We have written this privacy statement (version 25.10.2020-311224759) to explain to you, in accordance with the requirements of the General Data Protection Regulation (EU) 2016/679, what information we collect, how we use data and what choices you have as a visitor to this website.

Unfortunately, by their very nature, these explanations sound very technical, but we have tried to describe the most important things as simply and clearly as possible when drafting them.

Automatic data storage

Nowadays, when you visit websites, certain information is automatically created and stored, including on this website.

When you visit our website, as you are doing right now, our web server (the computer on which this website is stored) automatically stores data such as

• the address (URL) of the website you are visiting
• browser and browser version
• the operating system used
• the address (URL) of the previously visited page (referrer URL)
• the host name and IP address of the device from which access is made
• the date and time
• in files (web server log files).

As a rule, web server log files are stored for a fortnight and then automatically deleted. We do not pass on this data, but we cannot exclude the possibility that this data may be viewed in the event of unlawful behaviour.

Cookies

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

What exactly are cookies?

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

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

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

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

For example, cookie data may look like this:

• Name: _ga
• Expiration time: 2 years
• Usage: Differentiation of website visitors
• Example value: GA1.2.1326744211.152311224759

A browser should support the following minimum sizes:

• A cookie should be able to contain at least 4096 bytes
• It should be possible to store at least 50 cookies per domain
• A total of at least 3000 cookies should be able to be stored

What types of cookies are there?

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

We can distinguish between 4 types of cookies:

Absolutely necessary cookies.

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

Functional cookies

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

Goal-oriented cookies

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

Advertising cookies

These cookies are also called targeting cookies. They are used to provide the user with individually adapted advertising. This can be very practical, but also very annoying.

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

How can I delete cookies?

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

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

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

If you generally do not want cookies, you can set up your browser so that it always informs you when a cookie is to be set. In this way, you can decide for each individual cookie whether you allow the cookie or not. The procedure varies depending on the browser. The best thing to do is to search for the instructions in Google using the search term “Delete Cookies Chrome” or “Disable Cookies Chrome” in the case of a Chrome browser or replace the word “Chrome” with the name of your browser, e.g. Edge, Firefox, Safari.

What about my data protection?

The so-called “Cookie Guidelines” have been in place since 2009. These state that the storage of cookies requires your consent. Within the EU countries, however, there are still very different reactions to these directives. In Germany, the Cookie Directives have not been implemented as national law. Instead, this directive was largely implemented in § 15 para.3 of the German Telemedia Act (TMG).

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

Storage of personal data

Personal data that you submit to us electronically on this website, such as your name, e-mail address, address or other personal details when submitting a form or commenting on the blog, together with the time and IP address, will only be used by us for the stated purpose, kept secure and not passed on to third parties.

We therefore only use your personal data to communicate with those visitors who expressly request contact and to process the services and products offered on this website. We do not disclose your personal data without your consent, but we cannot exclude the possibility that this data may be accessed in the event of unlawful conduct.

If you send us personal data by e-mail – thus away from this website – we cannot guarantee secure transmission and protection of your data. We recommend that you never send confidential data by e-mail without encryption.

According to Article 6 (1) a DSGVO (lawfulness of processing), the legal basis is that you give us consent to process the data you have entered. You can revoke this consent at any time – an informal email is sufficient, you will find our contact details in the imprint.

Rights according to the General Data Protection Regulation

According to the provisions of the DSGVO, you are generally entitled to the following rights:

• Right to rectification (Article 16 DSGVO)
• Right to erasure (“right to be forgotten”) (Article 17 DSGVO)
• Right to restriction of processing (Article 18 GDPR)
• Right to notification – obligation to notify in connection with the rectification or erasure of personal data or the 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 believe that the processing of your data violates data protection law or your data protection rights have otherwise been violated in any way, you can contact the Federal Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information (BfDI).

Evaluation of visitor behaviour

In the following data protection declaration, we inform you whether and how we evaluate data from your visit to this website. The evaluation of the collected data is generally anonymous and we cannot draw any conclusions about your person from your behaviour on this website.

You can find out more about how to object to this analysis of your visit data in the following data protection declaration.

TLS encryption with https

We use https to transmit data in a tap-proof manner on the Internet (data protection by technical design Article 25(1) DSGVO). By using TLS (Transport Layer Security), an encryption protocol for secure data transmission on the Internet, we can ensure the protection of confidential data. You can recognise the use of this data transmission protection by the small lock symbol at the top left of the browser and the use of the https scheme (instead of http) as part of our internet address.

Newsletter Privacy Policy

When you sign up for our newsletter, you submit the above personal information and give us the right to contact you by email. We use the data stored in the context of the registration for the newsletter exclusively for our newsletter and do not pass it on to third parties.