Data protection

Data protection information

Responsible body and data protection officer:

FLEX-Elektrowerkzeuge GmbH
Bahnhofstrasse 15
71711 Steinheim, Germany

Telephone: +49 7144 828 0
Fax: +49 7144 258 99

E-mail: info@flex-tools.com
Internet: www.flex-tools.com

Data protection contact: datenschutz@flex-tools.com

Your rights as a data subject

First of all, we would like to inform you about your rights as a data subject. These rights are standardised in Articles 15-22 of the GDPR. This covers:

• The right to information (Art. 15 of the GDPR)

• The right to erasure (Art. 17 of the GDPR)

• The right to rectification (Art. 16 of the GDPR)

• The right to data portability (Art. 20 of the GDPR)

• The right to restriction of data processing (Art. 18 of the GDPR)

• The right to object to data processing (Art. 21 of the GDPR)

To assert these rights, please contact: datenschutz@flex-tools.com. The same applies if you have any questions concerning data processing in our company. You also have a right of appeal to a data protection supervisory authority.

Rights of objection

Please note the following regarding your rights to object:

If we process your personal data for the purposes of direct marketing, you have the right to object to this processing at any time without giving any reason. This also applies to profiling, insofar as it is linked to direct marketing.

If you object to the processing of your personal data for direct marketing purposes, we will no longer process your personal data for these purposes. The objection is free of charge and may be lodged in any form, preferably to: datenschutz@flex-tools.com

Where we process your data to safeguard legitimate interests, you may object to such processing at any time on grounds relating to your particular situation; this also applies to profiling carried out on the basis of these provisions.

We will then no longer process your personal data unless we can demonstrate compelling legitimate grounds for the processing which override your interests, rights and freedoms, or the processing is necessary for the establishment, exercise or defence of legal claims.

Purpose and legal basis for data processing

When processing your personal data, we comply with the provisions of the GDPR and all other applicable data protection regulations. In particular, the legal basis for data processing is established under Art. 6 of the GDPR. We use your data to initiate business, to fulfil contractual and legal obligations, to implement the contractual relationship, to offer products and services and to strengthen the customer relationship, which may also include analyses for marketing purposes and direct advertising. Your consent to data processing may also constitute a consent requirement under data protection law. Prior to the granting of consent, we clarify with you the purpose of data processing and your right to withdraw. The respective legal basis will be communicated to you again separately in the following paragraphs for the corresponding data processing.

Passing on to third parties

We will only pass on your data to third parties within the framework of the legal provisions or with the corresponding consent. Apart from such instances, data is not forwarded to third parties save for where we are obliged to do so in accordance with mandatory legal provisions (forwarding to external offices such as supervisory authorities or law enforcement agencies). 

Data recipient / recipient categories

Within our company, we ensure that only those persons who need it to fulfil contractual and legal obligations will receive your data. In certain cases service providers support our specific departments in the performance of their tasks. The requisite agreements under data protection law are concluded with all service providers. These are, in particular: IT service providers, digital agencies, email marketing, mailing service providers.

Transmission to third countries / intention to transmit to third countries

Transmission of data to third countries (outside the European Union or European Economic Area) occurs solely to the extent necessary to perform the contractual obligation or if required by law or where you have granted your consent for this. We will inform you separately in the relevant section about these circumstances within the framework of the respective data processing.

Data retention period

We store your data as long as it is needed for the respective processing purpose. Please note that numerous retention periods require that data continues to be stored. In particular, this concerns retention obligations under commercial or tax law (e.g. German Commercial Code (HGB), tax code etc.). Provided no further retention obligations apply, your data will be erased after fulfilment of the respective purpose. In addition, we may retain data if you have given us permission to do so or if there is a legal dispute and we use evidence under statutory limitation periods that can be up to thirty years; the regular limitation period is three years.

Secure transfer of your data

We implement appropriate technical and organisational security measures in order to protect, to the best of our ability, the data that we store from accidental or intentional manipulation, loss, destruction or unauthorised access. The level of security is continuously reviewed in cooperation with security experts and adjusted to conform with new security standards.

Data is always encrypted when being sent to and from our website. We use HTTPS as the transmission protocol for our website, always employing the latest encryption protocols. We also offer our users content encryption via the contact form. Only we are able to decrypt this data. It is also possible to use alternative means of communication (e.g. by post).

Data provision obligation

Various personal data is required for the establishment, performance and expiration of the obligation and fulfilment of associated contractual and statutory duties. The same applies for use of our website and the various functions provided by it. Commensurate details are summarised in the above point. Certain instances also require data to be collected or provided on the basis of statutory provisions. Please note that it is not possible to process your enquiry or perform the underlying contractual obligation without providing this data.

Categories, sources and origin of data

Which data we process depends on the particular context. It depends, for instance, on whether you are placing an order online or entering an enquiry in our contact form, sending us an application or submitting a complaint. The following contains the relevant information for the particular processing situations on our website.

When you visit our website, we collect and process the following data:

• Information on the browser and operating system used

• The IP address assigned by your Internet service provider

• Information on the pages you visit on our site, including the date and time

• For reasons of technical security (especially to prevent attempted hacks on our web server), this data is stored in accordance with Article 6 (1) (f) GDPR. After 7 days at the latest, anonymisation is carried out through truncation of the IP address to prevent any reference to the user.

With regard to contact enquiries, we collect and process the following data:

• Title

• Company

• First name

• Last name*

• Address details

• Country*

• Email*

• Telephone number

• Area in which the concern falls*

• Brief description*

• Personal message*

Boxes marked with an asterisk (*) are mandatory.

When registering download portals for FLEX partners, we collect and process the following data:

• Email address

• First name

• Last name

• Company

• Customer number

• Password

When registering for our 3-year warranty, we collect and process the following data:

• Type of registration (private/business)

• Company* (only for commercial registration)

• Title

• First name*

• Last name*

• Telephone/mobile number* (mandatory only for commercial registration)

• Address*

• Language*

• Email address*

• Password*

Boxes marked with an asterisk (*) are mandatory.

For newsletters we collect and process the following data:

• Last name, first name

• Email address*

• Title

• Interests

• Target group

• Analytical data from newsletter analysis

• Technical data (IP address, location information based on the IP address, browser information)

Boxes marked with an asterisk (*) are mandatory.

For DPD pick-up orders we collect and process the following data:

• Customer details:

  • Customer number

  • Contact

  • Telephone

  • Email address*

  • Brief information for FLEX

• Collection address

  • Company or name*

  • Address including country*

  • Brief information for parcel service

• Recipient information (option to select whether retailer or customer)

  • Recipient*

  • Invoice recipient*

• Retailer address

  • Company*

  • Address*

  • Telephone*

  • Fax

  • Email*

• For further orders

  • Consent to the storage of the addresses used for further orders*

• Product information

  • Unit designation

    • Type

    • Serial number*

    • Part number*

    • Number of packages in your collection*

  • Registration in the 3-year warranty

  • Enclosed accessories

  • Fault description*

• Return options*

• Other options*

• DPD collection option*

Boxes marked with an asterisk (*) are mandatory.

For DPD orders with returns labels we collect and process the following data:

• Customer details:

  • Customer number

  • Contact

  • Telephone

  • Email address*

  • Brief information for FLEX

• Dispatch address

  • Company or name*

  • Department

  • Address including country*

  • Brief information for parcel service

• Recipient information (option to select whether retailer or customer)

  • Recipient*

  • Invoice recipient*

• Retailer address

  • Company*

  • Address*

  • Telephone*

  • Fax

  • Email*

• For further orders

  • Consent to the storage of the addresses used for further orders*

• Product information

  • Unit designation

    • Type

    • Serial number*

    • Part number*

    • Number of packages in your collection*

  • Registration in the 3-year warranty

  • Enclosed accessories

  • Fault description*

• Return options*

• Other options*

Boxes marked with an asterisk (*) are mandatory.

Visiting our website

We do not usually require any personal data when you visit our web pages. The only information we take note of is the name of your internet service provider and the web pages you visit on our site. As such, you remain anonymous as an Internet user given that we only use this information for statistical purposes (e.g. the number of visits to individual pages).

We take the protection of your privacy very seriously. For this reason, we consider it important that you always know when we store your data, which data we store and how we use it. When you visit our web pages, our web servers store the IP address. Your provider can be determined via the IP address. Personal identification is not our intention. For reasons of technical security (especially to prevent attempted hacks on our web server), this data is stored in accordance with Article 6 (1) (f) GDPR. After 7 days at the latest, anonymisation is carried out through truncation of the IP address to prevent any reference to the user.

Contact form / making contact via email (Article 6 (1) (a, b) GDPR)

There is a contact form on our website that you can use to contact us electronically. If you write to us via the contact form, we will process the data provided in it in order to contact you and to answer your questions and requests. We observe the principle of data economy and data avoidance by only providing the data that we absolutely need in order to contact you.

This is your last name, country, e-mail address, the associated subject, a brief description, and the message box itself. In addition, your IP address is processed out of technical necessity and for legal protection. All other data is entered in voluntary boxes and is optional (e.g. to enable a more specific individual reply to your questions).

If you contact us by e-mail, we will use the personal data provided in your e-mail solely for the purpose of processing the request. 

Registration download portal for FLEX Partner (Article 6 (1) (a, b) GDPR)

On our website, we offer FLEX partners the opportunity to register by providing personal data. Items such as image and text data, logos, catalogues, product data etc. can be downloaded here. We collect the following data during the registration procedure on our download portal: Country, first name, last name, company, email, password, customer number.

The legal basis for collecting and processing the data is Art. 6 (1)(a, b) GDPR.

The user's IP address and the date and time of registration are also stored when the user registers on our website (technical background data). By clicking the "Register now" button, you consent to the processing of your data.

Please note: The password you give us is stored in encrypted form. Our employees cannot read this password. This means that they cannot give you any information if you forget your password. If this happens, please use the "Forgotten password" function, which will email you an automatically generated new password. No employee is authorised to request your password from you over the phone or in writing. So please never share your password if you are asked to. 

Once you have completed the registration process, your data will be stored with us for when you use the protected download portal. Once you register on our website with your email address as your user name and password, this data will be made available for actions you perform on our website.

When registering for the administration of logins, we are supported by our service provider Auth0 [Auth0, European HQ, 3rd Floor Union House 182-194 Union Street London, SE1 0LH, UK], with whom we have concluded the contract for the protection of your data required by data protection law.

However, please note that this is a provider from the USA and that consequently, data may be transferred to a country that does not offer an adequate level of data protection (USA). If the data is transferred to the US, there is a risk that it may be processed by US authorities for control and monitoring purposes without you possibly having any legal recourse. However, we apply the possible and requisite measures under data protection law as per Article 44 et seq. of the GDPR to establish the level of data protection in the respective third country.

We will only collect, process or use data for consulting, advertising or market research purposes if you have given us your prior consent to do so. You can of course revoke your consent at any time by sending an e-mail to datenschutz@flex-tools.com or by post to FLEX-Elektrowerkzeuge GmbH, Bahnhofstr. 15, 71711 Steinheim, Germany.

Retailer search (Article 6 (1) (a) GDPR)

The data you provide will be processed exclusively for the purpose of identifying the relevant specialist retailers. In addition and subject to your consent, we will use Google’s interactive map material. The corresponding data protection information for the use of Google Maps can be found in the corresponding notice below.

Newsletter

You can subscribe to a free newsletter on our website. The email address provided when you subscribed to the newsletter, as well as your title, first name and surname, the target group (tradespeople / specialist retailers) and your interests / trades will be used for sending the newsletter and for other marketing activities (such as customer satisfaction surveys, etc.) on the basis of your consent in accordance with Article 6 (1) (1) (a) of the GDPR. The principle of data economy and data avoidance is observed here, as only the e-mail address is marked as a mandatory field. For technical necessity and for legal protection, your IP address, and hence your location, is also processed when you order the newsletter.

We use the so-called double opt-in procedure for sending newsletters by e-mail. This means that you will only receive advertising by e-mail if you have previously expressly confirmed that we should activate the newsletter service. We do this by sending you a notification e-mail and asking you to confirm that you would like to receive our newsletter at that e-mail address by clicking on a link contained in that e-mail.

We use our service provider, GetResponse S.A., for the technical delivery and analysis of the newsletters. (Grundwaldzka 413, Gdańsk 80-309, Poland). The necessary data protection agreements have been concluded with the service provider for this purpose.

You can of course unsubscribe at any time using the unsubscribe option at the end of each newsletter, thereby revoking your consent with future effect. We will retain your data until you unsubscribe from the newsletter, after which it will be deleted.

Measuring the success of newsletters

Provided you have given your consent, various pieces of information will be collected as part of the mailings in accordance with your consent, as per Article 6 (1) (1) (a) of the GDPR and Section 25 (1) of the TDDDG.

This information is used to improve the services technically, based on technical data or target groups and reading behaviour, taking into account the locations from which the content is accessed (which can be determined using the IP address) or the times of access.

Specifically, the following personal data is processed in this context: Surname, first name, email address, title, target group, interests, analytics data from newsletter analysis (including usage analytics), IP address, location data and browser information.

We use GetResponse to track reach and, amongst other things, identify which links were clicked on particularly often. The statistical surveys also include determining whether the newsletters are opened and when they are opened. Furthermore, GetResponse also allows us to segment newsletter recipients into different categories. Newsletter recipients can, for example, be categorised by target group.

For technical reasons, this information can be linked to individual newsletter recipients. However, it is not our intention – nor, where used, that of GetResponse – to monitor individual users. The analyses are used much more to help us identify our users’ reading habits and tailor our content to them, or to send out different content based on our users’ interests.

The data you have provided to us for the purpose of receiving the newsletter will be stored by us until you unsubscribe from the newsletter, and will be deleted once you have unsubscribed.

You can withdraw your consent to newsletter tracking at any time with future effect by using the unsubscribe option provided at the end of each newsletter. Please note that you will then no longer be able to receive the newsletter.

Registration for our 3-year warranty (Article 6 (1) (a, b) GDPR)

You can register for our 3-year warranty on our website. In the course of registration we will collect and process the following data categories: Mandatory fields: First name, last name, company (only for business registrations),

telephone/mobile number (only for business registrations), street, street number, postcode, town/city, country, language, email address, password including password confirmation

Optional information: Title, telephone/mobile number (for private registrations)

The data provided is used solely for the purpose of registering for our 3-year warranty, and is erased as soon as this purpose has been fulfilled provided no mandatory retention provisions preventing erasure apply.

We observe the principle of data economy and data avoidance here, as only the data required for registration is marked with an asterisk (*) as mandatory. This includes, for example, the e-mail address and password including password repetition.

The user's IP address and the date and time of registration are also stored when the user registers on our website (technical background data). By clicking the "Register now" button, you consent to the processing of your data.

Please note: The password you give us is stored in encrypted form. Our employees cannot read this password. This means that they cannot give you any information if you forget your password.

If this happens, please use the "Forgotten password" function, which will email you an automatically generated new password. No employee is authorised to request your password from you over the phone or in writing. So please never share your password if you are asked to.

Once you have completed the registration process, your data will be stored with us for when you use the protected download portal. Once you register on our website with your email address as your user name and password, this data will be made available for actions you perform on our website.

Registered persons are free to make changes / corrections to the billing or delivery address in the order history independently. Our customer services will also be happy to make changes / corrections if you contact them. Of course, you can also cancel or delete your registration or customer account.

DPD collection orders (Art. 6 (1) (b) GDPR)

You have the option of creating a collection order via our website. To facilitate such orders we collect and process the following personal data: Customer data: FLEX customer number (optional), contact person (optional), telephone number (optional), e-mail address, brief info to FLEX (optional)

Collection address: company, department (optional), street, postcode, town/city, country, brief info to parcel service (optional), Dealer address (all details optional): company, street, postcode, town/city, telephone, fax, e-­mail

Customer address: company, street, postcode, town/city, telephone, fax, e-­mail

The principle of data minimisation and data avoidance is observed in that you are only required to provide us with the data that we absolutely need to carry out your order or fulfil it, or which we are legally obliged to collect.

In addition, your IP address is processed out of technical necessity and for legal protection. Without this information, we will unfortunately have to refuse the collection, as we will then be unable to carry it out. Of course, you are also welcome to provide further details if you wish.

Additional product-related data required to execute the order. Data provided for collection orders is used solely to execute the order and is subsequently erased, provided that no mandatory retention provisions preventing erasure apply. When using a collection order for repairs, your data will be sent to our courier service (DPD) for the machine to be collected.

DPD order with return label

You still have the option of placing an order with us via our web site to create a DPD return label. For this we collect and process the following personal data:

Customer data: FLEX customer number (optional), contact person (optional), telephone number (optional), e-mail address, brief info to FLEX (optional).

Dispatch address: Company or name, department (optional), street, postcode, town/city, country, brief info for courier service (optional).

Retailer’s address (if the return is to be sent to a retailer): Company name, street, postcode, town, telephone, fax (optional), e-mail.

The principle of data minimisation and data avoidance is observed in that you are only required to provide us with the data that we absolutely need to carry out your order or fulfil it, or which we are legally obliged to collect.

In addition, your IP address is processed out of technical necessity and for legal protection. Without this information, we will unfortunately have to refuse to issue the returns label, as we will then be unable to process it. Of course, you’re also welcome to provide further details if you’d like to.

Additional product-related data required to execute the order. Data provided to create the DPD label is used solely for this order and is subsequently erased, provided that no mandatory retention provisions preventing erasure apply.

Download option for print data records

On our website we offer you the option of downloading print data records. The following personal data is collected and processed for this:

• Email address

• Country

• First name

• Last name

• Company

• Address

• Postcode

• Town/city

As we offer this service at no additional cost to you, in return we would like to use your personal data collected for advertising purposes in return. The legal basis for processing data is Article 6 (1) (a, b) GDPR. You have the right to revoke your consent to approaches from advertisers at any time by visiting datenschutz@flex-tools.com.

The data collected is stored for as long as is necessary to fulfil the purpose for which it was collected. Please note that numerous retention periods require that data continues to be stored. In particular, this concerns retention obligations under commercial or tax law (e.g. German Commercial Code (HGB), tax code etc.).

If you make use of your right of revocation but we are not yet able to delete your data for the reasons mentioned, we will ensure that your data is no longer used for advertising purposes from this point on.

Cookies (Article 6 (1) (1) (a, f) GDPR, Section 25 (1, 2) TTDPA).

Cookies are used in many parts of our website. They help to make our site easier to use, more effective and more secure. Cookies are small text files that are placed on your computer and saved by your browser (locally on your hard drive). Cookies only contain pseudonymised, usually even anonymous data. Some cookies remain in place for the duration of a browser session (known as session cookies), others are stored for longer periods (known as persistent cookies, e.g. consent settings). The latter are automatically deleted after the specified period (usually 6 months). In addition to our own cookies, we also use cookies that are controlled by third-party providers. They use the information contained in the cookies to show you content, for example, or to record the pages you have visited.

Technically necessary cookies (Article 6 (1) (1) (f) GDPR, Section 25 (2) TTDPA).

Due to our legitimate interest (Article 6 (1) (1) (f) GDPR), we set technically necessary cookies, which are absolutely necessary for the operation of the website and to ensure its functionality. Furthermore, we will use cookies without your consent if their sole purpose is to store or access information stored in the terminal device for the transmission of messages or if they are absolutely necessary in order to provide the service you have expressly requested, Section 25 (2) TDDDG.

We use the following technically necessary cookies:

• gstatic.com

  • Function: This is a domain used by Google to offload static content to another domain name, in order to reduce bandwidth usage and improve network performance for the end user.

  • Retention period: Requests for CSS assets are cached for 1 day; font files are cached for one year. Some information is stored until it is deleted by the user; other information expires after a certain period of time; and other information is stored until the user’s Google Account is deleted.

• Sentry

  • Function: This is a debugging and performance monitoring platform for web apps, mobile apps and games. It is used to monitor and resolve system crashes in real time.

  • Retention period: Data will be deleted as soon as it is no longer required for the purposes for which it is being processed.

• Usercentrics Consent Management Platform

  • Function: This is a consent management service. Usercentrics GmbH acts as a data processor on websites and apps to ensure consent management.

  • Retention period: Consent data (consent given and withdrawal of consent) is stored for one year. The data will then be deleted immediately.

Cookies that require consent (Article 6 (1) (1) (a) GDPR, Section 25 (1) TTDPA)

Subject to your consent, other cookies are used to enable us or third parties to analyse how our services are used, for example. This in turn allows us to shape our website content in order to meet the needs of visitors. Cookies also enable us to measure the effectiveness of a particular advert and to place it according to criteria such as the thematic interests of visitors. The legal basis for this is your express consent (Article 6 (1) (1) (a) GDPR, Section 25 (1) TTDPA).

You can revoke your consent via our consent banner at any time with effect for the future and change the cookie settings. Please note that changes must be made separately for each end device.

If you have accounts with the third-party providers we use and are logged in there, your data may be linked to the respective account. You can avoid such a combination by not giving or revoking your consent to the relevant cookies or by logging out of the respective third-party providers in advance.

Most web browsers accept cookies automatically. You can also deactivate, restrict or delete cookies on your end device manually via your browser settings or with the help of software. If you deactivate the setting of cookies, you will not be able to use our website, or only use it to a limited extent.

Integration of social media content via Flowbox

We use the Flowbox service of Flowbox AB (Riddargatan 17D, 114 57 Stockholm, Sweden) for the social media stream and to display social media content on our website.

For the purpose of presenting relevant social media content on our products and business areas, we process social media content from users that relates to our products or business areas. AI-supported social media platforms are analysed for links/tags/representations of our products or our company and identified contributions and postings are filtered out. The following personal data is processed:

• Account data (user name, profile picture)

• Content of the post (text, links, image, sound)

The users/account holders concerned will then be contacted via the comment function and asked for their consent. As the result of your express consent as per Article 6 (1) (1) (a) GDPR, the content will then be published on our website (www.flex-tools.com). Your consent is voluntary, and you can object to the processing of your photos and videos at any time with effect for the future by emailing us at socialmediateam@flex-tools.com. The contributions will be displayed on the website for an indefinite period of time and will only be permanently deleted after cancellation.

The display of the social media content on our website is based on your express consent as per Article 6 (1) (1) (a) GDPR, and serves to present and inform on social media events on our website. For this purpose, traffic and connection data (including IP address) are transmitted to the respective social media platforms. Please also note that the loading of external content may also result in memory access and that cookies may also be set by the social media platforms. Data recipients are:

Facebook (Meta Platforms Ireland Ltd., 4 Grand Canal Square, Grand Canal Harbour, Dublin 2, Ireland) – data protection declaration: https://www.facebook.com/about/privacy/
Opt-out: https://www.facebook.com/settings?tab=ads and http://www.youronlinechoices.com

Instagram (Meta Platforms Ireland Ltd., 4 Grand Canal Square, Grand Canal Harbour, Dublin 2, Ireland) – data protection declaration/opt-out: http://instagram.com/about/legal/privacy/

The storage period of the data by the social media platforms is beyond our knowledge or influence, and can be viewed under the aforementioned links to the individual privacy policies.

By accessing our website, the social media platforms and Flowbox will be informed that you have accessed the corresponding page of our website after you have given your consent. Data is transferred regardless of whether you have a user account with the social media platforms through which you are logged in. If you have an account and are logged in, your data will be linked directly to your account. If you do not wish to link these accounts to your profile, you must log out of your social media accounts before activating the Flowbox service. The platforms store your data as usage profiles and use them for the purposes of advertising, market research and/or customising the design of their websites and platforms. Such an analysis is carried out in particular (even for users who are not logged in) to provide customised advertising and to inform other users of the social network about your activities on our website. You have the right to object to the creation of these user profiles, although you would have to contact the individual social media platform operators to exercise this right. We have no influence on any of these data processing operations.

We also have no influence on any additional data transfers (e.g. to any existing social media profiles). By embedding the content, data processing requiring consent is activated that can then be used to record user behaviour. The reloading of further third-party content, font transfer and possible links to your user account on social media platforms cannot be ruled out.

We obtain your express consent to the transmission of the data both via our consent banner and at the point of integration of the external social media content, Article 6 (1) (1) (a) GDPR.

Some of the data processing takes place outside the European Union and the European Economic Area. With regard to social media platforms, data is generally transferred to the USA and processed there. Contractual regulations and certification under the US-EU Data Privacy Framework ensure compliance with the European level of data protection for data transfer and processing in third countries. Data processing or storage in third countries may also take place on the basis of your consent (Article 49 (1) (1) (a) GDPR), in which case you will be informed separately of existing risks (including the processing of data by authorities for control and monitoring purposes, lack of legal remedies or limited possibilities for asserting rights) and the possibility of revocation when obtaining your consent.

You can revoke your consent at any time with effect for the future. To do this, simply open our consent banner and adjust the settings accordingly. Please note that the change in the content banner settings must be made individually for each end device.

You can find further information on data protection at Flowbox at https://getflowbox.com/privacy-policy/.

Security policy

We have taken appropriate technical and organisational measures in order to protect the data of our employees/customers/suppliers stored by us against accidental or intentional manipulation, loss, destruction or access by unauthorised persons. The level of security is continuously reviewed in cooperation with security experts and adjusted to conform with new security standards.

Links to third parties

Our web site also contains clearly recognisable links to the web sites of other companies. Insofar as there are links to websites of other providers, we have no influence on their content. Therefore, no warranty can be granted or liability assumed for this content. The relevant providers or operators of these websites are responsible for their content in all cases.

The linked websites were checked for any potential legal violations and recognisable legal infringements at the time of the links being placed. No illegal content was identified at the time of the links being placed. However, ongoing content monitoring of the linked websites cannot be reasonably expected without a concrete indication of a legal violation. Such links are removed immediately upon legal violations becoming known.

Social media links

On our web site you will find links to the social media services of LinkedIn, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and TikTok. You can recognise links to the web sites of social media services by the respective company logo. Following these links takes you to the FLEX Elektrowerkzeuge GmbH company pages with the respective social media provider. Clicking on a link to a social media provider will create a connection to the respective social media provider's servers. This transfers to the servers of the social media service that you have visited our web site. In addition, other data is also transmitted to the provider of the social media service. As an example, these include:

• Web site address where the activated link is located

• Date and time of web site access or activation of the link

• Information about the browser and operating system used

• IP address

If you are already logged in to the corresponding social media service at the time of activating the link, the provider of the social media service may be able to determine your user name and possibly even your real name from the transferred data and assign this information to your personal user account with the social media service. You can exclude this possibility of assignment to your personal user account if you log out of your user account beforehand. The social media provider servers are located in the USA and other countries outside the European Union. As a result, the data may also be processed by providers of the social media service in countries outside the European Union. Please note that companies in these countries are subject to data protection laws that generally do not protect personal data to the same extent as they do in the member states of the European Union.

Please note that we have no influence on the scope, type and purpose of the data processing by the provider of the social media service. For more information on how the social media services integrated on our web site use your data, please refer to the data protection policy of the respective social media service.

Information on data privacy in our social media

We are present on various “social media”, primarily LinkedIn, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and TikTok, for the purpose of communicating with and providing details of our services to registered customers, potential customers and users of the media in question. Insofar as we have control over the processing of your data, we ensure that the applicable data protection regulations are complied with.

Below you will find the most important information on data protection law in relation to our websites.

Name and address of the person responsible for operation

In addition to FLEX-Elektrowerkzeuge GmbH, the following company is responsible for the company websites within the meaning of the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and other data protection regulations:

• Facebook (Meta Platforms Ireland Ltd., 4 Grand Canal Square, Grand Canal Harbour, Dublin 2, Ireland)

• Instagram (Meta Platforms Ireland Ltd., 4 Grand Canal Square, Grand Canal Harbour, Dublin 2, Ireland)

• LinkedIn (LinkedIn Ireland Unlimited Company, Wilton Place, Dublin 2, Ireland)

• TikTok (TikTok Technology Ltd., 10 Earlsfort Terrace, Dublin, D02 T380, Ireland)

• YouTube (Google Ireland Ltd., Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland)

• Xing (New Work SE, Dammtorstraße 30, 20354 Hamburg, Germany)

Please note that you are yourself responsible for using these platforms and their functions. This applies in particular with regard to the use of interactive functions (e.g. comments, shares, rating). Please also note that your data might be processed outside the European Union.

Purpose and legal basis

We maintain the fan pages ourselves in order to communicate with visitors to these pages and to inform them of our offers in this way.

We also collect data for statistical purposes in order to further develop and optimise the content and to make our offer more attractive. The data required for this (e.g. total number of page views, page activities and data provided by visitors, interactions) are processed by the social networks and made available to us. We have no influence on the generation and presentation.

Your data might also be processed for market research and advertising purposes. For example, usage profiles can be created from your usage behaviour and the resulting interests. This means, for example, that advertisements can be placed inside and outside the platforms that presumably correspond to your interest. Cookies are usually stored on your computer for this purpose. Irrespective of this, data that is not directly collected from your terminal devices may also be stored in the usage profiles.
As the provider of this information service, we do not collect or process any other data from your use of our service. Personal user data is processed on the basis of our legitimate interest in providing effective user information and communication with the user in accordance with Article 6 (1) (1) (f) GDPR. If the respective providers request your consent for data processing (i.e. ask you to declare your consent by checking a checkbox or clicking on a button, for example), the respective legal basis for processing is Article 6 (1) (1) (a), and Article 7 GDPR.

Transmission to third countries

The providers of social media platforms may also process and store some of your data in a third country (the USA). In the event that your data is transferred to the USA, there is a risk that it may be processed by US authorities for monitoring and surveillance purposes, without you having any legal recourse. The exercise of data subjects’ rights may also be restricted. However, we take all necessary data protection measures in accordance with Article 44 et seq. of the GDPR to ensure that a level of data protection in line with the GDPR is achieved in the third country. The relevant data protection agreement (data processing agreement, where applicable in conjunction with standard contractual clauses) has been concluded. Service providers are obliged, through appropriate contractual provisions and/or certification under the US-EU Data Privacy Framework, to comply with EU data protection standards and to ensure that the European level of data protection is maintained. Data processing or storage in third countries may also take place on the basis of your consent (Article 49 (1) (1) (a) of the GDPR); in this case, you will be specifically informed of this and of any associated risks.

Your rights/Possibility of objection

If you are a member of a social network and do not want the network to collect data about you via our website and link it to your stored membership data with the respective network, you must

• log out of the respective network before visiting our website

• delete any cookies stored on your device, and

• close and restart your browser.

After logging in again, however, you will once more be identifiable to the network as a specific user. For a detailed description of the respective processing and opt-out options, please refer to the following linked information pertaining to providers. In addition, with regard to requests for information and the assertion of user rights, please note that these can be asserted most effectively with the providers in question. Only the providers have commensurate access to user data and can directly undertake corresponding action and provide information. If you still need help, you can contact us.

Facebook (Meta Platforms Ireland Ltd., 4 Grand Canal Square, Grand Canal Harbour, Dublin 2, Ireland) – data protection declaration: https://www.facebook.com/about/privacy/
Opt-out: https://www.facebook.com/settings?tab=ads and http://www.youronlinechoices.com

YouTube (Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland) – data protection declaration: https://policies.google.com/privacy
Opt-out: https://adssettings.google.com/authenticated

Instagram (Meta Platforms Ireland Ltd., 4 Grand Canal Square, Grand Canal Harbour, Dublin 2, Ireland) – data protection declaration/opt-out: http://instagram.com/about/legal/privacy/

LinkedIn (LinkedIn Ireland Unlimited Company, Wilton Place, Dublin 2, Ireland)
Data protection declaration: https://www.linkedin.com/legal/privacy-policy
Opt-out: https://www.linkedin.com/legal/cookie-policy and http://www.youronlinechoices.com

TikTok (TikTok Technology Ltd., 10 Earlsfort Terrace, Dublin, D02 T380, Ireland)
Data protection declaration: https://www.tiktok.com/legal/page/eea/privacy-policy/en

Opt-out: https://support.tiktok.com/en/account-and-privacy/personalized-ads-and-data/personalization-and-data and http://www.youronlinechoices.com

Xing (New Work SE, Dammtorstraße 30, 20354 Hamburg, Germany)
Data protection declaration: https://privacy.xing.com/en/privacy-policy
Opt-out: http://www.youronlinechoices.com

You have the following rights with regard to the processing of your personal data:

Right of access; right to rectification; right to erasure; right to restriction of processing; right to object; right to data portability; right to lodge a complaint about unlawful processing of your personal data with the competent data protection authority.

However, since FLEX-Elektrowerkzeuge GmbH does not have complete access to your personal data, you should contact the social media providers directly if you wish to make a claim, as they have access to the personal data of their users and can take appropriate measures and provide information.

If you do need help, we’ll of course do our best to assist you. Please contact datenschutz@flex-tools.com.

Notes on copyright and art copyright

If you wish to publish images, texts, plans, videos, music, etc. on our website, you should be aware that you may be transferring all rights of use to the network, which could ultimately have legal consequences for you if you are not the creator or rightholder.