Datenschutzerklärung

1.     General Information

We inform you here about the processing of personal data when you use our website. Personal data are all data with which you can be personally identified. Detailed information on data protection can be found in the privacy policy provided below.            

Personal data means all data that can be related to you personally, such as your name, address, email address, IP address, or user behaviour.

Regarding the terms used, such as “processing,” “controller,” or “data subject,” reference is made to the definitions set out in Article 4 of the GDPR. For the purposes of this regulation, the term refers to:

“Personal data” means any information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person (hereinafter referred to as the “data subject”); an identifiable natural person is one who 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, or to one or more factors specific to the physical, physiological, genetic, mental, economic, cultural, or social identity of that natural person (Art. 4 No. 1 GDPR).

“Processing” means any operation or set of operations which is performed on personal data or on sets of personal data, whether or not by automated means, such as collection, recording, organization, structuring, storage, adaptation or alteration, retrieval, consultation, use, disclosure by transmission, dissemination or otherwise making available, alignment or combination, restriction, erasure, or destruction (Art. 4 No. 2 GDPR).

“Controller” means the natural or legal person, public authority, agency or other body which, alone or jointly with others, determines the purposes and means of the processing of personal data; where the purposes and means of such processing are determined by Union or Member State law, the controller or the specific criteria for its nomination may be provided for by Union or Member State law (Art. 4 No. 7 GDPR).

The operators of this website take the protection of your personal data very seriously. We treat your personal data confidentially and in accordance with the legal data protection regulations as well as this privacy policy. We would like to point out that data transmission over the Internet (e.g., when communicating via email) may have security vulnerabilities. Complete protection of the data against access by third parties is not possible.

2.     Data Collection on our Website

Who is responsible for data collection on this website?

The data processing on this website is carried out by the website operator.

MEPATRONIK GmbH
Greulingstr. 10-12
42859 Remscheid
Telefon: 02191/9740-0
Email: datenschutz@mepatronik.de

How can you contact our Data Protection Officer?

We are not legally required to appoint a Data Protection Officer. If you have any questions regarding the processing of your data, you are welcome to contact us at any time.

Who is affected by the data processing?

If you visit our website as, for example, a prospective customer, client, supplier, service provider, or any other visitor, the processing of your personal data takes place in accordance with legal regulations and this privacy policy. All visitors to our website are collectively referred to as “users.”

Which data do we collect from you, and for what purposes or on what legal basis do we process them?

If you visit our website without registering or otherwise providing us with information, only the personal data transmitted by the browser you use to our server are processed. The following data may be recorded in so-called log files which are technically necessary to display our website and to ensure its stability and security:

·         IP address of the requesting computer

·         Date and time of the request

·         Name and URL of the requested file

·         Access status / HTTP status code

·         Amount of data transferred

·         Website from which the request originated (referrer URL)

·         Browser

·         Operating System

If you additionally provide us with personal data, for example, when making an inquiry via email or through our contact form, we also process the following data, depending on the information you provide:

·         Account data (e.g., name, address)

·         Contact data (e.g., email address, phone number)

·         Content data (e.g., text entries, photos, videos)

·         Usage data (e.g., visited pages, access times)

·         Communication / metadata (e.g., device information, IP addresses)

We process your personal data during your visit to our website for the following purposes:

·         Providing the functions and content of our online offer

·         Ensuring a smooth connection to our website

·         Ensuring comfortable use of our website

·         Analysis and maintenance of system security and stability, as well as general security measures

·         Responding to any contact inquiries and communicating with you

·         Other administrative purposes

·         Provision of contractual services

·         Customer Service

In addition, we may process personal data for the purposes of providing contractual services, service and customer care, as well as marketing/advertising. If you wish to receive the newsletter offered on the website, we require your email address and information that allows us to verify that you are the owner of the provided email address and that you consent to receiving the newsletter. No further data is collected or it is collected only on a voluntary basis. We use this data exclusively for sending the requested information and do not share it with third parties.
The processing of the data entered in the newsletter registration form is carried out solely based on your consent (Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR). You can revoke your consent to the storage of the data, your email address, and its use for sending the newsletter at any time, for example via the “unsubscribe” link in the newsletter. The legality of the data processing carried out prior to the revocation remains unaffected.           
The data you provide to us for the purpose of receiving the newsletter will be stored by us until you unsubscribe from the newsletter and will be deleted after you cancel your subscription. Data stored for other purposes (e.g. email addresses for the member area) remain unaffected.             
Unless we specify a different legal basis in this privacy policy, the following applies to the processing of your personal data: The legal basis for obtaining consents is Art. 6(1)(a) and Art. 7 GDPR. The legal basis for processing data to fulfill our services and carry out (pre-)contractual measures, as well as to respond to any inquiries, is Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR. For data processing to fulfill legal obligations, Art. 6(1)(c) GDPR serves as the legal basis. If processing is necessary to protect vital interests of the data subject or another natural person, the legal basis is Art. 6(1)(d) GDPR. Data processing to safeguard our legitimate interests is based on Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR. Our legitimate interest arises from the purposes of data collection described above.

If, while processing your personal data, we disclose it to third parties, transfer it to them, or otherwise grant them access to the data, this is done solely based on a legal permission, your consent, our legal obligation or our legitimate interests. A legal permission exists when the transfer of data is necessary to fulfilll contractual obligations (e.g., with payment or shipping service providers). A legitimate interest may exist if we use data for direct marketing or to prevent fraud or if you are a customer of ours. Legitimate interests can also arise, for example, when using web or email hosting providers, cloud providers or other service providers. Such service providers often act as so-called processors based on a corresponding contract. They are also obligated to comply with data protection requirements and to ensure this contractually. The legal basis for such processing agreements is Art. 28 GDPR.

To whom do we transfer your data?

We regularly work, in particular, with the following recipients:

·         Shipping service providers

·         Credit institutions

·         Email hosting providers

·         Web hosting providers

We select external service providers carefully. In the case of processing agreements (Art. 28 GDPR), these companies are contractually bound to our instructions and are regularly monitored by us. Further information can be found in the following descriptions of the individual services.

Are your data transferred to entities outside the EU?

The transfer of your personal data to third countries (i.e. outside the EU or EEA) or to an international organization is not intended.

How long do we process your data?

The duration of the storage of your personal data is generally determined by existing statutory retention periods (e.g. under commercial or tax law). Unless otherwise stated below, your personal data will routinely be deleted after the expiration of any applicable period, provided they are no longer necessary for the fulfilllment or initiation of a contract, we no longer have a legitimate interest in further storage, and/or you have not consented to further storage.

3.     Objection / Right to Object

What rights do you have regarding your data?
Regarding the processing of your personal data, you have the right vis-à-vis us to:

• To request information about the personal data we process about you. In particular you can request information about the purposes of processing, the categories of personal data, the categories of recipients to whom your data have been or will be disclosed, the planned storage period, the existence of a right to rectification, erasure, restriction of processing, or objection, the existence of a right to lodge a complaint, the origin of your data if it was not collected by us, as well as the existence of automated decision-making, including profiling, and, where applicable, meaningful information about its details (Art. 15 GDPR);
• To request the immediate rectification of inaccurate or completion of your personal data stored with us (Art. 16 GDPR);
• To request the deletion of your personal data stored with us, unless processing is necessary for exercising the right to freedom of expression and information, to comply with a legal obligation, for reasons of public interest or for the establishment, exercise or defense of legal claims (Art. 17 GDPR);
• To request the restriction of processing of your personal data where you contest the accuracy of the data, the processing is unlawful but you oppose its erasure, and we no longer need the data but you require them for the establishment, exercise or defense of legal claims, or where you have objected to processing pursuant to Art. 21 GDPR (Art. 18 GDPR);
• To receive your personal data that you have provided to us in a structured, commonly used, and machine-readable format, or to request the transfer to another controller (data portability, Art. 20 GDPR);
• Not to be subject to a decision based solely on automated processing—including profiling—that produces legal effects concerning you or similarly significantly affects you (Art. 22 GDPR);
• To lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority (Art. 77 GDPR);
• For reasons arising from your particular situation to object at any time to the processing of personal data concerning you that is based on Art. 6(1)(e) or (f); this also applies to profiling based on these provisions (Art. 21 GDPR);
• To withdraw your consent at any time. This results in us no longer being allowed to continue processing the data based on this consent in the future (Art. 7(3) GDPR).

When and how can you object to the processing of your data?

If your personal data are processed based on legitimate interests pursuant to Art. 6(1)(1)(f) GDPR or for direct marketing or profiling, you have the right to object to the processing of your data at any time. This means that we must no longer process your personal data for the future, unless we can demonstrate compelling legitimate grounds for processing that override your interests, rights, and freedoms or if the data processing serves the establishment, exercise or defense of legal claims.

The right to object applies only if there are reasons arising from your situation or if your objection is directed against direct marketing. In the latter case you have a general right to object, which we will implement without requiring any specific situation.

To exercise your right to object, it is sufficient to send us a message.

When and how can you withdraw your consent?

You can withdraw any consent you have given to us at any time. This means that we must no longer process your personal data based on that consent in the future.

To exercise your right of withdrawal, it is sufficient to send us a message.

To whom can you submit a complaint?

Regarding the processing of your personal data by us, you have the right to lodge a complaint with a data protection supervisory authority. A list of the supervisory authorities for each federal state in Germany can be found, for example at the following address:               
https://www.bfdi.bund.de/DE/Infothek/Anschriften_Links/anschriften_links-node.html

4.     Security and Analysis

How do we secure our website?

Considering the state of the art, implementation costs, the nature, scope, circumstances and purposes of processing, as well as the varying likelihood and severity of risks to the rights and freedoms of natural persons, we implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to ensure a level of security appropriate to the risk (Art. 32 GDPR). These measures particularly include securing the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of data.

In addition, we have established business processes that ensure, among other things, the protection of data subjects’ rights, the deletion of data and the response to data breaches. Furthermore we observe the principles of data protection law, including data protection by design and by default (Art. 25 GDPR).

For security reasons and to protect the transmission of your personal data and other confidential content, we use encrypted transmission via an SSL certificate on our website. You can recognize this by the “https” (instead of “http”) in the address bar of your browser, as well as a padlock symbol and a different color display.

Cookies

On our website, we use so-called cookies. These are small files that contain text information and are stored by your browser on your device.

So-called transient (or temporary) cookies are automatically deleted when you close your browser. These include session cookies. They store a specific identifier (the so-called session ID), which allows your device to be recognized when you return to our website. This enables, for example the contents of a virtual shopping cart or wishlist in an online shop or the login status, to be retained. Session cookies are deleted when you log out or close your browser.

Persistent (or permanent) cookies are automatically deleted after a certain period; the duration of storage varies depending on the cookie. These can be used, for example to store user information for reach measurement or marketing purposes, or to retain a login status for a longer period.

For both temporary and permanent cookies, a distinction must be made between first-party cookies and third-party cookies. First-party cookies are set by the responsible entity, while third-party cookies are set by external providers.

You can delete cookies at any time via your browser’s security settings, or you can, for example refuse the acceptance of third-party cookies. If you generally wish to object to the use of cookies for online marketing purposes, you can do so via various services or providers, e.g., the U.S. page www.aboutads.info/choices or the European page www.youronlinechoices.com. Please note, however that some functions of our website may no longer be available if you do so.

On our website we may use temporary or permanent cookies, as well as first- and third-party cookies, for example to identify you for subsequent visits if you have an account with us (otherwise, you would need to log in again for each visit). Further information on this can be found below in our privacy policy.

Currently we only use cookies that are technically necessary to provide our services (e.g., to store the login status). The legal basis for the use of these cookies is Art. 6(1)(1)(f) GDPR. If other cookies that are not technically necessary are used, we obtain your consent for their use (Art. 6(1)(1)(a) GDPR).

Analytics Tools and Third-Party Tools

When you visit our website, your browsing behaviour may be statistically analysed. This is primarily done using cookies and so-called analytics programs. The analysis of your browsing behaviour is generally anonymous and it cannot be traced back to you. You can object to this analysis or prevent it by not using certain tools. You may object to this analysis at any time.

Google Analytics

This website uses functions of the web analytics service Google Analytics. The provider is Google Inc., 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA.

Google Analytics uses “cookies.” The information generated by the cookie about your use of this website is generally transmitted to a Google server in the USA and stored there.

The storage of Google Analytics cookies is based on Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR. The website operator has a legitimate interest in analysing user behavior to optimize both its web offering and its advertising.

IP Anonymization

We have enabled the IP anonymization feature on this website. As a result, your IP address is shortened by Google within member states of the European Union or in other states party to the Agreement on the European Economic Area before being transmitted to the USA. Only in exceptional cases is the full IP address transmitted to a Google server in the USA and shortened there.

On behalf of the operator of this website, Google will use this information to evaluate your use of the website, compile reports on website activity and provide other services related to website and internet usage to the website operator. The IP address transmitted by your browser as part of Google Analytics will not be merged with other data from Google.

Browser Plugin

You can prevent the storage of cookies by adjusting the settings of your browser software; however, please note that in this case, you may not be able to use all functions of this website fully.

Furthermore you can prevent the collection of data generated by the cookie and related to your use of the website (including your IP address) by Google, as well as the processing of this data by Google, by downloading and installing the browser plugin available at the following link:          
https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout?hl=de.

Objection to Data Collection

You can prevent the collection of your data by Google Analytics by clicking on the following link. An opt-out cookie will be set, which prevents the collection of your data during future visits to this website:
 https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/6004245?hl=de.

For more information on how Google Analytics handles user data, please refer to Google’s privacy policy.

Data Processing on Behalf of a Controller (Processing Agreement / Order Data Processing)

We have concluded a data processing agreement with Google and fully implement the strict requirements of the German data protection authorities when using Google Analytics.

Demographic Features in Google Analytics

This website uses the “demographic features” function of Google Analytics. This allows reports to be generated that provide information about the age, gender, and interests of site visitors. These data come from Google’s interest-based advertising and from visitor data provided by third parties. The data cannot be attributed to any specific individual. You can disable this feature at any time in your Google account’s ad settings, or you can generally prevent the collection of your data by Google Analytics as described in the section “Objection to Data Collection”.

5.     Payment Transactions

Encrypted Payment Transactions

If, after concluding a paid contract, it is necessary to provide us with your payment data (e.g., account number for direct debit), these data are required for payment processing. Payment transactions are carried out exclusively via an encrypted SSL or TLS connection.

PayPal

On our website, we offer payment via PayPal. The provider of this payment service is PayPal (Europe) S.à.r.l. et Cie, S.C.A., 22-24 Boulevard Royal, L-2449 Luxembourg (hereinafter “PayPal”). If you choose to pay via PayPal, the payment data you enter will be transmitted to PayPal.

The transfer of your data to PayPal is based on Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR (consent) and Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR (processing necessary for the performance of a contract). You have the option to withdraw your consent to data processing at any time. Withdrawal does not affect the legality of any data processing carried out prior to the withdrawal.