Data protection

Privacy policy of eClear AG

With the following data protection declaration, we would like to inform you about the types of your personal data (hereinafter also referred to as “data”) that we process, for what purposes, on what legal basis and to what extent. Personal data is data with which you can be personally identified. The data protection declaration applies to all processing of personal data carried out by us, both in the context of the provision of our services and in particular on our websites, in mobile applications and within external online presences, such as our social media profiles (hereinafter collectively referred to as “online offer”).

The terms used are not gender-specific.

  1. The body responsible for data processing
  2. Data Protection Officer
  3. Overview of the processing
    1. Types of data processed
    2. Categories of data subjects
    3. Purposes of the processing
  4. Relevant legal bases
  5. Security measures
  6. Transfer and disclosure of personal data
  7. Data processing in third countries
  8. Use of cookies
  9. Contact
  10. Provision of the online offer and web hosting
  11. E-mail marketing and newsletters
  12. Live Chat and Chatbot
  13. VAT Optimiser
  14. SPOT registration and demo account
  15. FileVAT
  16. Webinars, online meetings and telephone conferences via “Microsoft Teams”
  17. Online marketing
  18. Presence in social networks
  19. Facebook
  20. Plug-ins and embedded functions and content
  21. Planning, organisation and auxiliary tools
  22. Data deletion
  23. Amendment and update of the privacy policy
  24. Rights of the data subjects
  25. Definitions of terms

Updated: 20.12.2023

1. The body responsible for data processing

eClear AG
Französische Straße 56–60
10117 Berlin
Germany

Tel.: +49 30 23590710
E-Mail: info@eclear.com

The controller is the natural or legal person who, alone or jointly with others, determines the purposes and means of the processing of personal data.

2. Data Protection Officer

We have appointed a data protection officer for our company.

CISO Datenschutz GmbH
Mr. Niklas Koenig
Am Marienheim 3
47918 Tönisvorst
Germany

E-Mail: privacy@eclear.com

3. Overview of the processing

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

    a. Types of data processed

    • Inventory data (e.g., names, addresses)
    • Content data (e.g., text input, 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).
    • Identification numbers (e.g., customer numbers, order numbers).
    • Data on payment transactions when using our chargeable services.

    b. Categories of data subjects

    • Communication partner.
    • Users (e.g., website visitors, users of online services).
    • Interested parties and customers.

    c. Purposes of the processing

    • Provision of our online offer and user-friendliness.
    • Contact requests and communication.
    • Remarketing.
    • Tracking (e.g., interest/behavioural profiling, use of cookies).
    • Contractual benefits and service.

In the following, we inform you about the legal basis of the data processing of personal data according to the Data Protection Regulation (GDPR):

  • Consent (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. a. GDPR) – The data subject has given his/her consent to processing personal data relating to him/her for a specific purpose or purposes.
  • Contract performance and pre-contractual enquiries (Art. 6 1 lit. b GDPR) – Processing is necessary for a contract to which the data subject is a party or for the performance of pre-contractual measures taken at the data subject’s request.
  • Legal obligation (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. c. GDPR) – Processing is necessary for compliance with a legal obligation to which the controller is subject.
  • Legitimate interests (Art. 6 Abs. 1 lit. f. GDPR) – Processing is necessary to protect the controller’s legitimate interests or a third party unless such interests are overridden by the interests or fundamental rights and freedoms of the subject which require the protection of personal data.

5. Security measures

We take appropriate technical and organizational measures to ensure a level of protection appropriate to the risk in accordance with the legal requirements, considering 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.

The measures include, in particular, ensuring the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of data by controlling physical and electronic access to the data and the access, entry, disclosure, assurance of availability and segregation of the data. We also have procedures to ensure data subjects’ rights, the deletion of data, and responses to data compromise. Furthermore, we already take the protection of personal data into account in the development and selection of hardware, software, and procedures according to the principle of data protection through technology design and data protection-friendly default settings.

6 .Transfer and disclosure of personal data

During our processing of personal data, the data may be transferred to or disclosed to other bodies, companies, legally independent organizational units or persons. 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 corresponding contracts and agreements according to Article 28 of the GDPR, which protects your data from the recipients of your data.

7. Data processing in third countries

Suppose we process data in a third country (i.e., outside the European Union (EU), the European Economic Area (EEA)), or the processing takes place in the context of the use of third-party services or the disclosure and transfer of data to other persons, bodies or companies. In that case, this will only be done following the legal requirements.

Subject to express consent or contractually or legally required transfer, we only process or have the data processed in third countries with a recognized level of data protection or based on special guarantees, such as contractual obligation through so-called standard protection clauses of the EU Commission, the existence of certifications or binding internal data protection regulations (Art. 44 to 49 GDPR.

Further information on this can be found on the EU Commission’s information page: https://ec.europa.eu/info/law/law-topic/data-protection/international-dimension-data-protection_de

8. Use of cookies

Cookies are text files that contain data from visited websites or domains and are stored by a browser on the user’s computer. A cookie is primarily used to store information about a user during or after visiting an online offering. The stored data may include, for example, language settings on a website, log-in status, a shopping cart or where a video was watched. The term cookies also includes other technologies that perform the same functions as cookies (e.g., where user details are stored using pseudonymous online identifiers, also known as ‘user IDs’).

The following cookie types and functions are distinguished:

  • Temporary cookies (also: session cookies): Temporary cookies are deleted at the latest after a user has left an online offer and closed his browser.
  • Permanent cookies: Permanent cookies remain stored even after the browser is closed. For example, the log-in status can be saved, or preferred content can be displayed directly when the user revisits a website. Likewise, the interests of users, which are used for range measurement or marketing purposes, can be stored in such a cookie.
  • First-party cookies: First-party cookies are set by ourselves.
  • Third-party cookies (also: third-party cookies): Third-party cookies are mainly used by advertisers (so-called third parties) to process user information.
  • Necessary (also: essential or absolutely necessary) cookies: Cookies may be absolutely necessary for the operation of a website (e.g., to save log-ins or other user entries or for security reasons).
  • Statistics, marketing, and personalization cookies: Furthermore, cookies are generally used in range measurement and when a user’s interests or behaviour (e.g., viewing specific content, using functions, etc.) on individual websites are stored in a user profile. Such profiles are used, for example, to show users content that matches their potential interests. This process is also referred to as “tracking”, i.e., tracking the potential interests of users. Insofar as we use cookies or “tracking” technologies, we will inform you separately in our data protection declaration or in the context of obtaining consent.

Notes on legal bases: The legal basis on which we process your data using cookies depends on whether we ask you for consent (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. a. GDPR). If this is the case, and you consent to cookies, the legal basis for processing your data is your declared consent. Otherwise, the data processed with the help of cookies is processed based on our legitimate interests (e.g., in a technically error-free and optimized operation of our online offer and its improvement) (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f. GDPR) or if the use of cookies is necessary to fulfil our contractual obligations (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. b. GDPR).

General information on revocation and objection (opt-out): Depending on whether the processing is based on consent or legal permission, you have the option at any time to revoke any consent you have given or to object to the processing of your data by cookie technologies (collectively referred to as “opt-out”). You can initially declare your objection using your browser settings, e.g., by deactivating the use of cookies (whereby this may also restrict the functionality of our online offer).

Cookie consent tool: As a cookie management tool, our website uses the cookie technology of Cookiebot to obtain your consent within the meaning of Art. 6 (1) p. 1 lit. a GDPR, § 25 German Telecommunications Telemedia Data Protection Act (TTSDG) to store certain cookies in your browser and to document this in accordance with data protection. The service provider is: Cybot A/S, Havnegade 39, 1058 Copenhagen, Denmark.
Privacy policy: https://www.cookiebot.com/de/privacy-policy/

When you enter our website, a Cookiebot cookie is stored in your browser, which stores the consents you have given or the revocation of these consents. This data is not shared with the Cookiebot provider.

The collected data will be stored until you request us to delete it or delete the Cookiebot cookie yourself, or until the purpose for storing the data no longer applies. Mandatory legal retention periods remain unaffected.

The Cookiebot cookie consent tool is used to obtain the legally required consent for the use of cookies. The legal basis for this is Art. 6 para. 1 p. 1 lit. c GDPR in conjunction with § 25 German Telecommunications Telemedia Data Protection Act (TTSDG).

Click here to change your cookie settings and to opt-out.

9. Contact

When contacting us (e.g., via the contact form, e-mail, telephone or via social media), the information of the inquiring persons is processed insofar as this is necessary to answer the contact enquiries and any requested measures.

The response to contact requests in the context of contractual or pre-contractual relationships is made to fulfil our contractual obligations or to respond to (pre)contractual requests and otherwise because of the legitimate interests in responding to the requests.

  • 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).
  • Affected persons: Communication partner.
  • Purposes of processing: contact requests and communication.
  • Legal basis: Contract fulfilment and pre-contractual enquiries (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. b. GDPR), Legitimate Interests (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f. GDPR).

10. Provision of the online offer and web hosting

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

The data processed as part of the provision of the hosting offer may include all information relating to the users of our online offer that is generated as part of the use and communication. This regularly consists of the IP address, which is necessary to deliver the contents of online offers to browsers, and all entries made within our online offer or from websites.

Collection of access data and log files: We (or our web hosting provider) collect data on every access to the server (so-called server log files). The server log files may include the address and name of the web pages and files accessed, the date and time of the access, the amount of data 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 on the one hand for security purposes, e.g., to avoid overloading the servers (especially in the case of abusive attacks, so-called DDoS attacks) and on the other hand to ensure the utilization of the servers and their stability.

  • Types of data processed: Content data (e.g., text input, photographs, videos), usage data (e.g., web pages visited, interest in content, access times), meta/communication data (e.g., device information, IP addresses).
  • Data subjects: Users (e.g., website visitors, users of online services).
  • Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f. GDPR).

11. E-mail marketing and newsletters

We may use your e-mail address and name received during the online purchase or during the performance of the contract to inform you by e-mail about our similar goods and services. In this case, the legal basis for processing your e-mail address and the name is based on our legitimate interest in advertising our products and services (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f GDPR in conjunction with § 7 para. 3 UWG). You can object to using your data at any time in the future. According to the base rates, this will not incur any costs apart from the transmission costs. The objection can be sent by e-mail to privacy@eclear.com.

On our website, you can subscribe to our newsletter. Our newsletter informs you about company information, offers, products, events, relevant technical articles and other company-related news.

If you would like to subscribe to our newsletter, you must provide us with your e-mail address where you would like to receive the newsletter. In addition, we ask you to provide us with your name and your professional sector so that we can address you personally and offer information in the newsletter aimed at your target group. The newsletter is sent, and your data is processed with your express consent. After entering your e-mail address, you will receive a confirmation e-mail at the specified e-mail address. The newsletter will only be sent after an explicit confirmation by clicking on a link in the confirmation e-mail (so-called double opt-in). The legal basis for this processing is your consent, according to Art. 6 Para. 1 lit. a GDPR. Sendinblue is used for sending newsletters. Sendinblue is a service with which, among other things, the sending of newsletters can be organized and analyzed. The data you enter for the purpose of receiving the newsletter is stored on Sendinblue’s servers in Germany.With the help of Sendinblue, it is possible for us to analyze our newsletter activities. For example, we can see whether a newsletter message has been opened and which links, if any, have been clicked. In this way, we can determine, among other things, which links are clicked on particularly often. Sendinblue also allows us to subdivide (“cluster”) newsletter recipients based on various categories. In doing so, the newsletter recipients can be subdivided according to the selection of the desired newsletters. In this way, the newsletters can be better adapted to the respective target groups. If you do not want Sendinblue to analyze your newsletter, you must unsubscribe. For this purpose, we provide a corresponding link in every newsletter message. The service provider is Sendinblue GmbH,, Köpenicker Straße 126, 10179 Berlin, Germany. Sendinblue acts as a processor with whom we have concluded a corresponding agreement on order processing pursuant to Art. 28 GDPR.

Furthermore, we use your e-mail address and your name to send you a white paper if you register. In this case, you will receive the white paper and, in return, by entering your data and clicking on “Download white paper”, you agree to us using the personal data we receive from you in the process (e-mail address, name) to send you information by e-mail on products, offers and promotions, specialist articles, event and webinar information, tips and company information from the areas of IT services/e-commerce/billing/accounting. In this case, we process your data to provide you with the white paper as requested and send you promotional information to the e-mail address you have provided. The legal basis is your consent in accordance with Art. 6 Para. 1 lit. a GDPR. We also use the so-called double opt-in procedure. You can revoke the permission of your e-mail address for this purpose at any time in the future by clicking on the unsubscribe link in every e-mail.

a. Types of data processed: Inventory data (name, industry), contact data (e-mail address)

b. Data subjects: Customers/interested parties/newsletter subscribers

c. Legal basis: Consent (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. a. GDPR), legitimate interest as described (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f. GDPR).

You are entitled to revoke your consent for the future and to unsubscribe from the newsletter or other promotional e-mails. To complete this, please click on the corresponding unsubscribe link in the newsletter sent or in the e-mail.

12. Live Chat and Chatbot

On our website, you can communicate with us in real-time via a live chat or, if necessary, by interacting with our chatbot.

Within the scope of the live chat, you have the opportunity to write us a message on the topics mentioned in the live chat, which will be answered directly by one of our employees. If you contact us outside our business hours or on weekends or Sundays, and holidays, or if no employee is immediately available, our chatbot will communicate with you if there is an inquiry via the live chat. This chatbot will reply to you automatically and ask you about your request. If you leave personal information (e-mail address, name, company), your request or (appointment) inquiry will be given to a contact person within our company, who will contact you by e-mail to get in touch.

When using our live chat and chatbot, the following data is processed:

  • Name, if applicable
  • E-mail address, if applicable
  • Company, if applicable
  • IP-address
  • Your request or input in the chat window
  • Date and time

Depending on the content of the communication, further personal data may be collected during the chat.

The data will be processed for handling your inquiry. If you voluntarily provide your e-mail address, company, and name, we will store it for contacting you.

Live chat and chatbots are possible without registration and, in principle, without providing personal data, as long as you neither book an appointment nor request contact. In this case, we do not collect any personal data.

The legal basis for the processing activities connected with the live chat and chatbot is Art. 6 para. 1 lit. b. GDPR, insofar as it concerns the initiation or implementation of a contractual relationship or pre-contractual measures, and otherwise Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f. GDPR, as we have a legitimate interest in simplified communication and contact with you and would like to be available to you in a streamlined way for questions about our products.

We delete the data collected via the live chat and chatbot after the storage is no longer necessary or restrict the processing if there are legal retention periods.

The live chat and chatbot are not available for processing banking and payment data or processing personal data within the meaning of Art. 9 (1) GDPR (e.g., health data).

In providing the technical service, we use Pipedrive OÜ, Mustamäe tee 3a, Tallinn, Estonia as a processor within the meaning of Art. 28 GDPR.

If you do not wish to use the live chat or chatbot, you can also contact us via other channels (e.g., contact form, phone call, booking an appointment).

13. VAT Optimiser

We offer you our VAT Optimiser on our website, a tool for determining your VAT optimisation potential. The VAT optimisation potential calculates the difference between the flat-rate application of standard VAT rates and the VAT rates required depending on the product class, considering applicable exemptions and reduced tax rates.

We do not process any personal data by entering the (sales) figures and specifying the product classes, and clicking on “Submit”. This is anonymised data that is only processed for statistical purposes.

After clicking on “Submit” and displaying the maximum values, you can request a detailed view of the results by e-mail.
By entering your data (first and last name, e-mail address) and clicking on “Request detailed overview”, you agree that your data (first and last name, e-mail address, specified (turnover) figures and product classes) will be processed by us to provide you with a detailed overview of the result and to send you the detailed resume of the VAT Optimiser by e-mail for this purpose, which also contains information on how to contact our advisory team, dates of events on the subject and the possibility to subscribe to our newsletter. The sending of the detailed overview and processing of your data takes place with your express consent by clicking on “Request detailed overview”.

After entering your e-mail address, you will receive a confirmation e-mail at the e-mail address you entered. The detailed overview will only be sent after explicit confirmation by clicking on a link in the confirmation e-mail (so-called double opt-in). After the double opt-in has been carried out, you will only receive a one-time e-mail with the detailed overview, which contains further information (information on how to contact our advisory team, dates of events on the topic and the possibility to subscribe to our newsletter).

The legal basis for processing your data is your consent, according to Art. 6 para. 1 lit. a GDPR. You are entitled to revoke your consent for the future at any time.

  • Types of data processed: inventory data (name), contact data (e-mail address), sales figures/product classes/countries specified, if applicable.
  • Data subjects: Interested parties of the VAT Optimiser
  • Legal basis: Consent (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. a. GDPR).

14. SPOT registration and demo account

With SPOT, we provide entrepreneurs with a dashboard in accordance with § 14 BGB (German Civil Code). The user can graphically display his transaction data transmitted via provided interfaces for various evaluation options (graphical display of sales). Registration for SPOT is required for this purpose.

To register, the user must enter the relevant data once and can log in to SPOT conveniently at a later time using your e-mail address and the password you have chosen yourself. Registration is possible on our website, and to do so, enter the corresponding data in the input mask provided. After the registration, you will receive a verification code by e-mail to complete the rest of your data. After complete registration, it is possible to log in to SPOT with your e-mail address and self-selected password.

The following data is collected during the registration process:

  • Name and first name
  • Gender
  • Company name incl. legal form
  • Address of your company
  • Business e-mail address
  • Business phone number
  • VAT identification number of your company

The legal basis for the data processing is the execution of the contract according to Art. 6 para. 1 lit. b. GDPR.

The e-mail address you provide will also be used for the verification process for registration and creation of a SPOT user account, send you a new password if required, and send you the General Terms and Conditions as part of the registration process. We process this data on a legal basis according to Art. 6 para.1 lit. b., f. GDPR.

For security reasons, changes to customer data and the use of the SPOT account are also logged. The data processing is carried out according to Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f. GDPR to ensure security and smooth contract processing.

We store your data only as long as they are required to fulfil the purpose they were collected, or if this is provided for by law. Thus, within the framework of the contractual relationship, we store at least until the complete termination of the contract. Afterwards, your data will be stored for the duration of the statutory retention periods.

To get an idea of the functionalities of SPOT, there is the possibility to register for a SPOT Demo Account on our website. To register for the SPOT Demo Account, you must enter the relevant data (first and last name, e-mail address, company) once. The registration is possible on our website. Subsequently, you will receive a confirmation e-mail (so-called double-opt-in procedure) to confirm the registration of the SPOT Demo Account with the specified e-mail address. With the corresponding confirmation of your e-mail address you will receive from us the access data for the use of the SPOT Demo Account. We reserve the right to deactivate and terminate the demo account at any time. The legal basis for data processing within the scope of the SPOT Demo Account is your consent pursuant to Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. a GDPR. You have the right to revoke your consent for the future at any time.

15. FileVAT

Our product FileVAT is available both for customers who want to use it to create their sales tax returns in the company itself and transmit them to the local tax authorities electronically via interface, and for tax advisor firms who can in turn use our software FileVAT to create and transmit sales tax returns of their clients.

Within the framework of our SaaS product “FileVAT”, turnover or sales data of the Merchant (entrepreneur in the sense of § 14 of the German Civil Code) or of the respective clientof the tax advisor is brought together and processed so that it can be used for the preparation of an advance VAT return, VAT return, EC sales list or any other country-specific return that is directly related to the VAT return (hereinafter “VAT return”). As far as possible within the respective European country, the software “FileVAT” also offers an electronic interface to the respective tax authority of the country for the automated electronic transmission of the VAT return. With FileVAT for tax advisors, the data (company name, address, VAT ID numbers of the client’s companies) of the tax advisor’s clients are recorded, after which the tax advisor, after entering the relevant data, can clearly see for all his clients separately which submission deadlines apply in which countries for which of his clients’ VAT returns. In addition, the progress of each process is displayed.

When using the SaaS product FileVAT, personal data can be processed within the scope of concluding a contract and creating a user account (e.g. name of contact person, company, address, business e-mail address, business telephone number, VAT identification number of the trader, company bank data). User accounts are created on the one hand for the company that directly concludes a contract for the use of FileVAT, and on the other hand for the tax advisory company when concluding a contract via FileVAT and for the individual clients of the tax advisory company. The processing of this personal data is necessary in order to be able to provide the service within the scope of FileVAT. In addition, the processing of this data is necessary for billing purposes. The data is deleted as soon as it is no longer required to achieve the purpose and there are no retention periods to the contrary. The legal basis for this data processing is the fulfillment of the contract pursuant to Art. 6 para. 1 p. 1 lit. b GDPR.

Each time the SaaS product FileVAT is called up, our system automatically collects data and information from the computer system of the calling computer (operating system of the user, IP address of the user, date and time of access, information about the browser type and the version used). This data is stored in log files. The hosting of the SaaS product FileVAT takes place via computing capacity of Business Objects Software Limited t/A SAP Solutions in Ireland and Amazon Web Services EMEA (“AWS”) in Luxembourg. Corresponding data processing agreements have been concluded with the service providers. The server locations are in Europe. The temporary storage of the IP address takes place for the purpose of delivering the SaaS product to the user’s computer. For this purpose, the IP address must be stored for the duration of the session or use of FileVAT. The log files are stored for the purpose of ensuring the functionality of the SaaS product and to ensure the security of the systems. The data is deleted as soon as it is no longer required to achieve the purpose and there are no retention periods to the contrary. The legal basis for this data processing is our legitimate interest pursuant to Art. 6 (1) p. 1 lit. f GDPR. Our legitimate interest is to ensure the functionality and security of the software.

For the processing of the data of the Merchant or the tax advisory firm and its clients within the scope of FileVAT for the preparation and, if applicable, electronic transmission of the VAT return to the local tax authorities within the contractually agreed geographical scope of FileVAT, it may be necessary to process personal data (e.g. sales figures, invoice data of individual transactions, first and last names of the business partners of the merchant/the clients of the tax advisory firm, if applicable, first and last name of the recipient customers of the merchant/the clients of the tax consulting company and, if applicable, delivery and invoice address). The data will be processed for the purpose of providing the services of FileVAT. The data will be deleted as soon as they are no longer required to achieve the purpose and there are no retention periods to the contrary. The legal basis for this data processing is the fulfillment of the contract according to Art. 6 para. 1 p. 1 lit. b DSGVO.

16. Webinars, online meetings and telephone conferences via “Microsoft Teams”

We use the “Teams” tool to conduct telephone conferences, online meetings, video conferences and/or webinars (hereinafter: “Online Meetings”). “Teams” is a service of Microsoft Corporation, which has its registered office in the USA.

Note: If you access the “Teams” website, the “Teams” provider is responsible for data processing. However, accessing the website is only necessary to use Teams online instead of a Teams app (e.g., Windows, macOS, iOS, or Android).

If you do not want to or cannot use the “Teams” app, the basic functions can also be used via a browser version, which you can also find on the Microsoft website.

  • Registration for a webinar: If you register for a webinar, the information in section 13 applies regarding registration. When registering, you can decide whether you would like to receive the presentation materials by e-mail after the webinar at the e-mail address you provided during registration. If you answer this question with “Yes”, you will receive a one-off e-mail with the lecture materials afterwards. The legal basis for this data processing is your consent in accordance with Art. 6 Para. 1 lit. a. GDPR. You can revoke your consent for the future at any time.
  • Purpose and object of a processing: When using “Teams”, various types of data are processed. The scope of the data also depends on the information you provide before or during participation in an “online meeting”.
  • User details: First name, last name or display name (“Display name”), telephone if applicable (optional), e-mail address if applicable, profile picture (optional).
  • Meeting metadata: Date, time, participant IP addresses, if applicable, device/hardware information.
  • For dial-in with the telephone: information on incoming and outgoing call number, country name, start, and end time. If necessary, further connection data, such as the device’s IP address, can be stored.
  • Text, audio and video data: You may have the opportunity to use the chat, question, or survey functions in an “online meeting”. In this respect, the text entries you make are processed to display them in the “online meeting” and, if necessary, to log them. To enable the display of video and the playback of audio, the data from the microphone of your terminal device and any video camera of the terminal device are processed accordingly for the duration of the meeting. You can turn off or mute the camera or microphone yourself via the “Teams” apps. We use Microsoft Teams to conduct “online meetings”. Suppose we want to record “online meetings”. In that case, we will transparently inform you in advance and – if necessary – ask for your consent. If it is necessary to record the results of an online meeting, we will record the chat content. However, this will not usually be the case. Automated decision-making within the meaning of Art. 22 GDPR is not used. You can find more information in the Microsoft Teams privacy policy. You can find it here.
  • Legal basis for data processing: The legal basis for data processing when conducting “online meetings” is Art. 6 para. 1 lit. b) GDPR, insofar as the meetings are conducted within contractual relationships. If there is no contractual relationship, the legal basis is Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f) GDPR. Our interest is in the effective conduct of “online meetings”. In the context of the implementation of webinars, the legal basis for data processing in the implementation of the webinar is Art. 6 (1) lit. b) GDPR, insofar as webinars for which a fee is charged are concerned. If there is no contractual relationship or if the webinars are free of charge, the legal basis is Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f) GDPR. Here, we have a legitimate interest in effectively conducting “online meetings” and offering you webinars.
  • Recipients/Disclosure of data: Personal data processed in connection with participation in “Online Meetings” will generally not be disclosed to third parties unless specifically intended for disclosure. Kindly note that the content of “online meetings” and personal meetings is often used to communicate information with customers, interested parties, or third parties and is therefore intended to be passed on.
  • Other recipients: The provider of “Microsoft Teams” necessarily receives knowledge of the data mentioned above. Our order processing agreement with “Microsoft Teams” provides this.
  • Data processing outside the European Union: Teams is a service provided by a provider from the USA. Processing of personal data takes place on servers in Germany. We have concluded an order processing agreement with the provider of Teams which complies with Art. 28 GDPR. An adequate level of data protection is guaranteed by the conclusion of the so-called EU standard contractual clauses.

17. Online marketing

We process personal data for online marketing purposes, which may include, in particular, marketing advertising space or displaying promotional and other content (collectively, “content”) based on users’ potential interests and measuring its effectiveness.

For these purposes, so-called user profiles are created and stored in a file (so-called “cookie”), or similar procedures are used. Information about the user relevant to the presentation of the content mentioned above is stored. This information may include, for example, content viewed, websites visited, online networks used, but also communication partners and technical information such as the browser used, the computer system used and information on usage times. This may also be processed if users have consented to collect their location data.

The IP addresses of the users are also stored. However, we use available IP masking procedures (i.e., pseudonymisation by shortening the IP address) to protect users. In general, no explicit user data (such as e-mail addresses or names) is stored within the scope of the online marketing process but pseudonyms. This means that we, as well as the providers of the online marketing procedures, do not know the actual identity of the users but only the information stored in their profiles.

The information in the profiles is usually stored in cookies or by similar procedures. These cookies can later generally also be read on other websites that use the same online marketing procedure and analysed for displaying content and supplemented with further data, and stored on the server of the online marketing procedure provider.

Exceptionally, precise data may be associated with the profiles. This is the case if, for example, the users are members of a social network whose online marketing procedures we use and the web links the users’ profiles with the data mentioned above. We ask you to note that users can make additional agreements with the providers, e.g., giving their consent as part of the registration process.

In principle, we only receive access to summarised information about the success of our advertisements. However, in the context of so-called conversion measurements, we can check which of our online marketing methods have led to a so-called conversion, i.e., to a conclusion of a contract with us. The conversion measurement is used solely to analyse the success of our marketing measures.

Unless otherwise stated, we ask you to assume that the cookies used will be stored for two years.

Notes on legal bases: Where we ask users for their consent to use third-party providers, the legal basis for processing data is consent. Otherwise, users’ data is processed based on our legitimate interests (i.e., interest in efficient, economic and recipient-friendly services). In this context, we would also like to refer you to the information on the use of cookies in this privacy policy. Data processing types: Usage data (e.g., websites visited, interest in content, access times), meta/communication data (e.g., device information, IP addresses).

  • Data subjects: Users (e.g., website visitors, users of online services), interested parties.
  • Purposes of processing: tracking (e.g., interest/behavioural profiling, use of cookies), remarketing, visit action evaluation, interest-based and behavioural marketing, profiling (creation of user profiles), conversion measurement (measurement of the effectiveness of marketing measures), reach measurement (e.g., access statistics, recognition of returning visitors).
  • Security measures: IP masking (pseudonymisation of the IP address).
  • Legal basis: Consent (Art. 6 para. 1 p. 1 lit. a GDPR), Legitimate Interests (Art. 6 para. 1 p. 1 lit. f. GDPR).
  • Opt-out option: We refer to the data protection information of the respective providers and the opt-out options given for the providers. If no explicit opt-out option has been specified, you can switch off cookies in your browser settings. However, this may restrict the functions of our online offer. We, therefore, recommend the following additional opt-out options, which are offered in summary for the respective areas:
  • Europa: https://www.youronlinechoices.eu
    Canada: https://www.youradchoices.ca/choices
    USA: https://www.aboutads.info/choices
    Cross-territorial: https://optout.aboutads.info

    Services used and service providers:

    Google Tag Manager: Google Tag Manager is a solution with which we can manage so-called website tags via an interface and thus integrate other services into our online offer. The Tag Manager (which implements the tags) does not process any users’ personal data. Please refer to the following information on Google services regarding processing users’ data. 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://marketingplatform.google.com; Privacy policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy

    Google Analytics 4: We use the web analytics service Google Analytics 4. We integrate Google Analytics 4 via the Google Tag Manager. If you have not consented to the use of analytics tools via our cookie consent manager, your data will not be collected as part of Google Analytics 4. Google Analytics 4 uses JavaScript and pixels to read information on your terminal device and cookies to store information on your terminal device. This is used to analyze your usage behavior and improve our website. We process the data obtained from the analysis to evaluate your use of the website and to compile reports on website activity. In doing so, Google Analytics 4 also uses artificial intelligence such as machine learning for automated analysis and enrichment of the data. You can read more about this here. The data collected as part of the usage analysis of Google Analytics 4 is enriched with data from the Google Search Console and linked with data from Google Ads, in particular to measure the success of our advertising campaigns (so-called conversions). The following data can be processed by Google Analytics 4:

    • IP address;
    • User ID and device ID;
    • Referrer URL (previously visited page);
    • accessed pages (date, time, URL, title, duration of visit);
    • downloaded files;
    • clicked links to other websites;
    • Achievement of specific goals (conversions);
    • technical information (operating system; browser type, version and language; device type, brand, model and resolution);
    • approximate location (country, region and, if applicable, city, based on anonymized IP address).

    Anonymization of the IP address is automated by Google Analytics 4. The retention period is two months (we have disabled resetting the retention period on new activity).

    Service provider: Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland, parent company: Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA. Privacy policy: https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/6004245?hl=de Privacy policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=de

    We have concluded an data processing agreement with Google Ireland Limited for the use of Google Analytics. In the event that personal data is transferred from Google Ireland Limited to the USA, Google Ireland Limited and Google LLC have concluded standard contractual clauses. The legal basis for the data processing is your consent pursuant to Art. 6 (1) sentence 1 lit. a DSGVO, which you give via our cookie consent tool. If you have not consented to the use of the analysis tools, your data will not be collected as part of Google Analytics 4.

    Google Ads and conversion measurement: We use the online marketing method “Google Ads” to place ads in the Google advertising network (e.g., in search results, in videos, on web pages, etc.) so that they are displayed to users who have a presumed interest in the ads. We also measure the conversion of the ads. However, we only learn the anonymous total number of users who clicked on our ad and were redirected to a page marked with a so-called “conversion tracking tag”. However, we do not receive any information that can be used to identify users. 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://marketingplatform.google.com; privacy policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy

    Google Ad Manager: We use the “Google Marketing Platform” (and services such as “Google Ad Manager”) to place ads in the Google advertising network (e.g., in search results, in videos, on web pages, etc.). The Google Marketing Platform (formerly “Doubleclick”) is characterised by the fact that ads are displayed in real-time based on the presumed interests of the users. This allows us to display ads for and within our online offering in a more targeted manner, to present users only with advertisements that potentially match their interests. For example, suppose a user is shown ads for products they have been interested in on other online services. In that case, this is known as “remarketing”. 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://marketingplatform.google.com

    Google AdSense with personalised ads: We use the Google AdSense service with personalised advertisements, with the help of which advertisements are displayed within our online offering, and we receive remuneration for their display or other use.; 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://marketingplatform.google.com; Privacy policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy

    Google Ads Lead Form: We use Google’s “Google Lead Form Extension” function to collect and process certain personal data from prospective customers – so-called leads – via a contact form presented by Google regarding advertisements about our company. The content and scope of the data requested in this form is limited to the following data: Name, e-mail address, telephone number, company name. The legal basis for the data transfer is your express consent pursuant to Art. 6 para. 1 lit. a GDPR. The legal basis for data processing for the purpose of contacting you is our legitimate interest in responding to your request pursuant to Art. 6 (1) lit. f GDPR. If your contact aims at the conclusion of a contract, the additional legal basis for the processing is Art. 6 para. 1 lit. b GDPR. Service provider: Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland, parent company: Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA; Privacy policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy; Data Processing Agreement: https://business.safety.google/adsprocessorterms/

    Bing Universal Event Tracking: This website uses Bing Ads Universal Event Tracking, a conversion tracking service provided by Microsoft (Microsoft Cooperation, One Microsoft Way, Redmond, WA 98052-6399, USA). This service enables us to track the activities of users on our website if they have reached our website via ads from Bing Ads. If you reach our website via such an ad, a cookie is set on your computer. In particular, Microsoft and we learn the total number of users who have clicked on an ad and which areas of the website have been accessed and via which ad the users reached the website. Information about your identity is not collected. The information collected is transferred to Microsoft servers in the USA and stored there for a maximum of 180 days. You can prevent the collection of the data generated by the cookie and related to your use of the website and the processing of this data by deactivating the setting of cookies. In addition, Microsoft may be able to track your usage behavior across several of your electronic devices through so-called cross-device tracking and is therefore able to display personalized advertising on or in Microsoft websites and apps. You can deactivate this behavior at http://choice.microsoft.com/de-de/opt-out. You can find more information about Bing’s analytics services on the Bing Ads website (https://help.bingads.microsoft.com/#apex/3/de/53056/2). You can find more information on data protection at Microsoft and Bing in Microsoft’s privacy policy (https://privacy.microsoft.com/de-de/privacystatement). The legal basis for this processing is the consent you have given via the cookie consent tool on our website in accordance with Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. a GDPR. You can withdraw your consent at any time. To do so, you can use the link to the cookie consent tool for your opt-out under “8. Use of cookies”.

    LinkedIn Insights Tag & LinkedIn Ads: We use the “LinkedIn Insight Tag” from LinkedIn Ireland Unlimited Company. This tool creates a cookie in your web browser that allows, among other things, the following data to be collected: IP address, device and browser properties, and page events (e.g., page views). This data is encrypted, removed within seven days to pseudonymise it, and the pseudonymised data is deleted within 180 days. LinkedIn does not share any personal data with eClear, but does provide anonymised reports on website reach and ad performance. Furthermore, LinkedIn offers the possibility of retargeting via the LinkedIn Insight Tag. We may use this data to display targeted advertising outside our website without identifying you as a visitor to the website. For more information on LinkedIn’s data protection, please see LinkedIn’s privacy policy. LinkedIn’s members can control the use of their data for advertising purposes in their account settings. To disable the Insight tag on our website (“opt-out”), click here. We also use the retargeting function of LinkedIn on our website. With the help of this technology, visitors to this website can be shown personalized advertisements on LinkedIn. The legal basis for this processing is the consent given by you via the cookie consent tool on our website pursuant to Art. 6 (1) p. 1 lit. a GDPR. You can revoke your consent at any time. For this, you can use the option of the link to the cookie consent tool for your opt-out under the point “8. Use of cookies”.
    Service provider: LinkedIn Ireland, Wilton Plaza, Wilton Place, Dublin 2, Ireland. Privacy policy: https://de.linkedin.com/legal/privacy-policy/

    Hotjar: This website uses the service Hotjar. Hotjar is a service for analyzing user behavior in order to statistically evaluate visitor data. With Hotjar, we can analyze mouse and scroll movements and clicks, among other things. From this, Hotjar creates heatmaps that can be used to determine which website areas are viewed preferentially by website visitors. In addition, Hotjar can determine how long you stayed on a page and when you left it. We can also determine at which point you abandoned your input in a contact form. In doing so, Hotjar stores the following data: the IP address of the page visitor (in anonymized form), type and size of the terminal device used, the location, date and time of the page view. Hotjar states that only the IP address is tracked in anonymized form (the last eight digits are removed) and all tracked data is automatically deleted after 365 days. Hotjar’s server location is within the EU, in Ireland. Hotjar uses cookies. We have entered into an order processing agreement with Hotjar. The data processing is based on your consent pursuant to Art. 6 para. 1 p. 1 lit. a) GDPR by clicking on all cookies and services in the cookie banner under the item “Marketing”. You can revoke your consent at any time for the future. For this, you can use the option of the link to the cookie consent tool for your opt-out under the point “8. Use of cookies”. If you wish to deactivate the data collection by Hotjar, click on the following link and follow the instructions there: https://www.hotjar.com/policies/do-not-track/ Service provider: Hotjar Ltd, Dragonara Business Centre, 5th Floor, Dragonara Road, Paceville St Julian’s STJ 3141, Malta. Privacy Policy: https://www.hotjar.com/privacy/

    Pop-up windows with surveys: This website uses pop-up windows with surveys. We use these surveys to constantly adapt and improve our online offer. These surveys are anonymous and no personal data is collected.

18. Presence in social networks

We maintain online presences within social networks to communicate with active users or offer information about us there.

We want to point out that user data may be processed outside the European Union. This may result in risks for users because, for example, it could make it more difficult to enforce users’ rights. Regarding US providers who offer comparable guarantees of a safe level of data protection, we point out that they thereby undertake to comply with the data protection standards of the EU.

Furthermore, user data within social networks is usually processed for market research and advertising purposes. For example, usage profiles can be created based on the users’ usage behaviour and resulting interests. The usage 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 typically stored on the users’ computers. The usage behaviour and the interests of the users are stored. Furthermore, data independent of the devices used by the users may also be stored in the usage profiles (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 options to object (opt-out), we refer to the data protection declarations and information provided by the operators of the respective networks.

Regarding requests for information and the assertion of data subject rights, we would like to point out that these can be asserted most effectively with the providers. Only the providers have access to the users’ data and can take appropriate measures and provide information directly. If you still need help, you can contact us.

  • 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).
  • Data subjects: 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 lit. f. GDPR).

Services used and service providers:

19. Facebook

We have a company Facebook page (“fan page”) at: https://www.facebook.com/eClearAG
The following information on data processing relates to data processing on our Facebook page by us (eClear AG, Französische Straße 56-60, 10117 Berlin, Germany) and Meta Platforms Ireland Ltd, 4 Grand Canal Square, Grand Canal Harbour, Dublin 2 Ireland, in the EU (“Facebook”). Both we and Facebook are responsible for certain parts of the processing of your data when you use the fan page. The focus of the data processing lies with Facebook. Below we explain how this works and what your rights are.

Processing of personal data on the company page
The type and scope of the collection of personal data when visiting a Facebook fan page depends heavily on the user’s behavior and can be influenced in part by the user, i.e. you.

Joint processing of statistical analysis by eClear and Facebook
When you use our fan page, Facebook collects the following personal data (“usage data”) to the best of our knowledge:

  • Information about views of pages, posts, videos, stories or other content associated with the fan page,
  • Interactions with a story, subscriptions, likes of posts, recommendations of posts or comments, sharing, reactions to or commenting on posts, notifications of posts or the hiding of posts,
  • clicks on links on other pages that lead to the fan page, mouse movements over names or profile pictures to get a preview of content, clicks on buttons on a fan page and on the device (computer or mobile device) with which you are logged in,
  • Calling up and reacting to events, clicking on a link for event tickets, initiating a messenger conversation, calling up fan page stores, including information on such actions such as date and time of the action, country/city (estimated from the IP address or imported from the user profile for logged-in users), language code (from the browser HTTP header and/or language setting), age/gender groups (from the user profile, only for logged-in users), previously visited websites (from the browser HTTP header), whether the action was taken on a computer or on a mobile device (from the browser user agent or from app attributes) and the Facebook user ID (only for logged-in users).

We do not receive this usage data directly, but only from Facebook in aggregated, i.e. summarized form via the – https://de-de.facebook.com/business/pages/manage and https://de-de.facebook.com/legal/terms/information_about_page_insights_data Insights data – data we cannot assign to you personally.

Without our fan page, Facebook would not be able to collect the usage data. We and Facebook are therefore so-called “joint controllers” within the meaning of Art. 26 GDPR for the processing of usage data. This means that Facebook and we process this data for the joint purpose of getting to know the usage behavior of the users of our fan page. As the operator of the platform, Facebook collects the specific usage data from you; we only receive the summarized Insights data from Facebook. Therefore, only Facebook makes decisions about the processing of usage data in connection with Page Insights. In the event of such joint responsibility, the EU General Data Protection Regulation requires a special contract with Facebook. You can access this contract here: https://de-de.facebook.com/legal/terms/page_controller_addendum. The contract contains further details and explanations on our joint responsibility with Facebook in the context of Page Insights. Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f GDPR (balancing of interests) is the legal basis for our involvement in the processing of usage data. Our interest here is the administration and improvement of the fan page. We do not require any further legal basis for the processing of Insights data, as this is not personal data.

Processing of personal data by eClear
If you actively use our fan page, we process the following personal data (“action data”):

  • Your public profile information, which in any case means your Facebook user name and your profile picture,
  • Your active clicks
  • Your comments, posts, direct messages and other content that you make available to us on the fan page.

We process this action data in order to provide you and the other users of the fan page with your content, the fan page and the fan page experience and, if necessary, to answer your inquiries. We do not create profiles of you or mix the action data with other data that we have about you. We process the action data on the basis of our legitimate interests in providing our users and followers on Facebook with relevant content and enabling you to use our fan page and its functionalities (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f GDPR). We respond to your comments or posts on the fan page in order to answer your request (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. b GDPR). We only process your action data for the purposes described for as long as this is necessary, i.e. usually as long as we operate our fan page or as long as your active action on our fan page is online or until we have finally answered your direct message. Beyond this, we only store your personal data to fulfill any statutory retention obligations. We have no means of influencing the deletion of your data by Facebook itself. In order to provide the fan page on the Facebook platform, your personal data will be processed by Meta Platforms Ireland Limited and, if necessary, transmitted by Meta Platforms Ireland Limited to Meta Platforms, Inc., other Meta companies and external partners worldwide and in particular in the USA and used for its own business purposes. To ensure an adequate level of data protection, Facebook bases such data transfers on the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework. Further information on data deletion and storage duration can be found in the Facebook data policy: https://de-de.facebook.com/policy.php You can contact Facebook’s data protection officer at the following link: https://www.facebook.com/help/contact/540977946302970.

20. Plug-ins and embedded functions and content

We integrate functional and content elements into our online offer obtained from their respective providers’ servers (hereinafter referred to as “third-party providers”). These can be, for example, graphics, videos, or social media buttons and posts (hereinafter uniformly referred to as “content”).

The integration always requires that the third-party providers of this content process the user’s IP address. Without the IP address, they would not be able to send the content to their browser. The IP address is thus required to display this content or function. We endeavour only to use content whose respective providers only use the IP address 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 analyse 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. It may contain, among other things, technical information about the browser and operating system, referring websites, time of the visit and additional information about the use of our online offering, as well as being linked to such information from other sources.

Notes on legal bases: Where we ask users for their consent to use third-party providers, the legal basis for processing data is consent. Otherwise, users’ data is processed based on our legitimate interests (i.e., interest in efficient, economic and recipient-friendly services). In this context, we would also like to refer you to the information on the use of cookies in this privacy policy.

  • Types of data processed: Usage data (e.g., websites visited, interest in content, access times), meta/communication data (e.g., device information, IP addresses).
  • Data subjects: Users (e.g., website visitors, users of online services).
  • Purposes of processing: Provision of our online offer and user-friendliness, contractual performance and service.
  • Legal basis: Legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f. GDPR).

Services used and service providers:

  • Google Web Fonts: We integrate the fonts (“Google Web Fonts”) of the provider Google, whereby the user’s data is used solely for displaying the fonts in the user’s browser. The integration is based on our legitimate interests in a technically secure, maintenance-free and efficient use of fonts, their uniform display and considering 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/; privacy policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy;
  • Friendly Captcha: In order to ensure sufficient data security when submitting forms, we use in certain cases the service tool Friendly Captcha of the company Friendly Captcha GmbH, Am Anger 3-5, 82237 Woerthsee. This is mainly used to distinguish whether the input is made by a natural person or abusively by machine and automated processing. As part of this process, your IP address is collected by Friendly Captcha in order to send a cryptographic task to your terminal. This task is solved in the background and once solved, a confirmation is sent by Friendly Captcha to the server that this is a natural person. No cookies are set or read on the visitor’s end device by Friendly Captcha. IP addresses are only stored in hashed (one-way encrypted) form and do not allow us and Friendly Captcha to draw any conclusions about an individual person. The legal basis for the processing is our legitimate interest according to Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. f GDPR to prevent abusive access or spam attacks by bots. If personal data is processed when Friendly Captcha is used, it is deleted after 30 days. Further information on data protection when using Friendly Captcha: https://friendlycaptcha.com/privacy/

21. Planning, organisation and auxiliary tools

We use services, platforms, and software from other providers (hereinafter referred to as “third-party providers”) for organising, managing, planning and providing our services. We observe the legal requirements when selecting the third-party providers and their services.

In this context, personal data may be processed and stored on the servers of third-party providers. This may involve various data that we process in accordance with this privacy policy. This data may include, in particular, master data and contact data of users, data on transactions, contracts, other processes and their contents.

Suppose users are referred to third-party providers or their software or platforms during communication, business or other relationships with us. In that case, the third-party providers may process usage data and metadata for security, service optimisation or marketing purposes. We, therefore, ask you to observe the data protection notices of the respective third-party providers.

Notes on legal bases: If we ask users for their consent to the use of third-party providers, the legal basis for the processing of data is consent. Furthermore, their use may be a component of our (pre-)contractual services, provided that the use of the third-party providers was agreed upon within this framework. Otherwise, user data is processed based on our legitimate interests (i.e., interest in efficient, economic and recipient-friendly services). In this context, we would also like to refer you to the information on the use of cookies in this privacy policy.

  • 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), identification numbers (e.g., customer numbers, order numbers), data on payment transactions when using our chargeable services.
  • Data subjects: Communication partners, users (e.g., website visitors, users of online services), customers.
  • Legal basis: Consent (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. a GDPR), Contract fulfilment and pre-contractual enquiries (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. b. GDPR), legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f. GDPR).

22. Data deletion

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 of processing this data has ceased to apply or it is not required for the purpose).

Suppose the data are not deleted because they are required for other and legally permissible purposes. In that case, their processing is limited to these purposes. I.e., 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 whose storage is necessary for the assertion, exercise, or defence of legal claims or the protection of the rights of another natural or legal person.

Further information on the deletion of personal data can also be found in this data protection declaration’s data protection notices.

23. Amendment and update of the privacy policy

We ask you to regularly inform yourself about the content of our data protection declaration. We adapt the data protection declaration as soon as the changes in the data processing carried out by us make this necessary. We will inform you as soon as the changes require an act of cooperation on your part (e.g., consent) or other individual notification.

24. Rights of the data subjects

As a data subject, you are entitled to various rights under the GDPR, which arise in particular from Art. 15 to 18 and 21 as well as 77 GDPR:

a. Right to object: You are entitled to object at any time, on grounds relating to your particular situation, to the processing of personal data concerning you, which is carried out based on Article 6(1)(e) or (f) GDPR; this also applies to profiling based on these provisions. If the personal data concerning you are processed for direct marketing, you are entitled to object to the processing of personal data concerning you for such marketing; this also applies to profiling insofar as it is related to such direct marketing.

b. Right to revoke consent: You are entitled to revoke your consent. If you wish to revoke your consent, you can send an e-mail to privacy@eclear.com. Suppose you want to revoke your consent to receive the newsletter or other promotional e-mails. In that case, you can click on the unsubscribe link provided in the newsletter or e-mail sent to you.

c. Right of access: You are entitled to request confirmation whether the data in question is being processed, be informed about this data, and receive further information and a copy of the data according to the legal requirements.

d. Right to rectification: By the law, you are entitled to request that data concerning you be completed or that inaccurate data concerning you be rectified.

e. Right to erasure and restriction of processing: You have the right, in accordance with the law, to request that data relating to you be erased immediately or to request the restriction of the processing of the data in accordance with the law.

f. Right to data portability: You are entitled to receive data relating to you that you have provided to us in a structured, common and machine-readable format in accordance with the legal requirements or to request that it be transferred to another controller.

g. Complaint to the supervisory authority: You also have the right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority, in particular in the Member State of your habitual residence, place of work or place of the alleged infringement, in accordance with the law, if you consider that the processing of personal data relating to you infringes the GDPR.

25. Definitions of terms

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

  • Personal data: “Personal data” means any information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person (hereinafter “data subject”); an identifiable natural person can be identified, directly or indirectly, in particular by reference to an identifier such as a name, an identification number, location data, an online identifier (e.g., cookie) or to one or more factors specific to the physical, physiological, genetic, mental, economic, cultural or social identity of that natural person.
  • Remarketing: “Remarketing” or “retargeting” is when, for example, for advertising purposes, it is noted which products a user was interested in on a website to remind the user of these products on other websites e.g., in advertisements.
  • Tracking: We speak of “tracking” when the behaviour of users can be traced across several online services. As a rule, behavioural 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 correspond to their interests.
  • Controller: the natural or legal person, public authority, agency, or other body that alone or jointly with others determines the purposes and means of processing personal data.
  • Processing: “Processing” means any operation or set of operations performed upon personal data, whether by automatic means. The term is broad and encompasses virtually any handling of data, be it collection, analysis, storage, transmission, or erasure.