With this privacy policy, we inform which personal data we process in connection with our activities and operations, including our sonofloat.com website. In particular, we provide information about what personal data we process, for what purpose, how and where. We also inform about the rights of persons whose data we process.
For individual or additional activities and activities, further data protection statements as well as other legal documents such as general terms and conditions (GTC), terms of use or conditions of participation may apply.
We are subject to Swiss data protection law and any applicable foreign data protection law such as, in particular, that of the European Union (EU) with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). The European Commission recognizes that Swiss data protection law ensures adequate data protection.
1. Contact addresses
esponsibility for the processing of personal data:
sonofloat GmbH
Würenloserstrasse 2
8956 Killwangen
Switzerland
imprint@sonofloat.com
We point out if there are other persons responsible for the processing of personal data in individual cases.
Data protection representation in the European Economic Area (EEA)
We have the following data protection representation according to Art. 27 GDPR:
VGS Datenschutzpartner GmbH
Am Kaiserkai 69
20457 Hamburg
Germany
info@datenschutzpartner.eu
The Data Protection Representation serves as an additional point of contact for data subjects and authorities in the European Union (EU) and the rest of the European Economic Area (EEA) for inquiries related to the GDPR.
2. Terms and legal basis
2.1 Terms
Personal data is any information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person. A data subject is a person about whom we process personal data.
Processing includes any handling of personal data, regardless of the means and procedures used, such as querying, matching, adapting, archiving, storing, reading out, disclosing, procuring, recording, collecting, deleting, disclosing, arranging, organizing, storing, modifying, disseminating, linking, destroying and using personal data.
The European Economic Area (EEA) comprises the member states of the European Union (EU) as well as the Principality of Liechtenstein, Iceland and Norway. The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) refers to the processing of personal data as processing of personal data.
2.2 Legal basis
We process personal data in accordance with Swiss data protection law such as, in particular, the Swiss Federal Act on Data Protection (Data Protection Act, DPA) and the Ordinance on Data Protection (Data Protection Ordinance, DPA).
We process — if and to the extent that the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is applicable — personal data in accordance with at least one of the following legal bases:
- Art. 6 Abs. 1 lit. b DSGVO for the necessary processing of personal data for the performance of a contract with the data subject as well as for the implementation of pre-contractual measures.
- Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f DSGVO for the necessary processing of personal data to protect the legitimate interests of us or of third parties, unless the fundamental freedoms and rights and interests of the data subject prevail. Legitimate interests are, in particular, our interest in being able to carry out our activities and operations permanently, in a user-friendly, secure and reliable manner, as well as to communicate about them, to ensure information security, to protect against misuse, to enforce our own legal claims and to comply with Swiss law.
- Art. 6 para. 1 lit. c DSGVO for the necessary processing of personal data to comply with a legal obligation to which we are subject under any applicable law of member states in the European Economic Area (EEA).
- Art. 6 para. 1 lit. e DSGVO for the necessary processing of personal data for the performance of a task which is in the public interest.
- Art. 6 para. 1 lit. a DSGVO for the processing of personal data with the consent of the data subject.
- Art. 6 (1) (d) GDPR for the necessary processing of personal data to protect the vital interests of the data subject or another natural person.
3. Type, scope and purpose
We process those personal data that are necessary to carry out our activities and operations in a permanent, user-friendly, secure and reliable manner. Such personal data may in particular fall into the categories of inventory and contact data, browser and device data, content data, meta or marginal data and usage data, location data, sales data and contract and payment data.
We process personal data for the duration that is required for the respective purpose(s) or by law. Personal data whose processing is no longer required is anonymized or deleted.
We may have personal data processed by third parties. We may process personal data together with third parties or transfer it to third parties. Such third parties are, in particular, specialized providers whose services we use. We also guarantee data protection for such third parties.
As a matter of principle, we process personal data only with the consent of the persons concerned. If and to the extent that the processing is permitted for other legal reasons, we may waive the requirement to obtain consent. For example, we may process personal data without consent in order to fulfill a contract, to comply with legal obligations or to protect overriding interests.
We also process personal data that we receive from third parties, obtain from publicly available sources or collect in the course of our activities and operations, if and to the extent that such processing is permitted for legal reasons.
4. Communication
We process data in order to be able to communicate with third parties. In this context, we process in particular data that a data subject transmits when contacting us, for example by post or e‑mail. We may store such data in an address book or with comparable tools.
Third parties who transmit data about other persons are obliged to guarantee data protection for such data subjects. Among other things, the accuracy of the personal data transmitted must be ensured.
5. Data security
We take appropriate technical and organizational measures to ensure data security appropriate to the respective risk. With our measures, we guarantee in particular the confidentiality, availability, traceability and integrity of the processed personal data, without being able to guarantee absolute data security.
Access to our website and our other online presence takes place using transport encryption (SSL / TLS, in particular with the Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure, abbreviated to HTTPS). Most browsers indicate transport encryption with a small padlock in the address bar.
Our digital communication — like all digital communication in general — is subject to mass surveillance without cause or suspicion by security authorities in Switzerland, the rest of Europe, the United States of America (USA) and other countries. We cannot directly influence the corresponding processing of personal data by secret services, police forces and other security authorities. We also cannot rule out the possibility that individual data subjects may be subject to targeted surveillance.
6. Personal data abroad
We process personal data in Switzerland and in the European Economic Area (EEA). However, we may also export or transfer personal data to other countries, in particular to process it or have it processed there.
We may export personal data to all states and territories on Earth as well as elsewhere in the universe, provided that the law there ensures adequate data protection in accordance with the decision of the Swiss Federal Council and — if and to the extent that the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is applicable — in accordance with the decision of the European Commission.
We may transfer personal data to countries whose laws do not ensure adequate data protection, provided that data protection is ensured for other reasons, in particular on the basis of standard data protection clauses or with other appropriate safeguards. By way of exception, we may export personal data to countries without adequate or appropriate data protection if the specific requirements under data protection law are met, for example the express consent of the data subjects or a direct connection with the conclusion or performance of a contract. We will be happy to provide data subjects with information about any guarantees or a copy of any guarantees upon request.
7. Rights of data subjects
7.1 Claims under data protection law
We grant data subjects all rights in accordance with applicable data protection law. In particular, data subjects have the following rights:
- Information: Data subjects can request information as to whether we process personal data about them and, if so, what personal data is involved. Data subjects also receive the information required to assert their data protection rights and to ensure transparency. This includes the personal data processed as such, but also, among other things, information on the purpose of processing, the duration of storage, any disclosure or export of data to other countries and the origin of the personal data.
- Correction and restriction: Data subjects can have incorrect personal data corrected, incomplete data completed and the processing of their data restricted.
- Deletion and objection: Data subjects can have personal data deleted (“right to be forgotten”) and object to the processing of their data with effect for the future.
- Data release and data transfer: Data subjects may request the surrender of personal data or the transfer of their data to another data controller.
We may suspend, restrict or refuse the exercise of the rights of data subjects to the extent permitted by law. We may inform data subjects of any requirements they must meet in order to exercise their rights under data protection law. For example, we may refuse to provide information in whole or in part with reference to business secrets or the protection of other persons. We may also, for example, refuse to delete personal data in whole or in part with reference to statutory retention obligations.
We may exceptionally provide for costs for the exercise of rights. We will inform affected persons in advance of any costs.
We are obliged to take appropriate measures to identify data subjects who request information or assert other rights. Data subjects are obliged to cooperate.
7.2 Legal protection
Data subjects have the right to enforce their data protection claims through the courts or to lodge a complaint with a competent data protection supervisory authority.
The data protection supervisory authority for complaints by data subjects against private controllers and federal bodies in Switzerland is the Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner (FDPIC).
Possible data protection supervisory authorities for complaints from data subjects — if and insofar as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is applicable — are organized as members of the European Data Protection Board (EDPB). In some Member States in the European Economic Area (EEA), the data protection supervisory authorities are federally structured, particularly in Germany.
8. Website usage
8.1 Cookies
We may use cookies. Cookies — our own cookies (first-party cookies) as well as cookies from third parties whose services we use (third-party cookies) — are data that are stored in the browser. Such stored data need not be limited to traditional cookies in text form.
Cookies can be stored in the browser temporarily as “session cookies” or for a certain period of time as so-called permanent cookies. “Session cookies” are automatically deleted when the browser is closed. Permanent cookies have a specific storage period. In particular, cookies enable us to recognize a browser the next time it visits our website and thus, for example, to measure the reach of our website. However, permanent cookies can also be used for online marketing, for example.
Cookies can be completely or partially deactivated and deleted in the browser settings at any time. Without cookies, our website may no longer be fully available. We actively request — at least if and to the extent necessary — the express consent to the use of cookies.
For cookies used for performance and reach measurement or for advertising, a general objection (“opt-out”) is possible for numerous services via AdChoices (Digital Advertising Alliance of Canada), the Network Advertising Initiative (NAI), YourAdChoices (Digital Advertising Alliance) or Your Online Choices (European Interactive Digital Advertising Alliance, EDAA).
A list of which cookies are used on our website can be seen here.
8.2 Logging
We may log at least the following information for each access to our website and our other online presence, insofar as this information is transmitted to our digital infrastructure during such accesses: Date and time including time zone, IP address, access status (HTTP status code), operating system including user interface and version, browser including language and version, individual sub-page of our website accessed including amount of data transferred, last website accessed in the same browser window (referrer).
We record such information, which may also constitute personal data, in log files. The information is required to provide our online presence in a permanent, user-friendly and reliable manner. The information is also required to ensure data security — also by third parties or with the help of third parties.
8.3 Tracking pixel
We can integrate tracking pixels into our online presence. Tracking pixels are also known as web beacons. Tracking pixels — including those from third parties whose services we use — are usually small, invisible images or scripts written in JavaScript that are automatically retrieved when our online presence is accessed. Tracking pixels can be used to collect at least the same information as log files.
9. Notifications and messages
We send notifications and communications via email and other communication channels, such as instant messaging or SMS.
9.1 Success and reach measurement
Notifications and messages may contain web links or tracking pixels that record whether an individual message was opened and which web links were clicked. Such web links and tracking pixels may also track usage of notifications and communications on a personal basis. We need this statistical recording of usage for performance and reach measurement in order to be able to send notifications and messages based on the needs and reading habits of the recipients in an effective and user-friendly manner as well as permanently, securely and reliably.
9.2 Consent and objection
You must always consent to the use of your e‑mail address and your other contact addresses, unless the use is permitted for other legal reasons. We may use the “double opt-in” procedure to obtain double-confirmed consent. In this case, you will receive a message with instructions for double confirmation. We may log the consent obtained, including the IP address and time stamp, for reasons of proof and security.
You can object to receiving notifications and communications such as newsletters at any time. With such an objection, you can also object to the statistical recording of usage for measuring success and reach. Necessary notifications and communications in connection with our activities and operations remain reserved.
9.3 Service provider for notifications and messages
We send notifications and messages with the help of specialized service providers.
We use in particular:
- Brevo: Establishment and maintenance of customer relationships, in particular via e‑mail and instant messaging; provider: Sendinblue GmbH (Germany); information on data privacy: data privacy statement, «Datenschutz und Datensicherheit», «Sicherheit und Datenschutz».
10. Social Media
We are present on social media platforms and other online platforms in order to communicate with interested persons and to provide information about our activities and operations. In connection with such platforms, personal data may also be processed outside of Switzerland and the European Economic Area (EEA).
The General Terms and Conditions (GTC) and Terms of Use as well as data protection declarations and other provisions of the individual operators of such platforms also apply in each case. These provisions inform in particular about the rights of data subjects directly vis-à-vis the respective platform, which includes, for example, the right to information.
For our social media presence on Facebook, including the so-called Page Insights, we are — if and to the extent that the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is applicable — jointly responsible with Meta Platforms Ireland Limited (Ireland). Meta Platforms Ireland Limited is part of the Meta companies (including in the USA). Page Insights provide information about how visitors interact with our Facebook presence. We use Page Insights to provide our social media presence on Facebook in an effective and user-friendly manner.
Further information about the nature, scope and purpose of data processing, information about the rights of data subjects and the contact details of Facebook as well as Facebook’s data protection officer can be found in Facebook’s privacy policy. We have concluded the so-called “Responsible Party Addendum” with Facebook and thus agreed in particular that Facebook is responsible for ensuring the rights of data subjects. For the so-called Page Insights, the corresponding information can be found on the page “Page Insights Information” including “Page Insights Data Information”.
11. Third party services
We use services of specialized third parties to perform our activities and operations in a durable, user-friendly, secure and reliable manner. With such services, we can, among other things, embed functions and content in our website. In the case of such embedding, the services used record the IP addresses of the users at least temporarily for technically compelling reasons.
For necessary security-related, statistical and technical purposes, third parties whose services we use may process data in connection with our activities and operations in aggregated, anonymized or pseudonymized form. This is, for example, performance or usage data in order to be able to offer the respective service.
We use in particular:
- Google services: Provider: Google LLC (USA) / Google Ireland Limited (Ireland) for users in the European Economic Area (EEA) and Switzerland; General information on data protection: “Privacy and Security Principles”, Privacy Policy, “Google is committed to complying with applicable data protection laws”, “Privacy Policy Guide in Google Products”, “How we use data from websites or apps on or in which our services are used” (information provided by Google), “Types of cookies and other technologies used by Google”, “Personalized advertising” (activation / deactivation / settings).
- Microsoft services: Provider: Microsoft Ireland Operations Limited (Ireland) for users in the European Economic Area (EEA), Switzerland and the United Kingdom / Microsoft Corporation (USA) for users in the rest of the world; General information on data protection: “Data protection at Microsoft”, “Data protection and privacy”, data protection declaration, Data and privacy settings.
11.1 Digital infrastructure
We use services from specialized third parties to make use of required digital infrastructure in connection with our activities and operations. These include, for example, hosting and storage services from selected providers.
We use in particular:
- Google Cloud including Google Cloud Platform (GCP): storage space and other infrastructure; Google Cloud-specific providers: Google/ LLC (USA) for users in the USA / Google Ireland Limited or Google Commerce Limited (Ireland) for users in the European Economic Area (EEA) and Switzerland (see “Google Contracting Entity” for providers in other countries); Google Cloud-specific information: “Privacy Resource Center”, “Privacy”, “Compliance Resource Center”, “Trust and Security”.
- Infomaniak: hosting; provider: INFOMANIAK NETWORK SA (Switzerland); privacy information: “Infomaniak and the protection of your personal data”, privacy policy, cookie policy, “certifications and labels”.
- WordPress.com: Blog hosting and website builder; Provider: Automattic Inc. (USA) / Aut O’Mattic A8C Ireland Ltd. (Ireland) for users in Europe, among others; data protection information: privacy policy, cookie policy.
11.2 Appointment scheduling
We use the services of specialized third parties to make appointments online, for example for meetings. In addition to this privacy policy, any directly visible conditions of the services used, such as terms of use or privacy statements, also apply.
We use in particular:
- Doodle: Online appointment scheduling; Provider: Doodle AG (Switzerland) as a subsidiary of TX Group AG (Switzerland); Data protection information: Privacy policy, “General Terms and Conditions of the Processing of Personal Data”.
- Microsoft Bookings: Online appointment scheduling; Service provider: Microsoft; Microsoft Bookings-specific information: Microsoft Bookings: Frequently asked questions.
- SimplyMeet: Online appointment scheduling; Provider: SimplyBook.me Ltd. (Cyprus); Privacy policy information: Privacy policy, “Security”.
11.3 Audio and video conferencing
We use specialized audio and video conferencing services to communicate online. We can use them, for example, to hold virtual meetings or conduct online lessons and webinars. For participation in audio and video conferences, the legal texts of the individual services such as data protection declarations and terms of use apply in addition.
Depending on the life situation, we recommend muting the microphone by default when participating in audio or video conferences, as well as blurring the background or fading in a virtual background.
We use in particular:
- Google Meet: video conferencing; provider: Google; Google Meet-specific information: “Google Meet — Security and Privacy for Users”.
- Jitsi Meet: Video conferencing; provider: 8x8 Inc. (USA); privacy information: privacy policy (Jitsi Meet), privacy policy (8x8 Inc.).
- kMeet: Video conferencing; Provider: INFOMANIAK NETWORK SA (Switzerland); Privacy information: “Infomaniak and the protection of your personal data”, Privacy policy, Cookie policy, “Certifications and labels”.
- Messenger (Meta): Video conferencing; Service provider: Meta Platforms Ireland Limited (Ireland) and other Meta companies (including in the USA); Privacy Policy: “Communicating with confidence”, “Privacy and security in Messenger”, «Privacy Center», Privacy Policy.
- Zoom: video conferencing; provider: Zoom Video Communications Inc. (USA); privacy information: privacy policy, “Privacy at Zoom”, “Legal Compliance Center”.
11.4 Online collaboration
We use third-party services to enable online collaboration. In addition to this privacy policy, any directly visible conditions of the services used, such as terms of use or privacy policies, also apply.
We use in particular:
- Microsoft Teams: Platform for productive collaboration, in particular with audio and video conferencing; Provider: Microsoft; Teams-specific information: “Data protection and Microsoft Teams”.
11.5 Social media functions and social media content
We use third party services and plugins to embed features and content from social media platforms and to enable sharing of content on social media platforms and other ways.
We use in particular:
- Facebook (social plugins): Embedding of Facebook functions and Facebook content, for example “Like” or “Share”; provider: Meta Platforms Ireland Limited (Ireland) and other Meta companies (including in the USA); data protection information: privacy policy.
- Instagram platform: Embedding of Instagram content; Provider: Meta Platforms Ireland Limited (Ireland) and other Meta companies (including in the USA); data protection information: privacy policy (Instagram), privacy policy (Facebook).
- LinkedIn Consumer Solutions Platform: Embedding of functions and content from LinkedIn, for example with plugins such as the “Share Plugin”; Provider: Microsoft; LinkedIn-specific information: “privacy policy” (“Privacy”), data protection declaration, cookie policy, cookie management / objection to e‑mail and SMS communication from LinkedIn, objection to interest-based advertising.
11.6 Maps
We use third party services to embed maps into our website.
We use in particular:
- Google Maps including Google Maps Platform: mapping service; provider: Google; Google Maps-specific information: “How Google uses location information”.
11.7 Digital audio and video content
We use services from specialized third parties to enable direct playback of digital audio and video content, such as music or podcasts.
We use in particular:
- SoundCloud: Music and podcast platform; Provider: SoundCloud Global Limited & Co. KG (Germany); Privacy information: Privacy policy, Cookie policy.
- Spotify: Music and podcast platform; Provider: Spotify AB (Sweden); Privacy information: “Privacy Center”, Privacy Policy.
- Vimeo: Video platform; Provider: Vimeo Inc. (USA); Privacy information: Privacy policy, “Privacy”.
- YouTube: Video platform; Provider: Google; YouTube-specific information: “Privacy and Security Center”, “My data on YouTube”.
11.8 Fonts
We use third party services to embed selected fonts as well as icons, logos and symbols into our website.
We use in particular:
- Font Awesome: Icons and logos; Provider: Fonticons Inc. (USA); Privacy information: Privacy policy.
11.9 Advertising
We use the option to display targeted advertisements for our activities and operations on third parties such as social media platforms and search engines.
In particular, we would like to use such advertising to reach people who are already interested in our activities and operations or who might be interested in them (remarketing and targeting). For this purpose, we may transmit corresponding — possibly also personal — information to third parties that enable such advertising. We can also determine whether our advertising is successful, i.e. in particular whether it leads to visits to our website (conversion tracking).
Third parties with whom we advertise and where you are registered as a user may be able to assign the use of our website to your profile there.
We use in particular:
- Facebook Advertising (Facebook Ads): Social media advertising; provider: Meta Platforms Ireland Limited (Ireland) and other Meta companies (including in the USA); data protection information: remarketing and targeting in particular with the Facebook pixel as well as Custom Audiences including Lookalike Audiences, data protection declaration, “advertising preferences” (user registration required).
- Google Ads: Search engine advertising; Provider: Google; Google Ads-specific claims: Advertising based on, among other things, search queries, using various domain names — in particular doubleclick.net, googleadservices.com and googlesyndication.com — for Google Ads, “Advertising” (Google), “Manage displayed ads directly via ads” (“Control the ads you see when you see them”).
- Instagram Ads: Social media advertising; provider: Meta Platforms Ireland Limited (Ireland) and other Meta companies (including in the USA); data protection information: remarketing and targeting, in particular with Facebook Pixel as well as Custom Audiences including Lookalike Audiences, data protection declaration (Instagram), data protection declaration (Facebook), “advertising preferences” (Instagram) (user registration required), “advertising preferences” (Facebook) (user registration required).
- LinkedIn Ads: Social media advertising; provider: LinkedIn Corporation (USA) / LinkedIn Ireland Unlimited Company (Ireland); Information on data protection: Remarketing and targeting in particular with the LinkedIn Insight Tag, “Data protection”, Privacy policy, Cookie policy, Objection to personalized advertising.
12. Extensions for the website
We use extensions for our website in order to be able to use additional functions. We may use selected services from suitable providers or use such extensions on our own server infrastructure.
We use in particular:
- Google reCAPTCHA: Spam protection (differentiation between desirable content from humans and undesirable content from bots and spam); Service provider: Google; Google reCAPTCHA-specific information: “What is reCAPTCHA?”.
- Jetpack: Various functions for the free blog software WordPress in the form of modules; Provider: Automattic Inc. (USA) / Aut O’Mattic A8C Ireland Ltd. (Ireland) for users in Europe, among other countries; Privacy information: Privacy Notice for Visitors to Our Users’ Sites, Privacy Policy (from Automattic), “Jetpack Privacy Center”, Cookie Policy (Jetpack), Cookie Policy (Automattic).
- TinyPNG: Image Optimization; Provider: Tinify BV (Netherlands); Privacy Policy Information: “Terms of Use”.
13. Success and reach measurement
We try to determine how our online offering is used. In this context, we can, for example, measure the success and reach of our activities and operations as well as the effect of third-party links to our website. But we can also, for example, try out and compare how different parts or versions of our online offering are used (“A/B test” method). Based on the results of the performance and reach measurement, we can in particular correct errors, strengthen popular content or make improvements to our online offering.
In most cases, the IP addresses of individual users are stored for performance and reach measurement. In this case, IP addresses are generally shortened (“IP masking”) in order to follow the principle of data economy through the corresponding pseudonymization.
Cookies may be used for performance and reach measurement and user profiles may be created. Any user profiles created include, for example, the individual pages visited or content viewed on our website, information on the size of the screen or browser window and the — at least approximate — location. In principle, any user profiles are created exclusively in pseudonymous form and are not used to identify individual users. Individual services of third parties with which users are registered may be able to assign the use of our online service to the user account or user profile of the respective service.
We use in particular:
- Google Analytics: Performance and reach measurement; provider: Google; Google Analytics-specific data: Measurement also across different browsers and devices (cross-device tracking) as well as with pseudonymized IP addresses, which are only transmitted in full to Google in the USA as an exception, “Privacy Policy”, “Browser Add-on to deactivate Google Analytics”.
- WordPress.com Stats: Performance and reach measurement; Provider: Automattic Inc. (USA) / Aut O’Mattic A8C Ireland Ltd. (Ireland) for users in Europe, among other countries; Privacy information: Module of the Jetpack extension for the free blog software WordPress, Privacy Notice for Visitors to Our Users’ Sites, Privacy Policy (from Automattic), “Jetpack Privacy Center”, Cookie Policy.
14. Final provisions
We have created this privacy policy with the privacy policy generator of Datenschutzpartner.
We can adapt and supplement this data protection declaration at any time. We will inform about such adjustments and additions in an appropriate form, in particular by publishing the respective current privacy policy on our website.
This privacy policy is a machine translation from German.