This privacy policy explains the type, scope and purpose of the processing of personal data (hereinafter referred to as "data") within our online offering and the websites, functions and content associated with it, as well as external online presences, such as our social media profiles (hereinafter jointly referred to as "online offering"). With regard to the terms used, such as "processing" or "person responsible", we refer to the definitions in Art. 4 of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

Types of data processed:

- Inventory data (e.g., names, addresses).
- Contact data (e.g., e-mail, telephone numbers).
- Content data (e.g., text entries, photographs, videos).
- Usage data (e.g., websites visited, interest in content, access times).
- Meta/communication data (e.g., device information, IP addresses).

Categories of persons affected

Visitors and users of the online offer (hereinafter we refer to the persons affected collectively as "users").

Purpose of processing

- Provision of the online offer, its functions and contents.
- Answering contact requests and communicating with users.
- Security measures.
- Reach measurement/marketing

Terms used

"Personal data" is all information that relates to an identified or identifiable natural person (hereinafter "data subject"); a natural person is considered identifiable if he or she can be identified directly or indirectly, in particular by assignment to an identifier such as a name, an identification number, location data, an online identifier (e.g. cookie) or to one or more special characteristics that express the physical, physiological, genetic, psychological, economic, cultural or social identity of that natural person.

"Processing" means any operation or set of operations which is performed on personal data or on sets of personal data, whether or not by automated means. The term is broad and covers virtually any handling of data.

"Pseudonymisation" means the processing of personal data in such a way that the personal data can no longer be attributed to a specific data subject without the use of additional information, provided that this additional information is kept separately and is subject to technical and organisational measures to ensure that the personal data are not attributed to an identified or identifiable natural person.

"Profiling" means any form of automated processing of personal data which consists in the use of these personal data to evaluate certain personal aspects relating to a natural person, in particular to analyse or predict aspects concerning that natural person's performance at work, economic situation, health, personal preferences, interests, reliability, behaviour, location or movements.

The "controller" is the natural or legal person, public authority, agency or other body which alone or jointly with others decides on the purposes and means of processing personal data.

"Processor" means a natural or legal person, public authority, agency or other body that processes personal data on behalf of the controller.

Relevant legal bases

In accordance with Art. 13 GDPR, we will inform you of the legal basis for our data processing. If the legal basis is not mentioned in the data protection declaration, the following applies: The legal basis for obtaining consent is Art. 6 Para. 1 lit. a and Art. 7 GDPR, the legal basis for processing to fulfill our services and carry out contractual measures and answer inquiries is Art. 6 Para. 1 lit. b GDPR, the legal basis for processing to fulfill our legal obligations is Art. 6 Para. 1 lit. c GDPR, and the legal basis for processing to protect our legitimate interests is Art. 6 Para. 1 lit. f GDPR. In the event that vital interests of the data subject or another natural person require the processing of personal data, Art. 6 Para. 1 lit. d GDPR serves as the legal basis.

Security measures

In accordance with Art. 32 GDPR, we take appropriate technical and organizational measures to ensure a level of protection appropriate to the risk, taking into account the state of the art, the implementation costs and the nature, scope, circumstances and purposes of the processing as well as the varying likelihood of occurrence and severity of the risk to the rights and freedoms of natural persons.

The measures include in particular ensuring the confidentiality, integrity and availability of data by controlling physical access to the data, as well as the access, input, transfer, securing the availability and separation of data. Furthermore, we have set up procedures that ensure the exercise of data subjects' rights, deletion of data and response to threats to data. Furthermore, we take the protection of personal data into account when developing or selecting hardware, software and procedures, in accordance with the principle of data protection through technology design and through data protection-friendly default settings (Art. 25 GDPR).

Cooperation with processors and third parties

If, as part of our processing, we disclose data to other people and companies (processors or third parties), transmit it to them or otherwise grant them access to the data, this will only be done on the basis of a legal permission (e.g. if transmission of the data to third parties, such as payment service providers, is necessary to fulfill the contract in accordance with Art. 6 Para. 1 lit. b GDPR), you have consented, a legal obligation provides for this or on the basis of our legitimate interests (e.g. when using agents, web hosts, etc.).

If we commission third parties to process data on the basis of a so-called "order processing contract", this is done on the basis of Art. 28 GDPR.

Transfers to third countries

If we process data in a third country (i.e. outside the European Union (EU) or the European Economic Area (EEA)) or if this occurs in the context of the use of third-party services or disclosure or transmission of data to third parties, this only occurs if it is necessary to fulfil our (pre)contractual obligations, on the basis of your consent, due to a legal obligation or on the basis of our legitimate interests. Subject to legal or contractual permissions, we only process or have the data processed in a third country if the special requirements of Art. 44 ff. GDPR are met. This means that the processing takes place, for example, on the basis of special guarantees, such as the officially recognised determination of a data protection level corresponding to that of the EU (e.g. for the USA through the "Privacy Shield") or compliance with officially recognised special contractual obligations (so-called "standard contractual clauses").

Rights of the data subjects

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 Art. 15 GDPR.

You have the right, in accordance with Art. 16 GDPR, to request that the data concerning you be completed or that incorrect data concerning you be corrected.

In accordance with Art. 17 GDPR, you have the right to request that the data in question be deleted immediately or, alternatively, to request that the processing of the data be restricted in accordance with Art. 18 GDPR.

You have the right to request that the data concerning you that you have made available to us be received in accordance with Art. 20 GDPR and to request that it be transmitted to other responsible parties.

You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the competent supervisory authority in accordance with Art. 77 GDPR.

Right of withdrawal

You have the right to withdraw consent granted in accordance with Art. 7 Para. 3 GDPR with effect for the future

Right of objection

You can object to the future processing of data concerning you at any time in accordance with Art. 21 GDPR. The objection can be made in particular against processing for direct marketing purposes.

Cookies and the right to object to direct advertising

"Cookies" are small files that are stored on users' computers. Different information can be stored within cookies. A cookie is primarily used to store information about a user (or the device on which the cookie is stored) during or after their visit to an online service. Temporary cookies, or "session cookies" or "transient cookies", are cookies that are deleted after a user leaves an online service and closes their browser. Such a cookie can store, for example, the contents of a shopping cart in an online shop or a login status. Cookies that remain stored even after the browser is closed are referred to as "permanent" or "persistent". For example, the login status can be stored if the user visits the site after several days. The interests of the user can also be stored in such a cookie, which are used for reach measurement or marketing purposes. Cookies that are offered by providers other than the person responsible for operating the online service are referred to as "third-party cookies" (otherwise, if they are only their cookies, they are referred to as "first-party cookies").

We can use temporary and permanent cookies and explain this in our privacy policy.

If users do not want cookies to be saved on their computer, they are asked to deactivate the corresponding option in the system settings of their browser. Saved cookies can be deleted in the system settings of the browser. Excluding cookies can lead to functional restrictions of this online service.

A general objection to the use of cookies used for online marketing purposes can be declared for a large number of services, especially in the case of tracking, via the US website http://www.aboutads.info/choices/ or the EU website http://www.youronlinechoices.com/. Furthermore, the storage of cookies can be achieved by deactivating them in the browser settings. Please note that in this case, not all functions of this website may be available.

Deletion of data

The data we process is deleted or restricted in accordance with Art. 17 and 18 GDPR. Unless expressly stated in this data protection declaration, the data stored by us is deleted as soon as it is no longer required for its intended purpose and there are no statutory retention periods that prevent deletion. If the data is not deleted because it is required for other legally permissible purposes, its processing will be restricted. This means that the data is blocked and not processed for other purposes. This applies, for example, to data that must be retained for commercial or tax law reasons.

According to legal requirements in Germany, the data is stored for 10 years in accordance with Sections 147 Para. 1 AO, 257 Para. 1 No. 1 and 4, Para. 4 HGB (books, records, management reports, accounting documents, commercial books, documents relevant for taxation, etc.) and 6 years in accordance with Section 257 Para. 1 No. 2 and 3, Para. 4 HGB (commercial letters).

According to legal requirements in Austria, the data is stored for 7 years in accordance with Section 132 Para. 1 BAO (accounting documents, receipts/invoices, accounts, receipts, business papers, statements of income and expenditure, etc.), for 22 years in connection with real estate and for 10 years for documents in connection with electronically provided services, telecommunications, radio and television services that are provided to non-entrepreneurs in EU member states and for which the Mini One Stop Shop (MOSS) is used.

Contact

When you contact us (e.g. via contact form, email, telephone or via social media), the user's details are processed to process the contact request and its processing in accordance with Art. 6 Paragraph 1 Letter b) GDPR. Users' details can be stored in a customer relationship management system ("CRM system") or comparable inquiry organization.

We delete the inquiries if they are no longer required. We check the necessity every two years; statutory archiving obligations also apply.

Hosting and sending emails

The hosting services we use serve to provide the following services: infrastructure and platform services, computing capacity, storage space and database services, sending emails, security services and technical maintenance services that we use for the purpose of operating this online offering.

We or our hosting provider process inventory data, contact data, content data, contract data, usage data, meta and communication data of customers, interested parties and visitors to this online offering on the basis of our legitimate interests in the efficient and secure provision of this online offering in accordance with Art. 6 Para. 1 lit. f GDPR in conjunction with Art. 28 GDPR (conclusion of a data processing contract).

Collection of access data and log files

We, or our hosting provider, collect data on every access to the server on which this service is located (so-called server log files) on the basis of our legitimate interests within the meaning of Art. 6 Para. 1 lit. f. GDPR. The access data includes the name of the website accessed, file, date and time of access, amount of data transferred, notification of successful access, browser type and version, the user's operating system, referrer URL (the previously visited page), IP address and the requesting provider.

Log file information is stored for a maximum of 7 days for security reasons (e.g. to clarify misuse or fraud) and then deleted. Data that needs to be retained for evidentiary purposes is exempt from deletion until the respective incident has been finally clarified.

Google Tag Manager

Google Tag Manager is a solution that allows us to manage so-called website tags via an interface (and thus integrate Google Analytics and other Google marketing services into our online offering, for example). The Tag Manager itself (which implements the tags) does not process any personal data of users. With regard to the processing of users' personal data, reference is made to the following information on Google services. Usage guidelines: https://www.google.com/intl/de/tagmanager/use-policy.html.

Google Analytics

We use Google Analytics, a web analysis service provided by Google LLC ("Google"), based on our legitimate interests (i.e. interest in the analysis, optimization and economic operation of our online offering within the meaning of Art. 6 Para. 1 lit. f. GDPR). Google uses cookies. The information generated by the cookie about the use of the online offering by users is usually transferred to a Google server in the USA and stored there.

Google is certified under the Privacy Shield Agreement and thus offers a guarantee of compliance with European data protection law (https://www.privacyshield.gov/participant?id=a2zt000000001L5AAI&status=Active).

Google will use this information on our behalf to evaluate the use of our online offering by users, to compile reports on the activities within this online offering and to provide us with other services related to the use of this online offering and internet usage. Pseudonymous user profiles can be created from the processed data.

We only use Google Analytics with activated IP anonymization. This means that the IP address of users is shortened by Google within member states of the European Union or in other contracting states to the Agreement on the European Economic Area. Only in exceptional cases is the full IP address transmitted to a Google server in the USA and shortened there.

The IP address transmitted by the user's browser is not merged with other Google data. Users can prevent the storage of cookies by setting their browser software accordingly; users can also prevent Google from collecting the data generated by the cookie and related to their use of the online service and from processing this data by Google by downloading and installing the browser plug-in available under the following link: http://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout?hl=de.

For more information about Google's use of data, settings and objection options, see Google's privacy policy (https://policies.google.com/technologies/ads) and the settings for the display of advertisements by Google (https://adssettings.google.com/authenticated).

Users' personal data is deleted or anonymized after 14 months.

Google Universal Analytics

We use Google Analytics in the form of "Universal Analytics". "Universal Analytics" refers to a Google Analytics process in which user analysis is carried out on the basis of a pseudonymous user ID and thus a pseudonymous profile of the user is created with information from the use of various devices (so-called "cross-device tracking").

Target group formation with Google Analytics

We use Google Analytics to only display the ads placed within advertising services of Google and its partners to users who have also shown an interest in our online offering or who have certain characteristics (e.g. interests in certain topics or products determined based on the websites visited) that we transmit to Google (so-called "remarketing" or "Google Analytics audiences"). With the help of remarketing audiences, we also want to ensure that our ads correspond to the potential interests of users.

Integration of third-party services and content

We use content or service offerings from third parties within our online offering on the basis of our legitimate interests (i.e. interest in the analysis, optimization and economic operation of our online offering within the meaning of Art. 6 Para. 1 lit. f. GDPR) in order to integrate their content and services, such as videos or fonts (hereinafter referred to uniformly as "content").

This always requires that the third-party providers of this content perceive the IP address of the users, since without the IP address they would not be able to send the content to their browser. The IP address is therefore required to display this content. We endeavor to only use content whose respective providers only use the IP address to deliver the content. Third-party providers can also use so-called pixel tags (invisible graphics, also known as "web beacons") for statistical or marketing purposes. The "pixel tags" can be used to evaluate information such as visitor traffic 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, time of visit and other information about the use of our online offer, as well as be linked to such information from other sources.

Google Fonts

We integrate the fonts ("Google Fonts") of the provider Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA. Data protection declaration: https://www.google.com/policies/privacy/, Opt-Out: https://adssettings.google.com/authenticated.

Google Maps

We integrate the maps of the "Google Maps" service of the provider Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA. The data processed may include in particular IP addresses and location data of users, which are not collected without their consent (usually carried out as part of the settings of their mobile devices). The data may be processed in the USA. Data protection declaration: https://www.google.com/policies/privacy/, Opt-Out: https://adssettings.google.com/authenticated.

Typekit fonts from Adobe

On the basis of our legitimate interests (i.e. interest in the analysis, optimization and economic operation of our online offering within the meaning of Art. 6 Para. 1 lit. f. GDPR), we use external "Typekit" fonts from the provider Adobe Systems Software Ireland Limited, 4-6 Riverwalk, Citywest Business Campus, Dublin 24, Republic of Ireland. Adobe is certified under the Privacy Shield Agreement and thus offers a guarantee of compliance with European data protection law (https://www.privacyshield.gov/participant?id=a2zt0000000TNo9AAG&status=Active).