Privacy Policy
ANDREAS STIHL AG & Co. KG
(Last updated September 5, 2023)
This privacy policy explains how your personal data is processed by ANDREAS STIHL AG & Co. KG on the website corporate.stihl.com. Any questions or comments you may have about this privacy policy may be directed to the e-mail address provided in section 2 below at any time.
1. Overview
The following information describes the nature and scope of the processing of personal data by STIHL. Personal data means any information that is or can be attributed to you, directly or indirectly.
2. Name and contact details of the controller and the data protection officer
This privacy policy applies to the processing of data by ANDREAS STIHL AG & Co. KG, Badstraße 115, 71336 Waiblingen, Germany, on the website www.corporate.stihl.com. The data protection officer of ANDREAS STIHL AG & Co. KG can be contacted by writing to ANDREAS STIHL AG & Co. KG, Stuttgarter Straße 80, 71332 Waiblingen, Germany, zu Hd. (attn.) Abteilung Datenschutz (Data Protection Department), or datenschutz@stihl.de.
3. Purposes of processing, legal basis and legitimate interests pursued by STIHL or any third party; categories of recipients
3.1 Accessing our website
When you access our website, the browser used on your end device automatically sends information to our website server where it is temporarily stored in a log file. The following information is collected automatically and stored until such time as it is automatically deleted:
The legal basis for processing the IP address is Article 6(1)(f) GDPR. Our legitimate interest follows from the data collection purposes set out below.
We use the IP address of your end device and the other data set out above for the following purposes:
Data will be stored for a period of 7 days and automatically deleted thereafter. Our website also uses cookies, analysis tools and targeting methods; these are explained in more detail in section 3.4 below.
3.2. Website and web page optimization
3.2.1. Cookies – general information
This website uses cookies to improve the user experience and enable certain functions. Cookies are small text files which are stored on your end device. Some of the cookies we use are deleted at the end of your browser session, i.e., when you close your browser; these are known as session cookies. Other cookies remain on your end device, allowing us or our partner companies to recognize your browser on your next visit; these are known as persistent cookies. Cookies cannot be used to access other files on your computer or to determine your e-mail address.
This website uses the cookies set out in our Cookie policy.
Insofar as we use cookies which are strictly necessary for making our web pages available, the legal basis for the processing of personal data using such cookies is Article 6(1)(f) GDPR.
We will only process personal data using cookies for marketing or statistical purposes if you have given us your consent to do so. The legal basis for this is Article 6(1)(a) GDPR.
You may withdraw your consent at any time without providing reasons by visiting the following link and changing the permitted functionalities.
Cookies are stored on your end device and you have full control over how they are used. You may block certain cookies or disable them entirely by changing your browser settings. Stored cookies may be deleted at any time. Deletion may also be automated. If cookies are disabled, you may not be able to use the full functionality of our website.
3.2.2. Web analysis using Google Analytics
This website uses Google Analytics, a web analytics service provided by Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway Mountain View, CA 94043, USA ("Google"). The controller for users in the EU/EEA and Switzerland is Google Ireland Limited, Google Building Gordon House, 4 Barrow St, Dublin, Ireland, 1600. Google Analytics uses cookies to enable an analysis of how you use the website. As a rule, the information generated by the cookie about your use of this website will be transmitted to and stored by Google on servers in the United States.
The STIHL website uses Google Analytics with the "anonymize IP" extension. This means that Goggle truncates your IP address, as collected by the Google Analytics cookie, within member states of the European Union or in other signatory states to the Agreement on the European Economic Area before it is transmitted to the US. It is only in exceptional cases that the full IP address is sent to a Google server located in the US and truncated there. Google uses this information on STIHL's behalf for the purpose of evaluating your use of the website, compiling reports on website activity and providing other services relating to website activity and Internet usage to the website provider. The IP address transmitted by your browser in connection with Google Analytics is not merged with other Google data.
The legal basis for the processing of personal data using cookies is Article 6(1)(a) GDPR. You can withdraw this consent at any time as described above by adjusting your cookie preferences.
You can also delete cookies that have already been saved at any time in your browser settings. If you do so, you may no longer be able to use the full functionality of our website.
You can find further information on the terms of use and data protection at https://www.google.com/analytics/terms/ and at https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en.
3.2.3. Google Optimize
Our website uses the "Google Optimize" service from Google (Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland). The service enables us to improve the appeal, content and functionality of our website by making available new functions and content to a certain portion of our users and statistically analyzing changes in website use. Google Optimize is a sub-service of Google Analytics (see Google Analytics, section 3.2.2.).
Cookies are set when using the service. The information on your use of our website generated by doing so is generally transferred to and stored on a server of Google in the United States (Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA). We use Google Optimize with IP anonymization activated, meaning that your IP address is truncated by Google while still in the EU/EEA. It is only in exceptional cases that the full IP address is sent to a Google server located in the US and truncated there. Google will use this information for the purpose of evaluating your use of our website in order to compile reports on the optimization test and associated website activity for us and to provide other services to us relating to the use of the website and the Internet.
The legal basis for the data processing is your consent pursuant to Articles 6(1)(a) and 49(1)(a) GDPR. You can change this consent at any time with effect for the future by changing your settings in the Consent Manager.
3.2.4. Facebook Conversion Tracking Pixel
As part of usage-based online advertising, we use the Custom Audiences service from Facebook Inc. (1601 S. California Avenue, Palo Alto, CA 94304, USA). For this purpose, we define target groups of users in Facebook Ads Manager that are then displayed ads within the Facebook network. The users are selected by Facebook based on the profile information they have provided and other data provided by using Facebook. If a user clicks on an ad and subsequently lands on our website, the Facebook pixel embedded in our website lets Facebook know that the user has clicked on the ad banner.
Basically, a non-reversible and non-personal code (hash) is generated from your usage data, which is transmitted to Facebook for analysis and marketing purposes. In doing so, a Facebook cookie is set. This collects information about your activities on our website (e.g., browsing behavior, sub-pages visited, etc.). In addition, your IP address will be saved and used for geographically targeted advertising.
We do not use either the customer list or "advanced matching" features of Facebook Custom Audiences.
Further information on the purpose and scope of data collection and further processing and use of the data by Facebook, as well as your options to protect your privacy, can be found in Facebook's privacy policy. You can configure what ads you are shown on Facebook via this link and in your Facebook account settings.
The legal basis for the processing of personal data using the Facebook pixel is Article 6(1)(a) GDPR. You can revoke this consent at any time as described in 3.2.1. above by adjusting your cookie preferences.
You can also delete cookies that have already been saved at any time in your browser settings. If you do so, you may no longer be able to use the full functionality of our website.
Further information on data protection at Facebook can be found at https://www.facebook.com/policy.php.
3.2.5. Embedded YouTube videos
Our website uses services provided by YouTube, LLC, 901 Cherry Ave., 94066 San Bruno, CA, USA, a Google company. To protect your personal data, we use the privacy-enhanced mode provided by YouTube. When you access a site with embedded YouTube videos, a connection is established to the YouTube servers and content is transmitted to your browser for display on the website. According to YouTube, however, in "privacy-enhanced mode" data are only transmitted to the YouTube servers when you actively start the video.
If you are signed in to YouTube at that time, the information about the videos you watch will be assigned to your YouTube account. You can prevent this by signing out of your account before visiting our website. YouTube stores your data as user profiles and uses them for the purposes of advertising, market research and/or tailoring its website to users' needs. This type of analysis is performed in particular (even for users who are not signed in) for the purpose of providing demand-based advertising and to inform other users of the social network about your activities on our website. You have a right to object to the creation of such user profiles, but must contact YouTube to exercise that right.
By embedding YouTube videos, we are pursuing our interest in making our website more interesting and appealing for our visitors and in better presenting content or facts. The legal basis for using the plug-in is Article 6(1)(f) GDPR.
Please see the privacy policy for further information on the purpose and scope of data collection and how YouTube processes data. You will also find further information there about your rights and settings to protect your privacy: https://policies.google.com/privacy.
3.2.6. Mouseflow ApS web analysis tool
We use Mouseflow, a web analysis tool offered by Mouseflow ApS, Flaesketorvet 68, 1711 Copenhagen, Denmark, on our website. The tool records individual visits that are selected at random and also transfers the visitor's anonymized IP address to the provider of this tool. The tool allows us to prepare a record of mouse movements and mouse clicks. These can be played back on a random basis as what are known as session replays and can be analyzed in heat maps so that we can identify potential improvements for this website. Mouseflow can also be used to conduct surveys that are designed to measure visitor satisfaction levels. The surveys performed and participation in them are also recorded in a cookie created by the tool.
This tool is used exclusively with your consent (Article 6(1)(a) GDPR). You can revoke your consent at any time as described above by changing your cookie settings.
You can find further information on data protection measures taken by the provider and on the use of Mouseflow in the provider's Privacy Statement: https://mouseflow.com/legal/
3.3. Contacting us
When you contact us by telephone, e-mail, post, via contact forms or in any other way with a request or if we contact you, we also process your personal data, e.g., name, address, telephone number and the content of the message itself. This data is processed for the purposes of properly processing your request. Your data may also be processed for statistical purposes. Details are given below. We only use your data to the extent necessary in the given case. If necessary, for example, if your inquiry relates to an order for printed material that is made available by another company in the STIHL Group, or in the context of customer support services, your data will be transferred to this other company in the STIHL Group if and to the extent that this is necessary in order to process your inquiry. The legal basis for processing the data described above is Article 6(1)(b) GDPR, insofar as this relates to the initiation or performance of a contract with you, e.g., in cases involving complaints, or Article 6(1)(f) GDPR, as we have a legitimate interest in business correspondence with you.
Correspondence will be deleted to the extent that it is no longer required for communicating with you and any statutory retention periods have expired.
Telephone calls with our customer support team will only be recorded with your prior consent for quality assurance or training purposes and will be deleted after a maximum of 90 days. Naturally, your consent to these calls being recorded is voluntary. You are free to revoke this consent with effect for the future at any time, for example by asking the employee on the telephone to stop the recording. Your data is processed on the basis of your consent (Article 6(1)(a) GDPR).
In order to provide customer support services, we use service providers that we have concluded corresponding commissioned data processing agreements with in accordance with Article 28 GDPR.
If we need to do so in order to process your inquiry, your data will be transferred to other companies in the STIHL Group or to the STIHL dealer responsible. In order to assess how urgent your inquiry is, we use a tool provided by Microsoft Ireland Operations Limited that allows us to analyze certain key words for this purpose. Only the subject line and content of your message is transmitted for this purpose. We do not transfer any personal data to the provider unless you provide it yourself in your inquiry.
3.4. Statistical analysis
STIHL also processes the personal data collected in order to generate statistical analyses. These are used to optimize and enhance the products and services offered by STIHL, in particular as relates to product features, product safety, service quality, marketing and optimizing the dealer network. We only use your personal data to generate analyses to the extent this is necessary for the aforementioned purposes. Whenever possible, the data is pseudonymized or anonymized before it is used. STIHL also combines the aforementioned data with information on meteorological and/or geographical attributes from other data sources such as weather and map services to increase the statistical power of the analyses. The results of the analyses are used in aggregated form only and may also be transferred in this form to other affiliates of STIHL for the aforementioned purposes. No customer-specific analyses are performed unless the customer has explicitly consented to them. The legal basis for processing the above-described data is Article 6(1) sentence 1(f) GDPR.
4. Transfer of data
Certain processing operations, such as customer support, are carried out by companies within the STIHL Group. This requires that data be transferred within the Group on a regular basis. As a rule, such transfers of data are made on the basis of a contractual agreement for the processing of data on behalf of a controller (commissioned data processing agreement). In other cases, such as analyzing aggregated data for market research purposes, Article 6(1)(f) GDPR serves as the legal basis for the transfer, whereby our legitimate interest lies in the efficient organization of our processes.
If we transfer your data to a recipient domiciled outside the European Union or the European Economic Area, the data is transferred on the basis of an adequacy decision by the EU Commission or on the basis of other suitable safeguards, particularly including standard contractual clauses adopted by the EU Commission.
5. Your rights
5.1. Overview
In addition to the right to withdraw any consent you have granted to us, you have the following additional rights provided the respective statutory conditions are met:
5.2. Right to object
Provided the requirements of Article 21(1) GDPR are met, you may object to the data processing on grounds relating to your particular situation.
The aforementioned general right to object applies to all purposes of processing set out in this privacy policy carried out on the basis of Article 6(1)(f) GDPR. In contrast to the specific right to object to data processing for advertising purposes, in accordance with the GDPR we are only required to give effect to any such general right to object if you cite grounds of overriding importance.
6. Amendments to this privacy policy
This privacy policy will be revised whenever changes are made to our website or other circumstances so require. The most recent version is always posted on this website. We therefore recommend that you check this website periodically for changes to our policy.