GDPR POLICY

Introduction

Our GDPR policy sets out the ways in which Ontology of Value® collects and uses your personal information, and explains the rights you have to access or change your personal data. We are a private company located in Nijmegen, the Netherlands. Ontology of Value® services to professionals who are considering various career paths.

Any initiatives by Ontology of Value® are not intended for children, therefore we do not store information of individuals under the age of 18. Thus, if you are under the age of 18, please do not access Ontology of Value® website again before your 18th birthday.

The Information We Collect About You, How We Use It, and How We Store/Handle It

0. Cookies.

(a) Why we store this type of data and how we use it.

Ontology of Value® may use cookies, web beacons, tracking pixels, and other tracking technologies when you visit our website, including any other media form, media channel, mobile website, or mobile application related or connected thereto (collectively, the “Site”) to help customize the Site and improve your experience.

We reserve the right to make changes to this Cookie Policy at any time and for any reason. We will alert you about any changes by updating the “Last Updated” date of this Cookie Policy. Any changes or modifications will be effective immediately upon posting the updated Cookie Policy on the Site, and you waive the right to receive specific notice of each such change or modification.

You are encouraged to periodically review this Cookie Policy to stay informed of updates. You will be deemed to have been made aware of, will be subject to, and will be deemed to have accepted the changes in any revised Cookie Policy by your continued use of the Site after the date such revised Cookie Policy is posted.

(b) What types of data we store.

A “cookie” is a string of information which assigns you a unique identifier that we store on your computer. Your browser then provides that unique identifier to use each time you submit a query to the Site. The following types of cookies may be used when you visit the Site:

1. Advertising Cookies

Advertising cookies are placed on your computer by advertisers and ad servers in order to display advertisements that are most likely to be of interest to you. These cookies allow advertisers and ad servers to gather information about your visits to the Site and other websites, alternate the ads sent to a specific computer, and track how often an ad has been viewed and by whom. These cookies are linked to a computer and do not gather any personal information about you.

2. Analytics Cookies

Analytics cookies monitor how users reached the Site, and how they interact with and move around once on the Site. These cookies let us know what features on the Site are working the best and what features on the Site can be improved.

3. Our Cookies

Our cookies are “first-party cookies”, and can be either permanent or temporary. These are necessary cookies, without which the Site won’t work properly or be able to provide certain features and functionalities. Some of these may be manually disabled in your browser, but may affect the functionality of the Site.

4. Personalization Cookies

Personalization cookies are used to recognize repeat visitors to the Site. We use these cookies to record your browsing history, the pages you have visited, and your settings and preferences each time you visit the Site.

5. Security Cookies

Security cookies help identify and prevent security risks. We use these cookies to authenticate users and protect user data from unauthorized parties.

6. Site Management Cookies

Site management cookies are used to maintain your identity or session on the Site so that you are not logged off unexpectedly, and any information you enter is retained from page to page. These cookies cannot be turned off individually, but you can disable all cookies in your browser.

7. Third-Party Cookies

Third-party cookies may be place on your computer when you visit the Site by companies that run certain services we offer. These cookies allow the third parties to gather and track certain information about you. These cookies can be manually disabled in your browser.

(c) How this data is handled.

We store cookies by default for 12 months. You review and customize the cookie policy used towards your personal data once accessing our website. We use cookies on the Site to, among other things, keep track of services you have used, record registration information, record your user preferences, keep you logged into the Site, facilitate purchase procedures, and track the pages you visit. Cookies help us understand how the Site is being used and improve your user experience.

1. Information collected through WooCommerce.

(a) Why we store this type of data and how we use it.

The billing data from our clients acquired and stored by WooCommerce helps us to better service the clients on multiple occasions. Examples of such situations:

  • Some of our products are electronic, thus, the billing information helps us retrieve the buyer’s data in case when internet connection breaks before they physically access the product,
  • The billing information can be used for a refund in situations when the buyer cannot take part in our course for personal reasons (see: the Terms and Conditions),
  • We can also use the billing information to send the buyer updates/upgrades of the products that he/she purchased from us before (e.g., a new edition of the book that they’ve purchased, see: the Terms and Conditions).

(b) What types of data we store.

Currently, we only store order-based customer data using the default settings at WooCommerce:

  • Contact information: name, email address, phone number,
  • Billing information: billing address, the payment method,
  • Name of the purchased product, the price, the invoice number.

(c) How this data is handled.

In the context of the GDPR, we are the data controller and WooCommerce is the data processor. Therefore, this data is processed and handled by WooCommerce according to the WooCommerce’s GDPR policy. According to this policy, WooCommerce is fully GDPR-compliant. WooCommerce stores order-based customer data indefinitely.

2. Information collected for analytic purposes.

(a) Why we store this type of data and how we use it.

We use Google Analytics to analyze the traffic on our website. It helps us in better understanding who needs our products and services the most, and how we can improve on our offer.

(b) What types of data we store.

Google Analytics Terms of Service prohibits the collection of personally identifiable data such as name, email address, or billing information. However, to enable creating the traffic statistics, it collects the following types of data:

  • Time of visit, pages visited, and time spent on each page of the webpages,
  • Referring site details (such as the URI a user came through to arrive at this site),
  • Type of web browser,
  • Type of operating system (OS),
  • Flash version, JavaScript support, screen resolution, and screen color processing ability,
  • Network location and IP address.

(c) How this data is handled.

Similarly as in case of WooCommerce, in the context of the GDPR, we are the data controller and Google is the data processor. Therefore, this data is processed and handled by Google according to the Google’s GDPR policy. According to this policy, Google’s services, including Google Analytics, are GDPR-compliant. Google Analytics stores the Google Signals data for the period of 50 months.

3. Information collected through the subscription to our Newsletter.

If you decide to subscribe to our Newsletter, we will also store the information that you provide in the subscription form.

(a) Why we store this type of data and how we use it.

We store contact information of our subscribers to be able to send them our monthly newsletters, free materials, promotion offers and such.

(b) What types of data we store.

We hold personal data of our Newsletter subscribers specified in the subscription form, namely:

  • First and last name,
  • Contact email address.

The following types of data is optional for the subscribers and also stored in our database:

  • Professional affiliation / Employer,
  • Education level,
  • Branch of science or industry where the subscriber works or would like to work,
  • The summary of the subscriber’s current situation in the job market,
  • The type of career advice that the subscriber needs at the moment.

(c) How this data is handled.

We keep this data in an online MySQL database hosted by SiteGround. SiteGround is a prime-quality and fully GDPR-compliant hosting service. In 2020, SiteGround was ranked as #1 most secure hosting platform in the world by WhoIsHostingThis.com.

We also keep a physical backup of the data in offline documents (as .sql, .xlsx, .csv and/or .docx documents). The data is physically located on an external hard drive based in Nijmegen, the Netherlands. The access rights to this hardware are restricted to the owner and the employees of Ontology of Value®.

4. Testimonials.

We also invite our clients to submit (anonymous or undersigned) testimonials in written form or in a form of brief voice memos.

(a) Why we store this type of data and how we use it.

We collect and confidentially store this type of data with a sole purpose to improve our products and services, and to better address the needs of our customers. We do not share this information with third parties.

(b) What types of data we store.

We store the following:

  • First and last name (if the user shares this information),
  • Contact email address (if the user shares this information),
  • The content of the testimonials.

(c) How this data is handled.

We keep a physical backup of the written testimonials in offline documents (as .sql, .xlsx, .csv and/or .docx documents). The data is physically located on an external hard drive based in Nijmegen, the Netherlands. The access rights to this hardware are restricted to the owner and the employees of Ontology of Value®. The voice memos are confidentially stored online at the servers of the services we work with, such as Speakpipe.

The Information We Do Not Collect about You

We do not store the following types of information:

    • Any information about you on the basis of personal correspondence through emails, or your activity on social media related to the events organized by Ontology of Value, such as your dietary requirements, your resume discussed during our workshop, etc.,
    • Sensitive personal data, such as your race/ethnicity, religious or philosophical beliefs, sex life, sexual orientation, political opinions, trade union membership, information about your health and genetic and biometric data.

How We Share Information about You with Third Parties

We do not share your information with any third parties. Furthermore, we also do not reach out to any third parties with respect to your personal data.

Your Rights to the Information We Hold about You

You have the right to access the information that we hold about you at any moment and to be informed of the ways in which we use your information. Therefore, you can also ask us for correcting any information that we hold about you and ask us to delete your information.

Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may make changes to this Privacy Policy in the future. We will post any changes to our site and email the information about the changes to you (in case your email is stored by us). In that case, any changes will come into effect the next time you engage with us. It is important that the personal data we hold about you is accurate and current. Therefore, please keep us informed if any of your essential personal data changes during your relationship with us by updating your profile account information or contacting us via the contact details at the top of this Privacy Notice.

If you need any more information about our GDPR policy, please contact us.