Privacy Policy

1 General Information

We take your privacy seriously and process your personal data in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the German/Austrian Datenschutz-Grundverordnung (DSGVO). This privacy policy explains how we collect, use, and protect your personal data when you use our website.

2 Data Collection and Processing

2.1 Comments

When visitors leave comments on our website, we collect the data provided in the comment form, the visitor’s IP address, and the browser user agent string to help with spam detection.

• Your IP address is immediately anonymized before storage (e.g., if your IP is 185.29.89.74, it will be stored as 185.29.89.0).
• The IP address recorded upon commenting will only anonymize the last position.

2.2 Media

If you upload images to our website, please ensure they do not contain embedded location data (EXIF GPS), as visitors can download and extract location data from such images.

Our service does not protect any private information provided publicly, either in text or in media (when uploading a comment)!

2.3 Cookies

We use cookies for various purposes:

• Commenting Cookies: If you leave a comment, you may opt-in to saving your name, email address, and website in cookies for your convenience. These cookies last for one year.
• Login Cookies:
  • A temporary cookie is set to check if your browser accepts cookies (deleted when you close your browser).
  • Multiple cookies are stored to retain login details and display preferences when you log in.
  • Login cookies last for two days, and screen display preference cookies last for one year.
  • Selecting “Remember Me” extends login persistence to two weeks.
  • Logout removes login cookies.
• Article Editing Cookies: If you edit or publish an article, an additional cookie is saved to indicate the post ID of the edited article (expires after 1 day).

2.4 Newsletter Subscription & Emails

If you subscribe to our newsletter, register on our website, or make a purchase, you may receive emails from us.

• We only send emails that you have explicitly opted into.
• We process your name, email address, and IP address (to prevent abuse).
• Emails are sent using MailPoet (by Automattic), which allows us to track email opens and clicks to improve our newsletters.
• No other identifiable information is tracked outside our website except for your email address.

2.5 Embedded Content from Other Websites

Articles on our site may include embedded content (e.g., videos, images, articles, etc.). Embedded content behaves as if you visited the external website and may collect your data, use cookies, or track interactions.

3 Data Sharing

We use Google reCAPTCHA v2 and v3 to verify human interaction when posting comments or subscribing to newsletters. This may transmit data to Google Inc. (See Section 4 on Google reCAPTCHA for details.)

If you request a password reset, your IP address will be included in the reset email.

If you subscribe to the newsletter, your name, email address, and anonymized IP address may be shared with MailPoet.

Comments are checked through an automated spam detection service (Antispam Bee), which operates directly on our server without third-party data sharing.

4 Google reCAPTCHA

4.1 Why We Use Google reCAPTCHA

To ensure the security of our website and protect against automated spam or misuse, we use Google reCAPTCHA, a service provided by Google Inc. (1600 Amphitheater Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA). This tool helps us distinguish human users from bots by analyzing user behavior and interactions. Traditional CAPTCHAs required users to solve text or image puzzles, but modern versions, including Invisible reCAPTCHA, operate seamlessly in the background without requiring user input.

4.2 What Data is Collected and Processed?

When using reCAPTCHA, personal user data may be collected and analyzed to determine whether website actions are performed by humans. This may include:

• IP address (often anonymized within the EU before transfer to the USA, please refer to the Google Privacy Policy https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en-GB&tid=111401120)
• Browser type and settings
• Operating system information
• Cookies (small text files that save data in your browser) to identify the current session.
• Cookies from previous Google services usage (e.g., YouTube, Gmail)
• Mouse and keyboard behavior
• Date and language settings
• JavaScript objects and screen resolution

Google may process this data within the EU before transferring it to servers in the USA. The data collected through reCAPTCHA is not merged with other Google services unless you are logged into your Google account.

4.3 Google Cookies Used by reCAPTCHA

Google reCAPTCHA may set cookies to track user interactions and verify authenticity. The following list refers to Google’s reCAPTCHA demo version at https://www.google.com/recaptcha/api2/demo.
For tracking purposes, all these cookies require a unique identifier. Here is a list of cookies that Google reCAPTCHA has set in the demo version:

Name: IDE
Value: WqTUmlnmv_qXyi_DGNPLESKnRNrpgXoy1K-pAZtAkMbHI-111401120-8
Purpose: DoubleClick (owned by Google) sets this cookie to register and report a user’s interactions with advertisements. With it, ad effectiveness can be measured, and appropriate optimisation measures can be taken. IDE is stored in browsers under the domain doubleclick.net.
Expiry date: after one year

Name: 1P_JAR
Value: 2019-5-14-12
Purpose: This cookie collects website usage statistics and measures conversions. A conversion, e.g. takes place when a user becomes a buyer. The cookie is also used to display relevant adverts to users. Furthermore, the cookie can prevent a user from seeing the same ad more than once.
Expiry date: after one month

Name: ANID
Value: U7j1v3dZa1114011200xgZFmiqWppRWKOr
Purpose:We could not find out much about this cookie. In Google’s privacy statement, the cookie is mentioned in connection with “advertising cookies” such as “DSID”, “FLC”, “AID” and “TAID”. ANID is stored under the domain google.com.
Expiry date: after 9 months

Name: CONSENT
Value: YES+AT.de+20150628-20-0
Purpose: This cookie stores the status of a user’s consent to the use of various Google services. CONSENT also serves to prevent fraudulent logins and to protect user data from unauthorised attacks.
Expiry date: after 19 years

Name: NID
Value: 0WmuWqy111401120zILzqV_nmt3sDXwPeM5Q
Purpose: Google uses NID to customise advertisements to your Google searches. With the help of cookies, Google “remembers” your most frequently entered search queries or your previous ad interactions. Thus, you always receive advertisements tailored to you. The cookie contains a unique ID to collect users’ personal settings for advertising purposes.
Expiry date: after 6 months

Name: DV
Value: gEAABBCjJMXcI0dSAAAANbqc111401120-4
Purpose: This cookie is set when you tick the “I am not a robot” checkmark. Google Analytics uses the cookie personalised advertising. DV collects anonymous information and is also used to distinct between users.
Expiry date: after 10 minutes

Note: We do not claim for this list to be extensive, as Google often change the choice of their cookies.

4.4 How long and where are the data stored?

Due to the integration of reCAPTCHA, your data will be transferred to the Google server. Google have not disclosed where exactly this data is stored, despite repeated inquiries. But even without confirmation from Google, it can be assumed that data such as mouse interaction, length of stay on a website or language settings are stored on the European (for Users within the EU) or American (for non-EU Users) Google servers. The IP address that your browser transmits to Google does generally not get merged with other Google data from the company’s other services.
However, the data will be merged if you are logged in to your Google account while using the reCAPTCHA plug-in. Google’s diverging privacy policy applies for this.

4.5 How can I delete my data or prevent data storage?

If you want to prevent any data about you and your behaviour to be transmitted to Google, you must fully log out of Google and delete all Google cookies before visiting our website or use the reCAPTCHA software. Generally, the data is automatically sent to Google as soon as you visit our website. To delete this data, you must contact Google Support at https://support.google.com/?hl=en-GB&tid=111401120.

If you use our website, you agree that Google LLC and its representatives automatically collect, edit and use data.

You can find out more about reCAPTCHA on Google’s Developers page at https://developers.google.com/recaptcha/. While Google do give more detail on the technical development of reCAPTCHA there, they have not disclosed precise information about data retention and data protection. A good, basic overview of the use of data however, can be found in the company’s internal privacy policy at https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en-GB.

5 Google AdSense

At kMarflow.com, we use Google AdSense to display advertisements on our website. The use of Google AdSense is an integral part of providing free, high-quality content to our readers. To ensure compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), we have outlined how Google AdSense collects and processes data and how it may affect you as a user.

5.1 How Google AdSense Uses Your Data

Google AdSense uses cookies and similar tracking technologies to display relevant advertisements to users. These cookies may collect and process personal data, such as:

• Your IP address
• Device and browser information
• Demographic and geographic information
• Behavior on our website, including pages visited and time spent

This data is processed to:

• Show personalized or non-personalized ads (based on your preferences).
• Analyze performance and effectiveness of advertisements.
• Prevent fraud and ensure a safe advertising environment.

5.2 Your Consent and Data Protection Rights

Before displaying personalized ads, we ensure your explicit consent through a clear and accessible cookie consent banner. You have the right to:

1. Accept or reject personalized ads: You can choose to allow only non-personalized ads, which do not use tracking technologies like cookies.
2. Withdraw consent: At any time, you can manage or revoke your preferences by clicking on the “Cookie Settings” link in the footer of our website.
3. Access, modify, or delete your data: If you wish to review the data collected or request its deletion, please contact us at [insert your contact email].

6 Third-Party Access to Data

Google may share data with its advertising partners, but it ensures that all data processing complies with GDPR standards. For more details on how Google handles your data, visit the Google Privacy Policy.

7 Data Retention

• Comments and their metadata are retained indefinitely to recognize and approve follow-up comments automatically.
• User accounts and their associated personal data are stored until the user deletes or modifies their profile.
• If you unsubscribe from the newsletter, your data will be deleted.

8 Your Rights

Under GDPR/DSGVO, you have the following rights:

• Access: Request an exported file of your personal data.
• Correction: Modify inaccurate or incomplete data.
• Deletion: Request deletion of your data, except where we must retain it for legal, administrative, or security reasons.
• Objection: Withdraw consent to data processing at any time.

This applies only to data stored on our Server or 3rd-Party processing via Cookies. Please be aware that 3rd party Services may gain direct access to your data from your browser within the scope of the authorised cookies once functional cookies and others are allowed.

For Data stored by third-party Services, please refer to their Privacy Policies, regarding Access, Correction, Deletion and Objection.

9 How to Manage Cookies

We use cookies to enhance your experience while navigating our website. Cookies help us perform essential functions, provide features, and analyze site performance. In accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the German Federal Data Protection Act (BDSG), we want to provide transparency regarding the types of cookies we use and how they can be managed.

9.1 What are Cookies?

Cookies are small text files stored on your device that enable websites to remember actions or preferences over time. They are widely used to improve user experience and functionality.

9.2 Types of Cookies We Use

We use various types of cookies to provide a personalized and efficient user experience on our site. You can choose which cookies to accept or reject by adjusting your preferences in the cookie consent banner. Below are the categories of cookies used:

• Necessary Cookies (Always Active):
  These cookies are essential for the basic functioning of our website, such as enabling secure login and remembering your consent preferences. They do not store personally identifiable information. Without these cookies, certain services, like accessing secure areas of the website, may not work.
• Functional Cookies:
  These cookies enable additional functionality, such as sharing content on social media or collecting feedback. They help improve the overall experience but are not strictly necessary for the website’s core functionality.
• Analytical Cookies:
  These cookies help us understand how visitors interact with our website by tracking metrics such as the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic sources, etc. This information allows us to analyze and improve the performance of our website.
• Performance Cookies:
  These cookies allow us to understand and analyze the key performance indicators of the website, helping us optimize the user experience for our visitors.
• Advertisement Cookies:
  These cookies are used to deliver customized advertisements based on your previous interactions with our website. They help us analyze the effectiveness of our ad campaigns.

9.3 Consent to Cookies

Upon visiting our website, you will be presented with a cookie consent banner managed by CookieYes.com, our third-party service provider. This banner allows you to customize your cookie preferences and provide consent to the use of cookies based on the categories listed above.

CookieYes.com ensures that cookies are only activated according to the preferences you select. You can freely accept, reject, or modify your consent for specific cookie categories at any time.

9.4 How to Manage Your Cookie Preferences

You can change or withdraw your consent at any time by visiting the cookie settings in the footer of our website or by clicking the “Cookie Settings” link in the cookie consent banner. You can also control and manage cookies through your browser settings, where you can delete cookies or disable them entirely. However, please note that disabling cookies may affect the functionality and user experience of the website.

9.5 Third-Party Cookies

In addition to our own cookies, we use third-party cookies for analytics, advertising, and functionality purposes. These cookies are set by external services such as social media platforms, advertising partners, or analytics providers. You can find more information about these third-party cookies and how to manage them in the sections above and in the relevant privacy policies of these providers.

10 Updates to This Policy

We may update this Policy periodically. Any changes will be posted on this page, and we encourage you to review it regularly to stay informed about how we use cookies and how you can manage your preferences.

11 Contact Information

For inquiries or requests regarding your personal data, please contact:

Email: admin@kmarflow.com