PRIVACY POLICY

1. DATA PROTECTION AT A GLANCE

General information:

The following information provides a simple overview of what happens to your personal data when you visit this website. Personal data is all data with which you can be personally identified. Detailed information on the subject of data protection can be found in our privacy policy listed below this text.

Data collection on this website:

Who is responsible for data collection on this website?

Data processing on this website is carried out by the website operator. Their contact details can be found in the ‘Information on the controller’ section of this privacy policy.

How do we collect your data?

On the one hand, your data is collected when you provide it to us. This may be, for example data that you enter in a contact form. Other data is collected automatically or with your consent by our IT systems when you visit the website. This is primarily technical data (e.g. internet browser, operating system or time of the page view). This data is collected automatically as soon as you enter this website.

What do we use your data for?

Some of the data is collected to ensure that the website is provided without errors. Other data may be used to analyse your user behaviour.

What rights do you have regarding your data?

You have the right to receive information free of charge at any time about the origin, recipient and purpose of your stored personal data. You also have the right to request the rectification or deletion of this data. If you have given your consent to data processing, you can revoke this consent at any time for the future. You also have the right, under certain circumstances to request the restriction of the processing of your personal data under certain circumstances. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the competent supervisory authority. You can contact us at any time if you have any further questions on the subject of data protection.

Analysis tools and tools from third-party providers:

When you visit this website, your surfing behaviour may be statistically analysed. This is mainly done with so-called analysis programmes.

Detailed information on these analysis programmes can be found in the following

privacy policy.

2. HOSTING

We host the content of our website with the following provider: Squarespace

The provider is Squarespace Ireland Ltd, Le Pole House, Ship Street Great, Dublin 8, Ireland (hereinafter referred to as Squarespace). Squarespace is a tool for creating and hosting websites. When you visit our website, your data is processed on the Squarespace servers. In the process, personal data may also be transmitted to the parent company of Squarespace, Squarespace Inc, 8 Clarkson St, New York, NY10014, USA. Squarespace also stores cookies that are required for the display of the page and required to display the site and to ensure security (necessary cookies). Squarespace is used on the basis of Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f GDPR. We have a legitimate interest in displaying our website as reliably as possible. Insofar as corresponding consent has been requested, the processing is carried out exclusively on the basis of Art. 6 para. 1 lit. a GDPR and § 25 para. 1 TDDDG, insofar as the consent authorises the storage of cookies or the access to information in the user's end device (e.g. device fingerprinting) within the meaning of the TDDDG. Consent can be revoked at any time. Data transfer to the USA is based on the standard contractual clauses of the EU Commission. Details can be found here: https://support.squarespace.com/hc/de/articles/360000851908-DSGVO-und-Squarespace.

The company is certified in accordance with the ‘EU-US Data Privacy Framework’ (DPF). The DPF is an agreement between the European Union and the USA that aims to ensure compliance with European data protection standards for data processing in the USA. Every company certified undertakes to comply with these data protection standards. Further information on this can be obtained from the provider at the following link: https://www.dataprivacyframework.gov/s/participant-search/participantdetail?contact=true&id=a2zt0000000GnjcAAC&status=Active.

Order processing:

We have concluded an order processing contract (AVV) for the use of the above-mentioned service. This is a contract prescribed by data protection law, which guarantees that it will only process the personal data of our website visitors in accordance with our instructions and in compliance with the GDPR.

3. GENERAL NOTES AND MANDATORY INFORMATION

Data protection:

The operators of these pages take the protection of your personal data very seriously. We treat your personal data confidentially and in accordance with the statutory data protection regulations and this data protection declaration.

When you use this website, various personal data is collected. Personal data is data with which you can be personally identified. This data protection declaration explains which data we collect and what we use it for. It also explains how and for what purpose this happens. We would like to point out that data transmission on the Internet (e.g. when communicating by e-mail) can have security gaps. Complete protection of data against access by third parties is not possible.

Note on the responsible body:

The responsible body for data processing on this website is:

OFFICE FOR VALUE CREATION

Marco Alber

Sudermanstr. 10

50670 Cologne

Telephone: 0049 176 81305671

E-mail: contact@ofvc.de

The responsible body is the natural or legal person who, alone or jointly with others, decides on the purposes and means of processing personal data (e.g. names, e-mail addresses, etc.).

Storage period:

Unless a more specific storage period has been specified within this data protection declaration, your personal data will be stored with us until the purpose for data processing no longer applies. If you make a legitimate 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. retention periods under tax or commercial law); in the latter case, deletion will take place once these reasons no longer apply.

General information on the legal basis for data processing on this website:

If you have consented to data processing, we will process your personal data on the basis of Art. 6 Para. 1 lit. a GDPR or Art. 9 Para. 2 lit. a GDPR if special categories of data are processed in accordance with Art. 9 Para. 1 GDPR. In the event of express consent to the transfer of personal data to third countries, data processing will also take place on the basis of Art. 49 Para. 1 lit. a GDPR. If you have consented to the storage of cookies or to access information on your device (e.g. via device fingerprinting), data processing will also be carried out on the basis of Section 25 Paragraph 1 TDDDG. Consent can be revoked at any time. If your data is required to fulfill the contract or to carry out pre-contractual measures, we will process your data on the basis of Art. 6 Paragraph 1 Letter b GDPR. Furthermore, if your data is required to fulfill a legal obligation, we will process it on the basis of Art. 6 Paragraph 1 Letter c GDPR. Data processing can also be carried out on the basis of our legitimate interest in accordance with Art. 6 Paragraph 1 Letter f GDPR. The following paragraphs of this data protection declaration provide information on the legal bases applicable in each individual case.

Recipients of personal data:

As part of our business activities, we work with various external bodies. In some cases, it is also necessary to transmit personal data to these external bodies. We only pass on personal data to external bodies if this is necessary for the performance of a contract, if we are legally obliged to do so (e.g. passing on data to tax authorities), if we have a legitimate interest in the transfer pursuant to Art. 6 Para. 1 lit. f GDPR or if another legal basis allows the data to be passed on. When using contract processors, we only pass on our customers' personal data on the basis of a valid contract for order processing. In the case of joint processing, a contract for joint processing is concluded.

Revocation of your consent to data processing:

Many data processing operations are only possible with your express consent. You can revoke consent that has already been given at any time. The legality of the data processing carried out up to the time of revocation remains unaffected by the revocation.

Right to object to data collection in special cases and to direct advertising (Art. 21 GDPR):

IF DATA PROCESSING IS CARRIED OUT ON THE BASIS OF ART. 6 PARAGRAPH 1 LIT. E OR F GDPR, YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO OBJECT TO THE PROCESSING OF YOUR PERSONAL DATA AT ANY TIME FOR REASONS ARISING FROM YOUR PARTICULAR SITUATION; THIS ALSO APPLIES TO PROFILING BASED ON THESE PROVISIONS. THE RESPECTIVE LEGAL BASIS ON WHICH PROCESSING IS BASED CAN BE FOUND IN THIS PRIVACY POLICY. IF YOU OBJECT, WE WILL NO LONGER PROCESS YOUR PERSONAL DATA UNLESS WE CAN PROVE COMPELLING LEGITIMATE GROUNDS FOR THE PROCESSING THAT OVERRIDE YOUR INTERESTS, RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS OR THE PROCESSING IS FOR THE PURPOSE OF ASSERTING, EXERCISING OR DEFENDING LEGAL CLAIMS (OBJECTION ACCORDING TO ART. 21 PARA. 1 GDPR). IF YOUR PERSONAL DATA IS PROCESSED IN ORDER TO CARRY OUT DIRECT MARKETING, YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO OBJECT AT ANY TIME TO THE PROCESSING OF PERSONAL DATA CONCERNING YOU FOR THE PURPOSE OF SUCH ADVERTISING; THIS ALSO APPLIES TO PROFILING IN SO FAR AS IT IS RELATED TO SUCH DIRECT MARKETING. IF YOU OBJECT, YOUR PERSONAL DATA WILL SUBSECTIONALLY NO LONGER BE USED FOR THE PURPOSE OF DIRECT MARKETING (OBJECTION ACCORDING TO ART. 21 PARA. 2 GDPR).

Right to complain to the competent supervisory authority:

In the event of violations of the GDPR, those affected have the right to complain to a supervisory authority, in particular in the member state of their habitual residence, their place of work or the place of the alleged violation. The right to complain exists without prejudice to other administrative or judicial remedies.

Right to data portability:

You have the right to have data that we process automatically on the basis of your consent or in fulfillment of a contract handed over to you or to a third party in a common, machine-readable format. If you request the direct transfer of the data to another responsible party, this will only take place if it is technically feasible.

Information, correction and deletion:

Within the framework of the applicable legal provisions, you have the right at any time to free information about your stored personal data, its origin and recipient and the purpose of the data processing and, if applicable, a right to correction or deletion of this data. You can contact us at any time about this and other questions on the subject of personal data.

Right to restriction of processing:

You have the right to request that the processing of your personal data be restricted. You can contact us at any time to do so. The right to restriction of processing exists in the following cases:

If you dispute the accuracy of your personal data stored by us, we usually need time to check this. For the duration of the check, you have the right to request that the processing of your personal data be restricted.

If the processing of your personal data was/is unlawful, you can request that the data processing be restricted instead of deleted.

If we no longer need your personal data, but you need it to exercise, defend or assert legal claims, you have the right to request that the processing of your personal data be restricted instead of deleted.

If you have lodged an objection in accordance with Art. 21 Para. 1 GDPR, a balance must be struck between your interests and ours. As long as it is not yet clear whose interests prevail, you have the right to request that the processing of your personal data be restricted.

If you have restricted the processing of your personal data, these data – apart from their storage – may only be used with your consent or for the purpose of asserting, exercising or defending legal claims or protecting the rights of another natural or legal person or for reasons of important public interest of the European Union or of a member state.

SSL or TLS encryption:

This site uses SSL or TLS encryption for security reasons and to protect the transmission of confidential content, such as orders or inquiries that you send to us as the site operator. You can recognize an encrypted connection by the fact that the address line of the browser changes from “http://” to “https://” and by the lock symbol in your browser line. If SSL or TLS encryption is activated, the data that you send to us cannot be read by third parties.

4. DATA COLLECTION ON THIS WEBSITE

Cookies:

Our websites use so-called “cookies”. Cookies are small data packets and do not cause any damage to your device. They are either stored temporarily for the duration of a session (session cookies) or permanently (permanent cookies) on your device. Session cookies are automatically deleted at the end of your visit. Permanent cookies remain stored on your device until you delete them yourself or your web browser automatically deletes them. Cookies can come from us (first-party cookies) or from third-party companies (so-called third-party cookies). Third-party cookies enable the integration of certain services from third-party companies within websites (e.g. cookies for processing payment services). Cookies have various functions. Many cookies are technically necessary because certain website functions would not work without them (e.g. the shopping cart function or the display of videos). Other cookies can be used to evaluate user behavior or for advertising purposes. Cookies that are required to carry out the electronic communication process, to provide certain functions you require (e.g. for the shopping cart function) or to optimize the website (e.g. cookies to measure the web audience) (necessary cookies) are stored on the basis of Art. 6 Para. 1 lit. f GDPR, unless another legal basis is specified.

The website operator has a legitimate interest in storing necessary cookies for the technically error-free and optimized provision of its services. If consent to the storage of cookies and comparable recognition technologies has been requested, the processing takes place exclusively on the basis of this consent (Art. 6 Para. 1 lit. a GDPR and Section 25 Para. 1 TDDDG); the consent can be revoked at any time.

You can set your browser so that you are informed about the setting of cookies and only allow cookies in individual cases, exclude the acceptance of cookies for certain cases or in general and activate the automatic deletion of cookies when closing the browser. If cookies are deactivated, the functionality of this website may be limited. You can find out which cookies and services are used on this website in this privacy policy.

Server log files:

The provider of the pages automatically collects and stores information in so-called server log files, which your browser automatically transmits to us. These are:

  • browser type and browser version

  • operating system used

  • referrer URL

  • host name of the accessing computer

  • time of the server request

  • IP address

This data will not be merged with other data sources. This data is collected on the basis of Art. 6 Para. 1 lit. f GDPR. The website operator has a legitimate interest in the technically error-free presentation and optimization of its website - for this purpose, the server log files must be collected.

Contact form:

If you send us inquiries via the contact form, your details from the inquiry form, including the contact details you provided there, will be stored by us for the purpose of processing the inquiry and in the event of follow-up questions. We will not pass this data on without your consent.

This data is processed on the basis of Art. 6 Para. 1 lit. b GDPR, provided that your inquiry is related to the fulfillment of a contract or 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 inquiries addressed to us (Art. 6 Para. 1 lit. f GDPR) or on your consent (Art. 6 Para. 1 lit. a GDPR) if this was requested; the consent can be revoked at any time.

The data you enter in the contact form will remain with us until you request us to delete it, revoke your consent to storage or the purpose for storing the data no longer applies (e.g. after your inquiry has been processed). Mandatory legal provisions - in particular retention periods - remain unaffected.

Inquiry by email, telephone or fax:

If you contact us by email, telephone or fax, your inquiry, including all personal data resulting from it (name, inquiry) will be stored and processed by us for the purpose of processing your request. We will not pass on this data without your consent. This data is processed on the basis of Art. 6 (1) (b) GDPR, provided that your request is related to the fulfillment of a contract or is necessary for the implementation of 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 consent (Art. 6 (1) (a) GDPR) if this was requested; consent can be revoked at any time. The data you send to us via contact requests will remain with us until you request us to delete it, revoke your consent to storage or the purpose for storing the data no longer applies (e.g. after your request has been processed). Mandatory legal provisions - in particular statutory retention periods - remain unaffected.

5. ANALYSIS TOOLS AND ADVERTISING

This website uses the analysis services of Squarespace Analytics (hereinafter: Squarespace). The provider is:

Squarespace Ireland Limited
Squarespace House
Ship Street Great
Dublin 8, D08N12C
Ireland.

As part of the analyses with Squarespace, visitor numbers and behavior (e.g. number of page views, duration of a website visit, bounce rates), visitor sources (i.e. which page the visitor comes from), visitor locations and technical data (browser and operating system versions) can be analyzed. For this purpose, Squarespace stores the following data in particular:

  • Referrer (previously visited website)

  • Requested website or file

  • Browser type and browser version

  • Operating system used

  • Device type used

  • Time of access

  • IP address in anonymized form (only used to determine the location of access)

According to Squarespace, the data collection is completely anonymous so that it cannot be traced back to individual people. Cookies are not stored by Squarespace Analytics. The data is stored and analyzed on the basis of Art. 6 Para. 1 lit. f GDPR. The website operator has a legitimate interest in the statistical analysis of user behavior in order to optimize both its website and its advertising. If a corresponding consent has been requested, the processing takes place exclusively on the basis of Art. 6 Para. 1 lit. a GDPR and Section 25 Para. 1 TDDDG, insofar as the consent includes the storage of cookies or access to information on the user's device (e.g. device fingerprinting) within the meaning of the TDDDG. The consent can be revoked at any time.

For further information on data collection and processing by Squarespace Analytics, please see the Squarespace privacy policy at the following link:

https://www.squarespace.com/privacy

Contract processing:

We have concluded a contract for contract processing (AVV) for the use of the above-mentioned service. This is a contract required by data protection law that ensures that the personal data of our website visitors is only processed in accordance with our instructions and in compliance with the GDPR.

6. PLUGINS AND TOOLS

Google Fonts:

This site uses so-called Google Fonts, which are provided by Google, for the uniform display of fonts. When you access a page, your browser loads the required fonts into your browser cache in order to display texts and fonts correctly. For this purpose, the browser you use must connect to Google's servers. This allows Google to know that this website was accessed via your IP address. The use of Google Fonts is based on Art. 6 (1) (f) GDPR. The website operator has a legitimate interest in the uniform display of the typeface on its website. If a corresponding consent has been requested, the processing is carried out exclusively on the basis of Art. 6 (1) (a) GDPR and Section 25 (1) TDDDG, insofar as the consent includes the storage of cookies or access to information in the user's terminal device (e.g. device fingerprinting) within the meaning of the TDDDG. The consent can be revoked at any time. If your browser does not support Google Fonts, a standard font from your computer will be used.

For more information about Google Fonts, see

https://developers.google.com/fonts/faq and Google's privacy policy:

https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=de.

The company is certified under the "EU-US Data Privacy Framework" (DPF). The DPF is an agreement between the European Union and the USA that is intended to ensure compliance with European data protection standards when processing data in the USA. Every company certified under the DPF undertakes to comply with these data protection standards. You can obtain further information from the provider at the following link:

https://www.dataprivacyframework.gov/participant/5780.