1. An overview of data protection

General infor­mation

The following infor­mation will provide you with an easy to navigate overview of what will happen with your personal data when you visit this website. The term “personal data” comprises all data that can be used to perso­nally identify you. For detailed infor­mation about the subject matter of data protection, please consult our Data Protection Decla­ration, which we have included beneath this copy.

Data recording on this website

Who is the respon­sible party for the recording of data on this website (i.e., the “controller”)?

The data on this website is processed by the operator of the website, whose contact infor­mation is available under section “Infor­mation about the respon­sible party (referred to as the “controller” in the GDPR)” in this Privacy Policy.

How do we record your data?

We collect your data as a result of your sharing of your data with us. This may, for instance be infor­mation you enter into our contact form.

Other data shall be recorded by our IT systems automa­ti­cally or after you consent to its recording during your website visit. This data comprises primarily technical infor­mation (e.g., web browser, operating system, or time the site was accessed). This infor­mation is recorded automa­ti­cally when you access this website.

What are the purposes we use your data for?

A portion of the infor­mation is generated to guarantee the error free provision of the website. Other data may be used to analyze your user patterns.

What rights do you have as far as your infor­mation is concerned?

You have the right to receive infor­mation about the source, recipients, and purposes of your archived personal data at any time without having to pay a fee for such disclo­sures. You also have the right to demand that your data are rectified or eradi­cated. If you have consented to data processing, you have the option to revoke this consent at any time, which shall affect all future data processing. Moreover, you have the right to demand that the processing of your data be restricted under certain circum­s­tances. Furthermore, you have the right to log a complaint with the competent super­vising agency.

Please do not hesitate to contact us at any time if you have questions about this or any other data protection related issues.

Analysis tools and tools provided by third parties

There is a possi­bility that your browsing patterns will be statis­ti­cally analyzed when your visit this website. Such analyses are performed primarily with what we refer to as analysis programs.

For detailed infor­mation about these analysis programs please consult our Data Protection Decla­ration below.

2. Hosting

External Hosting

This website is hosted by an external service provider (host). Personal data collected on this website are stored on the servers of the host. These may include, but are not limited to, IP addresses, contact requests, metadata and commu­ni­ca­tions, contract infor­mation, contact infor­mation, names, web page access, and other data generated through a web site.

The host is used for the purpose of fulfilling the contract with our potential and existing customers (Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR) and in the interest of secure, fast, and efficient provision of our online services by a profes­sional provider (Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR).

Our host will only process your data to the extent necessary to fulfil its perfor­mance obliga­tions and to follow our instruc­tions with respect to such data.

We are using the following host:

1&1 IONOS SE
Elgen­dorfer Str. 57
56410 Montabaur
Deutschland

Data processing

We have concluded a data processing agreement (DPA) with the above-mentioned provider. This is a contract mandated by data privacy laws that guarantees that they process personal data of our website visitors only based on our instruc­tions and in compliance with the GDPR.

3. General infor­mation and mandatory information

Data protection

The operators of this website and its pages take the protection of your personal data very seriously. Hence, we handle your personal data as confi­dential infor­mation and in compliance with the statutory data protection regula­tions and this Data Protection Declaration.

Whenever you use this website, a variety of personal infor­mation will be collected. Personal data comprises data that can be used to perso­nally identify you. This Data Protection Decla­ration explains which data we collect as well as the purposes we use this data for. It also explains how, and for which purpose the infor­mation is collected.

We herewith advise you that the trans­mission of data via the Internet (i.e., through e‑mail commu­ni­ca­tions) may be prone to security gaps. It is not possible to completely protect data against third-party access.

Infor­mation about the respon­sible party (referred to as the “controller” in the GDPR)

The data processing controller on this website is:

Consul­ting­Kontor GmbH
Alter Fisch­markt 3
20457 Hamburg

Phone: +49 (0)40 / 4321 4900
E‑mail: kontakt@consultingkontor.de

The controller is the natural person or legal entity that single-handedly or jointly with others makes decisions as to the purposes of and resources for the processing of personal data (e.g., names, e‑mail addresses, etc.).

Storage duration

Unless a more specific storage period has been specified in this privacy policy, your personal data will remain with us until the purpose for which it was collected no longer applies. If you assert a justified request for deletion or revoke your consent to data processing, your data will be deleted, unless we have other legally permis­sible reasons for storing your personal data (e.g., tax or commercial law retention periods); in the latter case, the deletion will take place after these reasons cease to apply.

Infor­mation on data transfer to the USA and other non-EU countries

Among other things, we use tools of companies domiciled in the United States or other from a data protection perspective non-secure non-EU countries. If these tools are active, your personal data may poten­tially be trans­ferred to these non-EU countries and may be processed there. We must point out that in these countries, a data protection level that is compa­rable to that in the EU cannot be guaranteed. For instance, U.S. enter­prises are under a mandate to release personal data to the security agencies and you as the data subject do not have any litigation options to defend yourself in court. Hence, it cannot be ruled out that U.S. agencies (e.g., the Secret Service) may process, analyze, and perma­nently archive your personal data for surveil­lance purposes. We have no control over these processing activities.

Revocation of your consent to the processing of data

A wide range of data processing transac­tions are possible only subject to your express consent. You can also revoke at any time any consent you have already given us. This shall be without prejudice to the lawfulness of any data collection that occurred prior to your revocation.

Right to object to the collection of data in special cases; right to object to direct adver­tising (Art. 21 GDPR)

IN THE EVENT THAT DATA ARE PROCESSED ON THE BASIS OF ART. 6(1)(E) OR (F) GDPR, YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO AT ANY TIME OBJECT TO THE PROCESSING OF YOUR PERSONAL DATA BASED ON GROUNDS ARISING FROM YOUR UNIQUE SITUATION. THIS ALSO APPLIES TO ANY PROFILING BASED ON THESE PROVI­SIONS. TO DETERMINE THE LEGAL BASIS, ON WHICH ANY PROCESSING OF DATA IS BASED, PLEASE CONSULT THIS DATA PROTECTION DECLA­RATION. IF YOU LOG AN OBJECTION, WE WILL NO LONGER PROCESS YOUR AFFECTED PERSONAL DATA, UNLESS WE ARE IN A POSITION TO PRESENT COMPELLING PROTECTION WORTHY GROUNDS FOR THE PROCESSING OF YOUR DATA, THAT OUTWEIGH YOUR INTERESTS, RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS OR IF THE PURPOSE OF THE PROCESSING IS THE CLAIMING, EXERCISING OR DEFENCE OF LEGAL ENTIT­LE­MENTS (OBJECTION PURSUANT TO ART. 21(1) GDPR).

IF YOUR PERSONAL DATA IS BEING PROCESSED IN ORDER TO ENGAGE IN DIRECT ADVER­TISING, YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO OBJECT TO THE PROCESSING OF YOUR AFFECTED PERSONAL DATA FOR THE PURPOSES OF SUCH ADVER­TISING AT ANY TIME. THIS ALSO APPLIES TO PROFILING TO THE EXTENT THAT IT IS AFFILIATED WITH SUCH DIRECT ADVER­TISING. IF YOU OBJECT, YOUR PERSONAL DATA WILL SUBSE­QUENTLY NO LONGER BE USED FOR DIRECT ADVER­TISING PURPOSES (OBJECTION PURSUANT TO ART. 21(2) GDPR).

Right to log a complaint with the competent super­visory agency

In the event of viola­tions of the GDPR, data subjects are entitled to log a complaint with a super­visory agency, in parti­cular in the member state where they usually maintain their domicile, place of work or at the place where the alleged violation occurred. The right to log a complaint is in effect regardless of any other adminis­trative or court procee­dings available as legal recourses.

Right to data portability

You have the right to demand that we hand over any data we automa­ti­cally process on the basis of your consent or in order to fulfil a contract be handed over to you or a third party in a commonly used, machine readable format. If you should demand the direct transfer of the data to another controller, this will be done only if it is techni­cally feasible.

SSL and/or TLS encryption

For security reasons and to protect the trans­mission of confi­dential content, such as purchase orders or inquiries you submit to us as the website operator, this website uses either an SSL or a TLS encryption program. You can recognize an encrypted connection by checking whether the address line of the browser switches from “http://” to “https://” and also by the appearance of the lock icon in the browser line.

If the SSL or TLS encryption is activated, data you transmit to us cannot be read by third parties.

Infor­mation about, recti­fi­cation and eradi­cation of data

Within the scope of the appli­cable statutory provi­sions, you have the right to at any time demand infor­mation about your archived personal data, their source and recipients as well as the purpose of the processing of your data. You may also have a right to have your data rectified or eradi­cated. If you have questions about this subject matter or any other questions about personal data, please do not hesitate to contact us at any time.

Right to demand processing restrictions

You have the right to demand the imposition of restric­tions as far as the processing of your personal data is concerned. To do so, you may contact us at any time. The right to demand restriction of processing applies in the following cases:

• In the event that you should dispute the correctness of your data archived by us, we will usually need some time to verify this claim. During the time that this inves­ti­gation is ongoing, you have the right to demand that we restrict the processing of your personal data.
• If the processing of your personal data was/is conducted in an unlawful manner, you have the option to demand the restriction of the processing of your data in lieu of demanding the eradi­cation of this data.
• If we do not need your personal data any longer and you need it to exercise, defend or claim legal entit­le­ments, you have the right to demand the restriction of the processing of your personal data instead of its eradication.
• If you have raised an objection pursuant to Art. 21(1) GDPR, your rights and our rights will have to be weighed against each other. As long as it has not been deter­mined whose interests prevail, you have the right to demand a restriction of the processing of your personal data.

If you have restricted the processing of your personal data, these data – with the exception of their archiving – may be processed only subject to your consent or to claim, exercise or defend legal entit­le­ments or to protect the rights of other natural persons or legal entities or for important public interest reasons cited by the European Union or a member state of the EU.

Rejection of unsoli­cited e‑mails

We herewith object to the use of contact infor­mation published in conjunction with the mandatory infor­mation to be provided in our Site Notice to send us promo­tional and infor­mation material that we have not expressly requested. The operators of this website and its pages reserve the express right to take legal action in the event of the unsoli­cited sending of promo­tional infor­mation, for instance via SPAM messages.

4. Recording of data on this website

Cookies

Our websites and pages use what the industry refers to as “cookies.” Cookies are small text files that do not cause any damage to your device. They are either stored temporarily for the duration of a session (session cookies) or they are perma­nently archived on your device (permanent cookies). Session cookies are automa­ti­cally deleted once you terminate your visit. Permanent cookies remain archived on your device until you actively delete them, or they are automa­ti­cally eradi­cated by your web browser.

In some cases, it is possible that third-party cookies are stored on your device once you enter our site (third-party cookies). These cookies enable you or us to take advantage of certain services offered by the third party (e.g., cookies for the processing of payment services).

Cookies have a variety of functions. Many cookies are techni­cally essential since certain website functions would not work in the absence of the cookies (e.g., the shopping cart function or the display of videos). The purpose of other cookies may be the analysis of user patterns or the display of promo­tional messages.

Cookies, which are required for the perfor­mance of electronic commu­ni­cation transac­tions (required cookies) or for the provision of certain functions you want to use (functional cookies, e.g., for the shopping cart function) or those that are necessary for the optimiz­ation of the website (e.g., cookies that provide measurable insights into the web audience), shall be stored on the basis of Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR, unless a different legal basis is cited. The operator of the website has a legitimate interest in the storage of cookies to ensure the techni­cally error free and optimized provision of the operator’s services. If your consent to the storage of the cookies has been requested, the respective cookies are stored exclu­sively on the basis of the consent obtained (Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR); this consent may be revoked at any time.

You have the option to set up your browser in such a manner that you will be notified any time cookies are placed and to permit the accep­tance of cookies only in specific cases. You may also exclude the accep­tance of cookies in certain cases or in general or activate the delete function for the automatic eradi­cation of cookies when the browser closes. If cookies are deacti­vated, the functions of this website may be limited.

In the event that third-party cookies are used or if cookies are used for analy­tical purposes, we will separ­ately notify you in conjunction with this Data Protection Policy and, if appli­cable, ask for your consent.

Consent with Borlabs Cookie

Our website uses the Borlabs consent technology to obtain your consent to the storage of certain cookies in your browser or for the use of certain techno­logies and for their data privacy protection compliant documen­tation. The provider of this technology is Borlabs – Benjamin A. Bornschein, Rübenkamp 32, 22305 Hamburg, Germany (herein­after referred to as Borlabs).

Whenever you visit our website, a Borlabs cookie will be stored in your browser, which archives any decla­ra­tions or revoca­tions of consent you have entered. These data are not shared with the provider of the Borlabs technology.

The recorded data shall remain archived until you ask us to eradicate them, delete the Borlabs cookie on your own or the purpose of storing the data no longer exists. This shall be without prejudice to any retention obliga­tions mandated by law. To review the details of Borlabs’ data processing policies, please visit https://de.borlabs.io/kb/welche-daten-speichert-borlabs-cookie/

We use the Borlabs cookie consent technology to obtain the decla­ra­tions of consent mandated by law for the use of cookies. The legal basis for the use of such cookies is Art. 6(1)© GDPR.

Server log files

The provider of this website and its pages automa­ti­cally collects and stores infor­mation in so-called server log files, which your browser commu­ni­cates to us automa­ti­cally. The infor­mation comprises:

• The type and version of browser used
• The used operating system
• Referrer URL
• The hostname of the accessing computer
• The time of the server inquiry
• The IP address

This data is not merged with other data sources.

This data is recorded on the basis of Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR. The operator of the website has a legitimate interest in the techni­cally error free depiction and the optimiz­ation of the operator’s website. In order to achieve this, server log files must be recorded.

Contact form

If you submit inquiries to us via our contact form, the infor­mation provided in the contact form as well as any contact infor­mation provided therein will be stored by us in order to handle your inquiry and in the event that we have further questions. We will not share this infor­mation without your consent.

The processing of these data is based on Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR, if your request is related to the execution of a contract or if it is necessary to carry out pre-contractual measures. In all other cases the processing is based on our legitimate interest in the effective processing of the requests addressed to us (Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR) or on your agreement (Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR) if this has been requested.

The infor­mation you have entered into the contact form shall remain with us until you ask us to eradicate the data, revoke your consent to the archiving of data or if the purpose for which the infor­mation is being archived no longer exists (e.g., after we have concluded our response to your inquiry). This shall be without prejudice to any mandatory legal provi­sions, in parti­cular retention periods.

Request by e‑mail, telephone, or fax

If you contact us by e‑mail, telephone or fax, your request, including all resulting personal data (name, request) will be stored and processed by us for the purpose of processing your request. We do not pass these data on without your consent.

These data are processed on the basis of Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR if your inquiry is related to the fulfillment of a contract or is required for the perfor­mance of pre-contractual measures. In all other cases, the data are processed on the basis of our legitimate interest in the effective handling of inquiries submitted to us (Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR) or on the basis of your consent (Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR) if it has been obtained.

The data sent by you to us via contact requests remain with us until you request us to delete, revoke your consent to the storage or the purpose for the data storage lapses (e.g. after completion of your request). Mandatory statutory provi­sions – in parti­cular statutory retention periods – remain unaffected.

5. Analysis tools and advertising

Google Analytics

This website uses functions of the web analysis service Google Analytics. The provider of this service is Google Ireland Limited (“Google”), Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland.

Google Analytics enables the website operator to analyze the behavior patterns of website visitors. To that end, the website operator receives a variety of user data, such as pages accessed, time spent on the page, the utilized operating system and the user’s origin. Google may conso­lidate these data in a profile that is allocated to the respective user or the user’s device.

Google Analytics uses techno­logies that make the recognition of the user for the purpose of analyzing the user behavior patterns (e.g., cookies or device finger­printing). The website use infor­mation recorded by Google is, as a rule trans­ferred to a Google server in the United States, where it is stored.

This analysis tool is used on the basis of Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR. The operator of this website has a legitimate interest in the analysis of user patterns to optimize both, the services offered online and the operator’s adver­tising activities. If a corre­sponding agreement has been requested (e.g., an agreement to the storage of cookies), the processing takes place exclu­sively on the basis of Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR; the agreement can be revoked at any time.

Data trans­mission to the US is based on the Standard Contractual Clauses (SCC) of the European Commission. Details can be found here: https://privacy.google.com/businesses/controllerterms/mccs/.

IP anony­miz­ation

On this website, we have activated the IP anony­miz­ation function. As a result, your IP address will be abbre­viated by Google within the member states of the European Union or in other states that have ratified the Convention on the European Economic Area prior to its trans­mission to the United States. The full IP address will be trans­mitted to one of Google’s servers in the United States and abbre­viated there only in excep­tional cases. On behalf of the operator of this website, Google shall use this infor­mation to analyze your use of this website to generate reports on website activities and to render other services to the operator of this website that are related to the use of the website and the Internet. The IP address trans­mitted in conjunction with Google Analytics from your browser shall not be merged with other data in Google’s possession.

Browser plug-in

You can prevent the recording and processing of your data by Google by downloading and installing the browser plugin available under the following link: https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout?hl=en.

For more infor­mation about the handling of user data by Google Analytics, please consult Google’s Data Privacy Decla­ration at: https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/6004245?hl=en.

Contract data processing

We have executed a contract data processing agreement with Google and are imple­menting the stringent provi­sions of the German data protection agencies to the fullest when using Google Analytics.

6. Plug-ins and Tools

Google Web Fonts (local embedding)

This website uses so-called Web Fonts provided by Google to ensure the uniform use of fonts on this site. These Google fonts are locally installed so that a connection to Google’s servers will not be estab­lished in conjunction with this application.

For more infor­mation on Google Web Fonts, please follow this link: https://developers.google.com/fonts/faq and consult Google’s Data Privacy Decla­ration under: https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en.

Google Maps

This website uses the mapping service Google Maps. The provider is Google Ireland Limited (“Google”), Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland.

To enable the use of the Google Maps features, your IP address must be stored. As a rule, this infor­mation is trans­ferred to one of Google’s servers in the United States, where it is archived. The operator of this website has no control over the data transfer. In case Google Maps has been activated, Google has the option to use Google web fonts for the purpose of the uniform depiction of fonts. When you access Google Maps, your browser will load the required web fonts into your browser cache, to correctly display text and fonts.

We use Google Maps to present our online content in an appealing manner and to make the locations disclosed on our website easy to find. This consti­tutes a legitimate interest as defined in Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR. If a respective decla­ration of consent has been obtained, the data shall be processed exclu­sively on the basis of Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR. This decla­ration of consent may be revoked at any time.

Data trans­mission to the US is based on the Standard Contractual Clauses (SCC) of the European Commission. Details can be found here: https://privacy.google.com/businesses/gdprcontrollerterms/ and https://privacy.google.com/businesses/gdprcontrollerterms/sccs/.

For more infor­mation on the handling of user data, please review Google’s Data Privacy Decla­ration under: https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en.

Wordfence

We have included Wordfence on this website. The provider is Defiant Inc, Defiant, Inc, 800 5th Ave Ste 4100, Seattle, WA 98104, USA (herein­after Wordfence).

Wordfence is designed to protect our website from unwanted access or malicious cyber­at­tacks. To accom­plish this, our website estab­lishes a permanent connection with Wordfence’s servers, which check and block their databases against access to our website.

The use of Wordfence is based on Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR. The website operator has a legitimate interest in the most effective protection of his website against cyber­at­tacks. If the appro­priate consent has been requested, processing will be carried out exclu­sively on the basis of Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR; consent may be revoked at any time.

Data trans­mission to the USA is based on the standard contractual clauses of the EU Commission. Details can be found here: https://www.wordfence.com/help/general-data-protection-regulation/.

iThemes Security

We have integrated iThemes Security into this website. The provider is iThemes Media LLC, 1720 South Kelly Avenue Edmond, OK 73013, USA (herein­after referred to as iThemes Security).

iThemes Security protects our website against undes­i­rable access or malicious cyber-attacks. For this purpose, iThemes Security records, among other things, your IP address, the time, and source of login attempts and log files (e.g., the utilized browser). iThemes Security is installed locally on our servers.

iThemes Security transmits IP addresses of recurring attackers to a central database of iThemes in the US (Network Brute Force Protection) to prevent such attacks in the future.

The use of iThemes Security is based on Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR. The website operator has a legitimate interest in protecting its website optimally against cyber-attacks. If your respective consents have been requested, processing shall occur exclu­sively on the basis of Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR; you may revoke such consent at any time.

7. eCommerce and payment service providers

Processing of data (customer and contract data)

We collect, process, and use personal data only to the extent necessary for the estab­lishment, content organiz­ation or change of the legal relati­onship (data inventory). These actions are taken on the basis of Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR, which permits the processing of data for the fulfilment of a contract or pre-contractual actions. We collect, process, and use personal data concerning the use of this website (usage data) only to the extent that this is necessary to make it possible for users to utilize the services and to bill for them.

The collected customer data shall be eradi­cated upon completion of the order or the termi­nation of the business relati­onship. This shall be without prejudice to any statutory retention mandates.