Privacy Policy
1. general information
This privacy policy regulates data processing in the context of the offer on ‘MercatorGlobe’ from Stiftung Mercator GmbH.
In the following, we summarise which personal data we collect and how we process it.
1.1 Contact details of the controller and the data protection officer
The controller responsible for data processing on this website is
Stiftung Mercator GmbH
Huyssenallee 40
45128 Essen
Phone +49 30200745759
community@stiftung-mercator.de
If you have any questions about data protection, please contact the data protection officer we have appointed:
2B Advice GmbH
Joseph-Schumpeter-Allee 25
53227 Bonn
mercator@2b-advice.com.
1.2 What is personal data?
Personal data is information that can be used to identify a person, i.e. information that can be traced back to a person. This typically includes a person's name, email address or telephone number. However, purely technical data that can be assigned to a person is also considered personal data
1.3 Processor for our website
We would like to point out that our website is operated for us by Paulbergman GmbH (Pappelallee 78/79, 10437 Berlin) (https://alumnii.de/datenschutz/) as a commissioned data processor. All data collected on this website is processed on behalf of Stiftung Mercator GmbH by Paulbergman GmbH, with whom we have concluded a data processing agreement.
2 How do we collect your personal data and what do we use it for?
We would like to point out that the provision of your personal data on this website is generally not required by law or contract. You are not obliged to provide personal data on this website unless we indicate this in individual cases in this privacy policy. Nevertheless, the provision of the functions of this website and the fulfilment of an order require the processing of your personal data.
When you visit our website...
...we collect data that you transmit when you access a website. This includes, in particular, the date and time of your visit, your IP address, the source of your visit (the so-called referrer) and data about your operating system and browser. We also collect data about which subpages you visit.
IP addresses are assigned to every device (e.g. smartphone, tablet, PC) that is connected to the Internet. Which IP address this is depends on which Internet access your device is currently connected to the Internet via. Except for the purpose of tracking unauthorised access to our website, we do not use this data in a personalised manner, but only evaluate it on an anonymous basis, such as how many visits are made each day and similar information.
Our website already supports the new IPv6 addresses. If you already have an IPv6 address, you should also know the following: The IPv6 address consists of eight blocks of four digits. The first four blocks, as with the entire IPv4 address, are typically assigned dynamically to private users. However, the last four blocks of an IPv6 address (known as the ‘interface identifier’) are determined by the device you use to browse the website.
We therefore do not store the last four blocks of your IPv6 address. In general, we recommend that you activate the so-called ‘privacy extensions’ on your end device in order to better anonymise the last four blocks of your IPv6 address. Most common operating systems have a ‘privacy extensions’ function, but in some cases this is not preset at the factory.
Processing is carried out on the basis of Art. 6 (1) lit. f GDPR due to our overriding legitimate interest in ensuring the smooth operation of our website and in order to be able to trace personal data in the event of unauthorised access or attempted access to our servers. All personal data in log files is automatically deleted after 30 days at the latest.
If you subscribe to the newsletter and emails...
...then, in addition to the above-mentioned data, we will also collect all data that you provide in the corresponding forms. We store this data on the basis of your voluntary consent in accordance with Art. 6 (1) (a) GDPR.
You can revoke your consent at any time with effect for the future. This will not incur any costs other than the transmission costs according to the basic tariffs (e.g. your Internet connection). The revocation does not affect the legality of the data processing carried out up to that point.
The revocation can be made via the unsubscribe link in our emails. Alternatively, the settings can also be adjusted directly in the member profile at https://mercatorglobe.de/mailings/settings.
To send our community-specific newsletter (‘Community Update’), we use the email delivery tool integrated into the platform of our service provider Paulbergman GmbH, Pappelallee 78/79, 10437 Berlin. We use this to provide regular information about our own events, programmes, formats and calls for proposals, e.g. for conference participation.
For invitations to other events organised by Stiftung Merctaor that are not directly and exclusively community-related, we use the Inxmail Professional system from Inxmail GmbH, Wentzingerstr. 17, 79106 Freiburg. In some cases, the service provider u+i interact GmbH & Co. KG, Karl-Eilers-Str. 13, 33602 Bielefeld, handles the dispatch. We have order processing agreements with both companies in accordance with Art. 28 GDPR.
In order to regularly improve the relevance of our mailings, we record whether you have opened and clicked on email newsletters.
Your personal data relating to a newsletter will be deleted after you unsubscribe, unless you wish to remain a member of the network and have requested the deletion of your entire profile. Otherwise, your data will simply no longer be processed for the purpose of sending the newsletter, but will continue to be processed on the basis of the contractual relationship (Art. 6 (1) (b) GDPR).
If you use the contact form...
If you send us enquiries via the contact form, your details from the enquiry form, including the contact details you provided there, will be stored by us for the purpose of processing the enquiry and in case of follow-up questions. We will not pass on this data without your consent.
This data is processed on the basis of Art. 6 (1) lit. b GDPR, insofar as your enquiry concerns your membership or potential membership in the network. In all other cases, processing is based on our legitimate interest in the effective processing of enquiries addressed to us (Art. 6 (1) lit. f GDPR). Optional information in the form is processed on the basis of your consent (Art. 6 (1) (a) GDPR). You can revoke your consent to the processing of your optional information at any time, and we will then delete this data promptly after receiving your revocation. Mandatory legal provisions – in particular retention periods – remain unaffected.
When processing contact enquiries, the data we collect will be deleted after your enquiry has been dealt with, unless you are or become a member of the network.
When you register as a member...
...we collect all the data that we also collect for unregistered visitors to our website (see above). In addition, we collect data that is generated when you interact with our system. For example, we store contact details and images that you enter or upload to the system. We store messages that you send to other members, comments that you make on the platform, groups that you join, your tags, and your participation in events.
We collect all this data to fulfil our contractual obligations to you as a member of the network in order to pursue our purpose (networking among members of the network), Art. 6 (1) (b) GDPR. To fulfil our obligations, we need at least your name and an email address. Without providing this data, membership in our network is not possible. We may request additional mandatory information to authenticate members.
All other data is voluntary and allows us and other members to contact you more easily. You can view the data stored about you in the settings area of your profile, which allows you to access the stored data. You also have the option of deleting your data in the settings area. Based on the purpose of our network, we make your contact details available to other members of the network. In your profile settings, you can control exactly which data is visible to other members.
From time to time, we will contact you by email to inform you about current developments in and around the network. You can opt out of receiving the community newsletter in your profile settings at https://mercatorglobe.de/mailings/settings. If necessary to fulfil the purpose of our network, we reserve the right to send you emails even if you have opted out of receiving newsletters in general.
3. Cookie settings and general information about cookies
3.1 Settings for the use of cookies
You can revoke your consent or change your settings for the use of cookies at any time by clicking on ‘Cookies’ at the bottom of the website or by clicking on ‘Cookie settings’ below or at the end of this privacy policy.
Cookie Settings
3.2 General information about cookies
What are cookies?
Cookies are small text files that are stored on your computer. This enables us, for example, to treat you as a logged-in user and/or member for several days after you have logged in once, or to record whether you have already visited the website in the past.
Necessary cookies, cookies requiring consent and data processing
Apart from cookies that are absolutely necessary for the operation of the site, cookies are only used with your prior consent in accordance with §25 TDDDG.
Data collected in connection with technically necessary cookies (e.g. shopping cart cookies) is processed on the basis of Art. 6 (1) lit. f GDPR, apart from the cookie used by Paulbergman GmbH to store your selection regarding the use of cookies. We have a legitimate interest in storing cookies for the technically error-free and optimised provision of our services. In addition, we use cookies to record the frequency of use and number of users of the site and behaviour when using the site, for example how long you stay on which page and which content of our website you use. We use the open source programme Matomo and store the data exclusively on our servers. All usage data is summarised in pseudonymised usage profiles. These non-essential cookies are only used with your consent, and the data collected in this context is stored on the basis of Art. 6 (1) lit. a GDPR. Consent can be revoked at any time with future effect.
All personal data is automatically deleted after 24 months at the latest.
Use of the Paulbergman Cookie Consent Manager
This website uses cookie consent technology from Paulbergman GmbH to obtain your consent to the storage of certain cookies on your device and to document this in accordance with data protection regulations. The provider of this technology is Paulbergman GmbH (hereinafter referred to as ‘Paulbergman’).
When you visit our website, the following data is transferred to Paulbergman:
- Your consent(s) or the revocation of your consent(s)
- Your IP address
- Information about your browser
- Information about your device
- The time of your visit to the website
Furthermore, Paulbergman stores a cookie in your browser in order to be able to assign the consents you have given or their revocation. The data collected in this way is stored until you request us to delete it, delete the Paulbergman cookie yourself or the purpose for data storage no longer applies. Mandatory legal retention obligations remain unaffected.
Paulbergman is used to obtain the legally required consent for the use of cookies. The legal basis for data processing in this context is Art. 6 (1) (c) GDPR.
Use of Google reCAPTCHA
Google reCAPTCHA is used to check and prevent interactions on our website by automated access, e.g. by so-called bots. This is a service provided by Google LLC, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland, hereinafter referred to as ‘Google’.
reCAPTCHA is used to check whether the data entered in the forms on our website is entered by a human or by an automated programme. This is intended to protect our website from abusive automated spying and spam. To this end, reCAPTCHA analyses the behaviour of the website visitor based on various characteristics. This service enables Google to determine from which website a request is sent and from which IP address the reCAPTCHA input box is used. In addition to the IP address, Google may also collect other information (e.g. the length of time the website visitor spends on the website or the mouse movements made by the user) that is necessary for the provision and guarantee of this service.
Data processing is based on your consent in accordance with Art. 6 (1) lit. a GDPR. Consent can be revoked at any time via the cookie management tool.
Through certification under the EU-US Data Privacy Framework, Google guarantees that EU data protection requirements are also complied with when processing data in the USA. More information can be found here: https://www.dataprivacyframework.gov/.
Further information on Google reCAPTCHA and Google's privacy policy can be found at the following links: https://www.google.com/intl/de/policies/privacy/ and https://developers.google.com/recaptcha?hl=de.
6. What rights do you have regarding your data?
You have the following rights under the GDPR:
- You can request information about your personal data processed by us. In particular, this includes information about the purpose of processing, categories of personal data, categories of recipients and planned storage period. You can find an overview of this in your profile settings.
- You can request the correction or completion of the data stored by us. As a rule, you can also correct the data yourself in your profile settings.
- You can request the complete deletion of your personal data processed by us. The easiest way to do this is to use the corresponding function in your profile settings.
- Within the framework of the provisions of the GDPR, you can request the restriction of the processing of your personal data.
- You can request the release of your personal data in a machine-readable format and its transfer to another controller.
- You can revoke all consents on which we rely for the processing of your data at any time. The easiest way to do this is in your profile settings.
- If we process your data on the basis of a legitimate interest, you have the right to object to this processing if there are reasons relating to your particular situation that speak against data processing.
If you have any questions or objections regarding data protection and wish to exercise the above rights, please contact community@stiftung-mercator.de. We will be happy to answer your questions. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority.
A list of supervisory authorities can be found at https://www.bfdi.bund.de/DE/Infothek/Anschriften_Links/anschriften_links-node.html.
The supervisory authority responsible for us is:
State Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information North Rhine-Westphalia
Postfach 20 04 44
40102 Düsseldorf
Phone: 02 11/384 24-0
Fax: 02 11/384 24-10
Email: poststelle@ldi.nrw.de