Data Protection

Information on the collection of personal data

(1) We have compiled information below on the personal data we collect when our website is used. Personal data are all data that can be related to you personally, e.g. name, address, email addresses, user behaviour.

(2) The controller pursuant to Section 4(9) of the German Church Data Protection Act (KDG) is

Bernward Mediengesellschaft mbH
Domhof 24
31134 Hildesheim
Tel. (05121) 307-800
Fax (05121) 307-801
E-mail: info[at]bernward-medien.de
Geschäftsführer: Thomas Hagenhoff

(3) If you contact us via email or a contact form, we store the data you provide (your email address and perhaps your name and telephone number) so that we can respond to your questions. We erase the data thus obtained once their storage is no longer necessary or restrict their processing if there is a legal requirement to retain the data.

(4) If we commission service providers for certain functions on our website or wish to use your data for advertising purposes, we inform you below in detail of the respective processes. We also tell you the criteria defined for the duration of storage.

Your rights

(1) You have the following rights vis-à-vis us with regard to your personal data:

  • Right of access,
  • Right to rectification or erasure,
  • Right to restriction of processing,
  • Right to object to processing,
  • Right to data portability

(2) In addition, you have the right to lodge a complaint with a data protection supervisory authority regarding the processing of your personal data by us. The competent data protection authority for the controller is the Diocesan Data Protection Officer for the North German dioceses.

Collection of personal data when you visit our website

(1) If you use our website for purely informational purposes – in other words, if you do not register or otherwise provide information to us – we only collect the personal data sent by your browser to our server. When you visit our website, we collect the following data which we require for technical reasons in order to display our website to you and to ensure its stability and security (Art. 6(1)(g) KDG forms the legal basis).

  • IP address
  • Date and time of the request
  • Time zone difference from Greenwich Mean Time (GMT)
  • Content of the request (specific page)
  • Access status/HTTP status code
  • Data volume transferred in each case
  • Website from which the request has come
  • Browser
  • Operating system and its interface
  • Browser software language and version

(2) In addition to the aforementioned data, cookies are stored on your computer when you use our website. Cookies are small text files that are stored on your hard drive, associated with the browser you have used, and send certain information to the entity that sets the cookie (us, in this instance). Cookies cannot run programs or deliver viruses to your computer. They help to make the website more user-friendly and effective overall.

We do not share the information generated through cookies regarding your use of this website with third parties. You can prevent cookies being installed by adjusting your browser software appropriately; however, please note that you may not then have full use of all of the features of this website. If you do not agree to your page views being included in the statistics, you have several options:

  • You can delete HTTP cookies in your browser.
  • You can configure many modern browsers to signal to website operators that you are not to be included in such statistics (‘do not track’). We adhere to this standard.

(4) Use of other cookies

a) This website uses the following types of cookies, with their scope and function explained below:

  • Transient cookies (see b)
  • Persistent cookies (see c).

b) Transient cookies are automatically deleted when you close the browser. These include session cookies in particular. These store what is known as a session ID, which is used to assign various requests from your browser to the one session. This allows your computer to be remembered when you return to our website. Session cookies are deleted when you log out or close the browser.

c) Persistent cookies are automatically deleted after a predetermined duration, which may differ from cookie to cookie. You can delete the cookies in your browser security settings at any time.

d) You may set up your browser as you wish and e.g. refuse to accept third-party cookies or all cookies. Please be aware that in that case you may not be able to use all features of this website.

Integration of YouTube videos

(1) Our website includes YouTube videos stored on www.YouTube.com that can be played directly from our website. We have no influence over this data transfer.

(2) When you visit the website, YouTube is informed that you have accessed the corresponding page on our website. The data specified under Point 3 of this Policy are also transferred. This takes place regardless of whether or not YouTube provides a user account via which you are logged in or there is no user account. If you are logged into Google, your data are directly assigned to your account. If you do not wish to have these data assigned to your YouTube profile, you will need to log out before activating the button. YouTube stores your data as usage profiles and uses these for the purposes of advertising, market research and/or needs-based design of its website. In particular, such analysis is conducted (even for users that are not logged in) in order to provide appropriate advertising and inform other users of the social network about your activities on our website. You have the right to object to the formation of these user profiles; please contact YouTube if you wish to exercise this.

(3) For more information on the purpose and scope of the data collection and the processing conducted by YouTube, please refer to its Privacy Policy. Further information regarding your rights and configuration options for protecting your privacy are also available there: www.google.de/intl/de/policies/privacy. Google processes your personal data in the US as well and complies with the EU-US Privacy Shield, https://www.privacyshield.gov/EU-US-Framework.

Integration of Google Maps

(1) We use plugins of the Google Maps map service on our websites. This is a service provided by Google Inc., 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA.

We have no influence over the data collected by such a plugin. Neither do we have any influence over how Google uses the data. We can assume that at least the IP address and information on the devices used are collected and used. Likewise, it is not possible to rule out that Google Maps may attempt to store cookies on the devices used. Google can thus be informed about visits to certain sites on the Internet. Users logged into Google at the same time can be identified by Google. For information on the data collected and how they are used, please refer to the Google Privacy Policy at https://www.google.com/intl/de_de/policies/privacy/.

Integration of Soundcloud

We use plugins of audio service SoundCloud on our websites. This is a service provided by SoundCloud Limited, Rheinsberger Str. 76/77, 10115 Berlin. We have no influence over the data collected by such a plugin. Neither do we have any influence over how SoundCloud Limited uses the data. We can assume that at least the IP address and information on the devices used are collected and used. Likewise, it is not possible to rule out that SoundCloud Limited may attempt to store cookies on the devices used. SoundCloud Limited can thus be informed about visits to certain sites on the Internet. Users logged into SoundCloud Limited at the same time can be identified by SoundCloud Limited. For information on the data collected and how they are used, please refer to the SoundCloud Limited Privacy Policy at https://soundcloud.com/pages/privacy.

Flickr

We use plugins of photo service Flickr on our website. This is a service provided by Yahoo! Inc., 701 First Avenue, Sunnyvale, CA 94089, USA. We have no influence over the data collected by such a plugin. Neither do we have any influence over how Flickr uses the data. We can assume that at least the IP address and information on the devices used are collected and used. Likewise, it is not possible to rule out that Flickr may attempt to store cookies on the devices used. Flickr can thus be informed about visits to certain sites on the Internet. Users logged into Flickr at the same time can be identified by Flickr. For information on the data collected and how they are used, please refer to the Flickr Privacy Policy at info.yahoo.com/privacy/us/yahoo/flickr/details.html.

Other functions and offerings of our website

(1) In addition to using our website solely for informational purposes, you may also be interested in various services that we offer. Normally, you will then need to provide additional personal data that we will use to provide the respective service and to which the aforementioned principles of data processing apply.

(2) In some cases, we use external service providers to process your data. These are carefully selected and commissioned by us, are bound by our instructions and are regularly checked.

(3) If our service providers or partners are based in a country outside of the European Economic Area (EEA), we inform you of the consequences of this in the description of the offering.

(4) Our websites also contain links to the websites of other providers. However, this should not be taken to mean that we recommend their content. Responsibility for the content of these sites lies solely with the operator of the respective site. If you find that one or more of these sites violate applicable law or otherwise contain inappropriate content, please let us know. We will remove such links from our website. Unfortunately, we cannot guarantee that these links will always work, as the operators of the sites do not always inform us of changes. Likewise, we have no influence over the degree to which other providers comply with data protection rules. Please check on the respective sites the data protection rules adhered to there.

Objection to or withdrawal of consent for the processing of your data

(1) If you have given your consent to the processing of your data, you may withdraw such consent at any time. Such a withdrawal affects the legitimacy of the processing of your personal data once you have notified us of the withdrawal.

(2) If the processing of your personal data is based on a consideration of interests, you have the right to object to the processing. In particular, this is the case if processing is not necessary for the performance of a contract with you; more details on this are provided in the description of functions below. When you exercise your right to object, we ask that you specify the reasons why we should not process your personal data in this way. If your objection is justified, we will examine the situation and either cease or adjust the data processing or explain to you the compelling legitimate grounds on which we will continue to process the data.

(3) Of course, you have the right to object to the processing of your personal data for purposes of advertising and data analysis at any time. You can use the following contact details to inform us of your objection to advertising:

Bernward Mediengesellschaft mbH
Domhof 24
31134 Hildesheim
Tel. (05121) 307-800
E-mail: info[at]bernward-medien.de

Amendments to this Privacy Policy

We reserve the right to amend this Privacy Policy if necessary, such as if our offering changes or to bring it in line with current legal requirements. The new Privacy Policy then applies the next time you visit.

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