Privacy Policy

1. Cookies

This website uses so-called cookies. Cookies are small text files that are stored on your computer and saved by your browser. Cookies are used to store non-personal data that help manage your experience on our website and analyse user behaviour or optimise our advertising services. As a rule, you can configure your browser so that you are informed about the setting of cookies, allow cookies only in individual cases, exclude the acceptance of cookies for certain cases or in general, and activate the automatic deletion of cookies when closing the browser. If cookies are deactivated, the functionality of this website may be restricted.

Some of the cookies we use are so-called “session cookies”. They are automatically deleted after the end of your visit. Other cookies remain stored on your device until you delete them. These cookies enable us or the tools we use (see below) to collect website usage statistics or recognise your browser on your next visit. No data is collected that allows us to identify you personally. These cookies automatically expire after a period defined by us.

Cookies help us understand how visitors use our website so that we can optimise our content accordingly and develop better services in the future. By using this website you agree to the use of cookies.

2. Website analysis, remarketing and cookies

This website uses Google Tag Manager (“GTM”) by Google, Inc. or its European subsidiary Google Ireland Limited (Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland) – hereinafter referred to as “Google”. This tag management system allows website tags to be managed via an online interface and deployed on our website. GTM merely implements tags. This means that GTM does not use cookies and no personal data is collected. Google Tag Manager triggers other tags which may in turn collect data. However, Google Tag Manager does not access this data. If deactivation has been carried out at domain or cookie level, it will remain in effect for all tracking tags implemented with Google Tag Manager.

This website implements Google Analytics, a web analysis service by Google, via GTM. Google Analytics uses cookies that enable an analysis of how users use the website. The information generated by the cookie about the use of this website by users is usually transferred to a Google server in the USA and stored there for up to two years.

IP anonymisation is active on this website. The option to anonymise IP addresses is controlled via an internal setting in Google Tag Manager, which is not visible in the source code of this page. This internal setting ensures that the anonymisation of IP addresses required by telecommunications law (AT) is achieved. The IP address of users is shortened within member states of the European Union or in other contracting states of the Agreement on the European Economic Area before transmission. 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 the use of the website by users, compile reports on website activity and provide further services related to website and internet usage to the website operator.

The IP address transmitted by your browser within the scope of Google Analytics will not be merged with other Google data. You can prevent the storage of cookies by adjusting the settings of your browser software; however, please note that if you do so, you may not be able to use all functions of this website to their full extent. Users can also prevent Google from collecting the data generated by the cookie and relating to their use of the website (including their IP address) and from processing this data by downloading and installing the browser plugin available at the following link: https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout?hl=en.

To further analyse and continuously improve this website, we have activated the Google Analytics report on performance by demographic characteristics and interests (Google Signals). In Google Analytics reports, web analysis data is broken down according to demographic characteristics and interests. To collect this data, Google uses third-party cookies (e.g. DoubleClick cookies) and accesses your Google advertising ID in order to recognise you across different devices. You can prevent this collection by Google Analytics by clicking the following link. An opt-out cookie will be set which prevents the future collection of your data when visiting this website: Disable Google Analytics.

This website also uses the Google Remarketing function with the purpose of reaching visitors again at a later time via remarketing campaigns with interest-based advertising in the Google advertising network. For this purpose, our website or your browser stores cookies (maximum validity 140 days) on your device. These enable us and the Google system to recognise visitors when they visit a website within the Google advertising network. As a user, you have the option to deactivate the use of cookies by Google by visiting the Google deactivation page at https://adssettings.google.com/authenticated or by setting an opt-out cookie.

What is the Google advertising network?

A group of several million websites, videos and apps where online advertisements can appear. These websites are partners of Google and allow advertisers to display ads (e.g. text or image ads).

Data protection is important to us, therefore we will never associate the information obtained with personal data. Cookies set after visiting this site also have a limited lifetime (e.g. 30 or 60 days) and automatically become invalid afterwards.

More information about data protection at Google can be found in the Google Privacy Policy.

3. Google Ads conversion tracking

This website uses Google AdWords. AdWords is an online advertising programme of Google Inc., 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, United States (“Google”).

Within the scope of Google AdWords we use so-called conversion tracking. When you click on an ad placed by Google, a cookie for conversion tracking is set. These cookies expire after a maximum of 90 days and are not used for the personal identification of users. If the user visits certain pages of this website and the cookie has not yet expired, Google and we can recognise that the user clicked on the ad and was redirected to this page. Each Google AdWords customer receives a different cookie. Cookies cannot be tracked across the websites of AdWords customers. The information collected using the conversion cookie is used to create conversion statistics for AdWords customers who have opted for conversion tracking. Customers learn the total number of users who clicked on their ad and were redirected to a page with a conversion tracking tag. However, they do not receive information that can personally identify users.

More information about data protection at Google Ads and Google conversion tracking can be found in the Google Privacy Policy.

4. Facebook Pixel

Within our online offering, the so-called “Facebook Pixel” of the social network Facebook operated by Facebook Inc., 1 Hacker Way, Menlo Park, CA 94025, USA, or if you are located in the EU, Facebook Ireland Ltd., 4 Grand Canal Square, Grand Canal Harbour, Dublin 2, Ireland (“Facebook”), is used for remarketing purposes, for creating custom audiences and for measuring Facebook conversions.

The purpose of these functions is to present visitors to this website with interest-based advertisements (“Facebook Ads”) when they use the social network Facebook. Through the remarketing function of the Facebook Pixel embedded in this website, a direct connection to Facebook servers is established when our page is accessed. This informs the Facebook server that you have visited this website. Facebook processes this information and may associate it with your Facebook account and use it to generate interest-based advertising.

Furthermore, the Facebook functions mentioned above make it possible to track the behaviour of website visitors after they have clicked on a Facebook advertisement to reach our website. This enables us to analyse the effectiveness of Facebook advertisements for statistical and market research purposes and to optimise them in the future.

The cookies set by the Facebook Pixel or the data collected from them are anonymous for us as the operator of this website and we cannot use them to identify the identity of our website users. However, the data is stored and processed by Facebook so that a connection to your Facebook profile may be possible and the data may be used for Facebook’s own advertising purposes as specified in the Facebook data policy. This allows Facebook to place advertisements both on Facebook and on third-party websites. We have no influence on how this data is used.

Further information on protecting your privacy can be found in Facebook’s privacy policy: https://www.facebook.com/about/privacy/.

You can also deactivate the remarketing function for custom audiences in the ad settings section at https://www.facebook.com/ads/preferences/?entry_product=ad_settings_screen. You must first log in to Facebook. If you do not have a Facebook account, you can disable usage-based advertising from Facebook on the website of the European Interactive Digital Advertising Alliance at http://www.youronlinechoices.com/de/praferenzmanagement/.

5. LinkedIn Insights

This site uses the LinkedIn Insight Conversion Tool of LinkedIn Corporation, 2029 Stierlin Court, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA, which allows us to obtain information about the use of our website and to present you with advertising content tailored to your interests on other websites. For this purpose, a cookie with a validity of 120 days is stored in your browser, which enables LinkedIn to recognise you when you visit a website. LinkedIn uses this data to create anonymous reports for us about advertising activities and information about how you interact with our website.

You can deactivate the LinkedIn Insight Conversion Tool and interest-based advertising via opt-out at the following link: https://www.linkedin.com/psettings/guest-controls/retargeting-opt-out

If you are a LinkedIn member, click on the field “Reject on LinkedIn”. Other visitors click on “Reject”.

Further information on data protection at LinkedIn can be found here: https://www.linkedin.com/legal/privacy-policy

6. Legal basis

The use of the above functions (Google Analytics, Google Ads conversion tracking, Google remarketing, Facebook Pixel, LinkedIn Insights) and the storage of cookies by these services is based on Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f GDPR (legitimate interest), because we have a legitimate interest in collecting web statistics and analysing user behaviour in order to adapt our website and/or advertising to the interests of visitors and to optimise our web and advertising offering accordingly.

Objection

Although we assert legitimate interests in the use and storage of “conversion cookies”, we offer opt-out options. If you do not wish to participate in tracking, you can object to this use by disabling the storage of cookies via the user settings of your internet browser.