Privacy policy

Collecting and storing personal data plus nature and purpose of its use

When visiting the website

When visitors leave comments on the site we collect the data shown in the comments form, and also the visitor’s IP address and browser user agent string to help spam detection.

When you open our website www.msm.digital, the browser used on your device automatically sends information to our website’s server. This information is stored temporarily in a so-called “logfile”. The following information is collected, without you having to do anything, and stored until it is erased automatically after one week.

• IP address of the accessing computer,
• The date and time of access,
• the name and the URL of the file retrieved,
• Website from which access was made (referrer-URL),
• Browser used and possibly your computer’s operating system as well as the name of your access provider.

We will process the data stated for the following purposes:

• to guarantee a smooth connection with the website,
• to ensure that our website is convenient to use,
• to evaluate system security and stability, as well as
• for other administrative purposes.

The legal basis for data processing is Article 6 para. 1 S. 1 lit. f GDPR. Our legitimate interest arises from the purposes of data collection stated above. Under no circumstances will we use the data collected for the purpose of drawing conclusions about your person.

Furthermore, when you visit our website, we use cookies and analytical services. You can find more information on this under items 4 and 5 of this data protection information.

When contacting us

If you upload images to the website, you should avoid uploading images with embedded location data (EXIF GPS) included. Visitors to the website can download and extract any location data from images on the website.

For all kinds of queries, we offer you the possibility of contacting us by telephone, mail, WhatsApp, or Facebook Messenger.

The data processing  for the purpose of contacting us takes place in accordance with Article 6 para. 1 S. 1 lit. a GDPR on the basis of your voluntarily granted consent respectively, inasmuch that you have expressed a specific interest in a contract, on the basis of Article 6 para. 1 lit. b GDPR for the performance of pre-contractual measures.

Disclosure of data

A transfer of your personal data to third parties shall not take place for purposes other than those listed below. We shall only share your personal data with third parties if:

• you have given explicit consent for this in accordance with Article 6 para. 1 S. 1 lit. a GDPR,
• the disclosure pursuant to Article 6 para. 1 S. 1 lit. f GDPR is required for establishment, exercise or defence of legal claims and there are no grounds to accept that you have an overriding interest in non-disclosure of your data,
• a legal obligation exists for the transfer pursuant to Article 6 para. 1 S. 1 lit. c GDPR as well as
• this is legally permissible and is required pursuant to Article 6 para. 1 S. 1 lit. b GDPR for the concluding of a contractual relationship with you.

Cookies

Articles on this site may include embedded content (e.g. videos, images, articles, etc.). Embedded content from other websites behaves in the exact same way as if the visitor has visited the other website.

We use cookies on our website. These are small files which your browser creates automatically and stores on your device (laptop, tablet, smartphone or similar) when you visit our website. Cookies do not damage your device in any way, nor do they contain any viruses, trojans or other damaging software. Information is stored in the cookie which is associated with the specific device used. However, this does not mean that we receive direct information about your identity. On the one hand, using cookies means that use of our website will be more pleasant for you. Accordingly, we use so-called “session cookies” to identify that you have already visited individual pages on our website. These are erased automatically when you leave our website.

In addition, we use temporary cookies to help optimise user friendliness which are always stored on your device for a period of one year. If you revisit our website to make use of our services, the system will automatically recognise that you have already visited us, and which input and settings you activated, so that you do not have to enter these again.

We also use cookies to statistically record the use of our website, and so that we can evaluate this to help optimise our services for you (see point 5). These cookies allow us to identify that you have already visited us when you revisit our website. These cookies are always erased one year after your last visit, Google-Cookies, however, (see point 5) only after two years.

The data processed by cookies are required for the purposes stated to preserve our legitimate interests and those of third parties in accordance with Article 6 para. 1 S. 1 lit. f GDPR. Most browsers accept cookies automatically. However, you can configure your browser so that no cookies are saved on your computer, or that a warning always appears before a new cookie is placed. Full deactivation of cookies, however, can mean that you may not be able to use all the functions of our website.

Analysis tools

The following tracking tools used by us are utilised in accordance with Article 6 para. 1 S. 1 lit. f GDPR. With the tracking measures used we aim to ensure appropriate design and ongoing optimisation of our website. We also use the tracking measures to statistically record the use of our website, and so that we can evaluate this to help optimise our services for you. These interests are legitimate within the meaning of the directive above.

Google Analytics

We use Google Analytics, a web analysis service from Google LLC (https://www.google.de/intl/de/about/) (1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA; in the following “Google“) for the appropriate design and ongoing optimisation or our website. With regard to this, pseudonymised usage profiles and cookies (see point 4) are used. The information about your use of this website created by the cookie such as

• browser type/version,
• operating system used,
• referrer URL code (previously visited site),
• host name of the accessing computer (IP address),
• and time of the server query

are transferred to a Google server in the USA and stored there. This information is used to evaluate the use of the website in order to generate reports on website activity and to provide further services relating to website use and internet use for the purposes of market research and to enable these web pages to be developed in line with requirements. This information may be passed on to third parties in so far as is prescribed by law or where third parties are processing the data on behalf of Google. Your IP address will never be merged with any other Google data. The IP addresses are anonymised, so that allocation is not possible (IP masking).

You can prevent the storage of cookies by using the appropriate setting on the browser software; however, we would point out that if this is done, it may not be possible to use all functions of this website to their full extent.

In addition, you can prevent collection of the data on your use of the website (including your IP address) generated by the cookie, and also prevent the processing of this data by Google by downloading and installing a browser add-on.

For further information with regard to data protection associated with Google Analytics, please refer to Google Analytics Help.

Google Adwords Conversion Tracking

We use the services of Google Adwords to draw attention to our offers with the help of advertising media (so-called Google Adwords) on external websites. In relation to the data of the advertising campaigns, we can determine how successful the individual advertising measures are. In doing so, we pursue the interest of showing you advertising that is of interest to you and of making our website more interesting for you and of achieving a correct calculation in terms of advertising costs. These advertising media are delivered by Google via so-called “Ad Servers”. We use ad server cookies for this purpose, which can be used to measure certain parameters for measuring success, such as the display of ads or clicks by users. If you access our website via a Google ad, Google Adwords stores a cookie on your PC. These cookies usually lose their validity after 30 days and are not intended to identify you personally. For this cookie, the unique cookie ID, number of ad impressions per placement (frequency), last impression (relevant for post-view conversions) and opt-out information (marking that the user no longer wishes to be addressed) are usually stored as analysis values. These cookies allow Google to recognize your Internet browser. In case a user visits certain pages of an AdWords customer’s website and the cookie stored on their computer has not yet expired, Google and the customer may recognize that the user clicked on the ad and was directed to that page. Each Adwords customer is assigned a different cookie. Therefore cookies cannot be traced via the websites of Adwords customers.

We ourselves do not collect and process any personal data in the aforementioned advertising measures. We only receive statistical evaluations from Google. On the basis of these evaluations we can recognize which of the advertising measures used are particularly effective. We do not receive any further data from the use of the advertising media; in particular, we cannot identify users on the basis of this information. Due to the marketing tools used, your browser automatically establishes a direct connection with the Google server. We have no influence on the extent and further use of the data collected by Google through the use of this tool and therefore inform you according to our state of knowledge: Through the integration of AdWords Conversion, Google receives the information that you have clicked the relevant part of our website or clicked on an advertisement from us. If you are registered with a Google service, Google can assign the visit to your account. Even if you are not registered with Google or have not logged in, it is possible for the provider to find out and store your IP address.

You can prevent participation in this tracking process in various ways: a) by making the appropriate settings in your browser software, in particular by suppressing third party cookies to prevent you from receiving advertisements from third parties; b) by deactivating cookies for conversion tracking by setting your browser to block cookies from the “www.googleadservices.com” domain, https://www.google.de/settings/ads, whereby this setting is deleted when you delete your cookies; c) by disabling the interest-based ads of the providers that are part of the “About Ads” self-regulatory campaign via the http://www.aboutads.info/choices link, whereby this setting is deleted when you delete your cookies; d) by permanently disabling it in your Firefox, Internet Explorer or Google Chrome browsers via the http://www.google.com/settings/ads/plugin link. Please note that in this case you may not be able to make full use of all the functions of this offer. The legal basis for the processing of your data is Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. f DSGVO. Further information on data protection at Google can be found here: http://www.google.com/intl/de/policies/privacy and https://services.google.com/sitestats/de.html. Alternatively, you can visit the website of the Network Advertising Initiative (NAI) at http://www.networkadvertising.org.

We use Google Analytics’ 3rd-party audience data such as age, gender, and interests to better understanding the behavior of our customers and work with companies that collect information about your online activities to provide advertising targeted to suit your interests and preferences. For example, you may see certain ads on this website or other websites because we contract with Google and other similar companies to target our ads based on information we or they have collected, including information that was collected through automated means (such as cookies and web beacons). These companies also use automated technologies to collect information when you click on our ads, which helps track and manage the effectiveness of our marketing efforts.

You may opt out of the automated collection of information by third-party ad networks for the purpose of delivering advertisements tailored to your interests, by visiting the consumer opt-out page for the Self-Regulatory Principles for Online Behavioral Advertising at http://www.aboutads.info/choices/ and edit or opt-out your Google Display Network ads’ preferences at http://www.google.com/ads/preferences/.

Google Remarketing

Besides Adwords Conversion we use the application Google Remarketing. This is a process by which we would like to address you again. With this application, you will be shown our advertisements after visiting our website when you continue to use the Internet. This is done by means of cookies stored in your browser, which are used by Google to record and evaluate your usage behaviour when you visit various websites. This allows Google to determine your previous visit to our website. According to Google’s own statements, the data collected within the scope of marketing is not combined with your personal data, which may be stored by Google. In particular, according to Google, a pseudonymisation is used for remarketing.

Google Web Fonts

For uniform representation of fonts, this page uses web fonts provided by Google. When you open a page, your browser loads the required web fonts into your browser cache to display texts and fonts correctly.

For this purpose your browser has to establish a direct connection to Google servers. Google thus becomes aware that our web page was accessed via your IP address. The use of Google Web fonts is done in the interest of a uniform and attractive presentation of our website. This constitutes a justified interest pursuant to Art. 6 (1) (f) DSGVO. If your browser does not support web fonts, a standard font is used by your computer.

The legal basis for the use of Google Web Fonts is Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. f DSGVO. Third party information: Google Dublin, Google Ireland Ltd., Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland, Fax: +353 (1) 436 1001.

Terms of Use: http://www.google.com/analytics/terms/de.html,
Privacy Policy: http://www.google.com/intl/de/analytics/learn/privacy.html and: http://www.google.de/intl/de/policies/privacy.

Facebook Marketing Services

Due to our legitimate interest in the analysis, optimization and economic operation of our online offer and for these purposes within the meaning of Art. 6 (1) f. of the GDPR we use the so-called “Facebook pixel” of the social network Facebook, which is operated by Facebook Inc., 1 Hacker Way, Menlo Park, CA 94025, USA, or if you are a resident of the EU, Facebook Ireland Ltd., 4 Grand Canal Square, Grand Canal Harbour, Dublin 2, Ireland (“Facebook”).

With the help of the Facebook pixel, Facebook is on the one hand able to determine the visitors of our online offer as a target group for the presentation of advertisements (so-called “Facebook Ads”). Accordingly, we use the Facebook pixel to display our Facebook Ads only to Facebook users who have shown an interest in our Websites or who have specific characteristics (e. g. interests in certain topics or products determined by the websites visited) that we submit to Facebook (so-called “custom audiences”). With the help of the Facebook pixel, we also want to make sure that our Facebook Ads are in line with the potential interest of users and do not have a nuisance effect. Using the Facebook pixel, we can also track the effectiveness of Facebook Ads for statistical and market research purposes by seeing whether users have been redirected to our website after clicking on a Facebook Ad (so-called “conversion”).

The Facebook pixel is directly integrated into our web pages by Facebook and can store a so-called cookie, i. e. a small file, on your device. If you then log in to Facebook or visit Facebook when you are logged in, your visit to our online offer will be noted in your profile. The data collected about you is anonymous for us, i. e. it does not allow us to draw conclusions about the identity of the users. However, the data is stored and processed by Facebook so that it can be linked to the respective user profile and used by Facebook as well as for its own market research and advertising purposes. If we transfer data to Facebook for comparison purposes, it is encrypted locally in the browser and only then sent to Facebook via a secure https connection. This is done with the sole purpose of matching the data encrypted by Facebook.

Facebook’s processing of the data is governed by Facebook’s Data Usage Policy. For specific information and details about the Facebook pixel and how it works, please visit the Facebook Help Center.

You may object to the collection by the Facebook pixel and use of your data to display Facebook ads. To set what kind of ads you see on Facebook, you can go to the page set up by Facebook and follow the instructions on how to set up use-based advertising.

Use of Facebook Custom Audiences

The website uses the remarketing function “Custom Audiences” of Facebook Inc. (“Facebook”). This allows users of the Site to display interest-based ads (“Facebook Ads”) when visiting the Facebook social network or other sites that also use the process. We are interested in displaying advertisements that are of interest to you in order to make our website more interesting to you. Due to the marketing tools used, your browser automatically establishes a direct connection with the Facebook server. We have no influence on the extent and further use of the data collected by Facebook through the use of this tool and therefore inform you according to our state of knowledge: By integrating Facebook Custom Audiences, Facebook receives the information that you have clicked the corresponding site of our website or clicked on an advertisement from us. If you are registered with a Facebook service, Facebook can assign the visit to your account. Even if you are not registered with Facebook or have not logged in, it is possible for the provider to find out and store your IP address and other identification features. You can find the deactivation function of the “Facebook Custom Audiences” here and for logged in users at https://www.facebook.com/settings/?tab=ads# .

The legal basis for the processing of your data is Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit. f DSGVO. Further information on data processing by Facebook can be found at https://www.facebook.com/about/privacy.

Social Media

On our website we use, on the basis of Article 6 para. 1 S. 1 lit. f GDPR social plugins from the social networks Facebook, LinkedIn and XING in order to make ourselves better known and to offer you a variety of communication channels. The purpose behind this corresponds to our legitimate interest, Article 6 para.1 lit. f GDPR. The relevant provider must guarantee responsibility for operation of the social networks that conforms to data protection regulations.

Incorporating this plugin by the provider takes place as part of the “two-click method”, in order to give you the best possible protection. This means that, when a user visits our website, initially no personal data whatsoever is transmitted to the provider of the plugins. You can recognise the provider of the plugins by the marking on the field above the first letters of his name or by the respective logo (e.g. for Facebook: white “f” on blue tile or a “Thumbs up”-sign). We offer you the possibility of communicating directly with the provider of the plugin via the button. Only when you click on the marked field and, as a result, activate it, does the plugin provider receive the information that a user has opened the corresponding website for our online offerings. Furthermore, personal data is then transmitted to the provider of the respective plugin (in particular the IP address). In the case of Facebook and Xing, according to the respective providers in Germany, the IP address is anonymized immediately after being recorded. As a result of the plugin being activated the user’s personal data is transmitted to the respective plugin provider and stored there (in the case of US American providers in the USA). Since the plugin provider performs his data collection, in particular, via cookies, we recommend that, before clicking on the greyed-out field, you delete all cookies using your browser’s security settings.

We have no influence over the collected data and data processing activities, nor are we aware of the full extent of data collection, the purpose of the processing or the storage periods at the plugin providers. We also have no information for the erasure of the data collected by the plugin provider.

The respective plug-in provider stores the data collected on the users of our online offerings and uses them for the purpose of advertising, market research and/or needs based design of its own website. Such an evaluation is carried out in particular (also for non-logged in users) for the presentation of needs based advertising and to inform other users of the social network about the activities of the users on our website. Users have the right to object to the creation of these user profiles, whereby a user must contact the respective plug-in provider to exercise this right. By means of the plug-ins we offer you, independent of this, the opportunity to interact with the social networks and other users, so that we can improve our offer and make it more interesting for our users.

The dissemination of data takes place regardless of whether the user has an account with the plugin provider or is logged in there. If you are logged in at the plugin provider your data, collected by us, is assigned directly to your existing account with the plugin provider. If you press the activated button and, for example, link the page, the plugin provider stores this information on the appropriate user account and publicly informs your contacts. We therefore recommend that, after using a social network, to regularly log off, especially before activating the button, in this way an assignment to the profile at the plugin provider can be avoided.

More information regarding the purpose and scope of the data collection and its processing by the plugin providers, can be found in the privacy policies of these providers provided below. There one can find more information on the users’ rights and the setting possibilities for the protection of privacy within these networks.

186325668085084. a) Facebook Inc., 1601 S California Ave, Palo Alto, California 94304, USA; http://www.facebook.com/policy.php; further information on data collection: http://www.facebook.com/help/186325668085084.
186325668085085. b) Xing AG, Gänsemarkt 43, 20354 Hamburg, DE; http://www.xing.com/privacy.
186325668085086. c) LinkedIn Corporation, 2029 Stierlin Court, Mountain View, California 94043, USA; http://www.linkedin.com/legal/privacy-policy.