PolyMerTec24
Converia – Conference Management Software

Privacy Policy

Merseburg University of Applied Sciences takes the protection of personal data very seriously. When registering for the polymertec24 we use the event software of the company Converia GmbH. The processing of personal data is required for registration. We therefore provide information here about the storage and processing of your personal data and the measures we have taken to ensure the best possible protection of your data.

The processing of personal data, such as the name or address, is always carried out in accordance with the applicable legal provisions, in particular those of the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR, Regulation (EU) 2016/679), the Federal Data Protection Act (BDSG) and the Data Protection Basic Regulation Completion Act Saxony-Anhalt of the State of Saxony-Anhalt (DSAG-LSA) as well as the Higher Education Act of the State of Saxony-Anhalt.

1. Who is responsible for Data Processing?

The controller for the processing of personal data within the meaning of the EU General Data Protection Regulation is

Merseburg University of Applied Sciences

represented by the Rector

Eberhard-Leibnitz-Straße 2, 06217 Merseburg

E-mail: rektor@hs-merseburg.de

2. Who can I contact as a Data Subject?

You can contact our data protection officer to exercise your rights as a data subject.

Datenschutzbeauftragte/r

Eberhard-Leibnitz-Straße 2

06217 Merseburg

E-mail: datenschutz@hs-merseburg.de

3. To whom does this Privacy Policy apply?

This privacy policy applies to the personal data that Merseburg University of Applied Sciences collects, stores and processes from participants of polymertec24 when they use our website and register for and participate in the polymertec24 event.

4. On what legal basis is data collected and processed?

If you have given your consent for the processing of your personal data, the legal basis for the processing of personal data is Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. a GDPR.

If the processing of personal data is necessary to initiate or fulfil a contract, the legal basis for data processing is Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. b GDPR.

If the processing of personal data is necessary to fulfil a legal obligation to which Merseburg University of Applied Sciences is subject, Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. c GDPR serves as the legal basis. If the processing of personal data is necessary in the public interest or for the performance of official duties, Art. 6 para. 1 lit. e GDPR in conjunction with §§ 4-9 DSAG LSA serves as the legal basis for the processing.

If processing is necessary to safeguard a legitimate interest of Merseburg University of Applied Sciences or a third party and if the interests, fundamental rights and freedoms of the data subject do not outweigh the former, the legal basis for data processing is Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f GDPR.

5. Which kind of data is processed and for what purpose?

Processing process: Web presence

Data collection when using the website: browser type and versions, user's operating system, website accessed, sub-websites visited, date and time of access to the website, IP address.

Purpose: Presentation of offers and activities. Optimization and functionality of the website. Anonymous evaluation for statistical purposes.

Legal basis: Art. 6 para. 1 lit. e and Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f.

Processing registration and usage of the conference management software functions

In the conference management software, users are offered the opportunity to register by providing personal data. The data is entered into an input mask and transmitted to and stored by our service provider Converia GmbH. 

Mandatory information may be requested during registration. This information must be complete and correct. If this is not the case, the registration will be rejected.

The system includes a function that requires active confirmation of a data protection agreement before personal data is stored in the software.

A registration process is usually required for the following activities:

  • Registration as a participant in an event
  • Submission of a scientific contribution in the system
  • Review of scientific contributions
  • Actions as speaker or chair of a session
  • Using the conference planner's favourites function

The following data is collected and stored as part of the registration process and the use of the functions of the software:

  • Access data (username, password)
  • Address data
  • E-Mail address
  • Shopping cart data
  • Invoice information
  • Information on submitted contributions
  • Temporal and spatial planning data (conference plan)
  • Information about memberships
  • Information on certificates (e.g. student status)

Payment processing

Various payment options (invoice/bank transfer, credit card) are offered to process payments when participants register for an event. Sensitive payment information is not stored in the conference management system itself. For this purpose, specially certified payment service providers are used to process and store the data. The user is directed to the pages of the respective providers. Further information on data protection can be found on the Converia GmbH website.

The following data is collected as part of payment processing:

  • selected payment method
  • Invoice amount
  • Amounts paid
  • Billing data

Purpose of data processing: the registration of the user is necessary for the fulfilment of a contract with the user or for the implementation of pre-contractual measures (participation in a conference).

6. Who receives the personal data?

The personal data that you transmit to us will be viewed and processed by our employees and the employees of the Institut für Polymerwerkstoffe e.V. as our cooperation partner exclusively for the purposes stated above.  Registration for the conference takes place via the external service provider Converia GmbH. Converia GmbH processes users' personal data insofar as this is necessary to provide a functional website and the content and services of Converia GmbH.Gmberforderlich. As a rule, personal data is only processed with the user's consent. An exception applies in cases where prior consent cannot be obtained for factual reasons and the processing of the data is permitted by law.

7. How long will my data be stored?

The data will be deleted as soon as it is no longer required for the purpose for which it was collected. 

This is the case during the registration process for the performance of a contract or for the implementation of pre-contractual measures if the data is no longer required for the performance of the contract. Even after conclusion of the contract, it may be necessary to store personal data of the contractual partner to comply with contractual or legal obligations.

As the access data including address data can be used for further events such as follow-up events, this data is generally removed from the system at Converia GmbH, Merseburg University of Applied Sciences and the Institut für Polymerwerkstoffe e.V. within 2 years of the last login.

8. Your rights as a data subject

The rights of data subjects are regulated in detail in Art. 15 - 21 GDPR.

You can request information as to whether Merseburg University of Applied Sciences processes your personal data. If this is the case, you have a right of access to this personal data and to further information related to the processing (Art. 15 GDPR). The right to information may be restricted in certain cases, e.g. in accordance with §§ 10ff. DSAG LSA.

If personal data is not or no longer accurate or incomplete, you can request the rectification or completion of the data (Art. 16 GDPR).

If the legal requirements are met, you can request the deletion of your personal data (Art. 17 GDPR) or the restriction of the processing of this data (Art. 18 GDPR). The right to erasure pursuant to Art. 17 (1) and (2) GDPR does not apply if the processing of personal data is necessary for the performance of tasks carried out by Merseburg University of Applied Sciences in the public interest or in the exercise of official authority.

If you have consented to the processing or a contract for data processing exists and the data processing is carried out using automated procedures, you may have a right to data portability (Art. 20 GDPR).

The following applies to the right of withdrawal and right of objection:

Right of objection

For reasons arising from your particular situation, you can object to the processing of your personal data by us at any time (Art. 21 GDPR). If the legal requirements are met, we will no longer process your personal data.

Right of withdrawal

You can revoke your consent within the meaning of Art. 6 para. 1 lit. a GDPR at any time with effect for the future (Art. 7 para. 3 GDPR) by sending an informal e-mail to

kanzlerin@hs-merseburg.de

or by post to

Merseburg University of Applied Sciences

Die Kanzlerin

Eberhard-Leibnitz-Straße 2

06217 Merseburg,

revoke your consent. The revocation does not affect the legality of the consent given prior to the revocation. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the supervisory authority in relation to the withdrawal of consent.

You can assert the aforementioned rights free of charge. If you request multiple copies, Merseburg University of Applied Sciences may charge copying costs according to administrative expenses.

Irrespective of this, you always have the opportunity to exercise your rights vis-à-vis Merseburg University of Applied Sciences or to ask questions on the subject of personal data.

Our data protection officer named above is responsible for compliance with data protection at Merseburg University of Applied Sciences and your contact person as a data subject.

If there is reasonable doubt about the identity of the applicant, Merseburg University of Applied Sciences may request additional information necessary to confirm the identity.

We will do our utmost to answer your questions regarding the processing of personal data as quickly as possible. However, you will always receive an answer within one month of receipt of your request at the latest.

Please note that you yourself are also obliged to comply with the relevant data protection regulations. For example, it is prohibited to store or process the personal data of third parties to which you have access without permission or to take any action that may infringe the rights of a third party.

9. Cooperation with processors and third parties

If data is disclosed to other persons and companies (processors or third parties) in the course of processing, data is transmitted to them or they are otherwise granted access to the data, this is only done on the basis of legal permission (e.g. if the transmission of data to third parties, such as payment service providers, is necessary for the performance of a contract pursuant to Art. 6 para. 1 lit. b GDPR), you have consented, a legal obligation provides for this or based on our legitimate interests (e.g. when using agents, web hosts, etc.).

If we commission third parties with the processing of data based on a so-called "order processing contract", this is done on the basis of Art. 28 GDPR.

Our contractor Converia GmbH uses the services of Google Analytics (with anonymization function), Google Remarketing, Google Tag Manager, Hotjar, Visual Website Optimizer and Universal Event Tracking (UET) on the website. For more information on the use and type of data used, please refer to Converia's privacy policy at https://www.converia.de/de/datenschutz.html.

10. Cookies on the Converia website

The Internet pages of the Converia GmbH uses cookies. Cookies are text files that are placed and stored on a computer system via an Internet browser.

Numerous websites and servers use cookies. Many cookies contain a so-called cookie ID. A cookie ID is a unique identifier for the cookie. It consists of a string of characters through which websites and servers can be assigned to the specific internet browser in which the cookie was stored. This enables the websites and servers visited to distinguish the individual browser of the data subject from other Internet browsers that contain other cookies. A specific Internet browser can be recognized and identified via the unique cookie ID.

By using cookies, the Converia GmbH can provide the users of this website with more user-friendly services which would not be possible without the cookie setting.

By using a cookie, the information and offers on our website can be optimized for the benefit of the user. As already mentioned, cookies enable us to recognize the users of our website. The purpose of this recognition is to make it easier for users to use our website. For example, the user of a website that uses cookies does not have to re-enter their access data each time they visit the website because this is taken over by the website and the cookie stored on the user's computer system. Another example is the cookie for a shopping basket in an online store. The online store remembers the items that a customer has placed in the virtual shopping cart via a cookie.

The data subject can prevent the setting of cookies by our website at any time by means of a corresponding setting of the Internet browser used and thus permanently object to the setting of cookies. Furthermore, cookies that have already been set can be deleted at any time via an Internet browser or other software programs. This is possible in all common Internet browsers. If the data subject deactivates the setting of cookies in the Internet browser used, not all functions of our website may be fully usable.

Privacy policy for the conference polymertec24; as of January 2024