Privacy Policy

Responsible body

within the meaning of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and other data protection regulations is

SONAX GmbH
Münchener Str. 75
86633 Neuburg
Germany

Telephone: +49 (0) 843153-0

E-mail: info@sonax.de

Internet: https://www.sonax.de

Data protection officer

of the responsible body is:

Ms Vera Schneider
E-mail: datenschutz@sonax.de
otherwise reachable under the contact data of the responsible body.

Your rights as a data subject

You may exercise the following rights at any time by contacting our data protection officer at the address provided:

information about your stored data and how we process it,
correction of incorrect personal data,
have your stored data deleted,
restriction of data processing if we are not yet permitted to delete your data due to legal obligations,
objection to your data being processed by us and
data portability, if you have consented to data processing or have concluded a contract with us.

If you have given us your consent, you can revoke it at any time with effect for the future via all known communication channels.

You can contact your local supervisory authority at any time with a complaint. Your supervisory authority will vary depending on your country of residence, your work and the nature of the alleged infringement. A list of supervisory authorities (for the non-public sector) and their addresses can be found at:
https://www.bfdi.bund.de/DE/Infothek/Anschriften_Links/anschriften_links-node.html

Purposes of data processing by the responsible body and third parties

We only process your personal data for the purposes stated in this privacy policy. Your personal data will not be passed on to third parties for purposes other than those mentioned. We will only disclose your personal data to third parties if:

you have given your express consent,
processing is necessary to fulfil a contract agreed with you,
processing is necessary to fulfil a legal obligation,
processing is necessary to protect legitimate interests and there is no reason to believe that you have an overriding legitimate interest in not having your data disclosed.

Legal bases for the processing of personal data

Insofar as we obtain the consent of the data subject for processing their personal data, Art. 6 (1) (a) GDPR is applicable as legal basis.

In the processing of personal data required for the performance of a contract to which the data subject is a party, Art. 6 (1) (b) GDPR serves as the legal basis. This also applies to processing that is necessary for pre-contractual measures.

Insofar as the processing of personal data is required to fulfil a legal obligation to which our company is subject, Art. 6 (1) (c) GDPR serves as the legal basis.

If processing is necessary to safeguard a legitimate interest of our company or a third party and if the interests, fundamental rights and freedoms of the data subject do not outweigh the first-mentioned interest, Art. 6 (1) (f) GDPR serves as the legal basis for processing.

Data deletion and storage duration

A data subject's personal data will be deleted or blocked as soon as the purpose of storage ceases to exist. Furthermore, data may be stored if this has been provided by the European or national legislation in regulations, laws or other provisions to which the data controller is subject. Data is also deleted or blocked once a retention period prescribed by the specified standards expires, unless there is a need for further storage of the data in order to conclude or fulfil a contract.

Changes to our Privacy Policy

We reserve the right to adjust this privacy policy so that it always meets the current legal requirements or to include changes to our services in the privacy policy, such as the introduction of new services. Any subsequent visits will then be subject to the terms of the new privacy policy.

Questions to the data protection officer

If you have any questions about data protection, please send us an e-mail or contact the person responsible for data protection in our organisation directly:
Ms Vera Schneider, e-mail: datenschutz@sonax.de

Collection of general information when you visit our website

Information of a general nature is automatically collected by a cookie when you access our website. This information (server log files) includes, among other things, the type of browser used, the operating system used, the domain name of your Internet service provider, and other similar data. It is exclusively information that cannot be connected to you as an individual.

This information is produced automatically during Internet use and is required for technical reasons so that the requested web content can be correctly displayed. The data will be kept for up to one week. It is processed for the following purposes in particular:

ensuring smooth connection to the website,
ensuring our website works properly,
to evaluate system security and stability, as well as
for other administrative purposes.

The processing of your personal data is based on our legitimate interest arising from the aforementioned purposes of data collection. The legal basis for data processing is Art. 6 (1) (f) GDPR. We do not use this data to draw conclusions about you personally. The only recipients of the data are the responsible body and, if applicable, the external processor. Anonymous information of this kind can be statistically analysed in order to improve our website and its underlying technology.

All data is deleted as soon as it is no longer required to achieve the purpose for which it was collected. In the case of data collection for provision of the website, this will be undertaken once the respective session has ended. If IP addresses are stored in log files, the personal data will be deleted or anonymised after seven days at the latest. A storage longer than this is possible in connection with cookies or analysis services. In this case, the IP addresses of the users are deleted or shortened, so that it is not possible to attribute the calling client. You will find further explanations on this below.

Cookies

We use "cookies", as do many other websites. Cookies are small text files that are transferred from a website server to your hard drive.

Cookies cannot be used to run programs or transfer viruses to your computer. Based on the information contained in the cookies, we can make navigation easier for you and make sure that our website displays correctly.

We process and use the data collected in order to improve the marketing of our web pages, to increase the user friendliness of the web pages and for other optimisation purposes. The analysis required for marketing and optimisation purposes generally does not allow us to draw any conclusions about your person or personal data. In particular, no names, addresses, telephone numbers or other data that can be directly assigned to individuals are stored. The analysis only provides aggregated data, such as the number of visitors and page views. However, we nt out that, according to a widespread opinion, dynamic IP addresses and the associated usage data are also classified as personal data.

Cookies allow us, among other things, to adapt our website to your wishes, to establish connections between different accesses to our website or to store your password in the browser in such a way that you do not have to enter it each time. We also use cookies for target group-oriented advertising. We also allow data providers or other automated data collection tools to use our cookies to help us deliver our own content and advertisements and measure the effectiveness of our advertising efforts. These cookies can supply anonymous or other data, linked to data that you have transmitted to us and which we pass on to data providers in hashed, i.e. unreadable form for humans. For registered users, the data collected on our website are not anonymous. We use this information in conjunction with other information we know or infer about you such as your preferences, to provide content, services and advertisements that are tailored to you.

Some of the cookies we use are deleted after the browser session, i.e. after you close your browser (these are so-called session cookies). Other cookies remain on your computer and enable us to recognise your browser on your next visit (persistent cookies). You can see how long cookies are stored for in the overview in the cookie settings section of your web browser. Otherwise, the general storage principles described above apply. Our website can, of course, be viewed without the use of cookies. Please note that some of our website features may not work if you have disabled the use of cookies.

Internet browsers are normally configured to accept cookies. You can disable the use of cookies at any time via your browser settings. Please refer to your Internet browser's help feature to learn how you can change these settings. Instructions for managing/deactivating cookies (as of May 2018):

You will also find the options for deactivation directly in the description of the cookies, plug-ins, tracking measures and other tools, insofar as this is possible.

Registration and contact on our website

Application form

When you register to use our personalised services, we collect some of your personal data, such as your name, address, and contact and communication details like your telephone number and e-mail address. If you are registered with us, you can access content and services that we only offer to registered users. On request, registered users may change or delete the data entered during registration at any time. Of course, we will also provide you with information about the personal data we have stored at any time. We will be happy to correct or delete your personal data at your request, provided that there are no legal storage obligations to the contrary. To contact us about this, please use the contact information provided in the "Questions to the data protection officer" section.

Contact form

If you contact us with any questions by e-mail or through the contact form, you thereby give us your consent process your personal data. A valid e-mail address and address is required for this purpose. This is used to allocate the request and then reply to it. We also collect the title, last name, the addressed SONAX business unit, your enquiry and optionally the first name and telephone number.

We process the personal data to process your enquiries, to provide the services you have requested and to ensure compliance with laws and regulations.

The legal basis for data processing is Art. 6 (1) (a) and (b) GDPR, as in each case your consent to the use of a form or the sending of information exists and/or a contractual service is provided.

Your personal data collected will be stored for as long as necessary for the outlined purposes. As far as the data are subject to legal storage obligations according to the Regulation of Taxation (AO) or the German Commercial Code (HGB), they must be stored for six or ten years. Otherwise, the general storage principles described above apply.

SSL encryption

We use state-of-the-art encryption methods (e.g. SSL) via HTTPS to protect the security of your data during transmission.

Web analytics and other tools

Use of Matomo

This website uses Matomo (formerly Piwik), an open-source software for the statistical evaluation of visitor access. Google Analytics uses what are known as cookies, text files which are stored on your computer and allow your use of the website to be analysed.

The information that the cookies generate about your use of the website is stored on a server in Germany.

The IP address is anonymised immediately following processing and prior to storage. You can prevent the installation of cookies by changing the settings in your web browser. Please be advised that the adjusted settings may mean that some website functions may no longer be available.

You may decide whether an explicit web analytics cookie may be stored on your browser to allow the website provider to collect and analyse various statistical data.

You can then decide here whether an explicit web analytics cookie may be stored on your browser to allow the provider of the website to collect and analyse various statistical data.

If you want to opt out, click the following link to install the Matomo opt-out cookie on your browser.

Your visit to this website is currently being captured by Matomo web analytics. To prevent your visit from being logged you need to deactivate your cookies. To do this, follow the links provided in the "Cookies" section.

You can deactivate the tool here: https://add-factory.de/analytics/index.php?module=CoreAdminHome&action=optOut&language=

Use of Google Maps

This website uses Google Maps API to display geographical information. When Google Maps is used, Google also collects, processes and utilises data about the visitor's use of map functions. For more information on data processing by Google, please see the Google Privacy Policy at https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en. You can also access the Data Protection Centre there to change the protection settings for your personal data.

The use of Google Maps is in the interest of making our website appealing and to facilitate the location of places specified by us on the website. This represents a legitimate interest within the meaning of Art. 6 (1) (f) GDPR.

Detailed instructions for managing your own data in connection with Google products can be found at http://www.dataliberation.org/.

The general deactivation of cookies is described in the “Cookies” section.

Recaptcha

In order to protect the forms on this website, we use the "reCAPTCHA" service of Google Inc., 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043 USA, hereinafter referred to as "Google". The use of this service makes it possible to differentiate whether the corresponding input is of human origin or whether it is misused by automated machine processing. This integration of this service involves sending Google the IP address and any other data required by Google for the reCAPTCHA service. You must configure your browser to block cookies if you wish to prevent this. The use of information obtained is subject to the Google Terms of Use:

https://policies.google.com/terms?hl=en

The general deactivation of cookies is described in the “Cookies” section.

Google Tag Manager

This website uses Google Tag Manager. Using this service, website tags can be managed over an interface. The Google Tag Manager only implements tags. This means that no cookies are used, and personal data are not collected. The Google Tag Manager triggers other tags that capture data again, if necessary. However, Google Tag Manager does not access this data. If deactivation occurs at domain or cookie level, it remains in use for all tracking tags, insofar as they are implemented with Google Tag Manager.

Google Analytics

We use Google Analytics on our website. This is a web analytics service provided by Google LLC, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland (hereinafter: Google).

The Google Analytics service is used to analyse how our website is used. The legal basis for data processing is Art. 6 (1) (f) GDPR. Our legitimate interest lies in the analysis, optimisation, and economic operation of our site.

Usage and user-related information such as IP address, place, time, or frequency of your visits to our website will be transmitted to a Google server in the United States and stored there. However, we use Google Analytics with the so-called anonymisation function, whereby Google truncates the IP address within the EU or the EEA before it is transmitted to the US.

The data collected in this way is in turn used by Google to provide us with an evaluation of visits to our website and what visitors do once there. This data can also be used to provide other services related to the use of our website and of the Internet in general.

Google states that it will not connect your IP address to other data. In addition, Google provides further information with regard to its data protection practices at

https://policies.google.com/technologies/partner-sites?hl=en

including options you can exercise to prevent such use of your data.

In addition, Google offers an opt-out add-on at

https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout?hl=en

with further information. This add-on can be installed on the most popular browsers and offers you further control over the data that Google collects when you visit our website. The add-on informs Google Analytics' JavaScript (ga.js) that no information about the website visit should be transmitted to Google Analytics. However, this does not prevent information from being transmitted to us or to other web analytics services Whether and which other web analysis services are used by us is of course also explained in this privacy policy. Purposes of processing

On behalf of the operator of this website, Google will use this information to analyse your use of the website, compile reports regarding website activity, and provide other services to the website operator related to website usage and internet usage.

Duration of data storage

The data sent by us and linked with cookies, user IDs or advertising IDs are automatically deleted after 14 months. Once the retention period for a piece of data has expired, it will be automatically deleted in a process that is run once a month.

Hotjar

Our websites use the tracking and feedback tool "Hotjar" (Hotjar Ltd, Level 2, St Julians Business Centre, 3, Elia Zammit Street, St Julians STJ 1000, Malta, Europe, + 1 (855) 464-6788, support@hotjar.com). The use includes the “poll” operating mode. This makes it possible to assign data, sessions and interactions across multiple devices to a pseudonymous user ID and thus analyse user's activities across devices.

Hotjar uses cookies to process data, such as standard Internet protocol data and details on the behaviour patterns when visiting our website. This is to provide you with a better web experience and to facilitate the use of certain features. Cookies are small files that are stored by websites on computers or other devices for the purpose of logging and improving the functionality of the website. Hotjar stores this data in a pseudonymous user profile. They are not processed for the identification of individual users or for comparison with other user data.

Cookies are stored on your device and you have full control over their use. You can deactivate cookies or restrict the transmission of data by cookies by changing the settings of your web browser. Cookies that have already been saved can be deleted at any time. After deactivating cookies, you may no longer be able to fully use the functions on our website.

The general deactivation of cookies is described in the “Cookies” section.

More information about the cookies used by Hotjar can be found at https://www.hotjar.com/legal/policies/cookie-information

In addition, Hotjar offers further information on data protection at https://www.hotjar.com/privacy

Furthermore, you have the option of terminating the analysis of your usage behaviour by opting out. By confirming the link

https://www.hotjar.com/legal/compliance/opt-out

a cookie is stored on your device via your browser to prevent any further analysis. Please note, however, that you must click the above link again if you delete the cookies stored on your end device.

Access and disclosure to third parties

Hotjar works with a limited number of trusted external service providers for the purpose of analysing certain technical data and for data processing and/or storage functions. These service providers were carefully selected by Hotjar and meet high data protection and security standards. Data is disclosed to service providers only to the extent necessary for them to provide the services offered and Hotjar will contractually require them to keep confidential any data we disclose to them and to use personal data only in accordance with Hotjar's instructions.

Hotjar will only disclose your information to third parties without your express consent if required to do so by law, as described in the Terms of Service, or by governmental or judicial order.

When visiting a Hotjar-based website, you can prevent Hotjar from collecting your data at any time by going to Hotjar’s opt-out page and clicking “Disable Hotjar” or activating “Do Not Track (DNT)” in your browser.

Duration of processing

Hotjar stores your usage data until you revoke your consent to data processing. All other data, as listed above, will be stored for as long as is necessary for the purpose(s) for which they were originally collected or as required by law.

Further information on GDPR conformity of Hotjar:

https://www.hotjar.com/legal/compliance/gdpr-commitment

Swiftype Search/Swiftype Autocomplete

Our websites use the "Swiftype" tool for the search function (Elasticsearch, Inc., 800 El Camino Real, Suite 350, Mountain View, CA 94040, USA or Elasticsearch B.V., Rijnsburgstraat 11, 1059 AT Amsterdam, Netherlands).

Swiftype uses cookies to process data, such as standard Internet protocol data and details of how our website searches are used. This is to constantly improve our search to provide you with a better search experience. Cookies are small files that are stored by websites on computers or other devices for the purpose of logging and improving the functionality of the website. Swiftype stores this data in a pseudonymous user profile. They are not processed for the identification of individual users or for comparison with other user data.

Cookies are stored on your device and you have full control over their use. You can deactivate cookies or restrict the transmission of data by cookies by changing the settings of your web browser. Cookies that have already been saved can be deleted at any time. After deactivating cookies, you may no longer be able to fully use the functions on our website.

The general deactivation of cookies is described in the “Cookies” section.

In addition, Swiftype offers further information on data protection at

https://www.elastic.co/legal/privacy-statement

https://swiftype.com/privacy-and-gdpr-faq

Social plugins

Social plugins from the providers listed below are used on our websites. You can recognise the plugins by the fact that they are marked with the corresponding logo.

These plugins may be used to send information to the service provider for its use. Said information may possibly include personal data. We use a 2-click solution to prevent the unintentional and unwanted collection and transmission of your data to these service providers. To activate a social plugin, users must first click on the corresponding button. Only when the plugin is activated information will be collected and transmitted to the corresponding service provider. We do not collect any personal data using the social plugins or about how they are used.

We have no influence on which data an activated plugin collects and how it is used by the provider. At this time, you should assume that direct connections will be established to the services of the respective provider and that, at the least, your IP address and device-related information will be recorded and used. Service providers may also try to save cookies on your computer. Please refer to the data protection information of the respective service provider to find out which specific data is collected and how it is used. Please note: If you are logged in to Facebook when you visit our site, Facebook can track your visit to specific pages.

We have included social media buttons from the following companies on our site:

Facebook—Facebook Inc., 1 Hacker Way, Menlo Park, California 94025, USA
Instagram—Facebook Ireland Limited, 4 Grand Canal Square, Dublin 2, Ireland.
Youtube—YouTube LLC., 901 Cherry Ave., 94066 San Bruno, CA, USA

Facebook

Plugins for the social network Facebook (Facebook Inc., 1601 Willow Road, Menlo Park, California, 94025, USA) are integrated into this website. Facebook plugins can be recognised by the Facebook logo or the "Like button" on this website. For an overview of Facebook plugins, see: https://developers.facebook.com/docs/plugins/?locale=en_US

The purpose of the integration is simply to leave a "Like" on the Facebook platform. When visiting this website, the plugin will establish a direct connection between your browser and the Facebook server. This enables Facebook to receive the information that you have visited our website with your IP address. If you click on the Facebook "Like Button" while you are logged into your Facebook account, you can link the content of this website to your Facebook profile. This allows Facebook to associate visits to this website with your user account. Please note that, as the provider of this website, we have no knowledge of the content of the data transmitted to Facebook or of how Facebook uses this data. For more information, please see Facebook's privacy policy at https://www.facebook.com/privacy/explanation

If you do not wish Facebook to associate your visit to this website with your Facebook user account, please log out from the latter.

The function is deactivated by default and must first be activated with a click.

Instagram

This website uses the "Follow" functions of Instagram. Provider is Facebook Ireland Limited, 4 Grand Canal Square, Dublin 2, Ireland.

YouTube

We use YouTube on our website. This is a video portal operated by YouTube LLC, 901 Cherry Ave, 94066 San Bruno, CA, USA, hereinafter referred to as "YouTube".

YouTube is a subsidiary of Google LLC, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland, hereinafter referred to as "Google".

We use YouTube in its advanced privacy mode to show you videos. The legal basis for data processing is Art. 6 (1) (f) GDPR. Our legitimate interest lies in improving the quality of our website. According to YouTube, the advanced privacy mode means that the data specified below will only be transmitted to the YouTube server if you actually start a video.

Without this mode, a connection to the YouTube server in the USA will be established as soon as you access any of our webpages on which a YouTube video is embedded.

This connection is required in order to be able to display the respective video on our website within your browser. YouTube will record and process at a minimum your IP address, the date and time the video was displayed, as well as the website you visited. In addition, a connection to the “DoubleClick” advertising network of Google is established.

If you are logged in to YouTube when you access our site, YouTube will assign the connection information to your YouTube account. To prevent this, you must either log out of YouTube before visiting our website or make the appropriate settings in your YouTube account.

For the purpose of functionality and analysis of usage behaviour, YouTube permanently stores cookies on your device via your browser. If you do not agree to this processing, you have the option of preventing the installation of cookies by making the appropriate settings in your browser. You can find more information about this above under "Cookies".

Further information about the collection and use of data as well as your rights and protection options in this regard is held by Google in the privacy policy section of this website:

https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en

The cookies, social plugins, tracking measures and other tools presented are used on the basis of Art. 6 (1) (f) GDPR. The data processed for the mentioned purposes serve to safeguard the predominant legitimate interests of our company and third parties within the framework of a weighing of interests, in particular in advertising aimed at our customers and users, and are therefore required in accordance with the principle of proportionality.