We very much appreciate your participation in our event. Data protection is of a particularly high priority for the management of the vgbe energy e.V. and vgbe energy service GmbH (further called “vgbe energy”). Your participation in our event requires the processing of personal data.

The collection, storage, modification, transmission, blocking, deletion and use of personal data are carried out on the basis of the applicable legal provisions, in particular the General Data Protection Regulation (DSGVO). User data are protected by technical and organisational measures against access by unauthorised persons, accidental or intentional manipulation, destruction or loss.

This privacy policy applies to all workshops, technical conferences, conferences and congresses, including the accompanying trade exhibitions. They apply to face-to-face and online formats (hereinafter together: the event), unless otherwise regulated in this text.

1. Name and address of the controller responsible for processing

The person responsible within the meaning of the General Data Protection Regulation, other data protection laws applicable in the Member States of the European Union and other provisions of a data protection nature is:

vgbe energy e.V.
Deilbachtal 173
45257 Essen/Germany

2. Name and address of the data protection officer

The data protection officer of the controller is:

Nataly Schroeder
SystemDatenschutzConsulting
Rebenlaube 12
45133 Essen/Germany
Phone.: 00 49 172/ 6443194
E-mail: schroeder-dsc@web.de
Website: www.rs-datenschutzconsulting.de

Any affected person can contact our data protection officer directly at any time with all questions and suggestions regarding data protection.

3. Storage and processing of personal data

When you register to participate in our events, you provide us with personal data. This includes in particular your name and title, your address data including e-mail address and telephone number as well as, if applicable, the name of your company and your function or position in the company. These data are stored and processed by us by way of participant registration. The processing is thus carried out on the basis of your consent and for the fulfilment of the contract (Art. 6 Para.1 p.1 lit. a and b DSGVO).

The data will be deleted after expiry of the legal retention periods.

Photos and film footage taken at events will be published in the context of reports in vgbe media, in other newspapers and magazines as well as on the Internet. If you are our customer, we will also inform you about our offers by post or e-mail within the applicable legal limits.

4. Transmission of personal data to third parties

In the case of online events, we share your data as necessary with a processor who provides the digital event platform. The processor shall also be obliged to comply with the data protection regulations.

The transfer of data to the order processor enables access to the respective event platform via a personal, secure registration procedure as well as the unique identification of the participants during interactions, for example chats.

The name and address of the respective order processor can be found in the imprint of the respective event platform or can be requested from us. During each online event, a list of participants is kept, which vgbe receives after the event for statistical purposes and for any necessary documentation afterwards.

In the case of face-to-face events, your data will not be passed on to third parties.

5. Supplementary data protection information for online events

Additional data are processed for online events and online exhibitions:

a) Data that can be collected automatically

i) Access data

When you access our website and event platforms, information of a general nature is automatically collected. This information (server log files) includes, for example, the type of web browser, the operating system used, the domain name of your internet service provider, the IP address, the data and time of the retrieval, transferred data volumes and similar. This is exclusively information that does not allow any conclusions to be drawn about your person. This information is technically necessary in order to correctly deliver the contents of web pages requested by you and is mandatory when using the Internet. Anonymous information of this kind is statistically evaluated by us in order to optimise our website and the technology behind it. This data processing is carried out in accordance with Art. 6 Para.1 p.1 lit. DSGVO in order to safeguard our legitimate interest in the correct presentation of our services, which outweighs our interests.

ii) Local Storage und Cache

In order to adapt the software to your personal needs and usage, we use Local Storage Technology (also called “Local Data” or “Local Storage”). When using local storage, data are stored locally in the cache of your browser, which continues to exist and can be read even after you close the browser window or exit the programme – unless you delete the cache. This enables us to save your preferences when using our services on your computer so that they are available when you visit us again. Here, for example, your last login name, the language you use, your chat messages, your contact requests, the participant list of your event, your filter settings and similar information can be stored as local data.

Third parties cannot access the data stored in the Local Storage. They will not be passed on to third parties and will not be used for advertising purposes. We use this technology on the basis of our overriding legitimate interest in accordance with Art. 6 Para. 1 p. 1 lit. DSGVO in order to be able to offer you a user-friendly user experience.

If you do not want Local Storage functions to be used, you can control this in the settings of your browser in the operating system. This also gives you an overview of the stored Local Data. Corresponding Local Storage functions can also be deactivated on mobile end devices. Wie das funktioniert, erfahren Sie in der Hilfefunktion Ihres Geräts bzw. Browsers. Please note, however, that you may not be able to use all the functions of our services.

iii) Use of Cookies

We use the technology of cookies for our pages. Cookies are small text files that are sent to your browser by our web servers when you visit our website and are stored on your computer for later retrieval.

YOU CAN DETERMINE YOURSELF WHETHER COOKIES ARE SET AND RETRIEVED THROUGH THE SETTINGS IN YOUR BROWSER.

You can, for example, completely deactivate the storage of cookies in your browser, restrict it to certain websites or configure your browser so that it automatically notifies you as soon as a cookie is to be set and asks you for feedback.

Session Cookies (transiente Cookies)

We use so-called session cookies (also known as temporary cookies) on our websites. Session cookies are only temporarily stored for the duration of your use of one of our websites. The purpose of these cookies is to identify your computer during a visit to our websites and to be able to determine the end of your visit. In order to use the full range of functions of our website, it is necessary for technical reasons to allow session cookies. Session cookies are deleted as soon as you leave our websites or end your browser session.

The use of these session cookies is based on Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f) DSGVO. Without the use of these cookies, it is technically not possible to offer the website calling it up and using it by you.

Persistent Cookies

In addition, we use other cookies on our website that enable us to offer you an improved user experience.

These cookies are automatically deleted after a pre-defined period of time, which may differ depending on the cookie. The cookies remain stored on your terminal device until the validity period of the cookies has expired or you delete them.

We use the following categories of cookies:

Load-balancing Cookies
We use load balancing cookies to distribute the performance load of the site across different servers and to reduce the load on the servers. For technical reasons, it is necessary to allow these cookies.

The use of these session cookies is based on Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f) DSGVO. Without the use of these cookies, it is technically not possible to offer the website calling it up and using it by you.

Third-party Cookies
Some of the cookies used on our website are so-called third-party cookies. These are third-party cookies/service providers whose tools we use on our website.

This can include, for example, cookies used by the providers of the content delivery networks we use (Akamai and AWS). They serve to protect access to this website, the protected documents and the video stream that may be used. For technical reasons, it is necessary to allow these cookies.

The use of these session cookies is based on Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f) DSGVO. Without the use of these cookies, it is technically not possible to offer the website calling it up and using it by you.

Deactivating of Cookie Settings

Most browsers are preset to accept cookies automatically. You can object to the generation of cookies by deactivating cookies in the system settings of your browser. Please note, however, that some of the cookies are absolutely necessary for the function of our website, otherwise the page cannot be accessed and displayed. By deactivating cookies, you will not be able to use the website in whole or in part (without restriction).

We generally only use cookies that are not absolutely necessary for the function of our website with your prior express consent.

In addition, you can also control the installation of cookies yourself at any time by changing your browser settings and/or deleting all cookies.

b) Data provided by the participant

Our event platforms offer the possibility to communicate with other participants in the feed or chat during an event, to take part in voting, to give your feedback on the presentations or to communicate with other participants via the chat in the networking area (please note our terms of use). Depending on which functions you use and whether you have registered with a pseudonym or your real name, the following personal data are processed:

• Plain name or pseudonym (“nickname”)
• Comments left by you in the feed of an event
• Your participation in voting
• Your chat messages in the networking area
• Photographs uploaded by you

These are core functionalities of our event platform, which you as a participant do not necessarily have to use. However, if you decide to use these functions, your personal data will be processed in this context on the basis of your voluntarily given consent in accordance with Art. 6 Para. 1 p. 1 lit. a) DSGVO.

In doing so, the photos stored on your terminal device or the camera of your terminal device are never accessed without first obtaining your consent. Even if you have given your consent, only the photo you have selected will be accessed, never your entire library. You can revoke or renew your consent at any time in the future using the contact details provided in this privacy policy or directly in the settings of your terminal device.

If you wish to delete your user account, your posted content and comments will remain in the feed. However, your username or first and last name will be anonymised in each feed or comment and usually displayed as “deleted user”. If you wish to delete specific content that you have shared, please contact our data protection officer named in this privacy policy.

If you contact us by e-mail or contact form (contact form; submitting questions), the information you provide will be stored for the purpose of processing and for possible follow-up questions.

6.Data processing in the context of video conferences

On its digital event platforms, vgbe energy offers the possibility to attend virtual events via video conference or to participate in them as speakers or exhibitors, to provide information for other participants, to exchange information with them and to network. This section of the Privacy Policy provides information on the processing of personal data in connection with participation in video conferences via the event platform.

We use the services of various providers (hereinafter also: service providers), such as “Zoom” (a service of Zoom Video Communications, Inc., 55 Almaden Boulevard, 6th Floor, San Jose, CA 95113, USA), to hold video conferences via our event platform. The user is informed about the name of the respective provider used before participating in a video conference (e.g. through the displayed company logo of the provider). With regard to the processing of personal data by the respective provider, we refer to the applicable data protection notices of the provider, which the user can view on the provider’s website (e.g. the data protection notice of the provider Zoom Video Communications, Inc. here: https://zoom.us/de-de/privacy.html).

vgbe energy is the data controller for data processing directly related to the performance of a video conference. If you access the website of one of the providers, this provider is responsible for data processing.

When participating in video conferences, the scope of processing of your personal data depends on the personal data you provide before or during participation. The following personal data may be processed in this context:

a. User details: first name, last name, pseudonym (nickname) if applicable, telephone (optional), e-mail address, password (if “Single-Sign-On” is not used), profile picture (optional), company name (optional)
b. Video conference meta data: topic, description (optional), participant IP addresses, device/hardware information
c. For recordings of video conferences: MP4 file of all video, audio and presentation recordings, M4A file of all audio recordings, text file of the video conference chat.
d. When dialling in with the telephone: information on the incoming and outgoing phone number, country name, start and end time. If necessary, further connection data such as IP address of the device can be saved.
e. Text, audio and video data: you may have the opportunity to use the chat, question or survey functions in a video conference. In this respect, the text entries you make are processed in order to display them in the video conference and, if necessary, to record them. To enable the display of video and the playback of audio, the data from the microphone of your terminal device and from any video camera of the terminal device are processed accordingly during duration of the conference. Sie können die Kamera oder das Mikrofon jederzeit selbst über die Einstellung des Diensteanbieters abschalten bzw. stummstellen.

Scope of Processing of your Personal Data

We use the services of providers to conduct video conferences. If we intend to record a video conference, we will notify the participant before holding the video conference and obtain their consent if necessary.

Where necessary for the purposes of logging the results of a video conference, we will log the chat content.

For the purpose of recording and following up video conferences, we may also process questions asked by participants.

If you are registered as a user with the service provider, then reports on video conferences (meeting metadata, telephone dial-in data, questions and answers in video conferences, survey function in video conferences) can be stored for up to one month with the service provider.

The possibility of software-based “attention monitoring” (“attention tracking”) that may exist in the video conferencing systems is deactivated in advance.

Legal Basis of Data Processing

Data processing when conducting video conferences is carried out for the purpose of fulfilling the contract for participation in the event. The legal basis is Art. 6 para. 1 p. 1 lit. b DSGVO. Insofar as a video conference and chat are recorded, your personal data will be processed on the basis of your consent pursuant to Art. 6 Para. 1 S. 1 lit a DSGVO

Disclosure of Personal Data

Personal data processed in connection with participation in video conferences will not be disclosed to third parties as a matter of principle, unless they are specifically intended to be disclosed. Please note that content from video conferences is intended precisely for the purpose of exchanging information and is therefore intended to be shared.

Furthermore, the service provider necessarily obtains knowledge of the above-mentioned personal data of the participants, insofar as this is provided for in the context of our order processing agreement with the service provider.

Data Processing outside the EU

We may use the services of providers based in the US or another third country (such as Zoom). We have concluded an order processing contract with the service provider that complies with the requirements of Art. 28 DSGVO. In addition, an adequate level of data protection may be guaranteed by the “Privacy Shield” certification of the service providers. Further information on data processing by the service provider can be found on their website (e.g. the privacy policy of the provider Zoom Video Communications, Inc. can be found on the website of the service provider). here: https://zoom.us/de-de/privacy.html).

7. Your rights to information, correction, blocking, deletion and objection

You are entitled at any time to obtain information about your personal data stored by us. You also have the right to have your personal data corrected, blocked or, apart from the mandatory data storage for business processing, deleted. Please contact our data protection officer for this purpose.

To ensure that a blocking of data can be taken into account at any time, these data must be kept in a blocking file for control purposes. You may also request the deletion of the data, unless there is a statutory archiving obligation. Insofar as such an obligation exists, we will block your data upon request.

You can make changes or withdraw consent by notifying us accordingly with effect for the future.

8. Data security

We have taken technical and organisational security measures to prevent unwanted access to your data. In particular, we encrypt all transfers in accordance with the SSL/TLS standard in conjunction with the highest level of encryption supported by your browser or terminal device. We have obliged our employees to handle personal data confidentially and carefully. In addition, all service providers have been inspected by us. We also use appropriate technical and organisational security measures in accordance with our internal data protection concept to protect your data against accidental or intentional manipulation, partial or complete loss, destruction or against unauthorised access by third parties. Our security measures are continuously improved in line with technological developments.

9. Change to our privacy policy

We reserve the right to amend this data protection declaration from time to time so that it always complies with the current legal requirements or in order to implement changes to our services in the data protection declaration, e.g. when introducing new services. The new privacy policy will then apply to your next visit.