Privacy Policy

1. An over­view of data protec­tion

General infor­mation

The follo­wing infor­mation will provide you with an easy to navigate over­view of what will happen with your personal data when you visit this website. The term “personal data” comprises all data that can be used to perso­nally identify you. For detailed infor­mation about the subject matter of data protec­tion, please consult our Data Protec­tion Decla­ration, which we have included beneath this copy.

Data recording on this website

Who is the respon­sible party for the recor­ding of data on this website (i.e., the “controller”)?

The data on this website is processed by the operator of the website, whose contact infor­mation is avai­lable under section “Infor­mation about the respon­sible party (referred to as the “control­ler” in the GDPR)” in this Privacy Policy.

How do we record your data?

We collect your data as a result of your sharing of your data with us. This may, for instance be infor­mation you enter into our contact form.

Other data shall be recorded by our IT systems automa­tically or after you consent to its recor­ding during your website visit. This data comprises primarily technical infor­mation (e.g., web browser, opera­ting system, or time the site was accessed). This infor­mation is recorded automa­tically when you access this website.

What are the purposes we use your data for?

A portion of the infor­mation is genera­ted to guarantee the error free provision of the website. Other data may be used to analyze your user patterns. If contracts can be conclu­ded or initiated via the website, the trans­mitted data will also be processed for contract offers, orders or other order enquiries.

What rights do you have as far as your infor­mation is con­cerned?

You have the right to receive infor­mation about the source, recipients, and purposes of your archived personal data at any time without having to pay a fee for such disclo­sures. You also have the right to demand that your data are recti­fied or eradi­cated. If you have con­sented to data proces­sing, you have the option to revoke this consent at any time, which shall affect all future data proces­sing. More­over, you have the right to demand that the proces­sing of your data be restric­ted under certain circum­stances. Further­more, you have the right to log a complaint with the competent super­vising agency.

Please do not hesitate to contact us at any time if you have questions about this or any other data protec­tion related issues.

Analysis tools and tools provided by third parties

There is a possi­bility that your browsing patterns will be statis­tically analyzed when your visit this website. Such analyses are per­formed primarily with what we refer to as analysis programs.

For detailed infor­mation about these analysis programs please consult our Data Protec­tion Declara­tion below.

2. Hosting

We are hosting the content of our website at the follo­wing provider:

Strato

The provider is Strato AG, Otto-Ostrowski-Straße 7, 10249 Berlin (herein­after referred to as “Strato”). When you visit our website, Strato records various logfiles, inclu­ding your IP addresses.

For more infor­mation, please consult the Strato Data Privacy Policy: https://www.strato.de/datenschutz/.

Strato is used on the basis of Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR. We have a legitimate interest in a depiction of our website that is as reliable as possible. If appro­priate consent has been obtained, the proces­sing is carried out exclu­sively on the basis of Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR and § 25 (1) TDDDG, insofar the consent includes the storage of cookies or the access to infor­mation in the user’s end device (e.g., device finger­prin­ting) within the meaning of the TDDDG. This consent can be revoked at any time.

Data proces­sing

We have concluded a data proces­sing agreement (DPA) for the use of the above-men­tioned service. This is a contract manda­ted by data privacy laws that guaran­tees that they process personal data of our website visitors only based on our instruc­tions and in compliance with the GDPR.

3. General infor­mation and manda­tory informa­tion

Data protection

The opera­tors of this website and its pages take the protec­tion of your personal data very seriously. Hence, we handle your personal data as confidential information and in compliance with the statutory data protection regula­tions and this Data Protection Decla­ration.

When­ever you use this website, a variety of per­sonal infor­mation will be collected. Personal data comprises data that can be used to per­sonally identify you. This Data Protec­tion Decla­ration explains which data we collect as well as the purposes we use this data for. It also explains how, and for which purpose the infor­mation is collec­ted.

We here­with advise you that the transmis­sion of data via the Internet (i.e., through e-mail communi­cations) may be prone to security gaps. It is not possible to completely protect data against third-party access.

Infor­mation about the respon­sible party (referred to as the “controller” in the GDPR)

The data processing controller on this website is:

VM Photonics GmbH
Burgberg 6
31832 Springe
Germany

+49 5041 8027 434
info@vmphotonics.com
www.vmphotonics.com

The controller is the natural person or legal entity that single-handedly or jointly with others makes decisions as to the purposes of and resources for the proces­sing of personal data (e.g., names, e-mail addresses, etc.).

Storage duration

Unless a more specific storage period has been specified in this privacy policy, your personal data will remain with us until the purpose for which it was collec­ted no longer applies. If you assert a justi­fied request for deletion or revoke your consent to data proces­sing, your data will be deleted, unless we have other legally permis­sible reasons for storing your personal data (e.g., tax or commer­cial law reten­tion periods); in the latter case, the dele­tion will take place after these reasons cease to apply.

General infor­mation on the legal basis for the data proces­sing on this website

If you have consented to data proces­sing, we process your personal data on the basis of Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR or Art. 9 (2)(a) GDPR, if special cate­gories of data are processed according to Art. 9 (1) DSGVO. In the case of explicit consent to the transfer of per­sonal data to third countries, the data proces­sing is also based on Art. 49 (1)(a) GDPR. If you have consented to the storage of cookies or to the access to infor­mation in your end device (e.g., via device finger­prin­ting), the data proces­sing is addi­tionally based on § 25 (1) TDDDG. The consent can be revoked at any time. If your data is required for the fulfill­ment of a contract or for the imple­menta­tion of pre-contrac­tual measures, we process your data on the basis of Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR. Further­more, if your data is required for the fulfill­ment of a legal obli­gation, we process it on the basis of Art. 6(1)(c) GDPR. Further­more, the data processing may be carried out on the basis of our legi­timate interest according to Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR. Infor­mation on the relevant legal basis in each indi­vidual case is provided in the follo­wing para­graphs of this privacy policy.

Infor­mation on the data transfer to third-party countries that are not secure under data protec­tion law and the transfer to US companies that are not DPF-certified

We use, among other technologies, tools from companies located in third-party countries that are not safe under data protec­tion law, as well as US tools whose providers are not cer­tified under the EU-US Data Privacy Framework (DPF). If these tools are enabled, your personal data may be transferred to and processed in these countries. We would like you to note that no level of data protec­tion compa­rable to that in the EU can be guaran­teed in third countries that are insecure in terms of data protec­tion law.

We would like to point out that the US, as a secure third-party country, generally has a level of data protec­tion compa­rable to that of the EU. Data transfer to the US is there­fore permit­ted if the recipient is certi­fied under the “EU-US Data Privacy Framework” (DPF) or has appro­priate addi­tional assu­rances. Information on transfers to third-party countries, including the data recipients, can be found in this Privacy Policy.

Recipients of personal data

In the scope of our business activities, we cooperate with various external parties. In some cases, this also requires the transfer of personal data to these external parties. We only disclose personal data to external parties if this is required as part of the fulfill­ment of a contract, if we are legally obli­gated to do so (e.g., disclosure of data to tax autho­rities), if we have a legitimate interest in the disclosure pursuant to Art. 6 (1)(f) GDPR, or if another legal basis permits the dis­closure of this data. When using proces­sors, we only disclose personal data of our customers on the basis of a valid contract on data proces­sing. In the case of joint processing, a joint proces­sing agree­ment is concluded.

Revo­cation of your consent to the proces­sing of data

A wide range of data proces­sing transac­tions are possible only subject to your express consent. You can also revoke at any time any consent you have already given us. This shall be without prejudice to the lawful­ness of any data collection that occurred prior to your revo­cation.

Right to object to the collec­tion of data in special cases; right to object to direct adver­tising (Art. 21 GDPR)

IN THE EVENT THAT DATA ARE PROCES­SED ON THE BASIS OF ART. 6(1)(E) OR (F) GDPR, YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO AT ANY TIME OBJECT TO THE PROCES­SING OF YOUR PERSONAL DATA BASED ON GROUNDS ARISING FROM YOUR UNIQUE SITUA­TION. THIS ALSO APPLIES TO ANY PROFILING BASED ON THESE PROVI­SIONS. TO DETER­MINE THE LEGAL BASIS, ON WHICH ANY PROCES­SING OF DATA IS BASED, PLEASE CONSULT THIS DATA PROTECTION DECLA­RATION. IF YOU LOG AN OBJEC­TION, WE WILL NO LONGER PROCESS YOUR AFFECTED PERSONAL DATA, UNLESS WE ARE IN A POSITION TO PRESENT COMPELLING PROTEC­TION WORTHY GROUNDS FOR THE PROCES­SING OF YOUR DATA, THAT OUTWEIGH YOUR INTERESTS, RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS OR IF THE PURPOSE OF THE PROCES­SING IS THE CLAIMING, EXERCISING OR DEFENCE OF LEGAL ENTITLE­MENTS (OBJEC­TION PURSUANT TO ART. 21(1) GDPR).

IF YOUR PERSONAL DATA IS BEING PROCES­SED IN ORDER TO ENGAGE IN DIRECT ADVER­TISING, YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO OBJECT TO THE PROCES­SING OF YOUR AFFECTED PERSONAL DATA FOR THE PURPOSES OF SUCH ADVER­TISING AT ANY TIME. THIS ALSO APPLIES TO PROFILING TO THE EXTENT THAT IT IS AFFILIATED WITH SUCH DIRECT ADVER­TISING. IF YOU OBJECT, YOUR PERSONAL DATA WILL SUBSE­QUENTLY NO LONGER BE USED FOR DIRECT ADVER­TISING PURPOSES (OBJECTION PURSUANT TO ART. 21(2) GDPR).

Right to log a complaint with the competent super­visory agency

In the event of viola­tions of the GDPR, data subjects are entitled to log a complaint with a super­visory agency, in parti­cular in the member state where they usually maintain their domicile, place of work or at the place where the alleged viola­tion occurred. The right to log a complaint is in effect regardless of any other adminis­trative or court procee­dings avai­lable as legal recourses.

Right to data porta­bility

You have the right to have data that we process automa­tically on the basis of your consent or in fulfill­ment of a contract handed over to you or to a third party in a common, machine-readable format. If you should demand the direct transfer of the data to another controller, this will be done only if it is techni­cally feasible.

Infor­mation about, rectifi­cation and eradi­cation of data

Within the scope of the appli­cable statu­tory pro­visions, you have the right to demand infor­mation about your archived personal data, their source and reci­pients as well as the purpose of the proces­sing of your data at any time. You may also have a right to have your data rectified or eradi­cated. If you have ques­tions about this subject matter or any other ques­tions about personal data, please do not hesi­tate to contact us at any time.

Right to demand proces­sing restric­tions

You have the right to demand the imposition of restric­tions as far as the processing of your personal data is con­cerned. To do so, you may contact us at any time. The right to demand restric­tion of proces­sing applies in the follo­wing cases:

• In the event that you should dispute the correct­ness of your data archived by us, we will usually need some time to verify this claim. During the time that this investi­gation is ongoing, you have the right to demand that we restrict the proces­sing of your personal data.
• If the proces­sing of your personal data was/is conducted in an unlawful manner, you have the option to demand the restric­tion of the proces­sing of your data instead of demanding the eradi­cation of this data.
• If we do not need your personal data any longer and you need it to exercise, defend or claim legal entitle­ments, you have the right to demand the restric­tion of the proces­sing of your personal data instead of its eradi­cation.
• If you have raised an objec­tion pursuant to Art. 21(1) GDPR, your rights and our rights will have to be weighed against each other. As long as it has not been deter­mined whose interests prevail, you have the right to demand a restric­tion of the proces­sing of your personal data.

If you have restric­ted the proces­sing of your personal data, these data – with the exception of their archi­ving – may be proces­sed only subject to your consent or to claim, exercise or defend legal entitle­ments or to protect the rights of other natural persons or legal entities or for impor­tant public interest reasons cited by the Euro­pean Union or a member state of the EU.

SSL and/or TLS encryp­tion

For security reasons and to protect the transmis­sion of confid­ential content, such as purchase orders or inquiries you submit to us as the website operator, this website uses either an SSL or a TLS encryption program. You can recog­nize an encryp­ted connec­tion by checking whether the address line of the browser switches from “http://” to “https://” and also by the appearance of the lock icon in the browser line.

If the SSL or TLS encryption is activated, data you transmit to us cannot be read by third parties.

Rejection of unsolicited e-mails

We herewith object to the use of contact infor­mation published in conjunc­tion with the mandatory infor­mation to be provided in our Site Notice to send us promotional and infor­mation material that we have not expressly requested. The operators of this website and its pages reserve the express right to take legal action in the event of the unsoli­cited sending of promo­tional infor­mation, for instance via SPAM messages.

4. Recording of data on this website

Server log files

The provider of this website and its pages automati­cally collects and stores information in so-called server log files, which your browser communi­cates to us automati­cally. The infor­mation comprises:

• The type and version of browser used
• The used operating system
• Referrer URL
• The hostname of the accessing computer
• The time of the server inquiry
• The IP address

This data is not merged with other data sources.

This data is recorded on the basis of Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR. The operator of the website has a legi­timate interest in the techni­cally error free depiction and the opti­mization of the operator’s website. In order to achieve this, server log files must be recorded.

Contact form

If you submit inquiries to us via our contact form, the infor­mation provided in the contact form as well as any contact infor­mation provided therein will be stored by us in order to handle your inquiry and in the event that we have further questions. We will not share this infor­mation without your consent.

The proces­sing of these data is based on Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR, if your request is related to the execu­tion of a contract or if it is neces­sary to carry out pre-contrac­tual measures. In all other cases the proces­sing is based on our legiti­mate interest in the effec­tive proces­sing of the requests addres­sed to us (Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR) or on your agree­ment (Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR) if this has been requested; the consent can be revoked at any time.

The information you have entered into the contact form shall remain with us until you ask us to eradicate the data, revoke your consent to the archi­ving of data or if the purpose for which the infor­mation is being archived no longer exists (e.g., after we have concluded our response to your inquiry). This shall be without preju­dice to any mandatory legal provi­sions, in parti­cular reten­tion periods.

Request by e-mail, telephone, or fax

If you contact us by e-mail, telephone or fax, your request, inclu­ding all resul­ting personal data (name, request) will be stored and proces­sed by us for the purpose of proces­sing your request. We do not pass these data on without your consent.

These data are proces­sed on the basis of Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR if your inquiry is related to the fulfill­ment of a contract or is required for the perfor­mance of pre-contrac­tual measures. In all other cases, the data are proces­sed on the basis of our legiti­mate interest in the effective handling of inquiries submit­ted to us (Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR) or on the basis of your consent (Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR) if it has been obtained; the consent can be revoked at any time.

The data sent by you to us via contact requests remain with us until you request us to delete, revoke your consent to the storage or the purpose for the data storage lapses (e.g. after completion of your request). Manda­tory statu­tory provi­sions – in particular statu­tory reten­tion periods – remain unaffec­ted.

5. Plug-ins and Tools

Wordfence

We have included Wordfence on this website. The provider is Defiant Inc, Defiant, Inc, 800 5th Ave Ste 4100, Seattle, WA 98104, USA (hereinafter “Wordfence”).

Word­fence is desig­ned to protect our website from unwanted access or malicious cyber­attacks. To accomplish this, our website estab­lishes a perma­nent connec­tion with Wordfence’s servers, which check and block their data­bases against access to our website.

The use of Wordfence is based on Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR. The website operator has a legitimate interest in the most effective protection of his website against cyber­attacks.

Data trans­mission to the USA is based on the standard contrac­tual clauses of the EU Commis­sion. Details can be found here: https://www.wordfence.com/help/general-data-protection-regulation/.

Data processing

We have concluded a data proces­sing agreement (DPA) for the use of the above-mentioned service. This is a contract manda­ted by data privacy laws that guaran­tees that they process personal data of our website visitors only based on our instruc­tions and in compliance with the GDPR.