Privacy Policy

We are very pleased about your visit to the websites of Avantgarde Business Solutions GmbH and your interest in our company and our products. Protecting your data is a central concern for us. Of course, we comply with European and German data protection laws. Below, we inform you about which personal data we collect when operating our websites (hereinafter also referred to as “our websites”) and how we process this data. Our websites include all websites where Avantgarde Business Solutions GmbH is mentioned in the imprint, specifically https://www.avantgar.de, all subdomains of https://www.avantgar.de (such as https://lp.avantgar.de, https://landing.avantgar.de) as well as https://www.avgd.io.

 

1. Responsible Party

We, Avantgarde Business Solutions GmbH, are responsible for the processing of personal data on our websites in accordance with Article 4 Number 7 EU General Data Protection Regulation (hereinafter “GDPR”). Our contact details are:

Avantgarde Business Solutions GmbH
Habichtweg 21
41468 Neuss
Germany
Email: office@avantgar.de
Phone: +49 2131 7949-0
Fax: +49 2131 7949-79

 

2.Data Protection Officer of the Responsible Party

The Data Protection Officer of Avantgarde Business Solutions GmbH in accordance with Article 37 GDPR, § 38 Federal Data Protection Act (hereinafter “BDSG”) has the following contact details:

TDSSG GmbH – Team Datenschutz Services
Am Hagelsrech 14
66806 Ensdorf
Email: info@team-datenschutz.de
Phone: +49 6831 7689-777
Fax: +49 7264 9609-83

 

3. Hosting Service Provider

Our websites are hosted by the following service provider as our processor:

Mittwald CM Service GmbH & Co. KG
Königsberger Straße 4-6
32339 Espelkamp

All processing operations explained in this privacy policy regarding your personal data are therefore carried out using this service provider. This service provider is therefore a recipient within the meaning of Article 4 Number 9 GDPR.

 

4. Collection and Storage of Personal Data and Type and Purpose of Their Use

4.1 When Visiting Our Websites

When you access one of our websites, information is automatically sent from the browser on your device (computer, laptop, tablet, smartphone, etc.) to the server of our websites. This information is temporarily stored in electronic logs, known as log files. The following information is collected and stored until it is automatically deleted after [X] days:

• IP address of the requesting/accessing device,
• Date and time of the request/access,
• Time zone difference to Greenwich Mean Time (GMT),
• Names and URLs of the accessed pages/files,
• Access status/HTTP status code,
• Amount of data transferred,
• Website from which the request to the relevant website comes (referrer URL),
• Type and version of the used internet browser including its language, and
• Type and version of the operating system of your device.

The mentioned data is processed by us for the following purposes:

• Ensuring a smooth connection setup of the website,
• Ensuring comfortable use of the website,
• Evaluation of system security and system stability, and
• For further administrative purposes.

The legal basis for data processing is Article 6 Paragraph 1 Sentence 1 Letter f) GDPR. Our legitimate interest in processing the above-mentioned data follows from the purposes listed above. In no case do we use the collected data for the purpose of drawing conclusions about your person.

 

4.2 When Registering for Our Newsletter

If you have consented, we use your email address to send you our newsletter. To receive the newsletter, providing an email address in the newsletter registration form is sufficient. Additionally, you can voluntarily provide your first and last name and a salutation if desired.

The purpose of the newsletter is to inform recipients about news regarding our products, events, and our company. If you voluntarily provided your first and last name and/or a desired salutation when registering for the newsletter, we use this data for personal addressing in the newsletter.

You can unsubscribe from the newsletter at any time, for example via a link at the end of each newsletter. Alternatively, you can also send your unsubscribe request at any time by email to office@avantgar.de.

After unsubscribing, your data provided during newsletter registration will be deleted. Unsubscribing does not affect the legality of the newsletters sent up to that point.

The legal basis for data processing for newsletter distribution is the consent given at your registration in accordance with Article 6 Paragraph 1 Sentence 1 Letter a) GDPR.

 

4.3 When Using Our Contact Form

Our websites may provide a contact form through which you can send inquiries to us. Providing a valid email address is required. Additional information in the contact form can be provided voluntarily.

The data you provide when contacting us via the contact form is stored and processed by us to answer your questions. We delete this data as soon as storage is no longer necessary to fulfill your request, or restrict processing if legal retention obligations exist.

You can object to the further storage and processing of your information provided in the contact form at any time, for example by email to office@avantgar.de. The objection does not affect the legality of the processing of your information carried out up to that point to handle your request.

The legal basis for processing your information in the contact form is your consent in accordance with Article 6 Paragraph 1 Sentence 1 Letter a) GDPR.

 

5. Cookies

5.1 General Information about Cookies

We may use cookies when operating our websites. This is done only if we have a legal basis for using the respective cookies. Cookies are small text files that your internet browser automatically creates and stores on your device (computer, laptop, tablet, smartphone, etc.). If legally required, we obtain your consent before using cookies (more on this below in section 5.2 of this privacy policy). The cookies we use do not harm your device, and they do not contain viruses, trojans, or other malware.

We distinguish between the following types of cookies, whose scope and functionality are explained below:

Essential Cookies

Essential cookies are technically necessary for the use of our websites. These cookies enable the use of our websites by providing basic functions and ensuring the security of our websites. Visiting our websites cannot function properly without these cookies.

Statistics Cookies

We may use statistics cookies that help us understand, through the collection of anonymized data, how many people visit our websites, where the access comes from, whether the access is through internet advertising placed by us on third-party websites, which areas of our websites are used intensively, and what technical requirements the visitors’ systems have for our websites. We evaluate this information anonymously to optimize our websites and our internet advertising campaigns. If we use statistics tools that employ statistics cookies, we operate them ourselves, ensuring that the statistical data obtained is not transferred to third parties. You can stop the use of statistics cookies at any time (how this works is explained below in section 5.2 of this privacy policy).

Cookies from External Media

Our websites may offer you the option to display content from external media (such as social networks or video platforms) during your visit. This only happens if you allow it overall or individually for each external content beforehand (how this works is explained below in section 5.2 of this privacy policy). If you allow individual or all of these external contents, the operator of the respective external content may set cookies and collect data through them.

Marketing Cookies

Marketing cookies are used to analyze the browsing behavior of visitors to our websites on the internet. Marketing cookies also include certain statistics tools from third-party providers (such as Google Analytics), where the collected data is also used by the third-party providers themselves. The purpose of using marketing cookies is to learn about the preferences of visitors to our websites and to show visitors appropriate content on our websites and relevant advertisements on third-party websites. We only use marketing cookies if you have expressly allowed their use beforehand (how this works is explained below in section 5.2 of this privacy policy).

Our websites use cookies from external media and marketing cookies only if you have given your consent beforehand. Details on consent can be found below in section 5.2 of this privacy policy. Your given consents apply exclusively to the website you visit and for which you have given consent.

Regarding the statistics cookies we use, you have the option to deactivate them. How this works can also be found below in section 5.2 of this privacy policy.

 

5.2 Configuration of Cookies

To give your consent for the use of cookies from external media and marketing cookies, as well as to deactivate statistics cookies, a cookie tool opens at the beginning of your visit to each of our websites, where you can see the individual cookies used on the respective website categorized. You will see, among other things, the names of the individual cookies, their providers, purpose, and their deletion time (expiration time).

Our websites only set cookies from external media and marketing cookies on your device if you have activated them in the cookie tool by activating the respective selection field or, in the case of external media, if you allow them individually for each external content.

The cookie tool records your selection of cookies from external media and marketing cookies or your deactivation of statistics cookies by setting a cookie on your device. This allows the internet browser you use on this device to remember your settings during your next visit to the website and follow them again. The cookie set by the cookie tool is automatically deleted after 1 year at the latest, unless you manually delete it beforehand (more on this below).

You can change your selection of allowed or deactivated cookies made at the beginning of your visit to one of our websites at any time, except for technically necessary cookies, and thus modify or revoke your consent or activation of the cookies at any time. This works as follows: You close the respective website in your internet browser, then delete all cookies in your internet browser and reload the website. The above-mentioned cookie tool will then appear again, and you can decide again whether and which consent-required or deactivatable cookies you want to allow.

How to delete all or individual cookies in your internet browser can be found in the instructions of your internet browser.

In addition to the settings in the cookie tool, you can specifically block cookies in most internet browsers that are not set by our websites themselves but by third-party providers (hereinafter referred to as “third-party cookies”). How this works in detail can be found in the instructions of the respective internet browser. Please note that blocking third-party cookies may prevent you from using all functions of our websites.

You can also block all cookies by generally disabling the acceptance of cookies and thus their storage on your device in your internet browser. How this works in detail can be found in the instructions of your internet browser. Please note that blocking all cookies may prevent you from using all functions of our websites.

 

5.3 Legal Basis for the Use of Cookies

The legal basis for the use of essential cookies by our websites is Article 6 Paragraph 1 Sentence 1 Letter f) GDPR. Our legitimate interest in using technically necessary cookies lies in enabling the operation of our websites and their basic functions and ensuring the security of our websites.

The legal basis for the use of the cookie tool as described above in section 5.2 of this privacy policy is Article 6 Paragraph 1 Sentence 1 Letter f) GDPR. Our legitimate interest in using the cookie tool lies in giving you the opportunity to consent or object to the use of cookies before/when visiting our websites, as legally required.

In addition, we may use tools and services that also use cookies. These tools/services and the cookies they use are described in more detail below in sections 6 and 7 of this privacy policy. There you will also find the respective legal basis for the use of cookies used by these tools/services.

 

6. Statistics and Analysis Tools

6.1 Matomo

Our websites may use the statistics tool Matomo. If this is the case, Matomo is installed and operated directly on the servers we use ourselves. Therefore, we do not use Matomo as a cloud solution.

Matomo helps us understand, through the collection of anonymized data, how many people visit our websites, where the access comes from, whether the access is through internet advertising placed by us on third-party websites, which areas of our websites are used intensively, and what technical requirements the visitors’ systems have for our websites. If you click on internet advertising placed by us on third-party websites and are redirected to one of our websites, we can capture and statistically evaluate this using Matomo. This allows us to measure the effectiveness and attractiveness of our internet advertising campaigns.

For these purposes, Matomo sets a cookie on your device when you visit our websites. This cookie (hereinafter referred to as the “Matomo Cookie”) collects the following data:

• IP address of the requesting/accessing device, which is anonymized immediately after collection, making it impossible to assign it to a specific person,
• Website from which the redirection to our respective website comes (referrer URL),
• The subpage of our respective website to which the redirection took place,
• Date and time of access/redirection,
• Names and URLs of the accessed pages/files,
• Type and version of the used internet browser including its language,
• Type and version of the operating system of your device,
• Screen resolution of your device,
• Duration of stay on the website.

We operate Matomo ourselves, ensuring that the statistical data collected by Matomo is not transferred to third parties.

You can stop the data collection by Matomo at any time by deactivating the Matomo Cookie (how this works is explained in section 5.2 of this privacy policy).

The Matomo Cookie is automatically deleted after 13 months at the latest, unless you manually delete it beforehand (more details on this can be found in section 5.2 of this privacy policy).

The legal basis for the data processing described above by Matomo is Article 6 Paragraph 1 Sentence 1 Letter f) GDPR. Our legitimate interest in this processing lies in our need to (i) understand how many people visit our websites, where the access comes from, whether the access is through internet advertising placed by us on third-party websites, which areas of our websites are used intensively, and what technical requirements the visitors’ systems have for our websites, and (ii) measure the effectiveness and attractiveness of our internet advertising campaigns.

 

6.2 Google Analytics

We may use the analysis tool Google Analytics on our websites. Google Analytics is only activated during your visit to our websites if you allow it in the cookie tool described in section 5.2 of this privacy policy under the category Marketing Cookies.

If you do so, Google Analytics is used during your visit to our websites for the purpose of designing our websites according to needs and continuously optimizing them, as well as statistically recording the use of our websites and evaluating it for the purpose of optimizing our web offering for you.

Google Analytics is a web analysis service operated within the scope of the GDPR by Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland (hereinafter referred to as “Google”).

Google Analytics creates anonymized usage profiles and uses cookies (see section 5 of this privacy policy for general information about cookies).

The information generated by the cookies set by Google Analytics about your use of the websites you are currently visiting, such as

• IP address of the requesting/accessing device,
• Date and time of the request/access,
• Time zone difference to Greenwich Mean Time (GMT),
• Names and URLs of the accessed pages/files,
• Website from which the request to our respective websites comes (referrer URL),
• Type and version of the used internet browser including its language,
• Type and version of the operating system of your device

is transmitted to and stored on Google’s servers. The information is used by Google to evaluate the use of our websites, compile reports on website activities, and provide other services related to website and internet use for market research and needs-based design of our websites. This information may also be transferred to third parties if required by law or if third parties process this data on behalf of Google.

Your IP address is not merged with other data from Google. Your IP address is anonymized, making it impossible to assign it to a specific person.

Google LLC is certified under the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield, see www.privacyshield.gov/participant. This means that data transfer to Google LLC falls under an adequacy decision by the European Commission in accordance with Article 45 Paragraph 9 GDPR.

Data linked to cookies by Google Analytics on our websites is deleted after 14 months.

The use of Google Analytics with the above-mentioned functions is based on your consent in the cookie tool mentioned in section 5.2 of this privacy policy in accordance with Article 6 Paragraph 1 Sentence 1 Letter a) GDPR.

Even after you have agreed to the use of Google Analytics in the cookie tool mentioned in section 5.2, you can stop the storage of cookies by Google Analytics through the following measures and thus revoke your consent to the data processing operations described above:

• Subsequent re-selection of the allowed cookies in the cookie tool mentioned in section 5.2 of this privacy policy by not activating Google Analytics in the Marketing Cookies category during the re-selection. Instructions for this can be found in section 5.2 of this privacy policy.
• By blocking third-party cookies or all cookies through the appropriate settings of your internet browser (see section 5.2 of this privacy policy). Please note that blocking cookies may prevent you from using all functions of our websites.
• If you use Microsoft Internet Explorer 11, Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Apple Safari, or Opera as your internet browser: by downloading and installing the browser add-on offered by Google at tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout.

Further information on data protection in connection with Google Analytics can be found in the Google Analytics help at support.google.com/analytics/answer/6004245 and on data protection at Google in general at https://policies.google.com/privacy?fg=1.

 

6.3 Google Conversion Tracking for Google Ads

We may use Google Conversion Tracking for Google Ads (hereinafter referred to as “Google Conversion Tracking”) on our websites. Google Conversion Tracking is only activated during your visit to our websites if you allow it in the cookie tool described in section 5.2 of this privacy policy under the category Marketing Cookies.

If you do so, Google Conversion Tracking works as follows:

Google Conversion Tracking is a service operated within the scope of the GDPR by Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland (hereinafter referred to as “Google”).

We place Google web ads (so-called Google Ads) on third-party websites to draw attention to our offers.

Through Google Conversion Tracking, we can determine how successful our individual Google Ads are. We aim to show you relevant advertising, make our websites more interesting for you, and achieve a fair calculation of our advertising costs.

The Google Ads we place are delivered by Google on third-party websites. If you click on such an ad, an individual cookie is set on your device, which usually becomes inactive after 30 days (hereinafter referred to as the “Google Ad Cookie,” see section 5 of this privacy policy for general information about cookies). The Google Ad Cookie is not intended to personally identify you. The cookie collects information that allows certain parameters for success measurement, such as the display of Google Ads or clicks on Google Ads, to be measured. This information typically consists of the so-called Unique Cookie ID, the number of ad impressions per placement of a Google Ad (frequency), the last impression of the Google Ad, and opt-out information (indicating that the user no longer wishes to be addressed).

The Google Ad Cookie allows Google to recognize your internet browser. If you access certain subpages (hereinafter referred to individually as “subpage” and collectively as “subpages”) of the website you are currently visiting and the Google Ad Cookie has not yet expired, Google and we can recognize that a Google Ad was clicked from your internet browser and, if applicable, a redirection to the respective subpage took place. Google assigns a different Google Ad Cookie to each Google Ad customer (in this case, us). Therefore, a Google Ad Cookie cannot be tracked across third-party websites. We do not collect or process any personal data through the Google Ads we place. We only receive statistical evaluations from Google. Based on these evaluations, we can see which of the Google Ads we placed are particularly effective. We do not receive any further data from the use of the Google Ads we placed, and we cannot identify you or other users of our websites based on this information.

If the Google Ad Cookie set on your device is active, the internet browser of your device automatically establishes a direct connection with Google’s servers. We have no influence on the scope and further use of the data collected by Google through the use of these tools and therefore inform you according to our knowledge: By integrating Google Conversion Tracking, Google receives the information that the respective subpage was accessed from your internet browser or that a Google Ad placed by us was clicked. If you have a Google account and are logged in to a Google service on the respective device, Google can assign these activities to your Google account. Even if you do not have a Google account or are not logged in to a Google service, there is a possibility that Google will obtain and store your IP address.

User-level data collected by Google Conversion Tracking is stored by Google for a maximum of 14 months before being deleted by Google.

The use of Google Conversion Tracking with the above-mentioned functions is based on your consent in the cookie tool mentioned in section 5.2 of this privacy policy in accordance with Article 6 Paragraph 1 Sentence 1 Letter a) GDPR.

Even after you have agreed to the use of Conversion Tracking in the cookie tool mentioned in section 5.2, you can prevent participation in this tracking procedure and thus revoke your consent to the data processing operations described above by:

• Subsequent re-selection of the allowed cookies in the cookie tool mentioned in section 5.2 of this privacy policy by not activating Google Conversion Tracking in the Marketing Cookies category during the re-selection. Instructions for this can be found in section 5.2 of this privacy policy.
• Blocking third-party cookies or all cookies through the appropriate settings of your internet browser (see section 5.2 of this privacy policy). Please note that blocking cookies may prevent you from using all functions of our websites.
• Deactivating the display of personalized Google ads at www.google.de/settings/ads, although this setting will be deleted if you delete your cookies.
• If you have a Google account: by logging in with your Google account in the internet browser you want to use when visiting our websites and deactivating personalized ads in the privacy settings of your Google account.
• In the browsers Firefox, Google Chrome, or Microsoft Internet Explorer: by downloading and installing the browser plugin available at www.google.com/settings/ads/plugin.

Further information on data protection in connection with Google Conversion Tracking can be found at services.google.com/sitestats/de.html and on data protection at Google in general at https://policies.google.com/privacy?fg=1.

 

7. YouTube Videos

We may embed videos on our websites that are stored on www.YouTube.com (hereinafter referred to as “YouTube Videos”) and can be played directly from our websites.

The site www.YouTube.com (hereinafter referred to as “YouTube”) is operated within the scope of the GDPR by Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland (hereinafter referred to as “Google”).

The YouTube Videos on our websites are all embedded in the so-called “extended YouTube privacy mode.” This means: As long as you have not generally activated YouTube in the cookie tool mentioned in section 5.2 of this privacy policy under the category Cookies from External Media or alternatively started an individual YouTube video on our websites, no data about you as a user will be transmitted to Google.

However, if you generally allow YouTube in the cookie tool mentioned in section 5.2 of this privacy policy or play a YouTube video on our websites, cookies will be set on your device by Google, through which the data mentioned in the following paragraph will be transmitted to Google. We have no influence on this data transmission.

By playing a YouTube video on our websites and the associated setting of cookies by Google on your device, Google receives the information that you have accessed the corresponding subpage on the website you visited, where the YouTube video is embedded. Additionally, the data listed in section 4.1 of this privacy policy is wholly or partially transmitted to Google. This happens regardless of whether you have a Google account through which you are logged in to Google. If you are logged in to Google, the aforementioned information/data is directly assigned to your Google account. If you do not want the assignment to your Google account, you must log out of your Google account before activating the play button of the YouTube video. Google stores your YouTube usage behavior in usage profiles and uses them for advertising, market research, and needs-based design of its online services. If you have a Google account, you can stop the collection of your YouTube requests and viewed YouTube videos and delete the information collected by Google about your YouTube requests and viewed YouTube videos (“YouTube history”) after logging in at https://myactivity.google.com/activitycontrols/youtube?utm_source=my-activity&hl=de.

By embedding YouTube on our websites, you have the opportunity to play the embedded YouTube videos and possibly use YouTube’s functionalities. We aim to improve our websites.

The legal basis for the data processing operations described above by Google within the scope of your use of YouTube on our websites is your consent in accordance with Article 6 Paragraph 1 Sentence 1 Letter a) GDPR.

After you have played a YouTube video on one of our websites, you can prevent the data processing operations described above by Google within the scope of using YouTube on this website and thus revoke your consent to these data processing operations by:

• Subsequent re-selection of the allowed cookies in the cookie tool mentioned in section 5.2 of this privacy policy by not activating YouTube in the category Cookies from External Media during the re-selection. Instructions for this can also be found in section 5.2 of this privacy policy.
• Blocking third-party cookies or all cookies through the appropriate settings of your internet browser (see section 5.2 of this privacy policy). Please note that blocking cookies may prevent you from using all functions of our websites.
• If you have a Google account: by logging in at https://myactivity.google.com/activitycontrols/youtube?utm_source=my-activity&hl=de and (i) deactivating the collection of your YouTube requests and viewed YouTube videos and (ii) deleting the information collected by Google about your YouTube requests and viewed YouTube videos (“YouTube history”).

Further information on the purpose and scope of data collection and its processing by Google can be found in Google’s privacy policy; there you will also find further information about your rights and settings to protect your privacy: https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=de&gl=de.

 

8. Your Rights

You have the following rights regarding your personal data:

• The right to information about your personal data processed by us according to Article 15 GDPR and § 34 BDSG;
• The right to correction of incorrect or completion of your personal data stored by us according to Article 16 GDPR;
• The right to deletion of your personal data stored by us according to Article 17 GDPR and § 35 BDSG, unless the processing of this data by us is necessary for exercising the right to freedom of expression and information, fulfilling a legal obligation, for reasons of public interest, or for asserting, exercising, or defending legal claims;
• The right to restriction of processing your personal data according to Article 18 GDPR and § 35 BDSG, if the accuracy of the data is disputed by you, the processing is unlawful, but you reject its deletion and we no longer need the data, but you need it for asserting, exercising, or defending legal claims or have objected to the processing according to Article 21 GDPR;
• If we process your personal data based on legitimate interests according to Article 6 Paragraph 1 Sentence 1 Letter f) GDPR, you have the right to object to the processing of your personal data according to Article 21 GDPR, if there are reasons arising from your particular situation or if the objection is directed against direct advertising;
• The right to data portability according to Article 20 GDPR, i.e., the right to receive your personal data provided to us in a structured, commonly used, and machine-readable format or to request the transfer to another responsible party;
• The right to revoke your consent to the processing of personal data at any time according to Article 7 Paragraph 3 GDPR; such revocation will result in us no longer continuing the data processing based on this consent for the future; the legality of the processing of personal data based on the consent until the revocation remains unaffected;
• The right to complain to a supervisory authority according to Article 77 GDPR. You can usually contact the supervisory authority of your usual place of residence or workplace or the seat of Avantgarde Business Solutions GmbH.

9. Data Security

Our websites use the widespread SSL encryption method (Secure Socket Layer) in connection with the encryption level of 256 bits for communication with your internet browser. If your browser does not support 256-bit encryption, we use 128-bit v3 technology instead. You can recognize whether a single subpage of our websites is transmitted encrypted by a key or lock symbol in the address or status bar of your browser.

We also use appropriate technical and organizational security measures to protect your data against accidental or intentional manipulation, partial or complete loss, destruction, or unauthorized access by third parties. Our security measures are continuously improved in line with technological developments.

 

10. Currentness and Changes to this Privacy Policy

This privacy policy is currently valid and has the status of September 30, 2020.

Due to the further development of our websites and their offers or due to changed legal, judicial, or official requirements, it may be necessary to change this privacy policy. The current privacy policy can be accessed and printed at any time on our websites at https://www.avantgar.de/datenschutz/.