Privacy Policy

      • Privacy Policy

        Table of Contents

        Privacy Policy

        We have written this privacy policy (version 05.03.2021-111671598) to provide you with information in accordance with the requirements of the General Data Protection Regulation (EU) 2016/679 as well as to explain what information we collect, how we use data and what choices you have as a visitor to this website.

        Privacy policies usually sound very technical. However, this version should describe the most important things as simply and clearly as possible. Moreover, technical terms are explained in a reader-friendly manner whenever possible. We would also like to convey that we only collect and use information via this website if there is a corresponding legal basis for it. This is certainly not possible if you give very brief technical explanations, as are often standard on the Internet when it comes to data protection. We hope you find the following explanations interesting and informative. Maybe you will also find some information that you did not know yet.
        Should you still have questions, we kindly ask you to follow the existing links to see further information on third-party websites, or to simply write us an email. You can find our contact information in our website’s imprint.

        Automatic Data Retention

        Every time you visit a website nowadays, certain information is automatically created and saved, just as it happens on this website.

        Whenever you visit our website such as you are doing right now, our webserver (computer on which this website is saved/stored) automatically saves data such as

        • the address (URL) of the accessed website
        • browser and browser version
        • the used operating system
        • the address (URL) of the previously visited site (referrer URL)
        • the host name and the IP-address of the device the website is accessed from
        • date and time

        in files (webserver-logfiles).

        Generally, webserver-logfiles stay saved for two weeks and then get deleted automatically. We do not pass this information to others, but we cannot exclude the possibility that this data will be looked at in case of illegal conduct.

        Cookies

        Our website uses HTTP-cookies to store user-specific data.
        For your better understanding of the following Privacy Policy statement, we will explain to you below what cookies are and why they are in use.

        What exactly are cookies?

        Every time you surf the internet, you use a browser. Common browsers are for example Chrome, Safari, Firefox, Internet Explorer and Microsoft Edge. Most websites store small text-files in your browser. These files are called cookies.

        What should not be dismissed, is that cookies are very useful little helpers. Nearly all websites use cookies. More accurately speaking these are HTTP-cookies, since there are also different cookies for other uses. http-cookies are small files which our website stores on your computer. These cookie files are automatically put into the cookie-folder, which is like the “brain” of your browser. A cookie consists of a name and a value. Moreover, to define a cookie, one or multiple attributes must be specified.

        Cookies save certain parts of your user data, such as e.g. language or personal page settings. When you re-open our website, your browser submits these “user specific” information back to our site. Thanks to cookies, our website knows who you are and offers you the settings you are familiar to. In some browsers every cookie has its own file, in others such as Firefox, all cookies are stored in one single file.

        There are both first-party cookies and third-party cookies. First-party cookies are created directly by our site, while third-party cookies are created by partner-websites (e.g. Google Analytics). Every cookie is individual, since every cookie stores different data. The expiration time of a cookie also varies – it can be a few minutes, or up to a few years. Cookies are no software-programs and contain no computer viruses, trojans or any other malware. Cookies also cannot access your PC’s information.

        This is an example of how cookie-files can look:

        name: _ga
        value: GA1.2.1326744211.152111671598-9
        purpose: differentiation between website visitors
        expiration date: after 2 years

        A browser should support these minimum sizes:

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

        Which types of cookies are there?

        What exact cookies we use, depends on the used services. We will explain this in the following sections of the Privacy Policy statement. Firstly, we will briefly focus on the different types of HTTP-cookies.

        There are 4 different types of cookies:

        Essential Cookies
        These cookies are necessary to ensure the basic function of a website. They are needed when a user for example puts a product into their shopping cart, then continues surfing on different websites and comes back later in order to proceed to the checkout. Even when the user closed their window priorly, these cookies ensure that the shopping cart does not get deleted.

        Purposive Cookies
        These cookies collect info about the user behaviour and record if the user potentially receives any error messages. Furthermore, these cookies record the website’s loading time as well as its behaviour within different browsers.

        Target-orientated Cookies
        These cookies care for an improved user-friendliness. Thus, information such as previously entered locations, fonts or data in forms stay saved.

        Advertising Cookies
        These cookies are also known as targeting-Cookies. They serve the purpose of delivering individually adapted advertisements to the user. This can be very practical, but also rather annoying.

        Upon your first visit to a website you are usually asked which of these cookie-types you want to accept. Furthermore, this decision will of course also be saved in a cookie.

        How can I delete cookies?

        You yourself take the decision if and how you want to use cookies. Thus, no matter what service or website cookies are from, you always have the option to delete, deactivate or only partially allow them. Therefore, you can for example block cookies of third parties but allow any other cookies.

        If you want change or delete cookie-settings and would like to determine which cookies have been saved to your browser, you can find this info in your browser-settings:

        Chrome: Clear, enable and manage cookies in Chrome

        Safari: Manage cookies and website data in Safari

        Firefox: Clear cookies and site data in Firefox

        Internet Explorer: Delete and manage cookies

        Microsoft Edge: Delete cookies in Microsoft Edge

        If you generally do not want to allow any cookies at all, you can set up your browser in a way, to notify you whenever a potential cookie is about to be set. This gives you the opportunity to manually decide to either permit or deny the placement of every single cookie. The settings for this differ from browser to browser. Therefore, it might be best for you to search for the instructions in Google. If you are using Chrome, you could for example put the search phrase “delete cookies Chrome” or “deactivate cookies Chrome” into Google.

        How is my data protected?

        There is a “cookie policy” that has been in place since 2009. It states that the storage of cookies requires the user’s consent. However, among the countries of the EU, these guidelines are often met with mixed reactions. In Austria the guidelines have been implemented in § 96 section 3 of the Telecommunications Act (TKG).

        If you want to learn more about cookies and do not mind technical documentation, we recommend tools.ietf.org/html/rfc6265, the Request for Comments of the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) called “HTTP State Management Mechanism”.

        Rights in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation

        You are granted the following rights in accordance with the provisions of the GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) and the Austrian Data Protection Act (DSG):

        • right to rectification (article 16 GDPR)
        • right to erasure (“right to be forgotten“) (article 17 GDPR)
        • right to restrict processing (article 18 GDPR)
        • righ to notification – notification obligation regarding rectification or erasure of personal data or restriction of processing (article 19 GDPR)
        • right to data portability (article 20 GDPR)
        • Right to object (article 21 GDPR)
        • right not to be subject to a decision based solely on automated processing – including profiling – (article 22 GDPR)

        If you think that the processing of your data violates the data protection law, or that your data protection rights have been infringed in any other way, you can lodge a complaint with your respective regulatory authority. For Austria this is the data protection authority, whose website you can access at https://www.data-protection-authority.gv.at/.

        Evaluation of Visitor Behaviour

        In the following Privacy Policy, we will inform you on if and how we evaluate the data of your visit to this website. The evaluation is generally made anonymously, and we cannot link to you personally based on your behaviour on this website.

        You can find out more about how to disagree with the evaluation of visitor data, in the Privacy Policy below.

        TLS encryption with https

        The terms TLS, encryption and https sound very technical, which they are indeed. We use HTTPS (Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure) to securely transfer data on the Internet.
        This means that the entire transmission of all data from your browser to our web server is secured – nobody can “listen in”.

        We have thus introduced an additional layer of security and meet privacy requirements through technology design Article 25 Section 1 GDPR). With the use of TLS (Transport Layer Security), which is an encryption protocol for safe data transfer on the internet, we can ensure the protection of confidential information.
        You can recognise the use of this safeguarding tool by the little lock-symbol , which is situated in your browser’s top left corner (e.g. examplepage.uk), as well as by the display of the letters https (instead of http) as a part of our web address.
        If you want to know more about encryption, we recommend you to do a Google search for “Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure wiki” for finding good links to further information.

        Google Analytics Privacy Policy

        We use the tracking and analysis tool Google Analytics (GA) of the US-American company Google LLC (1600 Amphitheatre Parkway Mountain View, CA 94043, USA). Google Analytics collects data on your actions on our website. Whenever you click a link for example, this action is saved in a cookie and transferred to Google Analytics. With the help of reports which we receive from Google Analytics, we can adapt our website and our services better to your wishes. In the following, we will explain the tracking tool in more detail, and most of all, we will inform you what data is saved and how you can prevent this.

        What is Google Analytics?

        Google Analytics is a tracking tool with the purpose of conducting data traffic analysis of our website. For Google Analytics to work, there is a tracking code integrated to our website. Upon your visit to our website, this code records various actions you perform on your website. As soon as you leave our website, this data is sent to the Google Analytics server, where it is stored.

        Google processes this data and we then receive reports on your user behaviour. These reports can be one of the following:

        • Target audience reports: With the help of target audience reports we can get to know our users better and can therefore better understand who is interested in our service.
        • Advertising reports: Through advertising reports we can analyse our online advertising better and hence improve it.
        • Acquisition reports: Acquisition reports provide us helpful information on how we can get more people enthusiastic about our service.
        • Behaviour reports: With these reports, we can find out how you interact with our website. By the means of behaviour reports, we can understand what path you go on our website and what links you click.
        • Conversion reports: A conversion is the process of leading you to carry out a desired action due to a marketing message. An example of this would be transforming you from a mere website visitor into a buyer or a newsletter subscriber. Hence, with the help of these reports we can see in more detail, if our marketing measures are successful with you. Our aim is to increase our conversion rate.
        • Real time reports: With the help of these reports we can see in real time, what happens on our website. It makes us for example see, we can see how many users are reading this text right now.

        Why do we use Google Analytics on our website?

        The objective of our website is clear: We want to offer you the best possible service. Google Analytics’ statistics and data help us with reaching this goal.

        Statistically evaluated data give us a clear picture of the strengths and weaknesses of our website. On the one hand, we can optimise our page in a way, that makes it easier to be found by interested people on Google. On the other hand, the data helps us to get a better understanding of you as our visitor. Therefore, we can very accurately find out what we must improve on our website, in order to offer you the best possible service. The analysis of that data also enables us to carry out our advertising and marketing measures in a more individual and more cost-effective way. After all, it only makes sense to show our products and services exclusively to people who are interested in them.

        What data gets stored by Google Analytics?

        With the aid of a tracking code, Google Analytics creates a random, unique ID which is connected to your browser cookie. That way, Google Analytics recognises you as a new user. The next time you visit our site, you will be recognised as a “recurring” user. All data that is collected gets saved together with this very user ID. Only this is how it is made possible for us to evaluate and analyse pseudonymous user profiles.

        Your interactions on our website are measures by tags such as cookies and app instance IDs. Interactions are all kinds of actions that you perform on our website. If you are also using other Google systems (such as a Google Account), data generated by Google Analytics can be linked with third-party cookies. Google does not pass on any Google Analytics data, unless we as the website owners authorise it. In case it is required by law, exceptions can occur.

        The following cookies are used by Google Analytics:

        Name: _ga
        Value:2.1326744211.152111671598-5
        Purpose: By deafault, analytics.js uses the cookie _ga, to save the user ID. It generally serves the purpose of differenciating between website visitors.
        Expiration date: After 2 years

        Name: _gid
        Value:2.1687193234.152111671598-1
        Purpose: This cookie also serves the purpose of differentiating between website users
        Expiration date: After 24 hours

        Name: _gat_gtag_UA_<property-id>
        Value: 1
        Verwendungszweck: It is used for decreasing the demand rate. If Google Analytics is provided via Google Tag Manager, this cookie gets the name _dc_gtm_ <property-id>.
        Expiration date: After 1 minute

        Name: AMP_TOKEN
        Value: No information
        Purpose: This cookie has a token which is used to retrieve the user ID by the AMP Client ID Service. Other possible values suggest a logoff, a request or an error.
        Expiration date: After 30 seconds up to one year

        Name: __utma
        Value:1564498958.1564498958.1564498958.1
        Purpose: With this cookie your behaviour on the website can be tracked and the site performance can be measured. The cookie is updated every time the information is sent to Google Analytics.
        Expiration date: After 2 years

        Name: __utmt
        Value: 1
        Purpose: Just like _gat_gtag_UA_<property-id> this cookie is used for keeping the requirement rate in check.
        Expiration date: Afer 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 information gets sent to Google Analytics.
        Expiration date: After 30 minutes

        Name: __utmc
        Value: 167421564
        Purpose: This cookie is used to determine new sessions for recurring visitors. It is therefore a session cookie, and only stays saved until you close the browser again.
        Expiration date: After closing the browser

        Name: __utmz
        Value: m|utmccn=(referral)|utmcmd=referral|utmcct=/
        Purpose: This cookie is used to identify the source of our website’s visitor number. This means, that the cookie saves information on where you came to our website from. This could be another site or an advertisement.
        Expiration date: After 6 months

        Name: __utmv
        Value: No information
        Purpose: The cookie is used to store custom user data. It gets updated whenever information is sent to Google Analytics.
        Expiration date: After 2 years

        Note: This list is by no means exhaustive, since Google are repeatedly changing the use of their cookies.

        Below we will give you an overview of the most important data that can be evaluated by Google Analytics:

        Heatmaps: Google creates so-called Heatmaps an. These Heatmaps make it possible to see the exact areas you click on, so we can get information on what routes you make on our website.

        Session duration: Google calls the time you spend on our website without leaving it session duration. Whenever you are inactive for 20 minutes, the session ends automatically.

        Bounce rate If you only look at one page of our website and then leave our website again, it is called a bounce.

        Account creation: If 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, to make it impossible to clearly allocate it.

        Location: Your approximate location and the country you are in can be defined by the IP address. This process is called IP location determination.

        Technical information: Information about your browser type, your internet provider and your screen resolution are called technical information.

        Source: Both, Google Analytics as well as ourselves, are interested what website or what advertisement led you to our site.

        Further possibly stored data includes contact data, potential reviews, playing media (e.g. when you play a video on our site), sharing of contents via social media or adding our site to your favourites. This list is not exhaustive and only serves as general guidance on Google Analytics’ data retention.

        How long and where is the data saved?

        Google has servers across the globe. Most of them are in America and therefore your data is mainly saved on American servers. Here you can read detailed information on where Google’s data centres are located: https://www.google.com/about/datacenters/inside/locations/?hl=en

        Your data is allocated to various physical data mediums. This has the advantage of allowing to retrieve the data faster, and of protecting it better from manipulation. Every Google data centre has respective emergency programs for your data. Hence, in case of a hardware failure at Google or a server error due to natural disasters, the risk for a service interruption stays relatively low.

        Google Analytics has a 26 months standardised period of retaining your user data. After this time, your user data is deleted. However, we have the possibility to choose the retention period of user data ourselves. There are the following five options:

        • Deletion after 14 months
        • Deletion after 26 months
        • Deletion after 38 months
        • Deletion after 50 months
        • No automatical deletion

        As soon as the chosen period is expired, the data is deleted once a month. This retention period applies to any of your data which is linked to cookies, user identification and advertisement IDs (e.g. cookies of the DoubleClick domain). Any report results are based on aggregated information and are stored independently of any user data. Aggregated information is a merge of individual data into a single and bigger unit.

        How can I delete my data or prevent data retention?

        Under the provisions of the European Union’s data protection law, you have the right to obtain information on your data and to update, delete or restrict it. With the help of a browser add on that can deactivate Google Analytics’ JavaScript (ga.js, analytics.js, dc.js), you can prevent Google Analytics from using your data. You can download this add on at tout?hl=en-GB” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener”>https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout?hl=en-GB. Please consider that this add on can only deactivate any data collection by Google Analytics.

        Should you generally want to deactivate, delete or manage all cookies (independently of Google Analytics), you can use one of the guides that are available for any browser:

        Chrome: Clear, enable and manage cookies in Chrome

        Safari: Manage cookies and website data in Safari

        Firefox: Clear cookies and site data in Firefox

        Internet Explorer: Delete and manage cookies

        Microsoft Edge: Delete cookies in Microsoft Edge

        Google Analytics is an active participant of the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield Framework, which regulates correct and save transfer of personal data.
        You can find more information on this at https://www.privacyshield.gov/participant?id=a2zt000000001L5AAI&tid=111671598. We hope we were able to make you more familiar with the most important information on Google Analytics’ data processing. If you want to learn more about the tracking service, we recommend both of the following links: https://marketingplatform.google.com/about/analytics/terms/gb/ and https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/6004245?hl=en.

        Google Analytics IP Anonymisation

        We implemented Google Analytics’ IP address anonymisation to this website. Google developed this function, so this website can comply with the applicable privacy laws and the local data protection authorities’ recommendations, should they prohibit the retention of any full IP addresses.
        The anonymisation or masking of IP addresses takes place, as soon as they reach Google Analytics’ data collection network, but before the data would be saved or processed.

        You can find more information on IP anonymisation at https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/2763052?hl=en.

        Google Analytics Reports on demographic characteristics and interests

        We have turned on Google Analytics’ functions for advertising reports. These reports on demographic characteristics and interests contain details about age, gender and interests. Through them we can get a better picture of our users – without being able to allocate any data to individual persons. You can learn more about advertising functions at auf https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/3450482?hl=en&amp%3Butm_id=ad.

        You can terminate the use of your Google Account’s activities and information in “Ads Settings” at https://adssettings.google.com/authenticated via a checkbox.

        Google Analytics Deactivation Link

        By clicking on the following deactivation link you can prevent Google from tracking your further visits. Caution: The deletion of cookies, the use of your browser’s incognito/private mode or the use of a different browser may lead to your data being collected again.

        Deactivate Google Analytics

        Google Analytics‘ Data Processing Amendment

        By accepting the amendment on data processing in Google Analytics, we entered a contract with Google concerning the use of Google Analytics.

        You can find out more about the amendment on data processing for Google Analytics here: https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/3379636?hl=en&utm_id=ad

        Google Analytics Google Signals Privacy Policy

        We have activated Google signals in Google Analytics. Through this, any existing Google Analytics functions (advertising reports, remarketing, cross-device reports and reports on interests and demographic characteristics) are updated, to result in the summary and anonymisation of your data, should you have permitted personalised ads in your Google Account.

        The special aspect of this is that it involves cross-device tracking. That means your data can be analysed across multiple devices. Through the activation of Google signals, data is collected and linked to the Google account. For example, it enables Google to recognise when you look at a product on a smartphone and later buy the product on a laptop. Due to activating Google signals, we can start cross-device remarketing campaigns, which would otherwise not be possible to this extent. Remarketing means, that we can show you our products and services across other websites as well.

        Moreover, further visitor data such as location, search history, YouTube history and data about your actions on our website are collected in Google Analytics. As a result, we receive improved advertising reports and more useful information on your interests and demographic characteristics. These include your age, the language you speak, where you live or what your gender is. Certain social criteria such as your job, your marital status or your income are also included. All these characteristics help Google Analytics to define groups of persons or target audiences.

        Those reports also help us to better assess your behaviour, as well as your wishes and interests. As a result, we can optimise and customise our products and services for you. By default, this data expires after 26 months. Please consider, that this data is only collected if you have agreed to personalised advertisement in your Google Account. The retained information is always exclusively summarised and anonymous data, and never any data on individual persons. You can manage or delete this data in your Google Account.

        Google Tag Manager Privacy Policy

        We use Google Tag Manager by the company Google Inc. (1600 Amphitheatre Parkway Mountain View, CA 94043, USA) for our website.
        This Tag Manager is one of Google’s many helpful marketing products. With it, we can centrally integrate and manage code sections of various tracking tools, that we use on our website.

        In this privacy statement we will explain in more detail, what Google Tag Manager does, why we use it and to what extent your data is processed.

        What is Google Tag Manager?

        Google Tag Manager is an organising tool with which we can integrate and manage website tags centrally and via a user interface. Tags are little code sections which e.g. track your activities on our website. For this, segments of JavaScript code are integrated to our site’s source text. The tags often come from Google’s intern products, such as Google Ads or Google Analytics, but tags from other companies can also be integrated and managed via the manager. Since the tags have different tasks, they can collect browser data, feed marketing tools with data, embed buttons, set cookies and track users across several websites.

        Why do we use Google Tag Manager for our website?

        Everybody knows: Being organised is important! Of course, this also applies to maintenance of our website. In order to organise and design our website as well as possible for you and anyone who is interested in our products and services, we rely on various tracking tools, such as Google Analytics.
        The collected data shows us what interests you most, which of our services we should improve, and which other persons we should also display our services to. Furthermore, for this tracking to work, we must implement relevant JavaScript Codes to our website. While we could theoretically integrate every code section of every tracking tool separately into our source text, this would take too much time and we would lose overview. This is the reason why we use Google Tag Manager. We can easily integrate the necessary scripts and manage them from one place. Additionally, Google Tag Manager’s user interface is easy to operate, and requires no programming skills. Therefore, we can easily keep order in our jungle of tags.

        What data is saved by Google Tag Manager?

        Tag Manager itself is a domain that neither uses cookies nor stores data. It merely functions as an “administrator“ of implemented tags. Data is collected by the individual tags of the different web analysis tools. Therefore, in Google Tag Manager the data is sent to the individual tracking tools and does not get saved.

        However, with the integrated tags of different web analysis tools such as Google Analytics, this is quite different. Depending on the analysis tool used, various data on your internet behaviour is collected, stored and processed with the help of cookies. Please read our texts on data protection for more information on the articular analysis and tracking tools we use on our website.

        We allowed Google via the account settings for the Tag Manager to receive anonymised data from us. However, this exclusively refers to the use of our Tag Manager and not to your data, which are saved via code sections. We allow Google and others, to receive selected data in anonymous form. Therefore, we agree to the anonymised transfer of our website data. However, even after extensive research we could not find out what summarised and anonymous data it is exactly that gets transmitted. What we do know is that Google deleted any info that could identify our website. Google combines the data with hundreds of other anonymous website data and creates user trends as part of benchmarking measures. Benchmarking is a process of comparing a company’s results with the ones of competitors. As a result, processes can be optimised based on the collected information.

        How long and where is the data saved?

        When Google stores data, this is done on Google’s own servers. These servers are located all over the world, with most of them being in America. At https://www.google.com/about/datacenters/inside/locations/?hl=en you can read in detail where Google’s servers are.

        In our individual data protection texts on the different tools you can find out how long the respective tracking tools save your data.

        How can I delete my data or prevent data retention?

        Google Tag Manager itself does not set any cookies but manages different tracking websites’ tags. In our data protection texts on the different tracking tools you can find detailed information on how you can delete or manage your data.

        Google actively participates in the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield Framework, which regulates safe transfer of personal data. You can find more information at https://www.privacyshield.gov/participant?id=a2zt000000001L5AAI&tid=111671598. If you want to learn more about Google Tag Manager, we recommend you to read https://marketingplatform.google.com/intl/en_uk/about/tag-manager/.

        Google Site Kit Privacy Policy

        We have integrated the WordPress plugin Google Site Kit of the American company Google Inc. to our website. For Europe, Google Ireland Limited (Gordon House, Barrow Street Dublin 4, Ireland) is responsible for all Google services. With Google Site Kit, we can quickly and easily view statistics of various Google products such as Google Analytics directly on our WordPress dashboard. The in Google Site Kit integrated tools also collect your personal data. In this privacy policy we will explain why we use Google Site Kit, how long and where your data is stored, and which other privacy policies may be relevant to you in this context.

        What is Google Site Kit?

        Google Site Kit is a plugin for the WordPress content management system. With this plugin we can view important website analysis statistics directly in our dashboard. These are statistics that are collected by other Google products – primarily by Google Analytics. In addition to Google Analytics, the services Google Search Console, Page Speed Insight, Google AdSense, Google Optimize and Google Tag Manager can also be linked to Google Site Kit.

        Why do we use Google Site Kit on our website?

        As a service provider, it is our job to offer you the best possible experience on our website. You should feel comfortable on our website. Moreover, you should be able to quickly and easily find exactly what you are looking for. Statistical evaluations help us to get to know you better and to adapt our offer to your wishes and interests. We use various Google tools for these evaluations. Site Kit makes our work a lot easier because we can view and analyse the statistics of Google products on its dashboard. Therefore, we must no longer register for using the respective tools. Site Kit always provides a good overview of the most important analysis data.

        What data are stored by Google Site Kit?

        If you have consented to the use of tracking tools in the cookie notice (also called script or banner), cookies will be set by Google products such as Google Analytics. Also, on about you, such as your user behavior, will be sent to Google, where it is stored and processed. This also includes personal data such as your IP address.

        You can find more detailed information on the individual services in the respective separate sections of this privacy policy. In our privacy policy on Google Analytics for example, you will be able to view information on the exact types of data that are collected. You will also learn how long Google Analytics stores, manages and processes data, what cookies can be used and how you can prevent data retention. We also have respective comprehensive privacy policies for other Google services such as Google Tag Manager or Google AdSense.

        In the following, we will show you exemplary Google Analytics cookies that may be set in your browser if you have consented to Google’s data processing. Please note that this list contains only a selection of potential cookies:

        Name: _ga
        Value:2.1326744211.152111671598-2
        Purpose:Usually analytics.js uses the _ga cookie to store the user ID. Therefore, it serves to differentiate between website visitors.
        Expiry date: after 2 years

        Name: _gid
        Value:2.1687193234.152111671598-7
        Purpose: This cookie also serves to differentiate between website visitors.
        Expiry date: after 24 hours

        Name: _gat_gtag_UA_<property-id>
        Value: 1
        Purpose: This cookie is used to lower the request rate.
        Expiry date: after 1 minute

        How long and where are the data stored?

        Google stores the collected data on its own servers, which are distributed all around the world. Most servers are in the United States, so your data may likely be stored there. At https://www.google.com/about/datacenters/inside/locations/?hl=uk you can see exactly where the company provides servers.

        Data that is collected by Google Analytics is stored for a standard period of 26 months. After this time, your user data will be deleted. This retention period applies to any data linked to cookies, user identification and advertising IDs.

        How can I delete my data or prevent data retention?

        You always reserve the right to either receive information about your data, or to have your data deleted, rectified, or reduced. You can also deactivate, delete, or manage cookies in your browser at any time. In the following we will show you the respective instructions to do this in the most common browsers:

        Chrome: Clear, enable and manage cookies in Chrome

        Safari: Manage cookies and website data in Safari

        Firefox: Clear cookies and site data in Firefox

        Internet Explorer: Delete and manage cookies

        Microsoft Edge: Delete cookies in Microsoft Edge

        Google is an active participant in the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield Framework, which regulates correct and secure transfer of personal data. You can find more information on this at https://www.privacyshield.gov/participant?id=a2zt000000001L5AAI&tid=111671598. For more information on Google’s data processing, we recommend Google’s comprehensive privacy policy at https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en-GB.

        WP Statistics Privacy Policy

        On our website we use the analysis plugin WP Statistics. This plugin has been developed by the American software company Veronalabs (5460 W Main St, Verona, NY 13478, United States). The plugin allows us to receive simple statistics on how you as a user interact with our website. In this privacy policy we will go into more detail about the analysis tool and show you where and for how long your data is stored.

        What is WP Statistics?

        This plugin is an analysis software which was specially developed for websites that use the WordPress content management system. WordPress helps us to easily edit our website even without any programming knowledge. WP Statistics may for example collect data about how long you stay on our website, what subpages you visit, how many visitors are on our website or which website led you to us. Furthermore, WP Statistics does not set any cookies and you cannot be personally identified by the collected data.

        Why do we use WP Statistics?

        With the help of WP Statistics, we obtain simple statistics that help us to continuously improve and make our website even more interesting for you. Our website and the content, products and/or services offered on it should meet your needs and demands as closely as possible. In order to achieve this goal, we of course have to find out where there is room for improvements and changes. The statistics obtained help us to get one step closer to this goal.

        Which data is stored by WP Statistics?

        WP Statistics does not set any cookies and the collected data are only used to generate anonymised statistics on the use of our website. WP Statistics also anonymises your IP address. You cannot be identified as a person.

        WP Statistics collects visitor data when your web browser connects to our web server. These data are then stored in our server’s database. The retained data may for example be:

        • the address (URL) of the accessed website
        • browser and browser version
        • the operating system used
        • the address (URL) of the previously visited page (referrer URL)
        • the hostname and IP address of the device from which our website was accessed
        • date and time
        • information on the country/city
        • number of visitors that come from a search engine
        • duration of the website stay
        • clicks on the website

        Your data will not be passed on or sold.

        How long and where are the data stored?

        All data is retained locally on our web server. Your data will be stored on our web server until it is no longer needed for the purposes listed above.

        How can I delete my data or prevent data retention?

        You have the right to information, rectification, deletion or restriction of the processing of your personal data at any time. Moreover, you can revoke your consent to the data processing anytime.

        We have now given you the most important information about data processing by WP Analytics. Your data is handled very carefully, as the plugin does not use cookies and the data for statistical analyses are stored locally on our web server. If you want to learn more about WP Analytics, you can view the company’s privacy policy at https://wp-statistics.com/privacy-and-policy/.

        Newsletter Privacy Policy

        When you subscribe to our Newsletter you submit your personal data and give us the right to contact you via email. We use the data that is stored for the registration for the Newsletter exclusively for our Newsletter and do not pass them on.

        If you unsubscribe from the newsletter – for which you can find a link in the bottom of every newsletter – we will delete all data that was saved when you registered for the newsletter.

        MailChimp Privacy Policy

        Like many other websites, we use the services of the newsletter company MailChimp on our website. The operator of MailChimp is the company The Rocket Science Group, LLC, 675 Ponce de Leon Ave NE, Suite 5000, Atlanta, GA 30308 USA. With the aid of MailChimp we can easily send you interesting news via newsletter. For the use of the service we do not have to install anything but can still access a pool of very efficient features. In the following we will give more details on this email marketing service and will inform you about the most important data protection aspects.

        What is MailChimp?

        MailChimp is a cloud-based newsletter management service. “Cloud-based“ means that we do not need to install MailChimp on our own computer or server. Instead, we use the service on an external server, or more specifically via an IT infrastructure, which is available via the internet. Using a software this way is also called SaaS (software as a service).

        MailChimp allows us to chose from a wide range of different email types. Depending on what goal we want to reach with our newsletter, we can run individual campaigns, regular campaigns, auto responders (automated emails), A/B tests, RSS campaigns (mailings at pre-set times and frequencies) and follow-up campaigns.

        Why do we use MailChimp on our website?

        The reason we would use any newsletter service is so we can stay in contact with you. We want to keep you on the loop what news or attractive offers we have for you at the time. As we constantly seek out the easiest and best solutions for our marketing measures, we have decided on MailChimp as our newsletter management service. While the software is very easy to use, it offers many helpful features. For example, it allows us to create interesting and attractive newsletters in only a short time. With integrated design templates we can create every newsletter in an individual way. Due to the “responsive design” feature, our contents are also presented in a readable and pleasant way on your smartphone (or any other mobile device).

        With tools such as A/B testing or the extensive analysis options, we can swiftly tell how you like our newsletters. This means that we can react if necessary and improve our offer or our services.

        Another advantage is MailChimp’s “cloud system”. The data is not stored and processed directly on our server. We can retrieve the datafrom external servers and therefore save our memory space and also decrease maintenance effort.

        What data is saved by MailChimp?

        Rocket Science Group LLC (MailChimp) operate online platforms which enable us to get in contact with you, provided you subscribed to our newsletter. If you become a subscriber of our newsletter via our website, by email you agree to become a member of a MailChimp email list. Then, MailChimp saves your subscription data and your IP address, so it can verify your entry into the list provider. Moreover, MailChimp stores your email address, your name, your physical address and demographic information, such as language or location.

        This information is used to send emails to you and to allow certain other MailChimp functions (e.g. the evaluation of newsletters).

        MailChimp also shares information with third parties to improve its services. Moreover, MailChimp shares certain data with advertising partners of third parties to get a better understanding of its clients’ interests, in order to provide relevant contents and target-oriented advertising.

        With so-called “web beacons” (small graphics in HTML emails), MailChimp can determine if an email has arrived, has been opened or if links have been clicked. This information is then stored on MailChimp’s servers. That way we receive statistical evaluations and can see how you liked our newsletter. Therefore, we can tailor our offer better to your wishes and improve our service.

        Moreover, MailChimp are allowed to use this data for improving their own service. Thus, they can for example technically optimise the distribution or determine the location (or the country) of the recipient.

        The following cookies can be set by MailChimp. The list is not exhaustive and is merely an exemplary selection:

        Name: AVESTA_ENVIRONMENT
        Value: Prod
        Purpose: This cookie is necessary to provide the services of Mailchimp. It is always set when a user registers for a newsletter mailing list.
        Expiry date: at the end of the session

        Name: ak_bmsc
        Value: F1766FA98C9BB9DE4A39F70A9E5EEAB55F6517348A7000001111671598-3
        Purpose: The cookie is used to differentiate a human from a bot. That way secure reports on the use of a website can be created.
        Expiry date: after 2 hours

        Name: bm_sv
        Value: A5A322305B4401C2451FC22FFF547486~FEsKGvX8eovCwTeFTzb8//I3ak2Au…
        Purpose: This cookie comes from MasterPass Digital Wallet (a MasterCard service) and is used to offer a secure and easy virtual payment process to visitors. For this purpose, the user is anonymously identified on the website.
        Expiry date: after 2 hours

        Name: _abck
        Value: 8D545C8CCA4C3A50579014C449B045111671598-9
        Purpose: We could not find any further information about the purpose of this cookie.
        Expiry date: after one year

        For better display it could be that you would sometimes open our newsletter via a specified link. This can be the case if your email program does not work or if the newsletter is not displayed properly. The newsletter will then be shown via a MailChimp website. MailChimp also uses cookies on its websites (small text files which save data on your browser).
        Personal data can be processed by MailChimp and their partners (e.g. Google Analytics). MailChimp is responsible for the collection of this data and we have no influence on it. MailChimp’s “Cookie Statement” (at: https://mailchimp.com/legal/cookies/) tells you exactly how and why the company uses cookies.

        How long and where is the data saved?

        Since MailChimp is an American company, all retained data is stored on American servers.

        Generally, the data stays permanently saved on MailChimp’s servers and is deleted only when you request it. You can have your contact information with us deleted. This permanently removes all your personal data for us and anonymises you in MailChimp’s reports. However, you can also request the deletion of your data permanently at MailChimp. Then all your data are removed from there and we receive a notification from MailChimp. After we receive the email we have 30 days to delete your contact from all integrations.

        How can I delete my data or prevent data retention?

        You can withdraw your approval for the receipt of our newsletters anytime, by clicking the link in the lower area of the received newsletter email. When you click on the unsubscribe link, your data with MailChimp gets deleted.

        When you land on a MailChimp website via a link in our newsletter and cookies are consequently set in your browser, you can delete or deactivate these cookies anytime.

        Depending on the browser, the deactivation or deletion differs slightly. The following instructions show how to manage cookies in your browser:

        Chrome: Clear, enable and manage cookies in Chrome

        Safari: Manage cookies and website data in Safari

        Firefox: Clear cookies and site data in Firefox

        Internet Explorer: Delete and manage cookies

        Microsoft Edge: Delete cookies in Microsoft Edge

        If you generally do not want to allow any cookies, you can set up your browser in a way so it would notify you whenever a potential cookie is about to be set. This lets you decide upon the placement of every single cookie.

        MailChimp is an active participant in the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield Framework, which regulates the correct and secure transfer of personal data. You can find more information on this at https://www.privacyshield.gov/participant?id=a2zt0000000TO6hAAG&tid=111671598. You can find more information on MailChimp’s use of cookies at https://mailchimp.com/legal/cookies/, and you can learn more about data protection at MailChimp (Privacy) at https://mailchimp.com/legal/privacy/.

        MailChimp Data Processing Addendum

        We entered a contract with MailChimp on the Data Processing Addendum. This contract serves as a protection of your personal data and ensures that MailChimp follows the applicable data protection regulations and disclose your personal data to third parties.

        You can find more information on this contract at https://mailchimp.com/legal/data-processing-addendum/.

        Google AdSense Privacy Policy

        We use Google AdSense on this website. It is an advertising program of the company Google Inc. (1600 Amphitheatre Parkway Mountain View, CA 94043, USA). With Google AdSense we can show advertisements that fit our theme. Thus, we can offer you adverts that ideally give you added value. In this privacy statement on Google AdSense we will explain to you, why we use Google AdSense on our website and which of your data is processed and saved, as well as how you can prevent this data retention.

        What is Google AdSense?

        The advertising program Google AdSense has been around since 2003. As opposed to Google Ads (previously: Google AdWords) it is not possible to advertise on Google AdSense oneself. Google AdSense displays advertisements on websites, such as ours. The biggest advantage of this web service compared to some others, is that Google AdSense only shows ads to you which match our website’s contents. Google has its own algorithm which calculates what ads are shown to you. Of course, we only want to show you ads that interest you and provide you added value. Google checks which advertisements are suitable for our users, considering your interests, your user behaviour and our offer. At this point we want to mention that we are not responsible for the choice of the ads. We merely offer advertising space on our website, while Google selects the displayed ads. Moreover, since August 2013 the ads are customised to the respective user interface. This means, that no matter if you visit our website with your smartphone, your PC or your laptop, the ads adjust to your terminal device.

        Why do we use Google AdSense on our website?

        The operation of a high-quality website requires tremendous dedication and commitment. We are essentially never finished with working on our website. This is, because we continuously maintain and keep our website up to date. Of course, we want to achieve economic success with this work. Therefore, we decided for to use advertisements as a source of revenue. It is most important to us however, that we do not disrupt your visit to our website with these advertisements. Thence, with the aid of Google AdSense, only adverts that are tailored to you and our themes are shown.

        Like with Google’s indexation for a website, a bot examines both, the matching content and the offers on our website. Then, the ads are adapted to and presented on the website. Alongside the contextual overlaps between the ads and website offer, AdSense also supports interest-based targeting. This means, that Google also uses your data to offer advertising that is tailored to you. That way you receive ads that ideally offer you added value, and it gives us a higher chance of earning a bit.

        What data is stored by Google AdSense?

        Google AdSense uses cookies to display ads that are customised to you. Cookies are little text files, that store certain information on your computer.

        Cookies are supposed to enable improved advertisements in AdSense. They do not contain any personally identifiable data. However, it should be considered that Google does not view data such as “Pseudonymous Cookie-IDs” (name or other identification feature is replaced with a pseudonym) or IP addresses as personally identifiable information. Although, within the framework of the GDPR, this data can be classified as personal data. Following every impression (every time you see an ad), every click and any other activity that leads to a call on its servers, Google AdSense sends a cookie to the browser. The cookie is then saved in the browser, provided the browser accepts it.

        Under certain circumstances, third parties can place cookies in your browser, and read them or use web beacons, to store data they receive through the display of ads on the website. Web beacons are little graphics that analyse and a record the log file. This analysis allows a statistical evaluation for the online marketing.

        Through this cookie, Google can collect certain information on your user behaviour on our website. These include:

        • Information on how you interact with an ad (clicks, impressions, mouse movements)
        • Information if an ad has already been displayed in your browser. This data helps to prevent an ad from showing multiple times.

        Thereby, Google evaluates and analyses data on the displayed advertising material along with your IP address. Primarily, Google uses the data to measure the effectiveness of an ad and improve the advertising offer. Moreover, the data does not get linked to your personal data which Google might have received via other Google services.

        In the following we will introduce you to the cookies that Google AdSense uses for tracking purposes. Please note, that we will refer to a test website, which only has Google AdSense installed to it:

        Name: uid
        Value: 891269189111671598-8
        Purpose: The cookie is stored under the domain adform.net. It provides a uniquely assigned user ID that is generated automatically and collects data on the activity on our website.
        Expiry date: after 2 months

        Name: C
        Value: 1
        Purpose: This cookie identifies if your browser accepts cookies. The cookie is stored under the domain track.adform.net.
        Expiry date: after 1 month

        Name: cid
        Value: 8912691894970695056,0,0,0,0
        Purpose: This cookie is saved under the domain track.adform.net. It stands for the client ID and is used to offer you improved advertisements. It can forward more relevant adverts to the user and helps to improve reports on campaign performance.
        Expiry date: after 2 months

        Name: IDE
        Value: zOtj4TWxwbFDjaATZ2TzNaQmxrU111671598-1
        Purpose: The cookie is stored under the domain doubleclick.net. It serves the purpose of registering your actions following an impression or a click on the ad. Thus, it can be measured how our visitors like an ad.
        Expiry data: after 1 month

        Name: test_cookie
        Value: not specified
        Purpose: With the „test_cookies“ it can be verified, if your browser even supports cookies. The cookie is saved under the domain doubleclick.net.
        Expiry date: after 1 month

        Name: CT592996
        Value:733366
        Purpose: It is saved under the domain adform.net. The cookie is placed upon your click on an ad. We could not find any further information on the use of this cookie.
        Expiry date: after one hour

        Note: This list does not claim to be exhaustive, as Google frequently change the choice of their cookies.

        How long and where is the data stored?

        Google retains your IP address, as well as various activities you perform on the website. Cookies store this information with the interactions on our website. According to Google, the company collects and saves the given information securely on its internal servers in the USA.

        If you do not have a Google account or are not logged in, Google usually stores the collected data on your browser with a unique identification (ID). The IDs saved in cookies serve e.g. for providing personalised advertisements. If you are logged into a Google account, Google can gather personal information.

        You can delete certain data that is saved by Google anytime (see next section). Much of the information saved in cookies get automatically deleted after a specific time. However, there are also data which are retained by Google for a longer period. This is the case, when Google must store certain data for an undefined, longer period due to economical or legal necessities.

        How can I delete my data or prevent data retention?

        You can always clear or deactivate cookies that are on your computer. How exactly this can be done depends on the browser.

        Here you can find an instruction on how you can manage cookies in your browser:

        Chrome: Clear, enable and manage cookies in Chrome

        Safari: Manage cookies and website data in Safari

        Firefox: Clear cookies and site data in Firefox

        Internet Explorer: Delete and manage cookies

        Microsoft Edge: Delete cookies in Microsoft Edge

        If you generally do not want to allow any cookies, you can set your browser to notify you whenever a potential cookie is about to be set. This lets you decide to either permit or deny the placement of every single cookie. By downloading and installing the browser plugin at https://support.google.com/ads/answer/7395996, any advertising cookies get deactivated as well. Please note, that deactivating these cookies does not stop advertisements, it only inhibits personalised adverts.

        If you have a Google account, you can deactivate personalised adverts on the website https://adssettings.google.com/authenticated. You will continue to see ads, but they will stop being customised to your interests. Nevertheless, the ads are displayed based on a few factors, such as your location, the browser type and the used search terms.

        You can learn more about what data Google generally collects and what they are used for at https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en-GB.

        Google Ads (Google AdWords) Conversion Tracking Privacy Policy

        We use Google Ads (previously Google AdWords) as an online marketing measure, to advertise our products and services. Thus, we want to draw more people’s attention on the internet to the high quality of our offers. As part of our advertising measures with Google Ads, we use the conversion tracking of Google LLC., 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA (“Google”) on our website. With the aid of this free tracking tool we can tailor our advertising offer better to your interests and needs. In the following article we will explain, why we use conversion tracking, what data gets saved and how you can prevent this data retention.

        What is Google Ads conversion tracking?

        Google Ads (previously Google AdWords) is the internal online advertising sxstem of the company Google LLC. We are convinced of our offer‘s quality and would like as many people as possible to discover our website. For this, Google Ads offers the best platform within the online environment. Of course, we also want to get an overview of the cost-benefit factor of our advertising campaigns. Thence, we use Google Ads’ conversion tracking tool.

        But what is a conversion actually? A conversion occurs, when you turn from an interested visitor into an acting website visitor. This happens every time you click on our ad and then make another action, such as paying a visit to our website. With Google’s conversion tracking tool, we can understand what happens after a user clicks our Google ad. It shows us for instance if products get bought, services are used or whether users have subscribed to our newsletter.

        Why do we use Google Ads conversion tracking on our website?

        We use Google Ads to show our offer also across other websites. Our aim is for our advertising campaigns to reach only those people, who are interested in our offers. With the conversion tracking tool, we see what keywords, ads, ad groups and campaigns lead to the desired customer actions. We see how many customers interact with our ads on a device, to then convert. With this data we can calculate our cost-benefit-factor, measure the success of individual ad campaigns and therefore optimise our online marketing measures. With the help of the obtained data we can give our website a more interesting design and customise our advertising offer better to your needs.

        What data is stored with Google Ads conversion tracking?

        For a better analysis of certain user actions, we have integrated a conversion tracking tag, or code snippet to our website. Therefore, if you click one of our Google ads, a Google domain stores the cookie “conversion” on your computer (usually in the browser) or on your mobile device. Cookies are little text files that save information on your computer.

        Here are data of the most significant cookies for Google’s conversion tracking:

        Name: Conversion
        Value: EhMI_aySuoyv4gIVled3Ch0llweVGAEgt-mr6aXd7dYlSAGQ111671598-3
        Purpose: This cookie saves every conversion you make on our website after you came to us via a Google ad.
        Expiry date: after 3 months

        Name: _gac
        Value: 1.1558695989.EAIaIQobChMIiOmEgYO04gIVj5AYCh2CBAPrEAAYASAAEgIYQfD_BwE
        Purpose: This is a classic Google Analytics Cookie that records various actions on our website.
        Expiry date: after 3 months

        Note: The cookie _gac only appears in connection with Google Analytics. The above list does not claim to be exhaustive, as Google repeatedly change the cookies they use for analytical evaluation.

        As soon as you complete an action on our website, Google identifies the cookie and saves your action as a so-called conversion. For as long as you surf our website, provided the cookie has not expired, both Google and us can determine that you found your way to us via a Google ad. Then, the cookie is read and sent back to Google Ads, together with the conversion data. Moreover, other cookies may also be used for measuring conversions. Google Ads‘ conversion tracking can be fine-tuned and improved with the aid of Google Analytics. Furthermore, ads which Google displays in various places across the web, might be placed under our domain with the name “__gads” or “_gac”.
        Since September 2017, analytics.js retains various campaign information with the _gac cookie. This cookie stores data, as soon as you open one of our sites that has been set up for Google Ads’ auto-tagging. In contrast to cookies that are placed for Google domains, Google can only read these conversion cookies when you are on our website. We do neither collect nor receive any personal data. We do obtain a report with statistical evaluations by Google. With the help thereof, we can not only see the total number of users who clicked our ad, but also what advertising measures were well received.

        How long and where is the data stored?

        At this point we want to reiterate, that we have no influence on how Google use the collected data. According to Google, the data are encrypted and saved on a secure server. In most cases, conversion cookies expire after 30 days, and do not transmit any personalised data. The cookies named “conversion“ and “_gac“ (which is used with Google Analytics) have an expiry date of 3 months.

        How can I delete my data or prevent data retention?

        You have the possibility to opt out of Google Ads’ conversion tracking. The conversion tracking can be blocked by deactivating the conversion tracking cookie via your browser. If you do this, you will not be considered for the statistic of the tracking tool. You can change the cookie settings in your browser anytime. Doing so, works a little different in every browser. Hence, in the following you will find an instruction on how to manage cookies in your browser:

        Chrome: Clear, enable and manage cookies in Chrome

        Safari: Manage cookies and website data in Safari

        Firefox: Clear cookies and site data in Firefox

        Internet Explorer: Delete and manage cookies

        Microsoft Edge: Delete cookies in Microsoft Edge

        If you generally do not want to allow any cookies at all, you can set up your browser to notify you whenever a potential cookie is about to be set. This lets you decide upon permitting or denying the cookie’s placement. By downloading and installing the browser plugin at https://support.google.com/ads/answer/7395996 you can also deactivate all “advertising cookies”. Please consider that by deactivating these cookies, you cannot prevent all advertisements, only personalised ads.

        Due to the certification for the American-European data protection convention “Privacy Shield”, the American corporation Google LLC must comply to the EU’s applicable data protection laws. If you want to find out more on data protection at Google, we recommend Google’s general Privacy Policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en-GB.

        Embedded Social Media elements Privacy Policy

        We have embedded elements from social media services on our website, to display pictures, videos and texts. By visiting pages that present such elements, data is transferred from your browser to the respective social media service, where it is stored. We do not have access to this data.
        The following links lead to the respective social media services’ sites, where you can find a declaration on how they handle your data:

        Facebook Data Policy

        We use selected Facebook tools on our website. Facebook is a social media network of the company Facebook Ireland Ltd., 4 Grand Canal Square, Grand Canal Harbour, Dublin 2 Ireland. With the aid of this tool we can provide the best possible offers to you and anyone interested in our products and services. In the following we will give you an overview on the different Facebook tools, as well as on what data is sent to Facebook and how you can delete these data.

        What are Facebook tools?

        Along with many other products, Facebook also offers so called “Facebook Business Tools”. This is Facebook’s official name for the tools, but it is not very common. Therefore, we decided to merely call them “Facebook tools”. They include the following:

        • Facebook-Pixel
        • social plugins (e.g. the “Like” or “Share“ button)
        • Facebook Login
        • Account Kit
        • APIs (application programming interface)
        • SDKs (Softwart developmept kits)
        • Plattform-integrations
        • Plugins
        • Codes
        • Specifications
        • Documentations
        • Technologies and Services

        With these tools Facebook can extend its services and is able to receive information on user activities outside of Facebook.

        Why do we use Facebook tools on our website?

        We only want to show our services and products to people who are genuinely interested in them. With the help of advertisements (Facebook Ads) we can reach exactly these people. However, to be able to show suitable adverts to users, Facebook requires additional information on people’s needs and wishes. Therefore, information on the user behaviour (and contact details) on our website, are provided to Facebook. Consequently, Facebook can collect better user data and is able to display suitable adverts for our products or services. Thanks to the tools it is possible to create targeted, customised ad campaigns of Facebook.

        Facebook calls data about your behaviour on our website “event data” and uses them for analytics services. That way, Facebook can create “campaign reports” about our ad campaigns’ effectiveness on our behalf. Moreover, by analyses we can get a better insight in how you use our services, our website or our products. Therefore, some of these tools help us optimise your user experience on our website. With the social plugins for instance, you can share our site’s contents directly on Facebook.

        What data is saved by the Facebook tools?

        With the use of the Facebook tools, personal data (customer data) may be sent to Facebook. Depending on the tools used, customer data such as name, address, telephone number and IP address may be transmitted.

        Facebook uses this information to match the data with the data it has on you (if you are a Facebook member). However, before the customer data is transferred to Facebook, a so called “Hashing” takes place. This means, that a data record of any size is transformed into a string of characters, which also has the purpose of encrypting data.

        Moreover, not only contact data, but also “event data“ is transferred. These data are the information we receive about you on our website. To give an example, it allows us to see what subpages you visit or what products you buy from us. Facebook does not disclose the obtained information to third parties (such as advertisers), unless the company has an explicit permission or is legally obliged to do so. Also, “event data“ can be linked to contact information, which helps Facebook to offer improved, customised adverts. Finally, after the previously mentioned matching process, Facebook deletes the contact data.

        To deliver optimised advertisements, Facebook only uses event data, if they have been combined with other data (that have been collected by Facebook in other ways). Facebook also uses event data for the purposes of security, protection, development and research. Many of these data are transmitted to Facebook via cookies. Cookies are little text files, that are used for storing data or information in browsers. Depending on the tools used, and on whether you are a Facebook member, a different number of cookies are placed in your browser. In the descriptions of the individual Facebook tools we will go into more detail on Facebook cookies. You can also find general information about the use of Facebook cookies at https://www.facebook.com/policies/cookies.

        How long and where are the data saved?

        Facebook fundamentally stores data, until they are no longer of use for their own services and products. Facebook has servers for storing their data all around the world. However, customer data is cleared within 48 hours after they have been matched with their own user data.

        How can I delete my data or prevent data retention?

        In accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) you have the right of information, rectification, transfer and deletion of your data.

        The collected data is only fully deleted, when you delete your entire Facebook account. Deleting your Facebook account works as follows:

        1) Click on settings in the top right side in Facebook.

        2) Then, click “Your Facebook information“ in the left column.

        3) Now click on “Deactivation and deletion”.

        4) Choose “Permanently delete account“ and then click on “Continue to account deletion“.

        5) Enter your password, click on “continue“ and then on “Delete account“.

        The retention of data Facebook receives via our site is done via cookies (e.g. with social plugins), among others. You can deactivate, clear or manage both all and individual cookies in your browser. How this can be done differs depending on the browser you use. The following instructions show, how to manage cookies in your browser:

        Chrome: Clear, enable and manage cookies in Chrome

        Safari: Manage cookies and website data in Safari

        Firefox: Clear cookies and site data in Firefox

        Internet Explorer: Delete and manage cookies

        Microsoft Edge: Delete cookies in Microsoft Edge

        If you generally do not want to allow any cookies at all, you can set up your browser to notify you whenever a cookie is about to be set. This gives you the opportunity to decide upon the permission or deletion of every single cookie.

        Facebook is an active participant in the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield Framework, which regulates correct and secure transfer of personal data. You can find more information at https://www.privacyshield.gov/participant?id=a2zt0000000GnywAAC. We hope we could give you an understanding of the most important information about the use of Facebook tools and data processing. If you want to find out more on how Facebook use your data, we recommend reading the data policies at https://www.facebook.com/about/privacy/update.

        Facebook Social Plugins Privacy Policy

        We installed so-called social plugins from Facebook Inc. to our website. You can recognise these buttons by the classic Facebook logo, the “Like” button (hand with raised thumb) or by a “Facebook plugin” label. A social plugin is a small part of Facebook that is integrated into our page. Each plugin has its own function. The most used functions are the well-known “Like” and “Share” buttons.

        Facebook offers the following social plugins:

        • “Save” button
        • “Like” button, Share, Send and Quote
        • Page plugin
        • Comments
        • Messenger plugin
        • Embedded posts and video player
        • Group Plugin

        At https://developers.facebook.com/docs/plugins you will find more information on how the individual plugins are used. On the one hand, we use the social plug-ins to offer you a better user experience on our site, and on the other hand because Facebook can optimise our advertisements with it.

        If you have a Facebook account or have already visited facebook.com, Facebook has already placed 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 website or interact with social plugins (e.g. the “Like” button).

        The received information will be deleted or anonymised within 90 days. According to Facebook, this data includes your IP address, the websites you have visited, the date, time and other information relating to your browser.

        In order to prevent Facebook from collecting much data and matching it with your Facebook data during your visit to our website, you must log out of Facebook while you visit our website.

        If you are not logged in to Facebook or do not have a Facebook account, your browser sends less information to Facebook because you have fewer Facebook cookies. Nevertheless, data such as your IP address or which website you are visiting can be transmitted to Facebook. We would like to explicitly point out that we do not know what exact data is collected. However, based on our current knowledge, we want to try informing you as best we can about data processing. You can also read about how Facebook uses the data in the company’s data policy at https://www.facebook.com/about/privacy/update.

        At least the following cookies are set in your browser when you visit a website with social plugins from Facebook:

        Name: dpr
        Value: no information
        Purpose:This cookie is used to make the social plugins work on our website.
        Expiry date: after end of session

        Name: fr
        Value: 0jieyh4111671598c2GnlufEJ9..Bde09j…1.0.Bde09j
        Purpose:The cookie is also necessary for the plugins to function properly
        Expiry date: after 3 months

        Note: These cookies were set after our test and may be placed even if you are not a Facebook member.

        If you are registered with Facebook, you can change your settings for advertisements yourself at https://www.facebook.com/ads/preferences/?entry_product=ad_settings_screen. If you are not a Facebook user, you can go to https://www.youronlinechoices.com/uk/your-ad-choices/ and manage your usage-based online advertising. There you have the option to deactivate or activate providers.

        If you want to learn more about Facebook’s data protection, we recommend the company’s own data policies at https://www.facebook.com/policy.php.

        Facebook Login Privacy Policy

        We integrated the convenient Facebook Login to our website. With it, you can easily log into our site with your Facebook account, without having to create a new user account. If you decide to register via the Facebook Login, you will be redirected to the social media network Facebook. There, you can log in with your Facebook user data. By using this method to log in, data on you and your user behaviour is stored and transmitted to Facebook.

        To save the data, Facebook uses various cookies. In the following we will show you the most significant cookies that are placed in your browser or that already exist when you log into our site via the Facebook Login:

        Name: fr
        Value: 0jieyh4c2GnlufEJ9..Bde09j…1.0.Bde09j
        Purpose: This cookie is used to make the social plugin function optimally on our website.
        Expiry date: after 3 months

        Name: datr
        Value: 4Jh7XUA2111671598SEmPsSfzCOO4JFFl
        Purpose: Facebook sets the “datr” cookie, when a web browser accesses facebook.com. The cookie helps to identify login activities and protect users.
        Expiry date: after 2 years

        Name: _js_datr
        Value: deleted
        Purpose: Facebook sets this session cookie for tracking purposes, even if you do not have a Facebook account or are logged out.
        Expiry date: after the end of the session

        Note: The cookies we stated are only a small range of the cookies which are available to Facebook. Other cookies include for example _ fbp, sb or wd. It is not possible to disclose an exhaustive list, since Facebook have a multitude of cookies at their disposal which they use in variation.

        On the one hand, Facebook Login enables a fast and easy registration process. On the other hand, it gives us the opportunity to share data with Facebook. In turn, we can customise our offer and advertising campaigns better to your needs and interests. The data we receive from Facebook by this means, is public data such as

        • your Facebook name
        • your profile picture
        • your stored email address
        • friends lists
        • button clicks (e.g. “Like“ button)
        • date of birth
        • language
        • place of residence

        In return, we provide Facebook with information about your activities on our website. These include information on the terminal device you used, which of our subpages you visit, or what products you have bought from us.

        By using Facebook Login, you agree to the data processing. You can terminate this agreement anytime. If you want to learn more about Facebook’s data processing, we recommend you to read Facebook’s Data Policy at https://www.facebook.com/policy.php.

        If you are registered with Facebook, you can change your advertisement settings anytime at https://www.facebook.com/ads/preferences/?entry_product=ad_settings_screen.

        Instagram Privacy Policy

        We have integrated functions of Instagram to our website. Instagram is a social media platform of the company Instagram LLC, 1601 Willow Rd, Menlo Park CA 94025, USA. Since 2012, Instagram is a subsidiary company of Facebook Inc. and is a part of Facebook’s products. The inclusion of Instagram’s contents on our website is called embedding. With this, we can show you Instagram contents such as buttons, photos or videos directly on our website. If you open websites of our online presence, that have an integrated Instagram function, data gets transmitted to, as well as stored and processed by Instagram. Instagram uses the same systems and technologies as Facebook. Therefore, your data will be processed across all Facebook firms.

        In the following, we want to give you a more detailed insight on why Instagram collects data, what data these are and how you can control data processing. As Instagram belongs to Facebook Inc., we have, on the one hand received this information from the Instagram guidelines, and on the other hand from Facebook’s Data Policy.

        What is Instagram?

        Instagram is one of the most famous social media networks worldwide. Instagram combines the benefits of a blog with the benefits of audio-visual platforms such as YouTube or Vimeo. To “Insta“ (how the platform is casually called by many users) you can upload photos and short videos, edit them with different filters and also share them to other social networks. Also, if you do not want to be active on Instagram yourself, you can just follow other interesting users.

        Why do we use Instagram on our website?

        Instagram is a social media platform whose success has skyrocketed within recent years. Naturally, we have also reacted to this boom. We want you to feel as comfortable as possible on our website. Therefore, we attach great importance to diversified contents. With the embedded Instagram features we can enrich our content with helpful, funny or exciting Instagram contents. Since Instagram is a subsidiary company of Facebook, the collected data can also serve us for customised advertising on Facebook. Hence, only persons who are genuinely interested in our products or services can see our ads.

        Instagram also uses the collected data for tracking and analysis purposes. We receive summarised statistics and therefore more insight to your wishes and interests. It is important to mention that these reports do not identify you personally.

        What data is saved by Instagram?

        Whenever you land on one of our sites, which have Instagram functions (i.e. Instagram photos or plugins) integrated to them, your browser automatically connects with Instagram’s servers. Thereby, data is sent to, as well as saved and processed by Instagram. This always happens, whether you have an Instagram account or not. Moreover, it includes information on our website, your computer, your purchases, the advertisements you see and on how you use our offer. The date and time of your interaction is also stored. If you have an Instagram account or are logged in, Instagram saves significantly more data on you.

        Facebook distinguishes between customer data and event data. We assume this is also the case for Instagram. Customer data are for example names, addresses, phone numbers and IP addresses. These data are only transmitted to Instagram, if they have been “hashed” first. Thereby, a set of data is transformed into a string of characters, which encrypts any contact data. Moreover, the aforementioned “event data“ (data on your user behaviour) is transmitted as well. It is also possible, that contact data may get combined with event data. The collected data data is matched with any data Instagram already has on you.

        Furthermore, the gathered data are transferred to Facebook via little text files (cookies) which usually get set in your browser. Depending on the Instagram function used, and whether you have an Instagram account yourself, the amount of data that gets stored varies.

        We assume data processing on Instagram works the same way as on Facebook. Therefore, if you have an account on Instagram or have visited www.instagram.com, Instagram has set at least one cookie. If this is the case, your browser uses the cookie to send information to Instagram, as soon as you come across an Instagram function. No later than 90 days (after matching) the data is deleted or anonymised. Even though we have studied Instagram’s data processing in-depth, we cannot tell for sure what exact data Instagram collects and retains.

        In the following we will show you a list of the least cookies placed in your browser when click on an Instagram function (e.g. button or an Insta picture). In our test we assume you do not have an Instagram account, since if you would be logged in to your Instagram account, your browser would place significantly more cookies.
        The following cookies were used in our test:

        Name: csrftoken
        Value: “”
        Purpose: This cookie is most likely set for security reasons to prevent falsifications of requests. We could not find out more information on it.
        Expiry date: after one year

        Name: mid
        Value: “”
        Purpose: Instagram places this cookie to optimise its own offers and services in- and outside of Instagram. The cookie allocates a unique user ID.
        Expiry date: after end of session

        Name: fbsr_111671598124024
        Value: no information
        Purpose: This cookie stores the login request of Instagram app users.
        Expiry date:         after end of session

        Name: rur
        Value: ATN
        Purpose: This is an Instagram cookie which guarantees functionality on Instagram.
        Expiry date: after end of session

        Name: urlgen
        Value: “{”194.96.75.33”: 1901}:1iEtYv:Y833k2_UjKvXgYe111671598”
        Purpose: This cookie serves Instagram’s marketing purposes.
        Expiry date: after end of session

        Note: We do not claim this list to be exhaustive. The cookies that are placed in each individual case, depend on the functions embedded as well as on your use of Instagram.

        How long and where are these data stored?

        Instagram shares the information obtained within the Facebook businesses with external partners and persons you are globally connected with. Data processing is done according to Facebook’s internal data policy. Your data is distributed to Facebook’s servers across the world, partially for security reasons. Most of these servers are in the USA.

        How can I delete my data or prevent data retention?

        Thanks to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), you have the right of information, rectification, transfer and deletion of your data. Furthermore, you can manage your data in Instagram’s settings. If you want to delete your data on Instagram completely, you will have to delete your Instagram account permanently.

        And this is how an Instagram account can be deleted:

        First, open the Instagram app. Then, navigate to your profile page, select the three bars in the top right, choose “Settings” and then click “Help”. Now, you will be redirected to the company’s website, where you must click on “Managing Your Account” and then “Delete Your Account”.

        When you delete your account completely, Instagram deletes posts such as your photos and status updates. Any information other people shared about you are not a part of your account and do therefore not get deleted.

        As mentioned before, Instagram primarily stores your data via cookies. You can manage, deactivate or delete these cookies in your browser. Depending on your browser, managing them varies a bit. We will show you the instructions of the most relevant browsers here.

        Chrome: Clear, enable and manage cookies in Chrome

        Safari: Manage cookies and website data in Safari

        Firefox: Clear cookies and site data in Firefox

        Internet Explorer: Delete and manage cookies

        Microsoft Edge: Delete cookies in Microsoft Edge

        Generally, you can set your browser to notify you whenever a cookie is about to be set. Then you can individually decide upon the permission of every cookie.

        Instagram is a subsidiary company of Facebook Inc. and Facebook is an active participant in the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield Framework. This framework regulates correct transfer between the USA and the European Union. At https://www.privacyshield.gov/participant?id=a2zt0000000GnywAAC you can find out more about this. We gave our best to make you familiar with the most important information on data processing by Instagram. At https://help.instagram.com/519522125107875 you can find out more on Instagram’s data policies.

        Pinterest Privacy Policy

        On our website we use buttons and widgets of the social media network Pinterest, by the company Pinterest Inc., 808 Brannan Street, San Francisco, CA 94103, USA.

        By opening pages that use these functions, data (IP address, browser data, date and time, cookies) are transmitted to, and stored and evaluated by Pinterest.

        The privacy guidelines on what information Pinterest collects and how they use it, can be found at https://policy.pinterest.com/en-gb/privacy-policy.

        YouTube Privacy Policy

        We have integrated YouTube videos to our website. Therefore, we can show you interesting videos directly on our site. YouTube is a video portal, which has been a subsidiary company of Google LLC since 2006. The video portal is operated by YouTube, LLC, 901 Cherry Ave., San Bruno, CA 94066, USA. When you visit a page on our website that contains an embedded YouTube video, your browser automatically connects to the servers of YouTube or Google. Thereby, certain data are transferred (depending on the settings). Google is responsible for YouTube’s data processing and therefore Google’s data protection applies.

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

        What is YouTube?

        On YouTube, users can watch, rate, comment or upload videos for free. Over the past few years, YouTube has become one of the most important social media channels worldwide. For us to be able to display videos on our website, YouTube provides a code snippet that we have integrated to our website.

        Why do we use YouTube videos on our website?

        YouTube is the video platform with the most visitors and best content. We strive to offer you the best possible user experience on our website, which of course includes interesting videos. With the help of our embedded videos, we can provide you other helpful content in addition to our texts and images. Additionally, embedded videos make it easier for our website to be found on the Google search engine. Moreover, if we place ads via Google Ads, Google only shows these ads to people who are interested in our offers, thanks to the collected data.

        What data is stored by YouTube?

        As soon as you visit one of our pages with an integrated YouTube, YouTube places at least one cookie that stores your IP address and our URL. If you are logged into your YouTube account, by using cookies YouTube can usually associate your interactions on our website with your profile. This includes data such as session duration, bounce rate, approximate location, technical information such as browser type, screen resolution or your Internet provider. Additional data can include contact details, potential ratings, shared content via social media or YouTube videos you added to your favourites.

        If you are not logged in to a Google or YouTube account, Google stores data with a unique identifier linked to your device, browser or app. Thereby, e.g. your preferred language setting is maintained. However, many interaction data cannot be saved since less cookies are set.

        In the following list we show you cookies that were placed in the browser during a test. On the one hand, we show cookies that were set without being logged into a YouTube account. On the other hand, we show you what cookies were placed while being logged in. We do not claim for this list to be exhaustive, as user data always depend on how you interact with YouTube.

        Name: YSC
        Value: b9-CV6ojI5Y111671598-1
        Purpose: This cookie registers a unique ID to store statistics of the video that was viewed.
        Expiry date: after end of session

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

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

        Name: VISITOR_INFO1_LIVE
        Value: 95Chz8bagyU
        Purpose: This cookie tries to estimate the user’s internet bandwith on our sites (that have built-in YouTube videos).
        Expiry date: after 8 months

        Further cookies that are placed when you are logged into your YouTube account:

        Name: APISID
        Value: zILlvClZSkqGsSwI/AU1aZI6HY7111671598-
        Purpose: This cookie is used to create a profile on your interests. This data is then used for personalised advertisements.
        Expiry date: after 2 years

        Name: CONSENT
        Value: YES+AT.de+20150628-20-0
        Purpose: The cookie stores the status of a user’s consent to the use of various Google services. CONSENT also provides safety measures to protect users from unauthorised attacks.
        Expiry date: after 19 years

        Name: HSID
        Value: AcRwpgUik9Dveht0I
        Purpose: This cookie is used to create a profile on your interests. This data helps to display customised ads.
        Expiry date: after 2 years

        Name: LOGIN_INFO
        Value: AFmmF2swRQIhALl6aL…
        Purpose: This cookie stores information on your login data.
        Expiry date: after 2 years

        Name: SAPISID
        Value: 7oaPxoG-pZsJuuF5/AnUdDUIsJ9iJz2vdM
        Purpose: This cookie identifies your browser and device. It is used to create a profile on your interests.
        Expiry date: after 2 years

        Name: SID
        Value: oQfNKjAsI111671598-
        Purpose: This cookie stores your Google Account ID and your last login time, in a digitally signed and encrypted form.
        Expiry date: after 2 years

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

        How long and where is the data stored?

        The data YouTube receive and process on you are stored on Google’s servers. Most of these servers are in America. At https://www.google.com/about/datacenters/inside/locations/?hl=en you can see where Google’s data centres are located. Your data is distributed across the servers. Therefore, the data can be retrieved quicker and is better protected against manipulation.

        Google stores collected data for different periods of time. You can delete some data anytime, while other data are automatically deleted after a certain time, and still other data are stored by Google for a long time. Some data (such as elements on “My activity”, photos, documents or products) that are saved in your Google account are stored until you delete them. Moreover, you can delete some data associated with your device, browser, or app, even if you are not signed into a Google Account.

        How can I delete my data or prevent data retention?

        Generally, you can delete data manually in your Google account. Furthermore, in 2019 an automatic deletion of location and activity data was introduced. Depending on what you decide on, it deletes stored information either after 3 or 18 months.

        Regardless of whether you have a Google account or not, you can set your browser to delete or deactivate cookies placed by Google. These settings vary depending on the browser you use. The following instructions will show how to manage cookies in your browser:

        Chrome: Clear, enable and manage cookies in Chrome

        Safari: Manage cookies and website data in Safari

        Firefox: Clear cookies and site data in Firefox

        Internet Explorer: Delete and manage cookies

        Microsoft Edge: Delete cookies in Microsoft Edge

        If you generally do not want to allow any cookies, you can set your browser to always notify you when a cookie is about to be set. This will enable you to decide to either allow or permit each individual cookie. Since YouTube is a subsidiary company of Google, Google’s privacy statement applies to both. If you want to learn more about how your data is handled, we recommend the privacy policy at https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en.

        YouTube Subscribe Button Privacy Policy

        We have integrated the YouTube subscribe button to our website, which you can recognise by the classic YouTube logo. The logo shows the words “Subscribe” or “YouTube” in white letters against a red background, with a white “Play” symbol on the left. The button may also be displayed in a different design.

        Our YouTube channel consistently offers you funny, interesting or exciting videos. With the built-in “Subscribe” button you can subscribe to our channel directly via our website and do not need to go to YouTube’s website for it. With this feature, we want to make it as easy as possible for you to access our comprehensive content. Please note that YouTube may save and process your data.

        If you see a built-in subscription button on our page, YouTube sets at least one cookie, according to Google. This cookie stores your IP address and our URL. It also allows YouTube to receive information about your browser, your approximate location and your default language. In our test the following four cookies were placed, without us being logged into YouTube:

        Name: YSC
        Value: b9-CV6ojI5111671598Y
        Purpose: This cookie registers a unique ID, which stores statistics of the viewed video.
        Expiry date: after end of session

        Name: PREF
        Value: f1=50000000
        Purpose:This cookie also registers your unique ID. Google uses PREF to get statistics on how you interact with YouTube videos on our website.
        Expiry date: after 8 months

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

        Name: VISITOR_INFO1_LIVE
        Value: 11167159895Chz8bagyU
        Purpose: This cookie tries to estimate the user’s internet bandwith on our website (that contain built-in YouTube video).
        Expiry date: after 8 months

        Note:These cookies were set after a test, thus we do not claim for the list to be exhaustive.

        If you are logged into your YouTube account, YouTube may store many of the actions and interactions you make on our website via cookies, to then assign them to your YouTube account.
        This gives YouTube information on e.g. how long you have been browsing our website, which browser type you use, which screen resolution you prefer or what actions you take.

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

        Vimeo Privacy Policy

        On our website, we use videos of the company Vimeo. This 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 display interesting video material directly on our website. Consequently, some of your data may be transmitted to Vimeo. In this privacy policy we want to explain to you what data this is, why we use Vimeo and how you can manage your data or prevent data transmission.

        What is Vimeo?

        Vimeo is a video platform that was founded in 2004 and introduced video streaming in HD quality in 2007. Since 2015 it has been possible to stream in 4k Ultra HD. The use of the portal is free of charge, but it also contains certain paid content. Compared to the market leader YouTube, Vimeo attaches great importance to valuable content in good quality. On the one hand, the portal offers a lot of artistic content such as music videos and short films. On the other hand, it also offers useful documentaries on a broad spectrum of topics.

        Why do we use Vimeo on our website?

        The aim of our website is to provide you the best possible content, in the easiest and most accessible way we can. We will only be satisfied with our service, once we have reached that goal. The video service Vimeo supports us in achieving this goal. Vimeo gives us the opportunity to present high quality content to you directly on our website. Instead of us merely giving you a link to an interesting video, you can watch the video here with us. This extends our service and makes it easier for you to access interesting content. Therefore, in addition to our texts and images, we can also offer video content.

        What data is stored on Vimeo?

        When you open a site on our website that has a Vimeo video embedded to it, your browser will connect to Vimeo’s servers, and a data transmission will take place. The data are then collected, stored and processed on Vimeo’s servers. Regardless of whether you have a Vimeo account or not, Vimeo collects data about you. This includes your IP address, technical information about your browser type, your operating system or very basic device information. Furthermore, Vimeo store information on what website you use their service on and which actions (web activities) you carry out on our website. These web activities include e.g. session duration, bounce rate or which button you clicked on our site that contains a Vimeo function. Vimeo can track and store these actions using cookies and similar technologies.

        If you are logged in as a registered member of Vimeo, more data may be collected, since a bigger number of cookies may already have been set in your browser. Furthermore, 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 will show you an array of cookies Vimeo sets when you are on a website containing 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 ensure you to receive your preferred settings again next time you watch a Vimeo video.
        Expiry date: after one year

        Name: vuid
        Value: pl1046149876.614422590111671598-4
        Purpose:         This cookie collects information about your actions on websites that have a Vimeo video embedded to them.
        Expiry date:         after 2 years

        Note: These two cookies are set every time as soon as you are on a website that has a Vimeo video embedded to it. If you watch the video and click a button such as “share” or “like”, additional cookies will be set. These can also be third-party cookies such as _ga or _gat_UA-76641-8 from Google Analytics or _fbp from Facebook. The exact cookies that are set depends on your interaction with the video.

        The following list will show a selection of cookies that could be placed when you interact with a Vimeo video:

        Name: _abexps
        Value: %5B%5D
        Purpose:         This Vimeo cookie helps Vimeo to remember your settings. For example, this can be a pre-set language, a region or a username. The cookie generally stores data on how you use Vimeo.
        Expiry date:         after one year

        Name: continuous_play_v3
        Value: 1
        Purpose: This cookie is a first-party cookie from Vimeo. The cookie collects information on how you use Vimeo’s service. For example, the cookie stores details on when you pause a video and resume it.
        Expiry date: after one year

        Name: _ga
        Value: GA1.2.1522249635.1578401280111671598-7
        Purpose: This cookie is a third-party cookie from Google. By default, analytics.js uses the _ga cookie to store the user ID. Thus, it serves to differentiate between website visitors.
        Expiry date: after 2 years

        Name: _gcl_au
        Value: 1.1.770887836.1578401279111671598-3
        Purpose: This third-party cookie from Google AdSense is used to improve the efficiency of ads on websites.
        Expiry date: after 3 months

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

        Vimeo use this data to improve their own service, to communicate with you and to implement their own targeted advertising measures. On their website they emphasise that only first-party cookies (i.e. cookies from Vimeo itself) are used for embedded videos, provided you do not interact with the video.

        How long and where is the data stored?

        Vimeo is headquartered in White Plains, New York (USA). However, their services are offered worldwide. For this, the company uses computer systems, databases and servers in the United States and other countries. Thus, your data may also be stored and processed on servers in America. Vimeo stores the data until the company no longer has an economical reason for keeping it. Then the data will be deleted or anonymised. Vimeo correspond to the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield Framework and are therefore allowed to collect and use information from users within the EU, and to transfer this data to the USA.

        How can I delete my data or prevent data retention?

        You always have the option to manage cookies in your browser. If you do not want Vimeo to set cookies and collect information about you for example, you can delete or deactivate cookies in your browser settings at any time. These settings vary a little depending on the browser. Please note that after deactivating/deleting cookies, various functions may no longer be fully available. The following instructions show how you can manage or delete cookies in your browser.

        Chrome: Clear, enable and manage cookies in Chrome

        Safari: Manage cookies and website data in Safari

        Firefox: Clear cookies and site data in Firefox

        Internet Explorer: Delete and manage cookies

        Microsoft Edge: Delete cookies in Microsoft Edge

        If you are a registered Vimeo member, you can also manage cookies in Vimeo’s settings.

        Vimeo is an active participant in the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield Framework, which regulates correct and secure transfer of personal data. More information can be found at https://www.privacyshield.gov/participant?id=a2zt00000008V77AAE&status=Active. You can find out more on Vimeos’s use of cookies at https://vimeo.com/cookie_policy, and you can find information about data protection at Vimeo at https://vimeo.com/privacy.

        Zoom Privacy Policy

        On our website we use the video conferencing tool Zoom by the American software company Zoom Video Communications. The company’s head office is in 55 Almaden Boulevard, 6th Floor, San Jose, CA 95113, California. Thanks to “Zoom”, we can easily hold video conferences with customers, business partners, clients, and employees without having to install any software. In this privacy policy we will go into more detail of the service and inform you on the most important data protection aspects.

        What is Zoom?

        Zoom is one of the world’s most well-known video conferencing solutions. With the “Zoom Meetings” service, we can hold an online video conference with you, our employees, or other users via a digital conference room. This allows us to easily get in touch digitally, exchange information on various topics, send text messages or even make calls. You can also use Zoom to share your screen, exchange files and to use a whiteboard.

        Why do we use Zoom on our website?

        It is important to us that we can communicate with you quickly and easily. And this is exactly what Zoom offers us. Moreover, the software program also works directly via a browser. This means we can simply send you a link for starting our video conference. In addition, Zoom’s further functions such as screen sharing, or file exchange are also very handy.

        What data is stored by Zoom?

        When you use Zoom, your data is collected so Zoom can provide its services. On the one hand, this is data that you deliberately make available to the company. This includes for example your name, telephone number or your email address. On the other hand, there is certain data which is automatically transmitted to Zoom where it is stored. This includes for example your browser’s technical data or your IP address. In the following, we will go into more detail on the specific data of yours which Zoom can collect and store:

        If you provide data such as your name, username, email address or your telephone number, these data will be stored at Zoom. Any contents you upload while using Zoom are also retained. This can include files or chat logs for example.

        In addition to the IP address as mentioned above, Zoom automatically stores technical data such as MAC addresses, further device IDs, device types, which operating system you use, what client you use, and also the type of your camera, microphone and speaker. Furthermore, your approximate location is also determined and stored. Additionally, Zoom store information on how you use the service. To give an example, this can include details on whether you “zoom” in or out via desktop or smartphone, whether you are using a telephone call or VoIP, whether you are participating with or without video or whether you request a password. What is more, Zoom also records so-called metadata such as the duration of the meeting or call, the start and end of your participation in it, as well as your meeting name and chat status.

        In their privacy policy, Zoom mention that the company does not use advertising cookies or tracking technologies for its services. These tracking methods are only used on their marketing websites, such as www.zoom.us. Zoom neither sell personal data nor use them for advertising purposes.

        How long and where is the data stored?

        In this regard, Zoom do not specify a precise time frame, but they emphasise that the collected data remain stored for as long as it is necessary for both, to provide its services and for their own purposes. The data will only be retained for longer if required for legal reasons.

        Zoom generally store collected data on American servers, but the data can make their way through different data centers across the globe.

        How can I delete my data or prevent data retention?

        If you do not want any of your data to be stored during a zoom meeting, you have to do without the meeting. However, you always have both the option and the right to have all your personal data deleted. If you have a Zoom account, you can find instructions on how to delete your account at https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/201363243-How-Do-I-Delete-Terminate-My-Account.

        Zoom Video Communications is an active participant in the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield Framework, which regulates the correct and secure transfer of personal data. You can find more information at auf https://www.privacyshield.gov/participant?id=a2zt0000000TNkCAAW&status=Active.

        We hope we were able to give you an overview on Zoom’s data processing. Of course, it could always happen that the company’s data protection guidelines may change. Therefore, for more information we recommend you to read Zoom’s privacy policy at https://zoom.us/privacy.

        Google reCAPTCHA Privacy Policy

        Our primary goal is to provide you an experience on our website that is as secure and protected as possible. To do this, we use Google reCAPTCHA from Google Inc. (1600 Amphitheater Parkway Mountain View, CA 94043, USA). With reCAPTCHA we can determine whether you are a real person from flesh and bones, and not a robot or a spam software. By spam we mean any electronically undesirable information we receive involuntarily. Classic CAPTCHAS usually needed you to solve text or picture puzzles to check. But thanks to Google’s reCAPTCHA you usually do have to do such puzzles. Most of the times it is enough to simply tick a box and confirm you are not a bot. With the new Invisible reCAPTCHA version you don’t even have to tick a box. In this privacy policy you will find out how exactly this works, and what data is used for it.

        What is reCAPTCHA?

        reCAPTCHA is a free captcha service from Google that protects websites from spam software and misuse by non-human visitors. This service is used the most when you fill out forms on the Internet. A captcha service is a type of automatic Turing-test that is designed to ensure specific actions on the Internet are done by human beings and not bots. During the classic Turing-test (named after computer scientist Alan Turing), a person differentiates between bot and human. With Captchas, a computer or software program does the same. Classic captchas function with small tasks that are easy to solve for humans but provide considerable difficulties to machines. With reCAPTCHA, you no longer must actively solve puzzles. The tool uses modern risk techniques to distinguish people from bots. The only thing you must do there, is to tick the text field “I am not a robot”. However, with Invisible reCAPTCHA even that is no longer necessary. reCAPTCHA, integrates a JavaScript element into the source text, after which the tool then runs in the background and analyses your user behaviour. The software calculates a so-called captcha score from your user actions. Google uses this score to calculate the likelihood of you being a human, before entering the captcha. reCAPTCHA and Captchas in general are used every time bots could manipulate or misuse certain actions (such as registrations, surveys, etc.).

        Why do we use reCAPTCHA on our website?

        We only want to welcome people from flesh and bones on our side and want bots or spam software of all kinds to stay away. Therefore, we are doing everything we can to stay protected and to offer you the highest possible user friendliness. For this reason, we use Google reCAPTCHA from Google. Thus, we can be pretty sure that we will remain a “bot-free” website. Using reCAPTCHA, data is transmitted to Google to determine whether you genuinely are human. reCAPTCHA thus ensures our website’s and subsequently your security. Without reCAPTCHA it could e.g. happen that a bot would register as many email addresses as possible when registering, in order to subsequently “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 user data to determine whether the actions on our website are made by people. Thus, IP addresses and other data Google needs for its reCAPTCHA service, may be sent to Google. Within member states of the European Economic Area, IP addresses are almost always compressed before the data makes its way to a server in the USA.
        Moreover, your IP address will not be combined with any other of Google’s data, unless you are logged into your Google account while using reCAPTCHA. Firstly, the reCAPTCHA algorithm checks whether Google cookies from other Google services (YouTube, Gmail, etc.) have already been placed in your browser. Then reCAPTCHA sets an additional cookie in your browser and takes a snapshot of your browser window.

        The following list of collected browser and user data is not exhaustive. Rather, it provides examples of data, which to our knowledge, is processed by Google.

        • Referrer URL (the address of the page the visitor has come from)
        • IP-address (z.B. 256.123.123.1)
        • Information on the operating system (the software that enables the operation of your computers. Popular operating systems are Windows, Mac OS X or Linux)
        • Cookies (small text files that save data in your browser)
        • Mouse and keyboard behaviour (every action you take with your mouse or keyboard is stored)
        • Date and language settings (the language and date you have set 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)

        Google may use and analyse this data even before you click on the “I am not a robot” checkmark. In the Invisible reCAPTCHA version, there is no need to even tick at all, as the entire recognition process runs in the background. Moreover, Google have not given details on what information and how much data they retain.

        The following cookies are used by reCAPTCHA: With the following list we are referring to Google’s reCAPTCHA demo version at https://www.google.com/recaptcha/api2/demo.
        For tracking purposes, all these cookies require a unique identifier. Here is a list of cookies that Google reCAPTCHA has set in the demo version:

        Name: IDE
        Value: WqTUmlnmv_qXyi_DGNPLESKnRNrpgXoy1K-pAZtAkMbHI-111671598-8
        Purpose:This cookie is set by DoubleClick (which is owned by Google) to register and report a user’s interactions with advertisements. With it, ad effectiveness can be measured, and appropriate optimisation measures can be taken. IDE is stored in browsers under the domain doubleclick.net.
        Expiry date: after one year

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

        Name: ANID
        Value: U7j1v3dZa1116715980xgZFmiqWppRWKOr
        Purpose:We could not find out much about this cookie. In Google’s privacy statement, the cookie is mentioned in connection with “advertising cookies” such as “DSID”, “FLC”, “AID” and “TAID”. ANID is stored under the domain google.com.
        Expiry date: after 9 months

        Name: CONSENT
        Value: YES+AT.de+20150628-20-0
        Purpose: This cookie stores the status of a user’s consent to the use of various Google services. CONSENT also serves to prevent fraudulent logins and to protect user data from unauthorised attacks.
        Expiry date: after 19 years

        Name: NID
        Value: 0WmuWqy111671598zILzqV_nmt3sDXwPeM5Q
        Purpose: Google uses NID to customise advertisements to your Google searches. With the help of cookies, Google “remembers” your most frequently entered search queries or your previous ad interactions. Thus, you always receive advertisements tailored to you. The cookie contains a unique ID to collect users’ personal settings for advertising purposes.
        Expiry date: after 6 months

        Name: DV
        Value: gEAABBCjJMXcI0dSAAAANbqc111671598-4
        Purpose: This cookie is set when you tick the “I am not a robot” checkmark. Google Analytics uses the cookie personalised advertising. DV collects anonymous information and is also used to distinct between users.
        Expiry date: after 10 minutes

        Note: We do not claim for this list to be extensive, as Google often change the choice of their cookies.

        How long and where are the data stored?

        Due to the integration of reCAPTCHA, your data will be transferred to the Google server. Google have not disclosed where exactly this data is stored, despite repeated inquiries. But even without confirmation from Google, it can be assumed that data such as mouse interaction, length of stay on a website or language settings are stored on the European or American Google servers. The IP address that your browser transmits to Google does generally not get merged with other Google data from the company’s other services.
        However, the data will be merged if you are logged in to your Google account while using the reCAPTCHA plug-in.         Google’s diverging privacy policy applies for this.

        How can I delete my data or prevent data storage?

        If you want to prevent any data about you and your behaviour to be transmitted to Google, you must fully log out of Google and delete all Google cookies before visiting our website or use the reCAPTCHA software. Generally, the data is automatically sent to Google as soon as you visit our website. To delete this data, you must contact Google Support at https://support.google.com/?hl=en-GB&tid=111671598.

        If you use our website, you agree that Google LLC and its representatives automatically collect, edit and use data.

        You can find out more about reCAPTCHA on Google’s Developers page at https://developers.google.com/recaptcha/. While Google do give more detail on the technical development of reCAPTCHA there, they have not disclosed precise information about data retention and data protection. A good, basic overview of the use of data however, can be found in the company’s internal privacy policy at https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en-GB.

        Google Custom Search Privacy Policy

        We integrated Google’s custom search plug-in to our website. Google is the largest and most widely known search engine in the world and is operated by the American company Google LLC (1600 Amphitheater Parkway Mountain View, CA 94043, USA). Through Google Custom Search data can be transferred from you to Google. In this privacy policy we will inform you on why we use this plug-in, which data is processed and how you can manage or prevent the transmission of your data.

        What is Google Custom Search?

        Google’s Custom Search plug-in is a Google search bar that is integrated directly into our website. With it, searches take place just like on www.google.com, but the search results focus on our content and products or a limited area.

        Why do we use Google Custom Search on our website?

        A website with much interesting content often grows so big that it is easy to lose track. Over time, lots of valuable material has accumulated also on our site. But as part of our service we want you to be able to find our content in a quick and simple manner. Therefore, we have integrated Google Custom Search, which makes finding interesting content a breeze. Moreover, the built-in Google plug-in improves our website’s overall quality and makes searches easier for you.

        What data does Google Custom Search store?

        The customised Google search only transfers your data to Google, if you actively use the Google search function that is integrated to our website. This means that only when you type a search term in the search bar and click on “Search” or “Enter”, the search term is sent to Google along with your IP address, where they are stored and processed. Based on the placed cookies (such as 1P_JAR), Google may also receive data on website use. If you search for content via the built-in Google search function on our website, while you are logged into your Google account, Google can assign the collected data to your Google account. As the website operator, we have no influence on what Google do with the collected data or how Google process this data.

        The following cookies are set in your browser if you use Google Custom Search and are not logged into a Google account:

        Name: 1P_JAR
        Value: 2020-01-27-13111671598-5
        Purpose: This cookie collects website usage statistics and measures conversions. A conversion occurs e.g. when a user becomes a buyer. The cookie is also used to display relevant ads to users.
        Expiry date: after one month

        Name: CONSENT
        Value: WP.282f52111671598-9
        Purpose: The cookie stores the status of a user’s consent to the use of various Google services. CONSENT also protects user data from unauthorised attacks.
        Expiry date: after 18 years

        Name: NID
        Value: 196=pwIo3B5fHr-8
        Purpose: NID is used by Google to adapt ads to your Google search. With the help of cookies, Google “remembers” your search queries and your previous interaction with ads. That way you always receive customised advertisements.
        Expiry date: after 6 months

        Note: We do not claim for this list to be exhaustive, Google keep changing the choice of their cookies.

        How long and where is the data stored?

        Google’s servers are located all over the world. Since Google is an American company, most data is stored on American servers. At https://www.google.com/about/datacenters/inside/locations/?hl=en you can find out where exactly Google’s servers are.
        Your data is distributed across various physical data carriers. This means the data can be accessed quicker and is better protected against potential manipulation. Google also have special emergency programs for your data. In case e.g. internal technical problems occur and some servers would stop working, the risk of an interruption of service and data loss remains low.
        Google store data for different lengths of time, depending on what type of data they are. You can delete some data yourself, while others are automatically deleted or anonymised by Google. However, Google stores certain data for longer if it is necessary for legal or business reasons.

        How can I delete my data or prevent data retention?

        According to the European Union’s data protection regulations, you have the right to access information about your data as well as to update, delete or to restrict it. There are certain data which you can delete anytime. If you have a Google account, you can delete data about your web activity there, or set it to be deleted after a specified period.
        In your browser you can also deactivate, delete or manage cookies according to your wishes and preferences. Here are instructions for the most popular browsers:

        Chrome: Clear, enable and manage cookies in Chrome

        Safari: Manage cookies and website data in Safari

        Firefox: Clear cookies and site data in Firefox

        Internet Explorer: Delete and manage cookies

        Microsoft Edge: Delete cookies in Microsoft Edge

        Google is an active participant in the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield Framework, which regulates correct and secure transfer of personal data. You can find more information on this at https://www.privacyshield.gov/participant?id=a2zt000000001L5AAI. We hope we were able to give you the most important information on Google’s data processing. If you want to learn more about it, we recommend Google’s extensive privacy policy at https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en-GB.

        Source: Created with the tor by AdSimple

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