Data privacy policy
Personal information
For us at ANQ, protection of your private sphere is a priority concern. We will hold your personal information in strict confidence and will treat this in accordance with the stipulations of data protection legislation and this data privacy policy.
To the extent that we request personal information (for example, name, address or email addresses) on our website, this is always on a voluntary basis where this is feasible. Please note that it may be necessary to release certain information to third parties as specified in this data privacy policy. As a rule, it will be possible for visitors to access the information offered on this website without the need to provide personal details.
Data transmission and SSL encryption
We would like to draw your attention to the fact that data transmission via the internet (such as communication by email) can pose security risks. It is not possible to provide for complete protection against unauthorised access by third parties.
This page uses SSL encryption for reasons of security and to protect confidential information during transmission, such as queries you submit to us as site operator. You can recognise an encrypted link by the fact the address in the address line of your browser will change from http:// to https:// while a lock icon will also appear there. When SSL encryption is activated, unauthorised third parties will not be able to read any data you transmit to us.
Contact form
If you use our contact form to get in touch with us, the information you enter including any contact details you provide (including your IP address) will be used to process your enquiry and will be stored in order to facilitate the processing of any queries you may send us in future. We will not release this information to third parties without your express consent.
Cookies
Some online sites employ cookies. Cookies will not damage your computer and are not infected with viruses. The purpose of cookies is to make our website more user-friendly, effective and secure. Cookies are small text files that are transferred to your device and saved on your browser.
Most of the cookies employed by us are so-called ‘session cookies’. These will be automatically deleted when you terminate your visit to our website. However, other cookies will remain stored on your end device until you actively delete them. These cookies make it possible for us to recognise your browser next time you visit us.
You can set your browser to inform you whenever it accepts cookies, to accept cookies only in certain circumstances or for particular purposes or to reject cookies entirely; you can also set your browser to automatically delete any accepted cookies when you close it. Please note that if you deactivate the cookies of this website, you may be unable to use all the features on offer.
Hosting provider and server log files
The website provider automatically collects and saves to so-called server log files the information that your browser automatically transmits to us. This information is:
- Your IP address
- Your type of browser and browser version
- The operating system you are using
- The referrer URL
- The host name of the accessing device
- The file, date and time of the server enquiry
This information cannot be directly associated with any specific individual. This information will not be linked with other data sources. We reserve the right to subsequently review this information if there is any material evidence of unlawful use of our website.
This information together with all data of this website is stored by our hosting provider cubetech GmbH, Lagerhausweg 30, 3018 Berne, whose data privacy policy you can find here.
Akismet
This website uses the Akismet software from Automattic Inc., 60 29th Street #343, San Francisco, CA 94110, USA. Akismet is a service that protects the website against spam messages posted in the form of commentaries on blog posts, content pages and other types of content. To determine whether a comment is to be classified as spam, Akismet captures the data input by the website user, as well as technical information such as the IP address, country of residence, browser, screen resolution and related information. This data is transferred to servers in the USA for automatic checking. It is processed, edited, shared and deleted in accordance with Automattic Inc.’s privacy guidelines. Click here to view Automattic Inc.’s privacy policy.
Newsletter
Newsletter data
If you would like to subscribe to our newsletter, we will need you to provide your email address and other information (name of your company/institution, your forename and surname) that will enable us to verify that you are the owner of the email address in question and have consented to receive our newsletter. We will use this data exclusively for the purpose of sending you the requested information.
Please note that you can withdraw your consent to our storing of your data, your email address and to our use of these to send you our newsletter at any time; for this purpose you can use, for example the ‘Unsubscribe from newsletter’ link provided in the newsletters you receive.
Subscribing to our newsletter involves a so-called ‘double opt-in process’. This means that when you subscribe, you will receive an email asking you confirm that you wish to subscribe to our newsletter. This confirmation is necessary to ensure that individuals cannot subscribe to our newsletter using an email address that is not their own.
Subscriptions to our newsletter are documented to make sure that we are able to demonstrate that the subscription process conforms to legal requirements. Saved for this purpose are the time of subscription and time of confirmation of subscription together with your IP address. Similarly, any changes to your data saved by MailChimp will also be documented.
MailChimp
Our newsletter is distributed through ‘MailChimp’, an email marketing platform provided by the US-based operator Rocket Science Group, LLC, 675 Ponce De Leon Ave NE #5000, Atlanta, GA 30308, USA.
The email addresses of our newsletter subscribers together with the other data specified below are stored on the servers of MailChimp in the USA. MailChimp employs this information for the purposes of the distribution and evaluation of our newsletters on our behalf. In addition and according to information supplied by MailChimp, MailChimp can use this information to optimise and improve its own services; for example, in order to improve the technical aspects of the distribution and form of newsletters and also for commercial purposes, such as to determine in which countries newsletter recipients are based. MailChimp will not use the information provided by our newsletter subscribers to contact them on its own behalf and will not provide this information to third parties.
MailChimp holds EU-US ’Privacy Shield Framework’ certification and is thus obligated to observe the requirements of EU data protection regulations. We have also concluded a ‘data processing agreement’ with MailChimp. Under the terms of this agreement, MailChimp is obligated to protect the information supplied by our subscribers, to process this on our behalf in accordance with the stipulations of data protection regulations and, in particular, not to release this information to unauthorised third parties. Go here to read the data privacy policy of MailChimp.
Collection and analysis of data for statistical purposes
Each of our newsletters contains a so-called ‘web beacon’. This is a file no larger than one pixel that transmits information to the MailChimp server when a newsletter is opened. The information transmitted is essentially of a technical nature, such as information about your browser and your system, your IP address and the time of access. This technical information together with information on target groups, their reading behaviour based on location of access (which can be determined with the help of IP addresses) and times of access are used to optimise technical aspects of the services provided by MailChimp.
Also collected for statistical purposes is information on when and if a newsletter was opened and which links were clicked on. Please note that, for technical reasons, it will be possible to associate this information with individual newsletter subscribers. However, it is not our intention, nor is it that of MailChimp, to monitor the activities of our subscribers. The purpose of the evaluation of data is to enable us to identify the reading behaviour of our subscribers and adapt the content of our newsletters to their requirements and to supply appropriate information to those for whom it will be of interest.
Cancellation and withdrawal of consent
You can unsubscribe to our newsletter at any time, in other words, withdraw your consent to receive it. This will automatically cancel your consent to receive it through MailChimp and to the statistical evaluation of your information. Unfortunately, it is not possible to separately withdraw your consent to receive the newsletter through MailChimp and to the statistical evaluation of your information. You will find a link with which you can unsubscribe from our newsletter in every newsletter.
Legal basis and the General Data Protection Regulation
In accordance with the provisions of the General Data Protection Regulation that will come into force throughout the EU from 25 May 2018, we are required to inform you that your consent to supply us with your email address conforms to the stipulations of Art. 6, 1 (a) 7 GDPR and Art. 7, Section 2 No. 3, and Section 3 of the German Fair Trade Practices Act (UWG). Use of the MailChimp email marketing platform, the statistical evaluation and analysis of information and the documentation of the subscription process are activities that are necessary for the purposes of legitimate interests pursued by us as defined in Art. 6 1 (f) GDPR. In this case, our legitimate interests involve the provision of a user-friendly and secure newsletter system that serves our commercial interests and conforms to the expectations of our users.
Google Analytics
This website uses Google Analytics, a web analytics service provided by Google Building Gordon House, 4 Barrow Street, Dublin D04 E5W5, IRELAND, (called ‘Google’ in the following).
Google Analytics uses so-called cookies: these are text files that are stored on your computer and that enable your use of the website to be analysed. The information generated by means of a cookie in respect of your use of this website (including your IP address) is transmitted to a Google server in the USA, where it is stored.
IP anonymisation
We have activated the IP anonymisation feature on this website. As a result, Google will truncate your IP address within the member states of the European Union or in other contracting states of the Agreement on the European Economic Area before transmission to the USA. Only in exceptional circumstances will the IP address be transmitted to a Google server in the USA and truncated there. On behalf of the operator of this website, Google will use this information to evaluate your usage of the website, to compile reports on website activities and to provide further services in connection with website usage and internet usage to the website operator. The IP address transmitted by your browser in connection with Google Analytics will not be combined with other data by Google.
Browser plugin
You can prevent the installation of cookies by setting your browser software accordingly. However, please note that in this case you may not be able to use all the functions offered by this website in full. In addition, you can prevent Google from collecting and processing data generated by the corresponding cookie about your usage of the website (which will include your IP address) by using the following link and downloading and installing this browser plugin, which will deactivate Google Analytics.
For more information on the processing of user data by Google Analytics, see the data privacy policy of Google.
Contract data processing
We have entered into a data processing agreement with Google and will ensure that the stringent requirements of the German data protection authorities are complied with in full in connection with our use of Google Analytics.
Demographic characteristics
This website uses the feature ‘demographic characteristics’ of Google Analytics. This allows reports to be compiled that contain statements on the age, gender and interests of the website visitors. The data is derived from interest-based advertising by Google as well as from visitor data provided by third-party suppliers. This data cannot be associated with any specific individual. You can turn off this feature at any time using the advertising settings of your Google account or generally prohibit the collection of your data by Google Analytics (see above).
Matomo
Matomo, formerly known as Piwik, is an open source web application for web analysis. It is the follow-up project to the discontinued phpMyVisites project and an alternative to Google Analytics. Matomo can be hosted in the Cloud or locally by the provider. It is used on this website to undertake statistical analyses of the performance of individual pages with the aim of optimising the user experience. The following data is processed: your browser type and version, your operating system, your country of origin, date and time of the server request, number of visits, how long you stay on the website and the external links you activate. The user’s IP address is anonymised before being saved. Matomo uses cookies that are saved to the user’s computer and make it possible to analyse their use of our online services. The processed data can be used to create pseudonymous usage profiles for users. The information generated by cookies about the use of this website is only saved to our server and is not passed on to third parties.
Issuu
A flash application (flash plugin) from Issuu Inc., 131 Lytton Ave, Palo Alto, CA 94301, USA (hereinafter: Issuu) has been integrated into this website via a JavaScript code. The application makes it possible to access and browse individual publications in the form of flip books. Issuu uses cookies for this purpose (see above). This means that Issuu collects and saves personal data such as your IP address and information on the time and duration of your use of the corresponding site. This is transferred if JavaScript is activated in your browser. The use of cookies can be prevented by configuring your browser software accordingly or by installing a JavaScript blocker. Details on the purpose and scope of the data collection, how Issuu processes and uses the data, your rights and the configuration options for protecting your private sphere can be found here.
Adobe Spark
We use combined image and text elements on our web portal to share stories, for example in association with the portraits of the professionals in online annual reports and for reporting on Q-Day events. In this connection, we make use of the features and content made available through Adobe Spark. This tool is provided by Adobe Systems Software Ireland Limited, 4-6 Riverwalk, Citywest Business Campus, Dublin 24, Republic of Ireland. The detailed privacy policy of Adobe can be found here.
Your right to disclosure, deletion and restriction of your data held by us
You have at any time the right to be informed free of charge of what personal data about you we hold, its sources and recipients and the purposes for which it is processed. You also have the right to require that we correct it, restrict its use or delete it. For more information on this subject and should you have any queries concerning other aspects of the personal data we use and process, please contact us directly.