Data protection
Personal Data Protection Policy, Cookies and Privacy Policy
The Institute for International Product Safety GmbH (hereinafter referred to as I²PS) respects your concerns about the protection of personal data, and we value our relationship with you. This Personal Data Protection, Cookies and Privacy Policy ("Policy") applies solely to personal data collected through its respective content via I²PS websites, web pages, portals, interactive features, applications, phone support, email, widgets and blogs, and through our site on Twitter and other social networks (collectively, the "Sites"), whether accessed through computers, mobile devices, technologies or other devices (collectively, "Devices").
This policy describes the types of personal information we collect through our site, how that personal information may be used and/or with whom it may be shared. This Policy also describes how to reach us to update your contact information, how to access the personal information we collect in connection with our marketing communications and activities, how to control its use, and finally, how to get answers to questions you may have about our privacy practices for this Site. Please read this policy carefully, as by using the Site you acknowledge that you understand it and agree to its terms.
I. Cookies
Like many other companies, I²PS uses "cookies" and similar tools on the Site to improve its performance and your user experience.
What are Cookies?
A cookie is a small text file that is stored on your device. Cookies help analyze web traffic and enable web applications to respond to you as an individual. The web application can tailor its work to your needs, likes and dislikes by collecting and storing information about your preferences. Certain cookies may contain personally identifiable information. For example, if you click "Save login name" when you log in, a cookie may store your username. Most cookies will not collect personally identifiable information that identifies you, but instead will collect more general information about, for example, how users arrive at and use our site and the area the user is from.
What we use cookies for?
I²PS may store cookies and similar files on your device for security reasons or to inform us if you have visited the pages before or if you are a first-time visitor. They may also be used to store your language preferences. In addition, these files are used to otherwise facilitate site navigation and to personalize your experience when visiting our site. Cookies allow us to collect technical information and navigation details. This may include, for example, browser type, your length of visit to our Site, and pages visited. Cookies also allow us to select which of our advertisements and offers are most likely to be of interest to you and then display them when you are active on the Site. Cookies can improve your online experience by allowing us to remember your preferences while you visit a particular website. Overall, cookies help us provide you with a better site because we can log which pages you find useful and which you do not. A cookie does not give us access to your device in any way, and we do not gain any information about you from it, other than the data you choose to share with us.
Which types of cookies do we use?
Usually cookies used on the sites can be divided into the following categories:
- Session Cookies
These cookies are used "session only" during your visit and then expire when you leave a site (or shortly thereafter). They are not permanently stored on your device, do not contain personal data, and help by minimizing the need to transmit personal data over the Internet. Such cookies can be deleted and you can refuse their use. However, by doing so, you will degrade the performance and your experience when visiting the Sites. These cookies also record the times when you enter and leave a page. - Tracking Cookies
Such cookies allow us to recognize visitors when they return to our Sites. By matching an anonymous, randomly generated identifier, a tracking cookie tracks where users came to our Sites from, what search engine they may have used, what link they clicked on, what keyword they used, and where in the world they were when they accessed the Site. By monitoring this data, we can make improvements to our Sites. - Permanent Cookies
These types of cookies are stored on your device for a specified period of time (sometimes for a few hours, sometimes for a year or more) and are not deleted even when the browser is closed. Persistent cookies are used in places where we need to remember who you are across browser sessions. For example, this type of cookie may be used to store your preferences so that they can be retrieved for your next visit to a site. - Analytical cookies and performance cookies
Performance cookies are used to analyze how the Sites are used and to monitor their performance. This allows us to improve your experience when using the Sites. These cookies help us customize the content of the Site to what Site users find most interesting and to determine when technical problems with the Sites occur. We may also use this data to create reports that help us analyze how the Sites are used, what the most common problems are, and how we can improve the Sites.
Can the cookies be blocked?
You can accept or reject cookies. Most web browsers automatically accept cookies, but if you prefer, you can also set your browser to refuse cookies. If you prefer not to accept cookies, most browsers allow you to: (i) change your browser settings to notify you when you receive a cookie so that you can choose whether or not to accept it; (ii) delete existing cookies; or (iii) set your browser to automatically refuse cookies. Note, however, that some features and services on our Site may not function properly if you disable or reject cookies, as we may not be able to recognize and associate you with your I²PS accounts. In addition, when you visit us, our offerings may not be as relevant to you or tailored to your interests.
II. Personal Data Protection Policy and Privacy Policy
1. INFORMATION COLLECTED ON OUR SITE
Information you provide to us
Unless otherwise indicated on our Site itself, you can generally visit the Site without providing any personally identifiable information. However, you may be asked or choose to provide personally identifiable information that is reasonably expected to be used to contact you through the Site or to personally identify you (e.g., name, address, telephone number, or e-mail address ("Personal Information"). I²PS may collect Personal Information when you register on the Site, request information, purchase products or services, provide products or services, submit a resume or comments, participate in promotions and surveys, use other Site features, or otherwise communicate or interact with us. The Site may also request other personal information from you (e.g., demographic information, such as gender, zip code, age, etc.) or certain information about your preferences, product usage and interests. If we combine demographic or other information we have collected about you with personally identifiable information, we will treat the combined information as personally identifiable information in accordance with applicable laws, subject to your prior consent, if required by such applicable laws. If you do not want us to process your personal data, do not provide us with such data or notify us to have it deleted.
Data Collected by Automatic Means
When you visit or interact with the Site, I²PS may use a variety of technologies that automatically or passively collect information about how you access and use the Sites ("Usage Data"). This Usage Data may include, but is not limited to, browser type and operating system, page viewed, time of day, number of visitors to the Sites, and previous page views. Usage Data is statistical data that provides us with information about the use of the Sites (e.g., how many visitors a particular page on the Sites has, how long they stay on that page, and what hyperlinks, if any, they click on). This usage data helps us keep the Sites current and interesting to our visitors and tailor the content to each visitor's interests. Usage data is generally not suitable for identification purposes. However, if I²PS associates it with you as an identifiable individual, I2PS treats it as personal information.
When collecting Usage Data, I²PS may also automatically collect your IP address or other unique identifier ("Device Identifier") from the Device. A device identifier is a number that is automatically assigned to your device when you access a website or its servers. Our computers identify your device by the device identifier. When you visit the Site, you can view your device identifier. We use this information to determine the general location of your device and to identify the regions of the world from which visitors to the Site come. We may also use this personal information to improve the Site.
Technologies used to collect usage data, including device identifiers on the Site, include cookies.
2. HOW WE USE THE INFORMATION WE COLLECT
I²PS uses the personally identifiable information and usage data we collect through the Site for various business purposes such as, among others: To respond to your questions and concerns; To provide access to certain areas and features of the Site; To verify your identity; To share information with you about your account and activity on the Site and, at our discretion, any changes to I²PS policies; To customize content, advertising and offers that we send to you; To send you samples, rewards, products and information; To make payments for products or services you have purchased; to make payments for products or services you have provided to I²PS; to improve the Site; to develop new products and services; to process requests and transactions; and for such purposes as may have been announced to you at the time you provided your personal information and, finally, with your consent, for other purposes.
3. DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION
We will only share your personal information with third parties to the extent described in this policy without your explicit consent. We may share non-personal information, such as aggregated user statistics, demographic data, and usage data, with third parties. We also share your personal information when it involves third parties performing services on our behalf. In order to fulfill your requests and for various features, services and materials available to you through the Site and to respond to your inquiries, we may share your Personal Data and Usage Data with third parties who perform functions on our behalf (or on behalf of our business partners); These may include companies or individuals who: host or operate our Site; analyze data; provide customer service; send product samples or administer payments; advertisers; sponsors or other third parties who participate in or administer our promotions or provide support for our marketing and advertising. When we share your personal information with third parties, we require that they use and protect your personal information in a manner consistent with this Policy. Consent to Share Your Personal Information.
While you are on our Site, you will have the opportunity to register to receive information and/or marketing offers from us or third parties or otherwise consent to the sharing of your personal information with third parties. If you consent to your personal information being shared, your personal information will be shared with that third party and the personal information you disclose will be subject to that third party's privacy policy.
4. INFORMATION WE RECEIVE FROM THIRD PARTIES
I²2PS may receive your personally identifiable information or usage information from third parties. For example, if you indicate on another website that you would like to be contacted by I²PS, that website will share your email address and other personal information with us so that we can contact you as requested. Also, you may choose to participate in a third party application or feature (e.g., one of our Twitter pages or a similar application or feature on a third party website) through which you allow us (or the third party) to collect and share information about you, which may include personally identifiable information.
We may supplement the personal information we collect about you through the Site with other information from third parties in order to better serve you, customize our content for you, and provide you with opportunities to purchase products or services that we believe may be of interest to you. We may combine the personal information we receive from these third parties with information we collect through the Site. In such cases, we will apply this policy to all personal information received unless we have otherwise disclosed it.
5. YOUR ACCESS AND CHOICES
You may at any time instruct us not to share your personal information with third parties, not to use it to send you information or offers, and not to send you newsletters, e-mails or other communications from us; To do so: (i) send us an e-mail at
If you wish to review, correct or update your personal information collected through the Site, you may do so by contacting us at the address or email listed above. Pursuant to our regular data retention procedures, we may delete certain records of personal information that you have provided to us through the Site. We are under no obligation to retain such personally identifiable information indefinitely and disclaim any liability arising out of or related to the destruction of such personally identifiable information.
6. ADVERTISING; CONSENT AND OPT-OUT
I²PS licenses technology to place advertisements on other Sites and in their content when that content is delivered over the Internet. In addition, I²PS may use third party Internet advertising providers to place advertisements and third party analytics providers to evaluate and provide us with information about the use of the Sites and the display of our content. We do not share personally identifiable information with these third parties, but the Internet advertising providers, advertisers, sponsors, and/or analytics providers may use their own cookies, pixel tags, and similar technologies on your device to access such information, and they may also collect such information, such as usage data, in other ways. Third parties that provide marketing programs on behalf of I²PS are responsible for maintaining cookie acceptance or rejection functionality. If you have given your prior consent and it is required by applicable law, we and our Internet advertising providers will target you with advertisements about products and services in which you may be interested based on your visits to both our Site and other websites.
7. LINKS TO OTHER SITES
The Site may contain links to other websites that we do not own or operate. These include links from advertisers, sponsors and partners who may use our logo(s) as part of a co-branding arrangement. To the extent linked websites are not a part of the I²PS Site, we do not control, endorse, or support them, and we do not assume any liability for these websites and their content, products, services, or privacy policies and practices. These other websites may send their own cookies to your device, may collect data or request personal information independently of us, and may or may not apply their own privacy policies. You should independently evaluate the authenticity of any website that is displayed or purports to be our site (including those linked through an email or social network page).
8. THIS IS HOW WE PROTECT PERSONAL INFORMATION
We maintain certain administrative, technical and physical safeguards to protect your personal information from loss, misuse or unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration or destruction.
9. Directive 95/46/EC
I²PS complies with the provisions of Directive 95/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data (the "EU Directive").
10. CHILDREN
The Site is not directed to children under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from persons under the age of 13. If, upon collection, we determine that a user is under that age, we will not use or maintain the personal information in question without the consent of the parent or guardian. If we become aware that we have unknowingly collected identifiable personal information from a child under the age of 13, we will delete that personal information from our database.
11. UPDATES TO OUR PRIVACY POLICY
This Policy and other policies on the Site may be updated periodically without prior notice to you, and any changes will be effective upon posting of the revised policy on the Site. However, unless you agree to the new or revised policy, we will use your personal information in accordance with the policy that was in effect at the time you submitted the personal information. We will post a notice prominently on the Site to alert you to material changes to our policy and will indicate at the beginning of the policy when it was last updated.
12. HOW TO CONTACT US
Please contact us if you have any questions or comments about this policy.
Address your correspondence to:
Institute for International Product Safety GmbH
Hein-Moeller-Str. 7-11
D-53115 Bonn
Germany
