Privacy & Cookies

Data protection

As of June 30, 2022

Table of Contents

Responsibles

dr John Frankenfeld
dr Sven Brummerloh

E-mail address:

johannes.frankenfeld@forestgardenlabs.com

Overview of processing

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

Types of data processed

  • Inventory data.
  • Payment details.
  • Contact details.
  • Content data.
  • Contract data.
  • Usage data.
  • Meta/Communication Data.

Categories of affected persons

  • Customers.
  • Interested persons.
  • Communication partners.
  • Users.
  • Business and contractual partners.

Purposes of processing

  • Provision of contractual services and customer service.
  • Contact requests and communication.
  • Safety measures.
  • Direct marketing.
  • Range measurement.
  • Tracking.
  • Office and organizational procedures.
  • Conversion measurement.
  • Management and response to inquiries.
  • Feedback.
  • Marketing.
  • Profiles with user-related information.
  • Provision of our online offer and user-friendliness.
  • Information technology infrastructure.

Relevant legal bases

Below you will find an overview of the legal bases of the GDPR, on the basis of which we process personal data. Please note that, in addition to the provisions of the GDPR, national data protection regulations may apply in your or our country of residence or domicile. If more specific legal bases are relevant in individual cases, we will inform you of them in the data protection declaration.

  • Consent (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. a. GDPR) - The person concerned has given their consent to the processing of their personal data for a specific purpose or several specific purposes.
  • Fulfillment of contract and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. b. DSGVO) - The processing is necessary for the performance of a contract to which the data subject is party or for the implementation of pre-contractual measures taken at the request of the data subject.
  • Legal obligation (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. c. GDPR) - The processing is necessary to fulfill a legal obligation to which the person responsible is subject.
  • Legitimate interests (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. f. GDPR) - Processing is necessary for the purposes of the legitimate interests of the controller or of a third party, except where such interests are overridden by the interests or fundamental rights and freedoms of the data subject which require the protection of personal data.

In addition to the data protection regulations of the General Data Protection Regulation, national data protection regulations apply in Germany. This includes in particular the law on the protection against misuse of personal data in data processing (Federal Data Protection Act - BDSG). In particular, the BDSG contains special regulations on the right to information, the right to erasure, the right to object, the processing of special categories of personal data, processing for other purposes and transmission as well as automated decision-making in individual cases including profiling. Furthermore, it regulates data processing for the purposes of the employment relationship (§ 26 BDSG), in particular with regard to the establishment, implementation or termination of employment relationships and the consent of employees. Furthermore, state data protection laws of the individual federal states may apply.

Safety measures

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

The measures include, in particular, securing the confidentiality, integrity and availability of data by controlling physical and electronic access to the data as well as access, input, disclosure, securing availability and their separation. Furthermore, we have set up procedures that ensure the exercise of data subject rights, the deletion of data and reactions to data threats. Furthermore, we already take the protection of personal data into account during the development or selection of hardware, software and processes in accordance with the principle of data protection, through technology design and through data protection-friendly default settings.

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

Transmission of personal data

In the course of our processing of personal data, it may happen that the data is transferred to or disclosed to other bodies, companies, legally independent organizational units or persons. The recipients of this data may include, for example, service providers commissioned with IT tasks or providers of services and content that are integrated into a website. In such cases, we comply with the legal requirements and, in particular, conclude appropriate contracts or agreements that serve to protect your data with the recipients of your data.

Data processing in third countries

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

Subject to express consent or contractually or legally required transmission, we only process or have the data processed in third countries with a recognized level of data protection, contractual obligation through so-called standard protection clauses of the EU Commission, if there are certifications or binding internal data protection regulations (Art. 44 to 49 DSGVO, Information page of the EU Commission: https://ec.europa.eu/info/law/law-topic/data-protection/international-dimension-data-protection_de ).

Use of cookies

Cookies are small text files or other memory tags that store information on end devices and read information from the end devices. For example, to store the login status in a user account, a shopping cart content in an e-shop, the content accessed or functions used of an online offer. Cookies can also be used for various purposes, e.g. for purposes of functionality, security and convenience of online offers as well as the creation of analyses of visitor flows.

Notes on consent: We use cookies in accordance with the law. Therefore, we obtain prior consent from users, except when it is not required by law. In particular, consent is not required if the storage and reading of information, including cookies, is absolutely necessary to provide the user with a telemedia service (i.e., our online offering) expressly requested by the user. The revocable consent is clearly communicated to the users and contains the information about the respective cookie use.

Notes on the legal basis for data protection: The legal basis under data protection law on which we process users' personal data using cookies depends on whether we ask users for consent. If users consent, the legal basis for processing their data is their declared consent. Otherwise, the data processed with the help of cookies is processed on the basis of our legitimate interests (e.g. in a business operation of our online offer and improvement of its usability) or, if this is done in the context of the fulfillment of our contractual obligations, if the use of cookies is necessary to fulfill our contractual obligations. We explain the purposes for which we process the cookies in the course of this privacy policy or as part of our consent and processing procedures.

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

  • Temporary cookies (also: session or session cookies): Temporary cookies are deleted at the latest after a user has left an online offer and closed his end device (e.g. browser or mobile application).
  • Permanent cookies: Permanent cookies remain stored even after the end device is closed. For example, the login status can be saved or preferred content can be displayed directly when the user visits a website again. Likewise, the user data collected with the help of cookies can be used to measure reach. Unless we provide users with explicit information on the type and storage period of cookies (e.g. when obtaining consent), users should assume that cookies are permanent and the storage period can be up to two years.

General information on revocation and objection (opt-out): Users can revoke the consent they have given at any time and also object to the processing in accordance with the legal requirements in Art. 21 DSGVO. Users can also declare their objection via their browser settings, e.g. by deactivating the use of cookies (which can also limit the functionality of our online services). An objection to the use of cookies for online marketing purposes can also be declared via the websites https://optout.aboutads.info and https://www.youronlinechoices.com/ .

Further information on processing processes, procedures and services:

  • Processing of cookie data on the basis of consent: We use a cookie consent management procedure in which the consent of users to the use of cookies, or the processing and providers named in the cookie consent management procedure, can be obtained and managed and revoked by users. Here, the declaration of consent is stored in order not to have to repeat its query and to be able to prove the consent in accordance with the legal obligation. The storage can take place on the server side and/or in a cookie (so-called opt-in cookie, or with the help of comparable technologies), in order to be able to assign the consent to a user or their device. Subject to individual information on the providers of cookie management services, the following information applies: The duration of the storage of consent can be up to two years. A pseudonymous user identifier is created and stored with the time of consent, information about the scope of consent (e.g., which categories of cookies and/or service providers), as well as the browser, system and end device used.

Business Achievements

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

We process this data in order to fulfill our contractual obligations. These include, in particular, the obligations to provide the agreed services, any update obligations and remedies in the event of warranty and other service disruptions. In addition, we process the data to safeguard our rights and for the purpose of administrative tasks associated with these obligations and company organization. Furthermore, we process the data on the basis of our legitimate interests in proper and business management as well as security measures to protect our contractual partners and our business operations from misuse, endangerment of their data, secrets, information and rights (e.g. for the involvement of telecommunications, transport and other auxiliary services as well as subcontractors, banks, tax and legal advisors, payment service providers or tax authorities). Within the framework of applicable law, we only disclose the data of contractual partners to third parties to the extent that this is necessary for the aforementioned purposes or to fulfill legal obligations. Contractual partners will be informed about further forms of processing, e.g. for marketing purposes, within the scope of this data protection declaration.

We inform the contractual partners which data are required for the aforementioned purposes before or in the course of data collection, e.g. in online forms, by means of special marking (e.g. colors) or symbols (e.g. asterisks or similar), or in person.

We delete the data after statutory warranty and comparable obligations have expired, ie, in principle after 4 years, unless the data is stored in a customer account, e.g. for as long as it must be kept for legal archiving reasons. The statutory retention period is ten years for documents relevant to tax law and for trading books, inventories, opening balance sheets, annual financial statements, the work instructions and other organizational documents and accounting documents required to understand these documents, and six years for received commercial and business letters and reproductions of the commercial and business letters sent. The period begins at the end of the calendar year in which the last entry was made in the book, the inventory, the opening balance sheet, the annual financial statements or the management report were drawn up, the commercial or business letter was received or sent or the accounting document was created, and the recording was also made has been made or the other documents have been created.

Insofar as we use third-party providers or platforms to provide our services, the terms and conditions and data protection notices of the respective third-party providers or platforms shall apply in the relationship between the users and the providers.

  • Types of data processed: Inventory data (e.g. names, addresses); payment data (e.g. bank details, invoices, payment history); contact information (e.g. email, phone numbers); contract data (e.g. subject of the contract, term, customer category); usage data (e.g. websites visited, interest in content, access times); meta/communication data (e.g. device information, IP addresses).
  • Affected persons: customers; interested persons; business and contractual partners.
  • Purposes of processing: provision of contractual services and customer service; safety measures; contact requests and communication; office and organizational procedures; management and response to inquiries.
  • Legal basis: Fulfillment of contract and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. b. GDPR); legal obligation (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. c. GDPR); legitimate interests (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. f. GDPR).

Further information on processing processes, procedures and services:

  • Shop and e-commerce: We process the data of our customers to enable them to select, purchase or order the selected products, goods and related services, as well as their payment and delivery or execution. If necessary for the execution of an order, we use service providers, in particular postal, forwarding and shipping companies, to carry out the delivery, or execution to our customers. For the processing of payment transactions, we use the services of banks and payment service providers. The required information is identified as such in the context of the order or comparable acquisition process and includes the information needed for delivery, or provision and billing, as well as contact information in order to be able to consult; Legal basis: Contract fulfillment and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. b. GDPR).

Payment procedure

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

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

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

  • Types of data processed: Inventory data (e.g. names, addresses); payment data (e.g. bank details, invoices, payment history); contract data (e.g. subject of the contract, term, customer category); usage data (e.g. websites visited, interest in content, access times); meta/communication data (e.g. device information, IP addresses); contact information (e.g. email, telephone numbers).
  • Affected persons: customers; interested persons.
  • Purposes of processing: Provision of contractual services and customer service.
  • Legal basis: contract fulfillment and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. b. GDPR).

Further guidance on processing operations, procedures and services :

  • Amazon Payments: payment services (technical connection of online payment methods); Service Provider: Amazon Payments Europe SCA 38 avenue JF Kennedy, L-1855 Luxembourg; Legal basis: Fulfillment of contract and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. b. GDPR); Website: https://pay.amazon.com/de ; Data protection declaration: https://pay.amazon.com/de/help/201212490 .
  • American Express: payment services (technical connection of online payment methods); Service Provider: American Express Europe SA, Theodor-Heuss-Allee 112, 60486 Frankfurt am Main, Germany; Legal basis: contract fulfillment and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. b. GDPR); Website: https://www.americanexpress.com/de ; Data protection declaration: https://www.americanexpress.com/de/legal/online-datenschutzerklarung.html .
  • Apple Pay: payment services (technical connection of online payment methods); Service Provider: Apple Inc., Infinite Loop, Cupertino, CA 95014, USA; Legal basis: contract fulfillment and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. b. GDPR); Website: https://www.apple.com/de/apple-pay/ ; Data protection declaration: https://www.apple.com/legal/privacy/de-ww/ .
  • Giropay: payment services (technical connection of online payment methods); Service provider: giropay GmbH, An der Welle 4, 60322 Frankfurt, Germany; Legal basis: contract fulfillment and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. b. GDPR); Website: https://www.giropay.de ; Data protection declaration: https://www.giropay.de/rechts/datenschutzerklaerung/ .
  • Google Pay: payment services (technical connection of online payment methods); Service provider: Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland, parent company: Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheater Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA; Legal basis: contract fulfillment and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. b. GDPR); Website: https://pay.google.com/intl/de_de/about/ ; Privacy Policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy .
  • Klarna / Sofortüberweisung: payment services (technical connection of online payment methods); Service Provider: Klarna Bank AB (publ), Sveavägen 46, 111 34 Stockholm, Sweden; Legal basis: contract fulfillment and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. b. GDPR); Website: https://www.klarna.com/de ; Data protection declaration: https://www.klarna.com/de/datenschutz .
  • Mastercard: payment services (technical connection of online payment methods); Service Provider: Mastercard Europe SA, Chaussée de Tervuren 198A, B-1410 Waterloo, Belgium; Legal basis: contract fulfillment and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. b. GDPR); Website: https://www.mastercard.de/de-de.html ; Data protection declaration: https://www.mastercard.de/de-de/datenschutz.html .
  • PayPal: payment services (technical connection of online payment methods) (e.g. PayPal, PayPal Plus, Braintree); Service provider: PayPal (Europe) S.à rl et Cie, SCA, 22-24 Boulevard Royal, L-2449 Luxembourg; Legal basis: contract fulfillment and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. b. GDPR); Website: https://www.paypal.com/de ; Privacy Policy: https://www.paypal.com/de/webapps/mpp/ua/privacy-full .
  • Visa: payment services (technical connection of online payment methods); Service Provider: Visa Europe Services Inc., London Branch, 1 Sheldon Square, London W2 6TT, UK; Legal basis: contract fulfillment and pre-contractual inquiries (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. b. GDPR); Website: https://www.visa.de ; Data protection declaration: https://www.visa.de/bedingungen/visa-privacy-center.html .

Provision of the online offer and web hosting

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

The data processed as part of the provision of the hosting offer may include all information relating to the users of our online offer, which is generated as part of the use and communication. This regularly includes the IP address, which is necessary to be able to deliver the contents of online offers to browsers, and all entries made within our online offer or from websites.

  • Types of data processed: content data (e.g. entries in online forms); usage data (e.g. websites visited, interest in content, access times); meta/communication data (e.g. device information, IP addresses).
  • Affected persons: users (e.g. website visitors, users of online services).
  • Purposes of processing: Provision of our online offer and user-friendliness; information technology infrastructure (operation and provision of information systems and technical devices (computers, servers, etc.).).
  • Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. f. GDPR).

Further guidance on processing operations, procedures and services:

  • E-mail dispatch and hosting: The web hosting services we use also include the sending, receiving and storing of e-mails. For these purposes, the addresses of the recipients and senders as well as further information regarding the e-mail dispatch (e.g. the providers involved) and the contents of the respective e-mails are processed. The aforementioned data may also be processed for SPAM detection purposes. Please note that e-mails are generally not sent encrypted on the Internet. As a rule, e-mails are encrypted in transit, but (unless a so-called end-to-end encryption method is used) not on the servers from which they are sent and received. We can therefore not assume any responsibility for the transmission path of the e-mails between the sender and the reception on our server; Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. f. GDPR).
  • Collection of access data and log files: We ourselves (or our web hosting provider) collect data on each access to the server (so-called server log files). The server log files may include the address and name of the web pages and files accessed, the date and time of access, data volumes transferred, notification of successful access, browser type and version, the user's operating system, referrer URL (the previously visited page) and, as a rule, IP addresses and the requesting provider. The server log files may be used on the one hand for security purposes, e.g., to prevent server overload (especially in the event of abusive attacks, so-called DDoS attacks) and on the other hand, to ensure the utilization of the servers and their stability; Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. f. GDPR); Deletion of data: Log file information is stored for a maximum of 30 days and then deleted or made anonymous. Data whose further storage is required for evidence purposes are excluded from deletion until the respective incident has been finally clarified.

Blogs and publication media

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

  • Types of data processed: Inventory data (e.g. names, addresses); contact information (e.g. email, phone numbers); content data (e.g. entries in online forms); usage data (e.g. websites visited, interest in content, access times); meta/communication data (e.g. device information, IP addresses).
  • Affected persons: users (e.g. website visitors, users of online services).
  • Purposes of processing: provision of contractual services and customer service; feedback (e.g. collecting feedback via online form); provision of our online offer and user-friendliness; safety measures; management and response to inquiries.
  • Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. f. GDPR).

Further guidance on processing operations, procedures and services:

  • Comments and posts: When users leave comments or other posts, their IP addresses may be stored based on our legitimate interests. This is for our security if someone leaves illegal content in comments and posts (insults, forbidden political propaganda, etc.). In this case, we can be prosecuted for the comment or contribution and are therefore interested in the identity of the author. Furthermore, we reserve the right to process user information for the purpose of spam detection on the basis of our legitimate interests. On the same legal basis, in the case of surveys, we reserve the right to store the IP addresses of users for the duration of the survey and to use cookies to avoid multiple votes. The personal information provided in the comments and posts, any contact and website information as well as the content will be stored by us permanently until the user objects; Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. f. GDPR).

Newsletters and electronic notifications

We send newsletters, e-mails and other electronic notifications (hereinafter "newsletter") only with the consent of the recipients or a legal permission. Insofar as the contents of the newsletter are specifically described in the context of a registration, they are decisive for the consent of the users. Otherwise, our newsletters contain information about our services and us.

In order to register for our newsletters, it is generally sufficient if you enter your e-mail address. However, we may ask you to provide a name so that we can address you personally in the newsletter, or other information if this is necessary for the purposes of the newsletter.

Double opt-in procedure: Registration for our newsletter takes place in a so-called double opt-in procedure. This means that after registration you will receive an e-mail in which you will be asked to confirm your registration. This confirmation is necessary so that nobody can register with someone else's e-mail address. The registrations for the newsletter are logged in order to be able to prove the registration process in accordance with the legal requirements. This includes storing the time of registration and confirmation as well as the IP address. Changes to your data stored by the shipping service provider are also logged.

Deletion and restriction of processing: We can store the unsubscribed e-mail addresses for up to three years on the basis of our legitimate interests before we delete them in order to be able to prove a previously given consent. The processing of this data is limited to the purpose of a possible defense against claims. An individual request for deletion is possible at any time, provided that the previous existence of consent is confirmed at the same time. In the case of obligations to permanently observe contradictions, we reserve the right to store the e-mail address in a blacklist (so-called "blocklist") solely for this purpose.

The registration process is logged on the basis of our legitimate interests for the purpose of proving that it was carried out properly. If we commission a service provider to send emails, this is done on the basis of our legitimate interests in an efficient and secure shipping system.

Content:

Information about us, our services, promotions and offers.

  • Types of data processed: Inventory data (e.g. names, addresses); contact information (e.g. email, phone numbers); meta/communication data (e.g. device information, IP addresses); usage data (e.g. websites visited, interest in content, access times).
  • Affected persons: communication partners; users (e.g. website visitors, users of online services).
  • Purposes of processing: direct marketing (e.g. by email or post); provision of contractual services and customer service.
  • Legal basis: Consent (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. a. GDPR); legitimate interests (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. f. GDPR).
  • Possibility of objection (opt-out): You can cancel the receipt of our newsletter at any time, ie revoke your consent or object to further receipt. You will find a link to cancel the newsletter either at the end of each newsletter or you can use one of the contact options given above, preferably e-mail.

Further guidance on processing operations, procedures and services:

  • Measurement of opening and click rates: The newsletters contain a so-called "web beacon", ie a pixel-sized file that is retrieved from our server when the newsletter is opened or, if we use a shipping service provider, from their server of this retrieval, technical information, such as information about the browser and your system, as well as your IP address and the time of retrieval, is initially collected.This information is used to technically improve our newsletter on the basis of the technical data or the target groups and their reading behavior on the basis of their retrieval locations (which can be determined using the IP address) or access times are used. This analysis also includes determining whether the newsletters are opened and when they are opened. Legal basis: Consent (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. a. GDPR).
  • Prerequisite for the use of free services: Consent to the sending of mailings can be made dependent on the use of free services (e.g. access to certain content or participation in certain campaigns). If users would like to take advantage of the free service without registering for the newsletter, we ask that you contact us.
  • CleverReach: email marketing platform; Service provider: CleverReach GmbH & Co. KG, //CRASH Building, Schafjückenweg 2, 26180 Rastede, Germany; Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. f. GDPR); Website: https://www.cleverreach.com/de ; Data protection declaration: https://www.cleverreach.com/de/datenschutz/ ; Order processing agreement: Provided by the service provider.

Promotional communication via e-mail, post, fax or telephone

We process personal data for the purpose of advertising communication, which can take place via various channels, such as e-mail, telephone, post or fax, in accordance with legal requirements.

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

After revocation or objection, we store the data required to prove the previous authorization for contacting or sending for up to three years after the end of the year of revocation or objection based on our legitimate interests. The processing of this data is limited to the purpose of a possible defense against claims. On the basis of the legitimate interest in permanently observing the revocation or objection of the user, we also store the data required to avoid being contacted again (e.g. e-mail address, telephone number, name depending on the communication channel).

  • Types of data processed: Inventory data (e.g. names, addresses); contact information (e.g. email, telephone numbers).
  • Affected persons: communication partners.
  • Purposes of processing: direct marketing (e.g. by e-mail or post).
  • Legal basis: Consent (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. a. GDPR); Legitimate interests (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. f. GDPR).

Web analysis, monitoring and optimization

The web analysis (also referred to as "reach measurement") serves to evaluate the flow of visitors to our online offer and can include behavior, interests or demographic information about the visitors, such as age or gender, as pseudonymous values. With the help of the range analysis, we can, for example, identify at what time our online offer or its functions or content are used most frequently or invite people to use them again. We can also understand which areas need optimization.

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

Unless otherwise stated below, profiles, ie data summarized for a usage process, can be created for these purposes and information can be stored in a browser or in a terminal device and read from it. The information collected includes, in particular, websites visited and elements used there, as well as technical information such as the browser used, the computer system used and information on usage times. If users have agreed to the collection of their location data from us or from the providers of the services we use, location data may also be processed.

The IP addresses of the users are also saved. However, we use an IP masking process (ie pseudonymization by shortening the IP address) to protect users. In general, no clear user data (e.g. e-mail addresses or names) are stored in the context of web analysis, A/B testing and optimization, but pseudonyms. This means that we as well as the providers of the software used do not know the actual identity of the users, but only the information stored in their profiles for the purpose of the respective procedures.

  • Types of data processed: usage data (e.g. websites visited, interest in content, access times); meta/communication data (e.g. device information, IP addresses).
  • Affected persons: users (e.g. website visitors, users of online services).
  • Purposes of processing: range measurement (e.g. access statistics, recognition of returning visitors); profiles with user-related information (creating user profiles); tracking (e.g. interest/behavioural profiling, use of cookies); provision of our online offer and user-friendliness.
  • Security measures: IP masking (pseudonymization of the IP address).
  • Legal basis: Consent (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. a. GDPR).

Further guidance on processing operations, procedures and services:

  • Google Analytics: web analysis, range measurement and measurement of user flows; Service provider: Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland, parent company: Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheater Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA; Legal basis: Consent (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. a. GDPR); Website: https://marketingplatform.google.com/intl/de/about/analytics/ ; Privacy Policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy ; Order processing contract: https://business.safety.google/adsprocessorterms ; Standard contractual clauses (ensuring the level of data protection when processing in third countries): https://business.safety.google/adsprocessorterms ; Objection option (opt-out): opt-out plugin: https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout?hl=de , settings for the display of advertisements: https://adssettings.google.com/authenticated ; More information: https://privacy.google.com/businesses/adsservices (types of processing and the data processed).
  • Google Analytics 4: We use Google Analytics to perform user analysis based on a pseudonymous user identification number. This identification number does not contain any unique data, such as names or e-mail addresses. It is used to assign analysis information to an end device in order to recognize which content the user has called up within one or more usage processes, which search terms they have used, called them up again or interacted with our online offer. The time of use and its duration are also stored, as well as the sources of the users who refer to our online offer and technical aspects of their end devices and browsers. Pseudonymous profiles of users are created with information from the use of various devices, whereby cookies can be used. In analytics, higher level geographic location data is provided by capturing the following metadata based on IP search: "city" (and the city's derived latitude and longitude), "continent", "country", "region" , "subcontinent" (and their ID-based equivalents). To ensure the protection of user data in the EU, Google receives and processes all user data via domains and servers within the EU. The IP address of the users is not logged and by default the last two digits are truncated. The IP address is shortened on EU servers for EU users. Also, all sensitive data collected from EU users is deleted before being collected through EU domains and servers; Service provider: Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland, parent company: Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheater Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA; Legal basis: Consent (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. a. GDPR); Website: https://marketingplatform.google.com/intl/de/about/analytics/ ; Privacy Policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy ; Order processing contract: https://business.safety.google/adsprocessorterms/ ; Standard contractual clauses (ensuring the level of data protection when processing in third countries): https://business.safety.google/adsprocessorterms ; Objection option (opt-out): opt-out plugin: https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout?hl=de , settings for the display of advertisements: https://adssettings.google.com/authenticated ; More information: https://privacy.google.com/businesses/adsservices (types of processing and the data processed).
  • Google Tag Manager: Google Tag Manager is a solution with which we can manage so-called website tags via an interface and thus integrate other services into our online offer (please refer to further information in this data protection declaration). With the Tag Manager itself (which implements the tags), e.g. for example, no user profiles have been created or cookies have been saved. Google only learns the IP address of the user, which is necessary to run Google Tag Manager; Service provider: Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland, parent company: Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheater Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA; Legal basis: Consent (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. a. GDPR); Website: https://marketingplatform.google.com ; Privacy Policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy ; Order processing contract: https://business.safety.google/adsprocessorterms ; Standard contractual clauses (ensuring the level of data protection when processing in third countries): https://business.safety.google/adsprocessorterms ; More information: https://privacy.google.com/businesses/adsservices (types of processing and the data processed).

Online marketing

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

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

The IP addresses of the users are also saved. However, we use available IP masking procedures (ie pseudonymization by shortening the IP address) to protect users. In general, no clear user data (such as e-mail addresses or names) are stored as part of the online marketing process, but pseudonyms. This means that we and the providers of the online marketing process do not know the actual identity of the users, only the information stored in their profiles.

The information in the profiles is usually stored in the cookies or by means of similar procedures. These cookies can later generally also be read on other websites that use the same online marketing procedure and analyzed for the purpose of displaying content as well as supplemented with further data and stored on the server of the online marketing procedure provider.

As an exception, clear data can be assigned to the profiles. This is the case, for example, if the users are members of a social network whose online marketing process we use and the network connects the user's profile with the aforementioned information. We kindly ask you to note that users can make additional agreements with the providers, e.g. by giving their consent during registration.

In principle, we only receive access to summarized information about the success of our advertisements. However, we can use so-called conversion measurements to check which of our online marketing processes have led to a so-called conversion, ie, to a contract with us, for example. The conversion measurement is only used to analyze the success of our marketing measures.

Unless otherwise stated, please assume that cookies used will be stored for a period of two years.

  • Types of data processed: usage data (e.g. websites visited, interest in content, access times); meta/communication data (e.g. device information, IP addresses).
  • Affected persons: users (e.g. website visitors, users of online services).
  • Purposes of processing: range measurement (e.g. access statistics, recognition of returning visitors); tracking (e.g. interest/behavioural profiling, use of cookies); marketing; profiles with user-related information (creating user profiles); conversion measurement (measurement of the effectiveness of marketing measures).
  • Security measures: IP masking (pseudonymization of the IP address).
  • Legal basis: Consent (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. a. GDPR).
  • Possibility of objection (opt-out): We refer to the data protection notices of the respective providers and the possibilities of objection specified for the providers (so-called "opt-out"). If no explicit opt-out option has been specified, you can turn off cookies in your browser settings. However, this can limit the functions of our online offer. We therefore also recommend the following opt-out options, which are offered in summary for the respective areas: a) Europe: https://www.youronlinechoices.eu . b) Canada: https://www.youradchoices.ca/choices . c) USA: https://www.aboutads.info/choices . d) Cross-Territory: https://optout.aboutads.info .

Further guidance on processing operations, procedures and services:

  • Google Ads and conversion measurement: We use the online marketing process "Google Ads" to place ads on the Google advertising network (e.g., in search results, in videos, on websites, etc.) so that they are displayed to users who have a presumed interest in the ads (so-called "conversion"). We also measure the conversion of the ads. However, we only find out the anonymous total number of users who clicked on our ad and were forwarded to a page with a so-called "conversion tracking tag". However, we do not receive any information that could be used to identify users; Service provider: Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland, parent company: Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheater Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA; Legal basis: Consent (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. a. GDPR); Website: https://marketingplatform.google.com ; Privacy Policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy ; Further information: Types of processing and the data processed: https://privacy.google.com/businesses/adsservices ; Data processing terms between controllers and standard contractual clauses for third-country transfers of data: https://business.safety.google/adscontrollerterms .
  • Google Adsense with personalized ads: We use the Google Adsense service with personalized ads, with the help of which ads are displayed within our online offering and we receive payment for their display or other use; Service provider: Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland, parent company: Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheater Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA; Legal basis: Consent (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. a. GDPR); Website: https://marketingplatform.google.com ; Privacy Policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy ; Further information: Types of processing and the data processed: https://privacy.google.com/businesses/adsservices ; Data processing terms for Google advertising products: Information on services Data processing conditions between controllers and standard contractual clauses for third country transfers of data: https://business.safety.google/adscontrollerterms .

Customer reviews and rating methods

We participate in review and rating processes to evaluate, optimize, and promote our services. If users rate us via the rating platforms or methods involved or give us feedback in any other way, the general terms and conditions of business or terms of use and the data protection notices of the providers also apply. As a rule, the evaluation also requires registration with the respective providers.

In order to ensure that the reviewers have actually used our services, we transmit the data required for this with regard to the customer and the service used to the respective rating platform (including name, e-mail address and order number or article number). This data is only used to verify the authenticity of the user.

  • Types of data processed: contract data (e.g. subject matter of contract, term, customer category); usage data (e.g. websites visited, interest in content, access times); meta/communication data (e.g. device information, IP addresses).
  • Affected persons: customers; users (e.g. website visitors, users of online services).
  • Purposes of processing: feedback (e.g. collecting feedback via online form); marketing.
  • Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. f. GDPR).

Further guidance on processing operations, procedures and services:

  • Evaluation widget: We integrate so-called "rating widgets" into our online offer. A widget is a functional and content element integrated into our online offer that displays variable information. It can be displayed, for example, in the form of a seal or comparable element, sometimes also called a "badge". In this case, the corresponding content of the widget is displayed within our online offer, but it is retrieved at that moment from the servers of the respective widget provider. This is the only way to always show the current content, especially the current rating. For this purpose, a data connection must be established from the website called up within our online offer to the server of the widget provider and the widget provider receives certain technical data (access data, including IP address), which are necessary so that the content of the widget can be delivered to the user's browser. Furthermore, the widget provider receives information that users have visited our online offer. This information may be stored in a cookie and used by the widget provider to identify which online offers participating in the evaluation process have been visited by the user. The information may be stored in a user profile and used for advertising or market research purposes; Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. f. GDPR).
  • Trustpilot: review platform; Service Provider: Trustpilot A/S, Pilestræde 58, 5, 1112 Copenhagen, Denmark; Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. f. GDPR); Website: https://de.trustpilot.com ; Privacy Policy: https://de.legal.trustpilot.com/end-user-privacy-terms .

Presence in social networks (social media)

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

We would like to point out that user data can be processed outside of the European Union. This can result in risks for the user, because it could make it more difficult to enforce the user's rights, for example.

Furthermore, user data is usually processed within social networks for market research and advertising purposes. For example, usage profiles can be created on the basis of usage behavior and the resulting interests of users. The usage profiles can in turn be used, for example, to place advertisements inside and outside the networks that presumably correspond to the interests of the user. For these purposes, cookies are usually stored on the users' computers, in which the usage behavior and the interests of the users are stored. Furthermore, data can also be stored in the usage profiles independently of the devices used by the users (especially if the users are members of the respective platforms and are logged in to them).

For a detailed description of the respective forms of processing and the possibility of objection (opt-out), we refer to the data protection declarations and information provided by the operators of the respective networks.

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

  • Types of data processed: contact details (e.g. e-mail, telephone numbers); content data (e.g. entries in online forms); usage data (e.g. websites visited, interest in content, access times); meta/communication data (e.g. device information, IP addresses).
  • Affected persons: users (e.g. website visitors, users of online services).
  • Purposes of processing: contact requests and communication; feedback (e.g. collecting feedback via online form); marketing.
  • Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. f. GDPR).

Further guidance on processing operations, procedures and services:

Plugins and embedded functions and content

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

The integration always requires that the third-party providers of this content process the IP address of the user, since without the IP address they could not send the content to their browser. The IP address is thus required for the display of this content or function. We strive to use only such content whose respective providers use the IP address only for the delivery of the content. Third-party providers may also use so-called pixel tags (invisible graphics, also known as "web beacons") for statistical or marketing purposes. The "pixel tags" can be used to analyze information such as visitor traffic on the pages of this website. The pseudonymous information may also be stored in cookies on the user's device and may contain, among other things, technical information about the browser and operating system, referring websites, the time of visit and other information about the use of our online offer as well as be combined with such information from other sources.

  • Types of data processed: usage data (e.g. websites visited, interest in content, access times); meta/communication data (e.g. device information, IP addresses); inventory data (e.g. names, addresses); contact information (e.g. email, phone numbers); content data (e.g. entries in online forms).
  • Affected persons: users (e.g. website visitors, users of online services).
  • Purposes of processing: Provision of our online offer and user-friendliness; profiles with user-related information (creating user profiles); marketing.
  • Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. f. GDPR).

Further guidance on processing operations, procedures and services:

  • Instagram plugins and content: Instagram plugins and content - This can include content such as images, videos or text and buttons with which users can share content from this online offer within Instagram. - We are jointly responsible with Meta Platforms Ireland Limited for the collection or receipt as part of a transmission (but not further processing) of "Event Data" provided by Facebook using features of Instagram (e.g. content embedding features) running on our online offer is executed, collected or received as part of a transmission for the following purposes, jointly responsible: a) Display of content and advertising information that correspond to the presumed interests of the user; b) Delivery of commercial and transaction-related messages (e.g. addressing users via Facebook Messenger); c) Improving the delivery of ads and personalizing functions and content (e.g. improving the recognition of which content or advertising information presumably corresponds to the interests of users). We have concluded a special agreement with Facebook ("Addendum for those responsible", https://www.facebook.com/legal/controller_addendum ), which regulates in particular which security measures Facebook must observe ( https://www.facebook. com/legal/terms/data_security_terms ) and in which Facebook has agreed to fulfill the rights of the data subject (ie users can, for example, send information or requests for deletion directly to Facebook). Note: If Facebook provides us with measurements, analyzes and reports (which are aggregated, i.e. do not contain any information on individual users and are anonymous to us), then this processing does not take place within the framework of joint responsibility, but on the basis of an order processing contract ("Data Processing Terms"). , https://www.facebook.com/legal/terms/dataprocessing ), the "Data Security Terms" ( https://www.facebook.com/legal/terms/data_security_terms ) and with regard to processing in the USA of standard contractual clauses ("Facebook-EU data transfer addendum, https://www.facebook.com/legal/EU_data_transfer_addendum ). The rights of users (in particular to information, deletion, objection and complaints to the competent supervisory authority) are guaranteed by the agreements with Facebook unrestricted; Service provider: Instagram Inc., 1601 Willow Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA; Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art t. 6 paragraph 1 sentence 1 lit. f. GDPR); Website: https://www.instagram.com ; Privacy Policy: https://instagram.com/about/legal/privacy .
  • YouTube videos: video content; Service provider: Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland, parent company: Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheater Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA; Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. f. GDPR); Website: https://www.youtube.com ; Privacy Policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy ; Objection option (opt-out): opt-out plugin: https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout?hl=de , settings for the display of advertisements: https://adssettings.google.com/authenticated .
  • Vimeo: video content; Service Provider: Vimeo Inc., Attention: Legal Department, 555 West 18th Street New York, New York 10011, USA; Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. f. GDPR); Website: https://vimeo.com ; Privacy Policy: https://vimeo.com/privacy ; Possibility of objection (opt-out): We would like to point out that Vimeo can use Google Analytics and refer to the data protection declaration ( https://policies.google.com/privacy ) and the opt-out options for Google Analytics ( https ://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout?hl=de ) or Google's settings for data use for marketing purposes ( https://adssettings.google.com/ ).

Management, organization and support tools

We use services, platforms and software from other providers (hereinafter referred to as “third-party providers”) for the purposes of organisation, management, planning and the provision of our services. When selecting third-party providers and their services, we observe the legal requirements.

In this context, personal data can be processed and stored on the servers of third-party providers. Various data may be affected by this, which we process in accordance with this data protection declaration. This data can include, in particular, master data and contact details of users, data on transactions, contracts, other processes and their content.

If users are referred to the third-party providers or their software or platforms as part of communication, business or other relationships with us, the third-party providers can process usage data and metadata for security purposes, for service optimization or for marketing purposes. We therefore ask you to observe the data protection notices of the respective third-party providers.

  • Types of data processed: content data (e.g. entries in online forms); usage data (e.g. websites visited, interest in content, access times); meta/communication data (e.g. device information, IP addresses).
  • Affected persons: communication partners; users (e.g. website visitors, users of online services).
  • Purposes of processing: provision of contractual services and customer service; office and organizational procedures.

Rights of data subjects

As a data subject, you have various rights under the GDPR, which result in particular from Art. 15 to 21 GDPR:

  • Right of objection: You have the right, for reasons arising from your particular situation, to object at any time to the processing of your personal data, which is based on Article 6 Paragraph 1 lit. e or f GDPR; this also applies to profiling based on these provisions. If the personal data concerning you is processed in order to operate direct advertising, you have the right to object at any time to the processing of your personal data for the purpose of such advertising; this also applies to profiling insofar as it is associated with such direct advertising.
  • Right of withdrawal for consent: You have the right to withdraw your consent at any time.
  • Right to information: You have the right to request confirmation as to whether the data in question is being processed and to request information about this data as well as further information and a copy of the data in accordance with legal requirements.
  • Right to rectification: In accordance with legal requirements, you have the right to request the completion of the data concerning you or the correction of incorrect data concerning you.
  • Right to deletion and restriction of processing: You have the right, in accordance with the legal requirements, to request that data concerning you be deleted immediately, or alternatively to request a restriction of the processing of the data in accordance with the legal requirements.
  • Right to data portability: You have the right to receive the data that you have provided to us in accordance with the legal requirements in a structured, common and machine-readable format or to request that it be transmitted to another person responsible.
  • Complaint to supervisory authority: Without prejudice to any other administrative or judicial remedy, you have the right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority, in particular in the Member State of your habitual residence, place of work or the place of the alleged infringement, if you consider that the processing of personal data concerning you infringes the requirements of the GDPR.

Definitions of terms

This section provides you with an overview of the terms used in this data protection declaration. Many of the terms are taken from the law and defined above all in Art. 4 GDPR. The legal definitions are binding. The following explanations, on the other hand, are intended primarily for understanding. The terms are sorted alphabetically.

  • Conversion measurement: The conversion measurement (also known as "visit action evaluation") is a method with which the effectiveness of marketing measures can be determined. For this purpose, a cookie is usually stored on the user's device within the website on which the marketing measures take place and then called up again on the target website. For example, this allows us to understand whether the ads we placed on other websites were successful.
  • Personal data: "Personal data" means any information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person (hereinafter "data subject"); an identifiable natural person is one who can be identified directly or indirectly, in particular by means of assignment to an identifier such as a name, an identification number, location data, an online identifier (e.g. cookie) or one or more special features, are an expression of the physical, physiological, genetic, mental, economic, cultural or social identity of that natural person.
  • Profiles with user-related information: The processing of "profiles with user-related information", or "profiles" for short, includes any type of automated processing of personal data, which consists of using this personal data to determine certain personal aspects relating to a natural person (depending on the type of profiling, different information regarding demographics, behavior and interests, such as interaction with websites and their content, etc.) can be analyzed, evaluated or predicted (e.g. interests in certain content or products, click behavior on a website or location). Cookies and web beacons are often used for profiling purposes.
  • Range measurement: The range measurement (also known as web analytics) is used to evaluate the flow of visitors to an online offer and can include the behavior or interests of visitors in certain information, such as website content. With the help of the range analysis, website owners can, for example, see at what time visitors visit their website and what content they are interested in. This enables them, for example, to better adapt the content of the website to the needs of their visitors. Pseudonymous cookies and web beacons are often used for range analysis purposes in order to recognize returning visitors and thus obtain more precise analyzes of the use of an online offer.
  • Tracking: One speaks of "tracking" when the behavior of users can be traced across several online offers. As a rule, behavior and interest information with regard to the online offers used is stored in cookies or on servers of the providers of the tracking technologies (so-called profiling). This information can then be used, for example, to show users advertisements that are likely to match their interests.
  • Responsible: The "responsible person" is the natural or legal person, authority, institution or other body that alone or jointly with others decides on the purposes and means of processing personal data.
  • Processing: "Processing" is any process or series of processes carried out with or without the aid of automated processes in connection with personal data. The term goes far and covers practically every handling of data, be it collection, evaluation, storage, transmission or deletion.