Privacy Policy

Introduction

With the following data protection declaration we would like to inform you about the types of personal data (hereinafter also referred to as "data") we process, for what purposes and to what extent. The data protection declaration applies to all processing of personal data carried out by us, both in the context of providing our services and, in particular, on our websites, in mobile applications and within external online presences, such as our social media profiles (hereinafter also referred to collectively as "online offer").

The terms used are not gender-specific.

Status: 28 July 2020

Introduction
Responsible
Overview of the processing operations
Relevant legal bases
Security measures
Transmission and disclosure of personal data
Data processing in third countries
Kommerzielle und geschäftliche Leistungen
Commercial and business services
Special notes on applications (apps)
Contact
Communication via Messenger
Push News
Presence in social networks (social media)
Plugins and embedded functions and content
deletion of data
Amendment and update of the privacy policy
Rights of data subjects
Definitions of terms

Responsible

Johannes Förster
Corecoms Consulting GmbH
Goethestraße 29
60313 Frannkfurt am Main
Deutschland
Email: johannes.foerster[at]corecoms.de

Imprint: www.corecoms.de/en/imprint

Overview of the processing operations

The following table summarises the types of data processed and the purposes of their processing, and refers to the data subjects.

Types of data processed

Inventory data (e.g. names, addresses).
Content data (e.g. text entries, photographs, videos).
Contact details (e.g. e-mail, telephone numbers).
Meta/communication data (e.g. device information, IP addresses).
Usage data (e.g. websites visited, interest in content, access times).
Location data (data indicating the location of an end user's terminal equipment).
Contract data (e.g. object of contract, duration, customer category).
Payment data (e.g. bank details, invoices, payment history).

Categories of data subjects

Business and contractual partners.
Interested parties.
Communication partner.
Users (e.g. website visitors, users of online services).

Purpose of processing

Provision of our online offer and user-friendliness.
Office and organisational procedures.
Cross-device tracking (cross-device processing of user data for marketing purposes).
Direct marketing (e.g. by e-mail or by post).
Interest based and behavioral marketing.
Contact requests and communication.
Profiling (creation of user profiles).
Remarketing.
Tracking (e.g. interest/behavioural profiling, use of cookies).
Contractual benefits and service.
Management and response to requests.
Target group formation (determination of target groups relevant for marketing purposes or other output of content).

Relevant legal bases

In the following, we provide the legal basis of the basic data protection regulation (DSGVO), on the basis of which we process personal data. Please note that in addition to the regulations of the DSGVO, national data protection regulations may apply in your or our country of residence and domicile. If, in addition, more specific legal bases are applicable in individual cases, we will inform you of these in the data protection declaration.

Consent (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 letter a FADP) - The data subject has given his or her consent to the processing of personal data relating to him or her for one or more specific purposes.
Fulfilment of a contract and pre-contractual requests (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. b. FADP) - The processing is necessary for the performance of a contract to which the data subject is party or for carrying out pre-contractual measures taken at the request of the data subject.
Legal obligation (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. c. FADP) - The processing is necessary to fulfil a legal obligation to which the controller is subject.
Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. f. FADP) - The processing is necessary to protect the legitimate interests of the controller or of a third party unless the interests or fundamental rights and freedoms of the data subject which require the protection of personal data outweigh the processing.

National data protection regulations in Germany: In addition to the data protection regulations of the basic data protection regulation, national regulations on data protection apply in Germany. These include in particular the law on 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 deletion, the right of objection, 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 (Section 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.

Security 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 nature, 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, in order to ensure a level of protection commensurate with the risk.

These measures shall include in particular the safeguarding of confidentiality, integrity and availability of data by controlling physical and electronic access to data as well as access, input, disclosure, safeguarding of availability and segregation of data relating thereto. Furthermore, we have established procedures to ensure that data subjects' rights are exercised, data is deleted, and responses are made to any threats to the data. Furthermore, we take the protection of personal data into account as early as the development or selection of hardware, software and processes in accordance with the principle of data protection, by designing technology and by using data protection-friendly default settings.

Transmission and disclosure of personal data

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

Datenverarbeitung in Drittländern

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

Subject to express consent or transmission required by contract or by law, we process or allow the data to be processed only in third countries with a recognised level of data protection, contractual obligation through so-called standard protection clauses of the EU Commission, in the case of 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 ).

Commercial and business services

We process data of our contractual and business partners, e.g. customers and prospective customers (collectively referred to as "contractual partners") within the scope of contractual and comparable legal relationships as well as associated measures and within the scope of communication with the contractual partners (or pre-contractual), e.g. to answer inquiries.

We process these data in order to fulfil our contractual obligations, to safeguard our rights and for the purposes of the administrative tasks associated with these data and for the purposes of the business organisation. Within the framework of the applicable law, we only pass on the data of the contractual partners to third parties to the extent that this is necessary for the aforementioned purposes or to fulfil legal obligations or with the consent of the persons concerned (e.g. to participating telecommunication, transport and other auxiliary services as well as subcontractors, banks, tax and legal advisors, payment service providers or tax authorities). The contractual partners will be informed about other 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 above-mentioned purposes before or within the scope of data collection, e.g. in online forms, by means of special marking (e.g. colours) or symbols (e.g. asterisks or similar), or personally.

We delete the data after expiry of legal warranty and comparable obligations, i.e., in principle after 4 years, unless the data is stored in a customer account, e.g., as long as it must be kept for legal archiving reasons (e.g., for tax purposes usually 10 years). We will delete data that has been disclosed to us by the contractual partner within the scope of an order in accordance with the specifications of the order, generally after the end of the order.

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

Agency services: We process our customers' data within the scope of our contractual services, which may include, for example, conceptual and strategic consulting, campaign planning, software and design development/consulting or maintenance, implementation of campaigns and processes, handling, server administration, data analysis/consulting services and training services.

Consulting: We process the data of our clients, clients as well as interested parties and other clients or contractual partners (uniformly referred to as "clients") in order to provide them with our consulting services. The processed data, the nature, scope, purpose and necessity of their processing are determined by the underlying contractual and client relationship.

As far as it is necessary for the fulfilment of our contract, for the protection of vital interests or legally required, or if the consent of the clients is available, we disclose or transfer the clients' data to third parties or agents, such as authorities, subcontractors or in the field of IT, office or comparable services, in compliance with the professional legal requirements.

Data types processed: inventory data (e.g. names, addresses), payment data (e.g. bank details, invoices, payment history), contact data (e.g. e-mail, telephone numbers), contract data (e.g. subject matter of contract, duration, customer category).
Persons concerned: Interested parties, business and contractual partners.
Purposes of processing: contractual services and assistance, contact requests and communication, office and organisational procedures, management and reply to requests.
Legal bases: Fulfilment of contract and pre-contractual enquiries (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. b. DSGVO), Legal obligation (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. c. DSGVO), Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. f. DSGVO)

Provision of the online offer and web hosting

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

The data processed within the framework of the provision of the hosting offer may include all data relating to the users of our online offer, which are generated within the framework of 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.

E-mail dispatch and hosting: The web hosting services we use also include the dispatch, receipt and storage of e-mails. For these purposes, the addresses of the recipients and senders as well as other information concerning 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 the purpose of SPAM detection. Please note that e-mails on the Internet are generally not sent in encrypted form. As a rule, e-mails are encrypted in transit, but (unless an 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.

Collection of access data and log files: We ourselves (or our web hosting provider) collect data on every access to the server (so-called server log files). Server log files may include the address and name of the web pages and files accessed, date and time of access, data volume 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 can be used for security purposes, e.g. to avoid overloading the servers (especially in the case of abusive attacks, so-called DDoS attacks) and to ensure the capacity utilisation of the servers and their stability.

Processed data types: 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).
Persons concerned: Users (e.g. website visitors, users of online services).
Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. f. DSGVO).

Special notes on applications (apps)

We process the data of the users of our application to the extent necessary to provide the users with the application and its functionalities, to monitor its security and to develop it further. We may also contact users in compliance with legal requirements if the communication is necessary for the purposes of administration or use of the application. For further information on the processing of user data, please refer to the data protection information in this privacy policy.

Legal basis: The processing of data required for the provision of the functionalities of the application serves the fulfilment of contractual obligations. This also applies if the provision of the functions requires user authorisation (e.g. release of device functions). If the processing of data is not necessary for the provision of the functionalities of the application, but serves the security of the application or our business interests (e.g. collection of data for the purpose of optimising the application or security purposes), it is carried out on the basis of our legitimate interests. If users are expressly asked to give their consent to the processing of their data, the data covered by the consent is processed on the basis of the consent.

Commercial use: We process the data of the users of our application, registered and possible test users (hereinafter uniformly referred to as "users") in order to be able to provide them with our contractual services and on the basis of legitimate interests, in order to guarantee the security of our application and to be able to further develop it. The required information is identified as such within the scope of the conclusion of the use, order, contract or comparable contract and may include the information required for the provision of services and for possible invoicing as well as contact information in order to be able to hold possible consultations.

Device permissions for access to functions and data: The use of our application or its functionalities may require user authorizations for access to certain functions of the devices used or to the data stored on or accessible through the devices. By default, these authorizations must be granted by the users and can be revoked at any time in the settings of the respective devices. The exact procedure for controlling app authorizations may vary depending on the device and software used by the users. Users can contact us if they require further explanation. We would like to point out that the refusal or revocation of the respective authorizations can affect the functionality of our application.

Data types processed: inventory data (e.g. names, addresses), payment data (e.g. bank details, invoices, payment history), contact data (e.g. e-mail, telephone numbers), contract data (e.g. subject matter of contract, duration, customer category).
Persons concerned: Interested parties, business and contractual partners.
Purposes of the processing: contractual and service.
Legal bases: Fulfilment of contract and pre-contractual enquiries (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. b. DSGVO), Legal obligation (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. c. DSGVO), Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. f. DSGVO).

Contact

When contacting us (e.g. via contact form, e-mail, telephone or via social media), the data of the inquiring persons will be processed to the extent necessary to answer the contact inquiries and any requested measures.

The answering of contact enquiries within the framework of contractual or pre-contractual relations is made in order to fulfil our contractual obligations or to answer (pre)contractual enquiries and otherwise on the basis of the legitimate interest in answering the enquiries.

Data types processed: inventory data (e.g. names, addresses), payment data (e.g. bank details, invoices, payment history), contact data (e.g. e-mail, telephone numbers), contract data (e.g. subject matter of contract, duration, customer category).
Persons concerned: Communication partner.
Purposes of the processing: contact requests and communication.
Legal bases: Fulfilment of contract and pre-contractual enquiries (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. b. DSGVO), Legal obligation (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. c. DSGVO), Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. f. DSGVO).

Communication via Messenger

We use Messenger for communication purposes and therefore ask you to follow the instructions below regarding the functionality of Messenger, encryption, use of communication metadata and your ability to object.

You can also contact us in alternative ways, e.g. by telephone or e-mail. Please use the contact details provided to you or the contact details given within our online offer.

In the case of end-to-end encryption of content (i.e., the content of your message and attachments), please note that the communication content (i.e., the content of the message and attached images) is encrypted from end to end. This means that the content of the messages cannot be viewed, not even by the messenger providers themselves. You should always use a current version of Messenger with encryption enabled, to ensure that the message content is encrypted.

We would like to point out to our communication partners, however, that although the messenger providers cannot view the content, they can find out that and when communication partners communicate with us, as well as technical information on the communication partners' device used and, depending on the settings of their device, also location information (so-called metadata) is processed.

Information on legal bases: If we ask communication partners for permission before communicating with them via Messenger, the legal basis for our processing of their data is their consent. Otherwise, if we do not ask for your consent and you contact us, for example, on your own initiative, we will use Messenger in relation to our contractual partners as well as in the context of contract preparation as a contractual measure and in the case of other interested parties and communication partners on the basis of our legitimate interests in fast and efficient communication and meeting the needs of our communication partners for communication via Messenger. Furthermore, we would like to point out that we will not transmit the contact data provided to us to Messenger for the first time without your consent.

Revocation, objection and deletion: You can revoke a given consent at any time and object to communication with us via Messenger at any time. In the case of communication via Messenger, we delete the messages in accordance with our general deletion guidelines (i.e., as described above, after the end of contractual relationships, in the context of archiving requirements, etc.) and otherwise, as soon as we can assume that we have answered any information from the communication partners, if no reference to a previous conversation is to be expected and no legal storage obligations stand in the way of deletion.

Reservation of the reference to other communication channels: Finally, we would like to point out that for reasons of your security we reserve the right not to answer inquiries via Messenger. This is the case if, for example, internal contractual matters require special confidentiality or if a reply via Messenger does not meet the formal requirements. In such cases we will refer you to more adequate communication channels.

Data types processed: inventory data (e.g. names, addresses), payment data (e.g. bank details, invoices, payment history), contact data (e.g. e-mail, telephone numbers), contract data (e.g. subject matter of contract, duration, customer category).
Persons concerned: Communication partner.
Purposes of processing: contact requests and communication, direct marketing (e.g. by e-mail or by post).
Legal bases: Consent (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. a DSGVO), legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. f. DSGVO).

Push News

With the consent of the users, we can send the users so-called "push notifications". These are messages that are displayed on users' screens, terminals or browsers, even if our online service is not being actively used at the time.

In order to register for the push messages, users must confirm that they have received the push messages by querying their browser or terminal device. This approval process is documented and stored. The storage is necessary to recognize whether users have consented to receive the push messages and to be able to prove their consent. For these purposes, a pseudonymous identifier of the browser (so-called "push token") or the device ID of a terminal device is stored.

The push messages may be necessary for the fulfilment of contractual obligations (e.g. technical and organisational information relevant for the use of our online offer) and are otherwise, unless specifically mentioned below, sent on the basis of the users' consent. Users can change the receipt of push messages at any time using the notification settings of their respective browsers or end devices.

Purposes of the processing: contractual and service.
Legal bases: Consent (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. a DSGVO), performance of the contract and pre-contractual enquiries (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. b. DSGVO).

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 point out that user data may be processed outside the European Union. This may result in risks for the users, because the enforcement of the users' rights could be made more difficult.

Furthermore, user data within social networks is usually processed for market research and advertising purposes. Thus, for example, user profiles can be created based on the user behaviour and the resulting interests of the users. The user profiles can in turn be used, for example, to place advertisements within and outside the networks that presumably correspond to the interests of the users. For these purposes, cookies are usually stored on the users' computers, in which the usage behaviour and interests of the users are stored. Furthermore, data may also be stored in the user 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 presentation of the respective forms of processing and the possibilities 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 most effectively be asserted with the providers. Only the providers have access to the data of the users and can take appropriate measures and provide information directly. Should you nevertheless require assistance, you can contact us.

Processed data types: 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).
Persons concerned: Users (e.g. website visitors, users of online services).
Purposes of processing: contact requests and communication, tracking (e.g. interest/behavioural profiling, use of cookies), remarketing.
Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. f. DSGVO).

Used services and service providers:

Instagram : Social network; Service provider: Instagram Inc, 1601 Willow Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA; Website: https://www.instagram.com ; Privacy policy: https://instagram.com/about/legal/privacy .
LinkedIn: social network; service provider: LinkedIn Ireland Unlimited Company, Wilton Place, Dublin 2, Ireland; Website: https://www.linkedin.com ; Privacy policy: https://www.linkedin.com/legal/privacy-policy ; Opt-Out: https://www.linkedin.com/psettings/guest-controls/retargeting-opt-out .

Plugins and embedded functions and content

We include in our online offer functional and content elements 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 social media buttons and contributions (hereinafter referred to uniformly as "content").

The integration always assumes that the third party providers of this content process the IP address of the users, as without the IP address they would not be able to send the content to their browsers. The IP address is therefore required to display these contents or functions. We make every effort to use only such content whose respective providers use the IP address only to deliver 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 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 technical information about the browser and operating system, the websites to be linked, the time of visit and other details about the use of our online offer, as well as being linked to such information from other sources.

Processed data types: Usage data (e.g. websites visited, interest in content, access times), meta/communication data (e.g. device information, IP addresses), location data (data indicating the location of an end user's terminal equipment).
Persons concerned: Users (e.g. website visitors, users of online services).
Purposes of processing: Provision of our online offer and user-friendliness, contractual benefits and service.
Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. f. DSGVO).

Used services and service providers:

Google Fonts: We integrate the fonts ("Google Fonts") of the provider Google, whereby the data of the users are used solely for the purpose of displaying the fonts in the browser of the users. The integration is based on our legitimate interests in a technically secure, maintenance-free and efficient use of fonts, their uniform presentation and taking into account possible licensing restrictions for their integration. Service provider: Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland, parent company: Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA; Website: https://fonts.google.com/ ; Datenschutzerklärung: https://policies.google.com/privacy .
Google Maps: We integrate the maps of the service "Google Maps" of the provider Google. The processed data may include, in particular, IP addresses and location data of the users, which, however, are not collected without their consent (usually in the context of the settings of their mobile devices); service provider: Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland, parent company: Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA; Website: https://cloud.google.com/maps-platform ; Privacy Policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy ; Opt-Out-Plugin: https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout?hl=de , Settings for the display of advertising: https://adssettings.google.com/authenticated .

Deletion of Data

The data processed by us will be deleted in accordance with the legal requirements as soon as their consent permitted for processing is revoked or other permissions cease to apply (e.g. if the purpose for which the data were processed ceases to apply or if they are not necessary for the purpose).

Unless the data are deleted because they are required for other and legally permissible purposes, their processing is limited to these purposes. This means that the data is blocked and not processed for other purposes. This applies, for example, to data that must be retained for reasons of commercial or tax law or that must be stored for the purpose of asserting, exercising or defending legal claims or protecting the rights of another natural or legal person.

Further information on the deletion of personal data can also be found in the individual data protection notes of this privacy policy.

Amendment and update of the privacy policy

We ask you to inform yourself regularly about the content of our data protection declaration. We will adapt the data protection declaration as soon as changes in the data processing carried out by us make this necessary. We will inform you as soon as the changes make it necessary for you to take action to cooperate (e.g. to give your consent) or to receive other individual notification.

If we provide addresses and contact information of companies and organizations in this privacy policy, please note that the addresses may change over time and please check the information before contacting us.

Rights of data subjects

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

Right of objection: You have the right to object at any time, for reasons arising from your particular situation, to the processing of personal data relating to you which is carried out pursuant to Article 6 paragraph 1 letter e or f FADP; this also applies to profiling based on these provisions. If the personal data concerning you are processed for the purpose of direct marketing, you have the right to object at any time to the processing of personal data concerning you for the purpose of such marketing, including profiling, insofar as it is linked to such direct marketing.
Right of revocation for consents: You have the right to revoke consents at any time.
Right of access: You have the right to obtain confirmation as to whether or not data in question are being processed and to obtain information on such data, as well as further information and a copy of the data in accordance with legal requirements.
Right of rectification: You have the right to ask for the completion of the data concerning you or the rectification of incorrect data concerning you, in accordance with the law.
Right to erasure and restriction of processing: You have the right to request that data concerning you be erased immediately in accordance with the law or, alternatively, to request restriction of processing of the data in accordance with the law.
Right to data transferability: You have the right to receive data concerning you that you have provided to us in a structured, common and machine-readable format in accordance with the law, or to request that it be transferred to another responsible party.
Complaints to the supervisory authority: You also have the right, in accordance with the law, to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority, in particular in the Member State in which you are habitually resident, your place of work or the place where the alleged infringement is committed, if you consider that the processing of personal data relating to you is in breach of the DPA.

Definitions of terms

This section provides an overview of the terms used in this privacy policy. Many of the terms are taken from the law and are defined above all in Art. 4 DSGVO. The legal definitions are binding. The following explanations, on the other hand, are primarily intended to help you understand them. The terms are sorted alphabetically.

Cross-Device Tracking: Cross-Device Tracking is a form of tracking in which behavioral and interest information of the users is recorded across devices in so-called profiles by assigning the users an online identifier. This allows the user information to be analyzed for marketing purposes, regardless of the browser or device used (e.g. mobile phones or desktop computers). With most providers, the online identification is not linked to clear data, such as names, postal or e-mail addresses.
Interest-based and behavioral marketing: We speak of interest-based and/or behavioral marketing when the potential interests of users in ads and other content are predetermined as precisely as possible. This is done on the basis of information about their previous behaviour (e.g. visiting and staying on certain websites, buying behaviour or interaction with other users), which is stored in a so-called profile. As a rule, cookies are used for these purposes.
Personal data: 'personal data' shall mean any information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person (hereinafter referred to as 'data subject'); an identifiable person is one who can be identified, directly or indirectly, in particular by reference to an identifier such as a name, an identification number, a location data, an online identifier (e.g. a cookie) or one or more factors specific to the physical, physiological, genetic, mental, economic, cultural or social identity of that natural person.
Profiling: 'profiling' is any automated processing of personal data which consists of using personal data to analyse, evaluate or predict certain personal aspects relating to a natural person (depending on the type of profiling, this may include information on age, gender, location and movement data, interaction with websites and their content, shopping behaviour, social interactions with other people) (e.g. interests in certain content or products, click behaviour on a website or location). Cookies and web beacons are often used for profiling purposes.
Remarketing: We speak of "remarketing" or "retargeting" when, for example, it is noted for advertising purposes which products a user has been interested in on a website in order to remind the user of these products on other websites, e.g. in advertisements.
Tracking: One speaks of "tracking" when the behaviour of users can be traced across several online offers. As a rule, behavioral and interest information regarding 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 display advertisements to users that are likely to match their interests.
Controller: 'Controller' shall mean the natural or legal person, public authority, agency or any other body which alone or jointly with others determines the purposes and means of the processing of personal data.
Processing: 'processing' means any operation or set of operations which is performed upon personal data, whether or not by automatic means. The term is broad and covers practically all handling of data, whether it be collection, analysis, storage, transmission or deletion.
Target group formation: One speaks of target group formation (or "custom audiences") when target groups are determined for advertising purposes, e.g. insertion of advertisements. For example, based on a user's interest in certain products or topics on the Internet, it can be concluded that this user is interested in advertisements for similar products or the online shop where he/she viewed the products. Lookalike Audiences" (or similar target groups) are, in turn, when the content deemed suitable is displayed to users whose profiles or interests presumably correspond to the users for whom the profiles were created. Cookies and web beacons are generally used to create custom audiences and lookalike audiences.