarding the user account will be deleted, subject to legal permission, obligation, or user consent; Legal basis: Fulfillment of contract and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. b) GDPR).

No obligation to retain data: It is the users’ responsibility to secure their data upon termination before the end of the contract. We are entitled to irretrievably delete all data stored during the contract period; Legal basis: Fulfillment of contract and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. b) GDPR).

Community functions

The community functions provided by us allow users to engage in conversations or exchanges with each other. Please note that the use of community functions is only permitted in compliance with applicable laws, our terms and policies, as well as the rights of other users and third parties.

Processed data types: Usage data (e.g., visited web pages, interest in content, access times); Meta, communication, and procedural data (e.g., IP addresses, timestamps, identification numbers, consent status).

Affected individuals: Users (e.g., website visitors, users of online services).

Purposes of processing: Provision of contractual services and fulfillment of contractual obligations. Security measures.

Legal basis: Fulfillment of contract and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. b) GDPR).

Additional information on processing procedures, methods, and services:

Posts by users are public: User-generated posts and content are publicly visible and accessible; Legal basis: Contractual fulfillment and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. b) GDPR).

Right to delete content and information: Deletion of user posts, content, or information is permissible to the extent required after a careful consideration if there are specific indications that they violate legal regulations, our guidelines, or the rights of third parties; Legal basis: Contractual fulfillment and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. b) GDPR).

Restricted deletion of conversation contributions: Out of consideration for other users, conversation contributions of the user are retained even after termination and account deletion to ensure that conversations, comments, advice, or similar communication among and between users do not lose their meaning or reverse. User names are deleted or pseudonymized if they did not already represent pseudonyms. Users can request the complete deletion of conversation contributions at any time; Legal basis: Contractual fulfillment and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. b) GDPR).

Protection of own data: Users decide for themselves which data they disclose about themselves within our online offer. For example, when users provide information about themselves or participate in conversations. We ask users to protect their data and to publish personal data only carefully and only to the extent necessary. In particular, we ask users to note that they must protect access data especially well and use secure passwords (i.e., especially long and random character combinations); Legal basis: Contractual fulfillment and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. b) GDPR).

Blogs and publishing media

We use blogs or similar means of online communication and publication (hereinafter „publication medium”). The data of the readers are processed for the purposes of the publication medium only to the extent necessary for its presentation and communication between authors and readers or for security reasons. Otherwise, we refer to the information on the processing of visitors to our publication medium within the scope of this privacy policy.

Processed data types: Master data (e.g., names, addresses); Contact details (e.g., email, telephone numbers); Content data (e.g., entries in online forms); Usage data (e.g., visited websites, interest in content, access times); Meta, communication, and process data (e.g., IP addresses, timestamps, identification numbers, consent status).

Affected individuals: Users (e.g., website visitors, users of online services).

Purposes of processing: Provision of contractual services and fulfillment of contractual obligations; Feedback (e.g., collecting feedback via online forms); Provision of our online offer and user-friendliness; Security measures; Management and response to inquiries.

Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. f) GDPR).

Additional information on processing procedures, methods, and services:

Comments and Contributions: When users leave comments or other contributions, their IP addresses may be stored based on our legitimate interests. This is done for our security in case someone leaves unlawful content in comments and contributions (insults, prohibited political propaganda, etc.). In this case, we could be held accountable for the comment or contribution and therefore have an interest in the identity of the author.

Furthermore, we reserve the right, based on our legitimate interests, to process user information for spam detection purposes.

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

The information provided by users in comments and contributions, including any contact and website information, as well as the content-related information, will be stored by us permanently until users object; Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. f) GDPR).

Contact and Inquiry Management

When contacting us (e.g., via mail, contact form, email, telephone, or social media) or as part of existing user and business relationships, the information provided by the contacting individuals will be processed to the extent necessary to respond to the contact inquiries and any requested actions.

Processed Data Types: Contact details (e.g., email, telephone numbers); Content data (e.g., inputs in online forms); Usage data (e.g., visited websites, interest in content, access times); Meta, communication, and process data (e.g., IP addresses, timestamps, identification numbers, consent status).

Data Subjects: Communication partners.

Purposes of Processing: Contact inquiries and communication; Management and response to inquiries; Feedback (e.g., collecting feedback via online forms); Provision of our online offering and user-friendliness.

Legal Bases: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. f) GDPR); Contract performance and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. b) GDPR).

Additional information on processing procedures, methods, and services:

Contact Form: When users contact us via our contact form, email, or other communication channels, we process the data provided in this context to handle the reported request; Legal Bases: Contract performance and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. b) GDPR), Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. f) GDPR).

Chatbots and Chatfunction

We provide online chat and chatbot functions as communication options (collectively referred to as „Chat Services”). A chat involves an online conversation conducted with some degree of immediacy. A chatbot, on the other hand, is software that answers user questions or provides information via messages. When you use our chat functions, we may process your personal data.

If you use our chat services within an online platform, your identification number within the respective platform will also be stored. Additionally, we may collect information about which users interact with our chat services and when. Furthermore, we store the content of your conversations via the chat services and log registration and consent processes to be able to provide evidence in accordance with legal requirements.

We inform users that the respective platform provider may become aware of whether and when users communicate with our chat services, as well as technical information about the users’ devices and, depending on their device settings, location information (so-called metadata) for the purpose of optimizing the respective services and for security purposes. Additionally, the metadata of communication via chat services (e.g., information about who communicated with whom) may be used by the respective platform providers for marketing purposes or to display tailored advertising, in accordance with their provisions, to which we refer for further information.

If users agree to receive information from a chatbot through regular messages, they have the option to unsubscribe from the information at any time for the future. The chatbot informs users how and with which terms they can unsubscribe from the messages. By unsubscribing from the chatbot messages, user data is deleted from the directory of message recipients.

We use the aforementioned information to operate our chat services, such as addressing users personally, responding to their inquiries, transmitting requested content, and also to improve our chat services (e.g., teaching chatbots responses to frequently asked questions).

Processed types of data: Contact information (e.g., email, phone numbers); Content data (e.g., inputs in online forms); Usage data (e.g., visited websites, interest in content); Meta, communication, and procedural data (e.g., IP addresses, timestamps, identification numbers).

Affected individuals: Communication partners; Users (e.g., website visitors, users of services).

Purposes of processing: Contact inquiries and communication; Direct marketing (e.g., via email or postal mail). Profiling with user-related information (creation of user profiles).

Legal bases: Consent (Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR); Contract performance and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR). Legitimate interests (Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR).

Additional information on processing procedures, methods, and services

ManyChat: Chatbot and assistant software as well as related services; Service provider: ManyChat, Inc., 535 Everett Ave, Palo Alto, CA 94301, USA; Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR); Website: https://manychat.com; Privacy Policy: https://manychat.com/legal/privacy; Data Processing Agreement: https://manychat.com/legal/dpa. Basis for third-country transfers: Standard Contractual Clauses (https://manychat.com/legal/dpa).

Newsletter and electronic notifications

We only send newsletters, emails, and other electronic notifications (hereinafter referred to as „newsletter”) with the consent of the recipients or a legal permission. If the contents of the newsletter are specifically described as part of the registration for the newsletter, they are decisive for the consent of the users. Otherwise, our newsletters contain information about our services and us.

To subscribe to our newsletters, it is generally sufficient to provide your email address. However, we may ask you to provide a name for personal addressing in the newsletter, or additional information if necessary for the purposes of the newsletter.

Double opt-in procedure: The registration for our newsletter generally takes place in a so-called double opt-in procedure. This means that after registration, you will receive an email asking you to confirm your registration. This confirmation is necessary to prevent anyone from registering with someone else’s email address. Newsletter registrations are logged in order to be able to provide evidence of the registration process in accordance with legal requirements. This includes the storage of the registration and confirmation time as well as the IP address. Changes to your data stored by the shipping service provider are also logged.

Deletion and restriction of processing: We can store unsubscribed email addresses for up to three years on the basis of our legitimate interests before deleting them in order to prove a previously given consent. The processing of this data is limited to the purpose of possible defense against claims. An individual deletion request is possible at any time, provided that the former existence of consent is confirmed at the same time. In the case of obligations to permanently observe objections, we reserve the right to store the email address solely for this purpose in a blocking list („blocklist”).

The logging of the registration process is based on our legitimate interests for the purpose of proving its proper conduct. If we commission a service provider with the sending of emails, this is done on the basis of our legitimate interests in an efficient and secure delivery system.

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

Processed types of data: Inventory data (e.g., names, addresses); Contact data (e.g., email, phone numbers); Meta, communication, and procedural data (e.g., IP addresses, timestamps, identification numbers, consent status); Usage data (e.g., visited websites, interest in content, access times).

Affected individuals: Communication partners; Users (e.g., website visitors, users of online services).

Purposes of processing: Direct marketing (e.g., via email or postal mail). Provision of contractual services and fulfillment of contractual obligations.

Legal bases: Consent (Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR). Legitimate interests (Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR).

Opt-out option: You can unsubscribe from our newsletter at any time, i.e., revoke your consent or object to further receipt. You can find a link to unsubscribe from the newsletter either at the end of each newsletter or you can use one of the contact options provided above, preferably email.

Additional information on processing procedures, methods, and services:

Measurement of open and click rates: The newsletters contain a so-called „web beacon,” i.e., a pixel-sized file that is retrieved from our server or, if we use a shipping service provider, from their server when the newsletter is opened. As part of this retrieval, technical information such as browser information and system information, as well as your IP address and the time of retrieval, are initially collected.

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

The measurement of open rates and click rates as well as the storage of measurement results in user profiles – This text area needs to be unlocked with a premium license.

Legal bases: Consent (Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR).

Requirement for the use of free services: Consent to the sending of mailings may be made a requirement for the use of free services (e.g., access to certain content or participation in certain actions). If users wish to use the free service without subscribing to the newsletter, we ask them to contact us.

Sending via SMS: Electronic notifications can also be sent as SMS text messages (or will be sent exclusively via SMS if the authorization, e.g., consent, only includes SMS delivery); Legal basis: Consent (Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR).

GetResponse: Email delivery and automation services; Service provider: GetResponse Sp. z o.o., Arkonska 6, A3, Gdansk (80-387), Poland; Legal bases: Legitimate interests (Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR); Website: https://www.getresponse.de/; Privacy Policy: https://www.getresponse.de/email-marketing/legal/datenschutz.html. Basis for third-country transfers: Standard Contractual Clauses (https://www.getresponse.com/de/legal/standardvertragsklauseln).

Mailchimp: Email marketing, automation of marketing processes, collection, storage, and management of contact data, measurement of campaign performance, capture and analysis of recipient interaction with content, content personalization; Service provider: Rocket Science Group, LLC, 675 Ponce De Leon Ave NE #5000, Atlanta, GA 30308, USA; Legal bases: Legitimate interests (Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR); Website: https://mailchimp.com; Privacy Policy: https://mailchimp.com/legal/; Data Processing Agreement: https://mailchimp.com/legal/; Basis for third-country transfers: Data Privacy Framework (DPF). Further information: Special security measures: https://mailchimp.com/de/help/mailchimp-european-data-transfers

Advertising communication via email, mail, fax, or telephone

We process personal data for the purpose of advertising communication, which can be carried out through various channels such as email, telephone, mail, or fax, in accordance with legal requirements.

Recipients have the right to revoke granted consent at any time or to object to advertising communication at any time.

Upon revocation or objection, we store the data necessary to prove the previous authorization for contacting or sending information for up to three years after the end of the year of revocation or objection based on our legitimate interests. The processing of this data is limited to the purpose of possible defense against claims. Based on the legitimate interest of permanently respecting the revocation or objection of users, we also store the data necessary to prevent further contact (e.g., email address, telephone number, name, depending on the communication channel).

Processed data types: Inventory data (e.g., names, addresses); Contact data (e.g., email, phone numbers).

Affected individuals: Communication partners.

Purposes of processing: Direct marketing (e.g., via email or postal mail).

Legal bases: Consent (Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR). Legitimate interests (Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR).

Raffles and competitions

We process personal data of participants in raffles and competitions only in compliance with relevant data protection regulations. This processing is carried out if it is contractually necessary for the provision, execution, and handling of the raffle, if participants have consented to the processing, or if the processing serves our legitimate interests (e.g., ensuring the security of the raffle or protecting our interests from abuse by potential capture of IP addresses when submitting raffle entries).

If contributions from participants are published as part of the raffles (e.g., in the context of a vote or presentation of raffle entries or winners, or in reporting on the raffle), we would like to inform you that the names of participants may also be published in this context. Participants can object to this at any time.

If the raffle takes place within an online platform or social network (e.g., Facebook or Instagram, hereinafter referred to as „online platform”), the terms of use and data protection regulations of the respective platforms also apply. In such cases, we would like to point out that we are responsible for the information provided by participants in the context of the raffle and inquiries regarding the raffle should be directed to us.

The data of participants are deleted as soon as the raffle or competition is over and the data are no longer necessary to inform the winners or because no further inquiries regarding the raffle are expected. In principle, participant data are deleted no later than 6 months after the end of the raffle. Data of winners may be retained longer in order to, for example, answer queries about the prizes or fulfill the prize obligations; in this case, the retention period depends on the nature of the prize and may last up to three years, for instance, to handle warranty claims for items or services. Furthermore, participant data may be stored longer, for example, in the form of reporting on the raffle in online and offline media.

If data were collected as part of the raffle for other purposes, their processing and retention period are governed by the data protection notices for that use (e.g., in the case of newsletter sign-ups as part of a raffle).

Processed data types: Inventory data (e.g., names, addresses); Content data (e.g., inputs in online forms); Meta, communication, and procedural data (e.g., IP addresses, timestamps, identification numbers, consent status).

Affected individuals: Raffle and competition participants.

Purposes of processing: Conducting raffles and competitions.

Legal basis: Contract performance and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR).

Surveys and questionnaires

We conduct surveys and questionnaires to collect information for the communicated survey or questionnaire purpose. The surveys and questionnaires conducted by us (hereinafter „surveys”) are evaluated anonymously. Processing of personal data only occurs to the extent necessary for the provision and technical implementation of the surveys (e.g., processing of IP addresses to display the survey in the user’s browser or enabling the resumption of the survey using a cookie).

Processed data types: Contact data (e.g., email, phone numbers); Content data (e.g., entries in online forms); Usage data (e.g., visited websites, interest in content, access times); Meta, communication, and procedural data (e.g., IP addresses, timestamps, identification numbers, consent status).

Affected individuals: Communication partners. Participants.

Purposes of processing: Feedback (e.g., collecting feedback via online form).

Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR).

Additional information on processing procedures, methods, and services:

Google Forms: Creation and evaluation of online forms, surveys, feedback forms, etc.; Service provider: Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland; Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR); Website: https://www.google.de/intl/de/forms; Privacy Policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy; Data Processing Addendum: https://cloud.google.com/terms/data-processing-addendum. Basis for third-country transfers: Data Privacy Framework (DPF).

Web analysis, monitoring, and optimization

The web analysis (also referred to as „reach measurement”) serves to evaluate the visitor flows of our online offering and can include behavior, interests, or demographic information about visitors, such as age or gender, as pseudonymous values. With the help of reach analysis, we can, for example, recognize at what time our online offering or its functions or content are most frequently used or invite reuse. Likewise, we can understand which areas require optimization.

In addition to web analysis, we can also use test procedures to test and optimize different versions of our online offering or its components.

Unless otherwise specified below, profiles, i.e., data summarized for a usage process, can be created for these purposes, and information can be stored in a browser or on an end device and read from it. The collected information includes, in particular, visited web pages and elements used there, as well as technical information such as the browser used, the computer system used, and information about usage times. If users have consented to the collection of their location data to us or to the providers of the services we use, location data can also be processed.

The IP addresses of users are also stored. However, we use an IP masking procedure (i.e., pseudonymization by shortening the IP address) to protect users. In general, no clear data of users (such as email addresses or names) are stored in the context of web analysis, A/B testing, and optimization, but pseudonyms are used. This means that neither we nor the providers of the software used know the actual identity of the users, but only the information stored in their profiles for the purposes of the respective procedures.

Processed data types: Usage data (e.g., visited web pages, interest in content, access times); Meta-, communication, and process data (e.g., IP addresses, time stamps, identification numbers, consent status).

Affected individuals: Users (e.g., website visitors, users of online services).

Purposes of processing: Reach measurement (e.g., access statistics, detection of recurring visitors); Profiles with user-related information (creation of user profiles). Provision of our online offering and user-friendliness.

Security measures: IP masking (pseudonymization of the IP address).

Legal basis: Consent (Art. 6 para. 1 p. 1 lit. a) GDPR).

Additional information on processing procedures, methods, and services:

Google Analytics: We use Google Analytics to measure and analyze the usage of our online offering based on a pseudonymous user identification number. This identification number does not contain unique data such as names or email addresses. Its purpose is to assign analysis information to an end device to recognize which content users have accessed within one or various usage processes, which search terms they have used, accessed again, or interacted with our online offering. The time of use and its duration are also stored, as well as the sources of users referring to our online offering and technical aspects of their end devices and browsers. 

Pseudonymous user profiles with information from the usage of various devices are created, with cookies possibly being used. Google Analytics does not log or store individual IP addresses for EU users. However, Analytics provides rough geographical location data by deriving the following metadata from IP addresses: city (and the derived latitude and longitude of the city), continent, country, region, subcontinent (and ID-based counterparts). For EU traffic, IP address data is exclusively used for this derivation of geolocation data before being immediately deleted. They are not logged, not accessible, and not used for further purposes. When Google Analytics collects measurement data, all IP queries are performed on EU-based servers before the traffic is forwarded to Analytics servers for processing; Service provider: Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland; Legal basis: Consent (Art. 6 para. 1 p. 1 lit. a) GDPR); Website: https://marketingplatform.google.com/intl/de/about/analytics/; Security measures: IP masking (pseudonymization of the IP address); Privacy policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy; Data processing agreement: https://business.safety.google/adsprocessorterms/; Basis for third-country transfers: Data Privacy Framework (DPF); Objection possibility (Opt-Out): Opt-Out plugin: https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout?hl=de, settings for displaying advertisements: https://myadcenter.google.com/personalizationoff. Further information: https://business.safety.google/adsservices/ (Types of processing and processed data).

Online marketing

We process personal data for the purposes of online marketing, which includes marketing advertising space or displaying advertising and other content (collectively referred to as „content”) based on potential user interests, as well as measuring their effectiveness. For these purposes, so-called user profiles are created and stored in a file (so-called „cookie”) or similar procedures are used to store information relevant to the user for displaying the aforementioned content. This information may include viewed content, visited web pages, used online networks, as well as communication partners and technical information such as the browser used, the computer system used, as well as information about usage times and functions used. If users have consented to the collection of their location data, this data may also be processed.

The IP addresses of users are also stored. However, we use available IP masking methods (i.e., pseudonymization by shortening the IP address) to protect users. Generally, no clear user data (such as email addresses or names) are stored within the online marketing procedures, but pseudonyms are used. This means that neither we nor the providers of the online marketing procedures know the actual identity of the users, but only the information stored in their profiles.

The information in the profiles is usually stored in cookies or similar methods. These cookies can later be read on other websites that use the same online marketing procedure, analyzed for the purpose of displaying content, supplemented with additional data, and stored on the server of the online marketing procedure provider.

In exceptional cases, clear data can be assigned to the profiles. This is the case, for example, when users are members of a social network whose online marketing procedures we use and the network links the user profiles with the aforementioned information. We ask you to note that users may enter into additional agreements with the providers, for example, through consent during registration.

In general, we only have access to aggregated information about the success of our advertisements. However, within the scope of so-called conversion tracking, we can check which of our online marketing procedures have led to a so-called conversion, i.e., for example, to a conclusion of a contract with us. Conversion tracking is used solely for the analysis of the success of our marketing measures.

Unless otherwise specified, please assume that cookies used are stored for a period of two years.

Processed data types: Usage data (e.g., visited web pages, interest in content, access times); Meta-, communication, and process data (e.g., IP addresses, timestamps, identification numbers, consent status).

Affected individuals: Users (e.g., website visitors, users of online services).

Purposes of processing: Reach measurement (e.g., access statistics, detection of recurring visitors); Tracking (e.g., interest/behavior-based profiling, use of cookies); Marketing; Profiles with user-related information (creation of user profiles). Conversion tracking (measurement of the effectiveness of marketing measures).

Security measures: IP masking (pseudonymization of the IP address).

Legal basis: Consent (Art. 6 para. 1 p. 1 lit. a) GDPR). Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 p. 1 lit. f) GDPR).

Objection possibility (Opt-Out): We refer to the privacy policies of the respective providers and the opt-out options indicated for the providers (so-called „opt-out”). If no explicit opt-out option has been provided, there is the possibility to disable cookies in your browser settings. However, this may restrict the functionality of our online offering. Therefore, we additionally recommend the following opt-out options, which are summarily directed to respective areas:

a) Europe: https://www.youronlinechoices.eu.

b) Canada: https://www.youradchoices.ca/choices.

c) USA: https://www.aboutads.info/choices.

d) Across regions: https://optout.aboutads.info.

Additional information on processing procedures, methods, and services:

Google Ads and Conversion Tracking: Online marketing procedures for the purpose of placing content and ads within the service provider’s advertising network (e.g., in search results, in videos, on websites, etc.), so that they are displayed to users who have a presumed interest in the ads. In addition, we measure the conversion of the ads, i.e., whether users have taken them as an opportunity to interact with the ads and use the advertised offers (so-called conversion). However, we only receive anonymous information and no personal information about individual users; Service provider: Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland; Legal basis: Consent (Art. 6 para. 1 p. 1 lit. a) GDPR), Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 p. 1 lit. f) GDPR); Website: https://marketingplatform.google.com; Privacy policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy; Basis for third-country transfers: Data Privacy Framework (DPF); 

Further information: Types of processing and processed data: https://business.safety.google/adsservices/. Data processing terms between controllers and standard contractual clauses for third-country transfers of data: https://business.safety.google/adscontrollerterms.

Offer of an Affiliate Program

We offer an affiliate program, meaning commissions or other benefits (collectively referred to as „commission”) for users (referred to as „affiliates”) who refer to our offers and services. The referral is made using a unique link or other methods assigned to each affiliate (e.g., discount codes), which allow us to recognize that the use of our services was based on the referral (collectively referred to as „affiliate links”).

To track whether users have perceived our services based on the affiliate links used by affiliates, it is necessary for us to know that users have followed an affiliate link. The assignment of affiliate links to the respective transactions or the other use of our services serves solely for the purpose of commission settlement and will be discontinued once it is no longer necessary for that purpose.

For the purposes of the aforementioned assignment of affiliate links, the affiliate links may be supplemented with certain values, which may be part of the link or stored elsewhere, such as in a cookie. The values may include the referring website (referrer), the timestamp, an online identifier of the website operator where the affiliate link was located, an online identifier of the user, as well as other information necessary for commission calculation.

Processed data types: Contract data (e.g., contract object, duration, customer category); Usage data (e.g., visited web pages, interest in content).

Affected individuals: Users (e.g., website visitors, users of the service); Business and contractual partners.

Purposes of processing: Provision of contractual services and fulfillment of contractual obligations. Affiliate tracking.

Legal basis: Consent (Art. 6 para. 1 p. 1 lit. a) GDPR). Contractual performance and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 para. 1 p. 1 lit. b) GDPR).

Presence on social networks (Social Media)

We maintain online presences within social networks and process user data within this framework to communicate with users active on these platforms or to provide information about us.

We would like to point out that user data may be processed outside the European Union in this context. This may pose risks for users, as it could, for example, make it more difficult to enforce users’ rights.

Furthermore, user data within social networks is typically processed for market research and advertising purposes. For example, usage behavior and resulting user interests can be used to create user profiles. These user profiles can then be used to display advertisements within and outside the networks that presumably correspond to the interests of the users. For these purposes, cookies are typically stored on users’ computers, in which user behavior and interests are stored. Additionally, data may be stored in user profiles independent of the devices used by the users (especially if the users are members of the respective platforms and are logged in).

For a detailed presentation of the respective processing methods and options for objection (opt-out), we refer to the privacy policies and information provided by the operators of the respective networks.

Even in the case of information requests and the exercise of data subject rights, we would like to point out that these can be most effectively pursued with the providers. Only the providers have access to the users’ data and can take appropriate measures and provide information directly. If you still need assistance, you can contact us.

Processed data types: Contact details (e.g., email, phone numbers); Content data (e.g., inputs in online forms); Usage data (e.g., visited web pages, interest in content, access times); Meta-, communication, and process data (e.g., IP addresses, timestamps, identification numbers, consent status); Inventory data (e.g., names, addresses).

Affected individuals: Users (e.g., website visitors, users of online services).

Purposes of processing: Contact inquiries and communication; Feedback (e.g., collecting feedback via online forms); Marketing; Provision of our online offering and user-friendliness. Information technology infrastructure (operation and provision of information systems and technical devices (computers, servers, etc.)).

Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 p. 1 lit. f) GDPR).

Additional information on processing procedures, methods, and services:

Instagram: Social network; Service provider: Meta Platforms Ireland Limited, Merrion Road, Dublin 4, D04 X2K5, Ireland; Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 s. 1 lit. f) GDPR); Website: [Instagram](https://www.instagram.com); Privacy policy: [Instagram Privacy Policy](https://instagram.com/about/legal/privacy). Basis for third-country transfers: Data Privacy Framework (DPF).

Facebook Pages: Profiles within the Facebook social network; Service provider: Meta Platforms Ireland Limited, Merrion Road, Dublin 4, D04 X2K5, Ireland; Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 s. 1 lit. f) GDPR); Website: [Facebook](https://www.facebook.com); Privacy policy: [Facebook Privacy Policy](https://www.facebook.com/about/privacy); Basis for third-country transfers: Data Privacy Framework (DPF). Additional information: We, together with Meta Platforms Ireland Limited, are responsible for the collection (but not further processing) of data from visitors to our Facebook page (so-called „fan page”). This data includes information about the types of content users view or interact with, or actions they take (see „Things you and others do and provide” in Facebook’s data policy: https://www.facebook.com/policy), as well as information about the devices used by users (e.g., IP addresses, operating system, browser type, language settings, cookie data; see „Device information” in Facebook’s data policy: https://www.facebook.com/policy). As explained in Facebook’s data policy under „How do we use this information?”, Facebook also collects and uses information to provide analytics services, known as „Page Insights,” for page owners, so they can understand how people interact with their pages and the content associated with them. We have entered into a special agreement with Facebook („Page Insights Addendum,” https://www.facebook.com/legal/terms/page_controller_addendum), which regulates in particular the security measures Facebook must observe and in which Facebook has agreed to fulfill data subject rights (i.e., users can address inquiries or deletion requests directly to Facebook). The rights of users (especially with regard to access, deletion, objection, and complaint to the relevant supervisory authority) are not restricted by the agreements with Facebook.  Further information can be found in the „Information about Page Insights” (https://www.facebook.com/legal/terms/information_about_page_insights_data). The joint responsibility is limited to the collection and transmission of data to Meta Platforms Ireland Limited, a company based in the EU. Further processing of the data is the sole responsibility of Meta Platforms Ireland Limited, especially regarding the transmission of data to the parent company, Meta Platforms, Inc., in the USA.

LinkedIn: Social network; Service provider: LinkedIn Ireland Unlimited Company, Wilton Place, Dublin 2, Ireland; Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 s. 1 lit. f) GDPR); Website: [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com); Privacy policy: [LinkedIn Privacy Policy](https://www.linkedin.com/legal/privacy-policy); Basis for third-country transfers: Data Privacy Framework (DPF); Opt-out possibility: [LinkedIn Opt-Out] (https://www.linkedin.com/psettings/guest-controls/retargeting-opt-out). Additional information: We, together with LinkedIn Ireland Unlimited Company, are responsible for the collection (but not further processing) of data from visitors, for the purpose of creating „Page Insights” (statistics) for our LinkedIn profiles. This data includes information about the types of content users view or interact with, or the actions they take, as well as information about the devices used by users (e.g., IP addresses, operating system, browser type, language settings, cookie data), and information from the users’ profiles, such as job function, country, industry, hierarchy level, company size, and employment status. Data protection information regarding the processing of user data by LinkedIn can be found in LinkedIn’s privacy policy: https://www.linkedin.com/legal/privacy-policy. We have entered into a special agreement with LinkedIn Ireland („Page Insights Joint Controller Addendum,” https://legal.linkedin.com/pages-joint-controller-addendum), which regulates in particular the security measures LinkedIn must observe and in which LinkedIn has agreed to fulfill data subject rights (i.e., users can address inquiries or deletion requests directly to LinkedIn). The rights of users (especially with regard to access, deletion, objection, and complaint to the relevant supervisory authority) are not restricted by the agreements with LinkedIn. The joint responsibility is limited to the collection of data by and transmission to LinkedIn Ireland Unlimited Company, a company based in the EU. Further processing of the data is the sole responsibility of LinkedIn Ireland Unlimited Company, especially regarding the transmission of data to the parent company, LinkedIn Corporation, in the USA.

Threads: Social network; Service provider: Meta Platforms Ireland Limited, Merrion Road, Dublin 4, D04 X2K5, Ireland; Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 s. 1 lit. f) GDPR); Website: [Threads](https://www.threads.net/). Privacy policy: [Threads Privacy Policy](https://help.instagram.com/515230437301944).

TikTok: Social network / Video platform; Service provider: TikTok Technology Limited, 10 Earlsfort Terrace, Dublin, D02 T380, Ireland, and TikTok Information Technologies UK Limited, Kaleidoscope, 4 Lindsey Street, London, United Kingdom, EC1A 9HP; Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 s. 1 lit. f) GDPR); Website: [TikTok](https://www.tiktok.com). Privacy policy: [TikTok Privacy Policy](https://www.tiktok.com/de/privacy-policy).

YouTube: Social network and video platform; Service provider: Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland; Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 s. 1 lit. f) GDPR); Privacy policy: [Google Privacy Policy](https://policies.google.com/privacy); Basis for third-country transfers: Data Privacy Framework (DPF). Opt-out possibility: [YouTube Opt-Out](https://myadcenter.google.com/personalizationoff).

Plugins and Embedded Functions as well as Content

We integrate functional and content elements into our online offering that are sourced from the servers of their respective providers (hereinafter referred to as „third-party providers”). These may include graphics, videos, or maps (hereinafter collectively referred to as „content”).

The integration always requires that the third-party providers of this content process the IP address of the users, as they could not send the content to their browser without the IP address. The IP address is therefore necessary for the display of this content or functions. We make every effort to use only content from providers who use the IP address solely for the delivery of the content. Third-party providers may also use so-called pixel tags (invisible graphics, also known as „web beacons”) for statistical or marketing purposes. The „pixel tags” can be used to evaluate information such as visitor traffic to the pages of this website. The pseudonymous information may also be stored in cookies on the users’ device and may contain technical information about the browser and operating system, referring websites, visit time, as well as other information about the use of our online offering, and may also be linked to such information from other sources.

Processed data types: Usage data (e.g., visited websites, interest in content, access times); Meta, communication, and procedural data (e.g., IP addresses, timestamps, identification numbers, consent status); Master data (e.g., names, addresses); Contact data (e.g., email, phone numbers); Content data (e.g., entries in online forms).

Affected individuals: Users (e.g., website visitors, users of online services).

Purposes of processing: Provision of our online offering and user-friendliness; Profiles with user-related information (creation of user profiles); Marketing.

Legal bases: Consent (Art. 6 para. 1 p. 1 lit. a) GDPR); Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 p. 1 lit. f) GDPR).

Additional information on processing procedures, methods, and services:

Instagram plugins and content: Instagram plugins and content – This may include content such as images, videos, or text, as well as buttons that allow users to share content from this online offering within Instagram. – We, together with Meta Platforms Ireland Limited, are jointly responsible for the collection or receipt, but not further processing, of „event data” that Facebook collects through Instagram functions (e.g., embedding functions for content) executed on our online offering, or received for the following purposes: a) Display of content and advertising information that corresponds to the presumed interests of users; b) Delivery of commercial and transaction-related messages (e.g., addressing users via Facebook Messenger); c) Improvement of ad delivery and personalization of features and content (e.g., improving the recognition of which content or advertising information presumably corresponds to the interests of users). We have entered into a specific agreement with Facebook („Controller Addendum”, https://www.facebook.com/legal/controller_addendum), which regulates in particular the security measures Facebook must observe (https://www.facebook.com/legal/terms/data_security_terms) and in which Facebook has agreed to fulfill the rights of data subjects (i.e., users can address requests for information or deletion directly to Facebook). Note: If Facebook provides us with metrics, analyses, and reports (which are aggregated, i.e., do not contain information about individual users and are anonymous to us), this processing does not fall within the scope of joint responsibility but is based on a data processing agreement („Data Processing Terms”, https://www.facebook.com/legal/terms/dataprocessing), the „Data Security Terms” (https://www.facebook.com/legal/terms/data_security_terms), and, regarding processing in the USA, on the basis of standard contractual clauses („Facebook-EU Data Transfer Addendum”, https://www.facebook.com/legal/EU_data_transfer_addendum). The rights of users (in particular, the right to information, deletion, objection, and complaint to the competent supervisory authority) are not limited by the agreements with Facebook; Service provider: Meta Platforms Ireland Limited, Merrion Road, Dublin 4, D04 X2K5, Ireland; Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 p. 1 lit. f) GDPR); Website: https://www.instagram.com. Privacy Policy: https://instagram.com/about/legal/privacy/.

YouTube videos: Video content; Service provider: Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland; Legal basis: Consent (Art. 6 para. 1 p. 1 lit. a) GDPR); Website: https://www.youtube.com; Privacy Policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy; Basis for third-country transfers: Data Privacy Framework (DPF). Opt-out option: Opt-Out plugin: https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout?hl=de, Settings for displaying advertising: https://myadcenter.google.com/personalizationoff.

Vimeo video player: Integration of a video player; Service provider: Vimeo Inc., Attention: Legal Department, 555 West 18th Street New York, New York 10011, USA; Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 p. 1 lit. f) GDPR); Website: https://vimeo.com; Privacy Policy: https://vimeo.com/privacy; Data processing agreement: https://vimeo.com/enterpriseterms/dpa. Basis for third-country transfers: Standard contractual clauses (https://vimeo.com/enterpriseterms/dpa).

Change and Update of the Privacy Policy

We kindly ask you to regularly review the contents of our privacy policy. We adjust the privacy policy as soon as changes to the data processing we carry out require it. We will inform you as soon as the changes require your participation (e.g., consent) or any other individual notification.

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

Definitions of terms

In this section, you will find an overview of the terminologies used in this privacy policy. Where terminologies are legally defined, their legal definitions apply. The following explanations are primarily intended to aid understanding.

Affiliate Tracking: In the context of affiliate tracking, links used by referring websites to direct users to websites with product or other offers are logged. The operators of the referring websites may receive a commission if users follow these so-called affiliate links and subsequently avail themselves of the offers (e.g., purchase goods or use services). To enable the functionality of affiliate links, it is necessary for providers to track whether users who are interested in specific offers subsequently avail themselves of them upon the referral of the affiliate links. Therefore, for affiliate links to function, they need to be supplemented with certain values, which become part of the link or are stored elsewhere, e.g., in a cookie. These values include, in particular, the referring website (referrer), the time, an online identifier of the operator of the website where the affiliate link was located, an online identifier of the respective offer, an online identifier of the user, as well as tracking-specific values such as advertising material ID, partner ID, and categorizations.

Conversion Measurement: Conversion measurement (also referred to as „visit action evaluation”) is a method used to determine the effectiveness of marketing measures. Typically, a cookie is stored on users’ devices within the websites where the marketing measures take place, and then retrieved again on the target website. For example, this allows us to track whether the ads we place on other websites have been successful.

Personal Data: „Personal data” refers to all information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person (hereinafter referred to as the „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 (e.g., cookie), or one or more specific characteristics that express the physical, physiological, genetic, mental, economic, cultural, or social identity of that natural person.

Profiles with User-Related Information: The processing of „profiles with user-related information,” or simply „profiles,” includes any form of automated processing of personal data that involves using this personal data to analyze, evaluate, or predict certain personal aspects related to a natural person (depending on the type of profiling, this may include different information concerning demographics, behavior, and interests, such as interaction with websites and their content, etc.). Cookies and web beacons are often used for profiling purposes.

Reach Measurement: Reach measurement (also referred to as web analytics) is used to evaluate the visitor traffic of an online offering and may include the behavior or interests of visitors in specific information, such as content of websites. With the help of reach analysis, operators of online offerings can, for example, recognize when users visit their websites and what content they are interested in. This allows them to better tailor the content of the websites to the needs of their visitors. Pseudonymous cookies and web beacons are often used for reach analysis to recognize returning visitors and obtain more accurate analyses of the use of an online offering.

Tracking: „Tracking” refers to the ability to trace the behavior of users across multiple online offerings. Typically, behavioral and interest information about the used online offerings is stored in cookies or on servers of the providers of tracking technologies (so-called profiling). This information can then be used, for example, to display users advertisements that are likely to correspond to their interests.

Controller: The „controller” is the natural or legal person, authority, institution, or other body that alone or jointly with others decides on the purposes and means of processing personal data.

Processing: „Processing” means any operation or set of operations performed with or without the aid of automated processes in connection with personal data. The term is broad and practically includes any handling of data, whether collecting, evaluating, storing, transmitting, or deleting.

Created with help of the free privacy policy generator from Dr. Thomas Schwenke.