Data Privacy Statement

The privacy and security of your personal data is especially important to us. We pledge to abide by all data privacy laws, in particular the German Federal Data Privacy Act and Telemedia Act, in the conduct of our online business at the domain www.independent-collectors.com.

All data which you transmit to us will of course be treated as strictly confidential. As a matter of principle, we will not make your data available to others for their use unless you have given your consent, or we are obliged by law or an official order to surrender the data.

Your personal data will be collected, stored, processed and used solely in accordance with the following data privacy statement.

1. Collection of data when the website www.independent-collectors.com is opened

In connection with the opening of the website www.independent-collectors.com, we do not collect, store, process or use any of your personal data. However, data that may allow you to be identified (e.g. IP address, date, time and files downloaded) are temporarily stored on our server in a log file for data security purposes. These usage data are anonymously evaluated for statistical purposes during internal analyses of user interests and user behavior.

These usage data are never evaluated in order to create individual usage profiles without your express consent. We expressly reserve the right to evaluate them in case of the improper accessing of our website or other legal violations which can cause us to file a report with a law enforcement agency. No other evaluation of your usage data or transfer thereof to third parties will occur.

2. Collection of data when registration-only services are used at the website www.independent-collectors.com

We will collect, store, process and use personal data if you want to use services offered at the domain www.independent-collectors.com which require registration. Personal data within the meaning of the German Federal Data Privacy Act and Telemedia Act means individual items of information about the personal and/or material circumstances of a certain or ascertainable person.

Our "Profiles" service with which you can create a personal profile and publish it on our website requires registration.

Specifically, the following information must be given to us when registering for this service at this time: title, first name, last name, e-mail address, password, date of birth, city, postal code, country, region.

Please note that the creation and use of profiles is impossible unless this compulsory information is provided.

You may on a voluntary basis provide additional information and answer a set of personal questions as a basis for creating a personal profile. This voluntary information includes at this time, for example: passport picture, infotext, URL, collector status, interest in artists and genres, and events, as well as Your Collection (uploaded images and information).

The compulsory information and voluntary information which will be viewable only by the profile owner and the administrator are visually marked in the registration form. Those data will never be made available to other members and/or unregistered visitors of the website without your consent, without exception. You have the ability to add to, correct, or otherwise alter the compulsory and voluntary information in your user profile yourself at any time.

We expressly advise that the profiles of members and the viewable contents thereof are accessible either to all registered members or to all unregistered online users of the services offered at domain www.independent-collectors.com, depending on which setting is selected.

As a registered member, you will have access to a Collection. There you may upload images of artworks from your collection and the associated descriptions. You may enable access to this collection by either your contacts, registered members, or all Internet users. You may also give access to third parties by means of a password defined by you.

As a registered member, you will be provided with a Showroom. There you may make images from your collection available to all persons to whom you have made your profile available.

Subject to your approval, we can use the personal data you give us to provide you with information about the online services we offer at the domain www.independent-collectors.com. In addition, you have the ability to subscribe to our newsletter. You may cancel at any time by e-mail using the link provided at the end of every newsletter.

If you deregister from our registration-only online services, we will delete your personal data.

3. Cookies

In order to enhance the use of our online services, we use so-called session cookies on our website www.independent-collectors.com. Session cookies are small information units that are temporarily stored on users' hard drives by the server when users visit our website in order to make our online services more user-friendly and effective. Session cookies do not contain any information which is readable in plain text and are not used to execute programs or load viruses onto your computer.

Session cookies are not permanently stored on the hard drive and are deleted when the browser is closed. Most browsers are configured so that they accept cookies automatically. However, you have the ability to deactivate the automatic acceptance of cookies or configure your browser so that it notifies you as soon as cookies are sent. Should you deactivate cookie acceptance, you will of course still be able to use our online services without cookies. However, note that if session cookies are deactivated the use of the registration-only services on our website will become impossible or will be limited, and users may encounter limitations when navigating.

Our partners may also place cookies on our website. We do not have access to such cookies and cannot control them. You have the ability to deactivate cookie acceptance in your web browser. We disclaim any responsibility for the use thereof.

4. Engagement of third parties

We are entitled to engage such companies and/or individuals as have been carefully selected by us within the meaning of the German Federal Data Privacy Act to undertake and perform in our name any and all work related to the purpose set forth in this Data Privacy Statement. These include, for example, Internet service providers, server operators, and other support companies and individuals. Such companies may be allowed access to your personal data if necessary in order for them to perform their assigned responsibilities. These companies and individuals are prohibited from using the data otherwise.

Google Analytics This website uses Google Analytics, a web analysis service of Google Inc. ("Google"). Google Analytics uses so-called "cookies", text files that are stored on your computer which make it possible to analyze your use of the website. The information about your use of this website (including your IP address) which is generated by the cookie is sent to a Google server in the USA and stored there. Google will use the information to evaluate your use of the website, compile reports about website activities for the operator of the site, and provide services related to website use and Internet use. Google may also transmit this information to third parties if legally required or if third parties process the data for Google. Google will never link your IP address to any other data in its possession. You can prevent the installation of cookies by configuring your browser software accordingly; however, note that if you do so you may not be able to use all the functions of this website to the full extent. Your use of this website constitutes your consent to the data about you which is collected being processed by Google in the manner described above and for the purpose stated above."

5. Revocation and correction of data

You have a right to revoke your consent to the storing of your personal data at any time or demand the correction of that data. You also have a right to revoke at any time your consent to our collecting and storing additional voluntary data. Note that in order to protect your privacy and security we will verify your identity before you are able to take these actions. Should you wish to object to the future use of your data and/or revoke consent, please send us an e-mail at office@independent-collectors.com or write to Independent Collectors GmbH, Köpenicker Str. 48/49, 10179 Berlin.

In the event of the revocation of consent to store, process, and use your personal data, we will immediately delete all your stored data. Please keep in mind that you will no longer have access to the registration-only services.

We expressly advise that under the German Federal Data Privacy Act we are entitled to process and/or use your data notwithstanding the revocation of your consent if such use and/or processing is for the purposes of a contractual or quasi-contractual relationship and/or to the extent necessary to protect our legitimate interests, and a weighing of interests gives no grounds to conclude that your protectible interest in preventing the processing and/or use is predominant.

6. Data security

We strive to ensure the security of your data within the limits of the applicable German data privacy laws; however, no electronic communication is completely safe. Moreover, we advise you that the transmission of data and information on our servers occurs without encryption. That means that all the data and information you voluntarily give us can be acquired by third parties through illegal data collection. We cannot assume any responsibility or liability for the disclosure of information due to errors and/or the unauthorized accessing of data communications by third parties.

7. Amending the Data Privacy Provision

We reserve the right to amend this data privacy provision at any time in accordance with data privacy laws. We will inform you of all changes to these provisions via e-mail sent to the e-mail address you give us when registering.

8. Downloading the Data Privacy Provision

You can download and print the Data Privacy Statement from any page of the domain www.independent-collectors.com using the link „Terms & Conditions“.

Rev. June 4, 2008

You can download the Data Privacy Statement onto your computer and print it here