Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy

Effective as of May 1, 2024

The original version of this Privacy Policy is the German version. Versions in other languages are machine translations. In the event of any interpretation difficulties, the German text shall prevail.

Elektron AG (hereinafter referred to as “Elektron”) undertakes to process all personal data collected via this website in accordance with Swiss data protection law and to implement appropriate security measures to protect it from unauthorized access. In this Privacy Policy, we specifically inform you about what personal data is collected and processed in connection with the use of this website, for what purposes it is used, to whom it may be disclosed, and what your rights are regarding Elektron’s use of your personal data. By “personal data,” we mean any information relating to an identified or identifiable natural or legal person, such as last name, first name, address, email address, date of birth, or phone number.

By accessing our website and using the services and products we offer, you confirm that you have carefully read this Privacy Policy and agree to the data processing described herein. Any questions regarding this Privacy Policy may be directed at any time via email to datenschutz@elektron.ch. If you do not agree with this policy, you must refrain from accessing our website and using our services and products.

Contents

1 WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR PERSONAL DATA

2 HOW WE PROCESS PERSONAL DATA

3 WHAT PERSONAL DATA DO WE COLLECT AND FOR WHAT PROCESSING PURPOSES
3.1 PERSONAL DATA TRANSMITTED AUTOMATICALLY THROUGH USE OF THE WEBSITE
3.2 PERSONAL DATA PROVIDED TO US BY THE USER

4 ON WHAT LEGAL BASIS DO WE PROCESS YOUR PERSONAL DATA
5 TO WHOM DO WE DISCLOSE YOUR PERSONAL DATA
6 TRANSFER OF PERSONAL DATA TO COUNTRIES OUTSIDE THE EEA
7 HOW LONG DO WE RETAIN INFORMATION ABOUT YOU

8 COOKIES AND SERVICES
8.1 CATEGORIES OF COOKIES WE USE
8.2 GOOGLE ANALYTICS
8.3 HOTJAR
8.4 LEADINFO
8.5 LIGHTCLASS
8.6 LIST OF COOKIES

9 SOCIAL MEDIA PLUG-INS
10 EMAIL COMMUNICATIONS AND NEWSLETTERS FOR MARKETING PURPOSES
11 NO AUTOMATED DECISIONS, INCLUDING PROFILING WITH LEGAL EFFECTS
12 SECURITY
13 THIRD-PARTY PRIVACY POLICIES
14 CHILDREN
15 WHAT ARE YOUR RIGHTS
16 CHANGES TO OUR PRIVACY POLICY

The data controller within the meaning of data protection legislation is Elektron (see the Legal Notice for address details).

Elektron determines the purposes and means of processing your personal data and is therefore responsible for the processing and use of your personal data in accordance with this Privacy Policy. If you have any questions or concerns regarding this Privacy Policy or the processing of your personal data, please contact us at any time by sending an email to datenschutz@elektron.ch.

All personal data collected through the website is processed in accordance with the Swiss Data Protection Act. We collect and process personal data carefully and for the purposes described in this Privacy Policy. In accordance with applicable law, we may also use your personal data in ways other than those described in this Privacy Policy. In such cases, we will provide you with specific privacy notices or disclosures at the time of collection and, where necessary, obtain your consent. We always strive, to the extent reasonably possible, to collect information in anonymized or pseudonymized form so that we cannot identify you.

Elektron collects and stores information that your web browser automatically transmits to us in "server log files" when you visit our website. Data is collected based on your willingness and interest in visiting our website and our legitimate interests in operating the website. This may include the following data:

• browser type and version;
• operating systems used;
• Referrer URL (the previously visited website);
• Hostname of the accessing computer;
• Date and time of the server request;
• Internet Protocol address (IP address);
• Amount of data transferred;
• Other similar data and information used for security purposes in the event of attacks on our IT systems.
  
  

This personal data is not combined with other personal data and is stored separately from any additional personal data transmitted by the user. We delete it after three to six months at the latest. Elektron uses the automatically collected personal data to fulfill the following purposes:

• to enable the display, operation, and functionality of the website
• to ensure the stability and security of the system
• to improve and protect our services
• for statistical purposes in the event of attacks on the network infrastructure on which the website is hosted

Elektron collects and processes personal data that users voluntarily provide to Elektron via online forms directly on the website, through our contact email address, through any other applications linked to the website, by phone, or by any other means. This information typically includes the following personal data:

• Last names, first names, mailing addresses, email addresses, phone numbers, gender
• Your message or inquiry
  
  

The provision of this personal data is expressly voluntary. However, without this personal data, we will not be able to provide the services requested by the user at the desired quality level, or at all. Elektron uses the personal data that the user provides to us for the following purposes:

• to provide, maintain, protect, and optimize the services and information offered
• to communicate with you and provide you with the best possible and personalized information you need from us (e.g., about our products and services)
• to offer you new services and information based on your profile, and to suggest services and information tailored to you that may be of interest to you
• to comply with legal or other regulatory requirements and internal policies
• to establish, exercise, and/or defend against actual or potential legal claims, investigations, or similar proceedings
• for other legitimate purposes, if such processing arises from the circumstances or was specified at the time of collection

The processing of this personal data is based on the following legal grounds:

• Your consent, provided that it can be revoked at any time (e.g., when you sign up for our newsletter and other marketing communications)
• to fulfill a contract with you or for the purpose of entering into a contract with you (e.g., when purchasing a product or service)
• to comply with a legal obligation (e.g., for tax purposes or for the purposes of judicial investigations or proceedings) or
• to protect our legitimate interests (e.g., the protection and security of our services, systems, and assets; compliance with legal, regulatory, and contractual obligations; asserting, exercising, or defending legal claims; maintaining and efficiently organizing business operations; improving and developing our services; and selling and marketing our services)
  
  

If the processing is based on your consent or our legitimate interests, you may withdraw your consent at any time or object to such processing by contacting us directly at datenschutz@elektron.ch. Please note, however, that withdrawing your consent does not affect the lawfulness of the processing based on your consent prior to its withdrawal.

Elektron takes the necessary measures to ensure that only our authorized personnel and agents who have the necessary knowledge have access to your personal data in order to fulfill the purposes for which your personal data was collected.

We may disclose your personal data to the following categories of recipients in accordance with the purposes and legal bases for processing described above, to the extent necessary for the intended data processing:

• other companies within the group;
• Service providers who process personal data on behalf of and under the instructions of Elektron (so-called data processors, such as those in the areas of IT, hosting, and support)
• Customers, partners, suppliers, insurance companies, and other business partners
• Media agencies, the general public, including visitors to the Group’s websites and social media platforms;
• Industry organizations, associations, and other bodies;
• Purchasers or prospective purchasers of business units, companies, or other parts of the Group;
• Courts, arbitration tribunals, law enforcement agencies, regulatory authorities, attorneys, and other parties in potential or actual legal proceedings, if this is necessary to comply with laws or to establish, exercise, or defend rights or legal claims.
  
  

We carefully select our partners and data processors and only engage them if we have sufficient assurance that they have appropriate technical and organizational measures in place in accordance with legal requirements. Our data processors may only process personal data upon our documented instructions. They are all subject to confidentiality requirements and may use your personal data only to the extent necessary to fulfill the purpose for which your personal data was collected, unless otherwise required by law.

The personal data collected through our website is stored in Switzerland. In addition, we may transfer, store, and process your personal data at data centers around the world, such as where our third-party service providers or partners are located. Therefore, we may transfer your personal data outside the European Economic Area (EEA) if this is necessary for the data processing described in this Privacy Policy in accordance with applicable law.

When data is transferred to countries that do not ensure an adequate level of protection, we ensure adequate data protection by implementing appropriate safeguards, such as contractual safeguards (e.g., based on EU Standard Contractual Clauses), based on binding corporate rules, the transfer of data pursuant to your express consent, for the conclusion or performance of a contract with you, or in connection with the establishment, exercise, or enforcement of legal claims. For more information about our appropriate safeguards, please contact us by email at datenschutz@elektron.ch.

As a general rule, personal data is deleted as soon as it is no longer necessary to achieve the purpose for which it was collected, unless longer retention is necessary to fulfill legal obligations (e.g., retention and documentation obligations), contractual or pre-contractual obligations, or our legitimate business interests (e.g., to assert, exercise, or defend legal claims).

On this basis, we generally process personal data in accordance with the following rules and obligations:

• The personal data you automatically transmit through your use of our website (see Section 4.1) for the purposes of displaying, operating, and ensuring the functionality of the website will be deleted within three to six months.
• The personal data you provide to us in connection with the use of our services and products offered on our portal, or that you otherwise send to us via the email contact address (see Section 4.2), will generally be retained by us until you request that we delete it, revoke your consent to its storage, or the purpose for storing the data no longer applies (e.g., after your request has been fully processed).
  
  

For contract-related personal data (including business documents and communications), we store personal data for the duration of the contractual relationship and for an additional ten years following the termination of the contractual relationship, unless (i) a shorter or longer statutory retention period applies in a specific case, (ii) retention is required for evidentiary purposes or for another valid reason under applicable law, or (iii) the data must be deleted earlier (e.g., because the data is no longer needed or we are required to delete the relevant data).

When you access or use the website, we may place so-called cookies—small text files—or similar tools on your computer. We use these cookies to recognize you as a user of the website, to customize content, to improve the website’s performance, and to enhance its user-friendliness.

These cookies serve a variety of purposes related to the presentation, functionality, and performance of a website, and are specifically designed to enhance visitors’ experience and enjoyment of the website. They allow a website to save information you have previously provided (e.g., username, location, or language selection) and offer visitors enhanced, more personalized features. For example, functional cookies are used to remember things like your login credentials. These cookies cannot track your activity on other websites.

Performance cookies:

These cookies are used to collect information about how a website is used—for example, how visitors arrived at our website, which pages a visitor accesses most frequently, how you navigated our website during your visit, and whether you received error messages from a page. We may also use these cookies to provide us with certain statistical and analytical information, such as how many visitors have come to our website. These cookies are used to monitor the level of activity on the website and to improve the website’s performance.

Advertising cookies:

These cookies allow us or a third-party provider to to display ads on our website or on third-party websites featuring products that the user likes, so that the ads the user sees may be more relevant to the user’s preferences or interests (sometimes referred to as “targeting cookies”). They may also be used to evaluate the effectiveness of advertising and promotions.

These cookies may be placed by us or by a third party on our behalf. For more information about cookies and their use, please visit: http://www.allaboutcookies.org/. The legal basis for data processing is your consent (Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR) or our legitimate interest (Art. 6(1), first sentence, (f) GDPR). Our legitimate interest is based on the reasons listed under 5. You can configure your browser settings so that no cookies are stored on your computer. Completely disabling cookies may prevent you from using all features of our website.

By continuing to use our website and/or agreeing to this Privacy Policy, you consent to our setting cookies and thereby collecting, storing, and using personal usage data, even beyond the end of the browser session. You may revoke this consent at any time by enabling the browser setting to block third-party cookies.

Elektron uses the Google Analytics web analytics service on its website, which is operated by Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA. The cookies used by Google Analytics are stored on your computer and thereby enable an analysis of your use of the website. We use Google Analytics based on our legitimate interests in analyzing and regularly improving our website, as well as in using the statistics obtained to regularly improve our offerings and make them more interesting for you. Furthermore, the use of Google Analytics is based on your consent to the tracking of your browsing behavior on our websites and the analytical evaluation of that data. The information generated by the cookie regarding your use of this website is generally transferred to a Google server in the United States and stored there. These cookies may contain, for example, the following information: IP address, number, date, and time of the visit, duration of the visit, the entry page from which you accessed the website (referrer URL), the pages visited on our website, browser type and version, and the operating system used. Google will use this information on our behalf because we have a legitimate interest in analyzing user behavior so that we can optimize the content on our website as well as our advertising. Google uses this information to evaluate the use of our website, to compile reports on website activity, and to provide us with other services related to website and internet usage. Pseudonymized user profiles may also be created from the processed personal data.

We have enabled the IP anonymization feature (so-called IP masking) on this website. As a result, Google truncates your IP address within member states of the European Union, in other signatory states to the Agreement on the European Economic Area, and in Switzerland before transmitting it to the United States. Only in exceptional cases is the full IP address transmitted to a Google server in the United States and truncated there.

You can prevent the storage of cookies by adjusting your browser settings accordingly. However, we would like to point out that in this case, you may not be able to use all features of this website to their full extent. You can also prevent Google from collecting the personal data generated by the cookie and related to your use of the website (including your IP address), as well as from processing this personal data, by downloading and installing the browser plug-in available at the following link: https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout?hl=de.

Alternatively, or when using browsers on mobile devices, you can prevent Google Analytics from collecting your personal data by clicking the following link: Disable the collection of personal data by Google Analytics for this website. In this case, a special opt-out cookie will be set on your device, which prevents the future collection of your usage data when you visit this website. If you delete your stored cookies, you will need to click this link again. For more information on how Google Analytics handles user personal data, please see Google’s Privacy Policy: https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/6004245?hl=de.

Furthermore, Google may analyze the user’s use of the website and may combine the collected personal data with other information about the user that Google has independently collected from other websites visited by the user, and use this information for its own purposes (e.g., to manage advertising) under its own responsibility and in accordance with its own privacy policy. For more information on this and how Google processes personal data, please refer to Google’s privacy policies: https://policies.google.com/?hl=de; https://policies.google.com/technologies/partner-sites.

We use Hotjar to better understand our users' needs and to optimize this service and their experience. Hotjar is a technology service that helps us better understand user behavior (e.g., how much time they spend on which pages, which links they click, what users like and dislike, etc.) and thus enables us to build and maintain our service based on user feedback. Hotjar uses cookies and other technologies to collect data on our users’ behavior and their devices. This includes a device’s IP address (processed during your session and stored in a de-identified form), the device’s screen size, the device type (unique device identifiers), browser information, geographic locations (country only), and the preferred language used to display our website. Hotjar stores this information in a pseudonymized user profile on our behalf. Hotjar is contractually obligated not to sell any of the data collected on our behalf.

We use the lead generation service provided by Leadinfo B.V., Rotterdam, Netherlands. This service identifies visits to our website by companies based on IP addresses and displays publicly available information to us, such as company names or addresses. In addition, Leadinfo sets two first-party cookies to analyze user behavior on our website and processes domains from form submissions (e.g., “leadinfo.com”) to correlate IP addresses with companies and improve its services. For more information, visit www.leadinfo.com. On this website: https://www.leadinfo.com/en/opt-out you have the option to opt out. If you opt out, Leadinfo will no longer collect your data.

LightClass can be used to determine the lighting class in accordance with SNR13201-1 and SN EN 13201-2. No data regarding the evaluation is stored.

Below is a complete list of the cookies we use or will use on this website, including information about their use and expiration dates.

We use the social plugins listed below on our website to raise awareness of our company. The underlying promotional purpose is to be regarded as a legitimate interest within the meaning of Article 6(1)(f) of the GDPR. The respective providers are responsible for ensuring that these plug-ins are operated in compliance with data protection regulations. Data processing in connection with these plug-ins takes place with your consent when you use them.

If you use the services of these social networks independently or in connection with our website, the social networks will analyze your use of the plug-in. In this case, information about the plug-in will be forwarded to the social networks.

Our website uses plug-ins from the social network LinkedIn Corporation, 1000 West Maude Avenue, Sunnyvale, California 94085, USA. You can recognize the LinkedIn plug-in (“LinkedIn Recommended” button) by the LinkedIn logo. When you visit a page on our website that contains such a plug-in, a direct connection is established between your browser and the LinkedIn server. This informs LinkedIn that you have visited our site using your IP address. If you click the LinkedIn button while logged into your LinkedIn account, you can link the content of our pages to your LinkedIn profile. This allows LinkedIn to associate your visit to our site with your user account. Please note that, as the provider of these pages, we have no knowledge of the content of the data transmitted or how it is used by LinkedIn. For more information, please visit: www.linkedin.com/legal/privacy-policy.

Our website incorporates plug-ins from the social network YouTube LLC, USA, which is a subsidiary of Google LLC. You can recognize the YouTube plug-in (“YouTube Recommended” button) by the YouTube logo. When you visit a page on our website that contains such a plug-in, a direct connection is established between your browser and the YouTube server. This informs YouTube that you have visited our website using your IP address. If you click the YouTube button while logged into your YouTube account, you can link the content of our website to your YouTube profile. This allows YouTube to associate your visit to our website with your user account. Please note that, as the provider of this website, we have no knowledge of the content of the data transmitted or how YouTube uses it. For more information, please visit: https://policies.google.com/ and Before you proceed to YouTube.

When you subscribe to our newsletter, we use your email address to send you information about our services as well as other commercial communications (e.g., announcements of events, contests, promotions, and surveys) that may be of interest to you. For security reasons, we use the so-called double opt-in procedure for newsletter sign-ups. After you sign up, we’ll send a confirmation email to the email address you provided during registration, containing a link that you must click to definitively confirm that you wish to receive the newsletter. You can unsubscribe from these newsletter emails at any time by clicking the highlighted “Unsubscribe from this list” link at the bottom of each email or by contacting us directly via email at datenschutz@elektron.ch.

We do not make any decisions about you that are based solely on automated processing—including profiling—and that have legal effects on you or similarly significantly affect you.

Elektron has implemented organizational and technical measures to ensure the security of personal data and to protect it against unauthorized or unlawful processing, accidental loss, alteration, disclosure, or access.

Elektron may engage third parties as data processors to collect and process your personal data. The data processors we engage will process your personal data only in accordance with our instructions and are legally obligated to take strict security measures when handling personal data.

Unfortunately, the transmission of information over the Internet is not entirely secure. Although we do our utmost to protect your personal data, we cannot guarantee the security of the data you transmit to our website; any transmission is at your own risk. For this reason, you are free to provide your personal data to us by other means, such as by phone, at any time. Once we have received your data, we apply strict procedures and security measures to prevent unauthorized access.

Elektron has implemented organizational and technical measures to ensure the security of personal data and to protect it against unauthorized or unlawful processing, accidental loss, alteration, disclosure, or access.
Elektron may engage third parties as data processors to collect and process your personal data. The data processors we engage will process your personal data only in accordance with our instructions and are legally required to take strict security measures when handling personal data.
Unfortunately, the transmission of information over the Internet is not entirely secure. Although we do our best to protect your personal data, we cannot guarantee the security of the data you transmit to our website; any transmission is at your own risk. For this reason, you are free to provide your personal data to us by other means, such as by phone, at any time. Once we have received your data, we apply strict procedures and security measures to prevent unauthorized access.

Please note that if you click on a link to a third-party website (e.g., Google, social media, or other websites), you will be redirected to a website over which we have no control, and our Privacy Policy will no longer apply. Your browsing and interaction on another website are subject to that third-party website’s terms of use, privacy policies, and notices. Furthermore, we cannot guarantee the accuracy or timeliness of these links.

We recommend that you carefully read the terms of use, privacy policies, and notices of other websites before submitting personal data through them.

We are not responsible or liable for the content or data processing practices of such third-party websites.

Our website is not intended for children, and we do not knowingly collect personal data from children under the age of 16 unless we have the express consent of their parents. If we are notified or otherwise learn that personal data of a child under 16 has been collected improperly, we will take all reasonable steps to delete that personal data.

You may request information from Elektron, upon verification of your identity, regarding whether personal data about you is being processed. In addition, you have the right to request the correction, deletion, or restriction of personal data about yourself, as well as to object to the processing of your personal data. If the processing is based on your consent or our legitimate interests, you may withdraw your consent at any time or object to such processing by contacting us directly via email at datenschutz@elektron.ch. In certain cases, you have the right to receive personal data generated through the use of online services in a structured, commonly used, and machine-readable format, so that further use and transfer to a third-party provider are possible.

Requests in this regard should be directed to Elektron via the following email address: datenschutz@elektron.ch. Elektron reserves the right to restrict your rights within the scope of applicable law and, for example, to withhold certain information or decline to delete personal data. Please note that even after a request to delete your personal data, we may be required to retain all or part of it in accordance with statutory and contractual retention obligations. The deletion of your personal data may result in you no longer being able to use our services.

If we reject your request or you are not satisfied with our handling of it, you are also entitled to file a complaint with the competent supervisory authority and to seek legal redress from the competent authority. The competent authority is the Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner (FDPIC) in Bern (http://www.edoeb.admin.ch).

Elektron reserves the right to amend, supplement, or otherwise modify this Privacy Policy at any time and without providing a reason. The most current version of the Privacy Policy, as published on this website, shall apply.