Data Protection
The protection of personal data is important to us. We therefore process personal data in accordance with the provisions of the European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and other legal requirements. With the following information in our privacy policy, we would like to inform you comprehensively about the handling of your personal data and your rights in this context.
1. Name and address of the controller
Controller for the purposes of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), other data protection laws applicable in Member states of the European Union and other provisions related to data protection is:
International Department des Karlsruher Instituts für Technologie gGmbH
Schlossplatz 19
76131 Karlsruhe
Germany
+49 (0)721 608-47880
sekretariat∂idschools.kit.edu
http://www.idschools.kit.edu
2. Name and address of data protection commissioner
The data protection officer of the controller is:
Herr Steven Bösel
ENSECUR GmbH
Kaiser Straße 86
76133 Karlsruhe
Germany
+49 (0)721 180356 70
dsb-ID-KIT∂ensecur.de
https://www.ensecur.de/
3. Definitions
The data protection declaration of the International Department des Karlsruher Instituts für Technologie gGmbH is based on the terms used by the European legislator for the adoption of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Our data protection declaration should be legible and understandable for the general public, as well as our customers and business partners. To ensure this, we would like to first explain the terminology used.
In this data protection declaration, we use, inter alia, the following terms:
3.1 Personal data
Personal data means any information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person (“data subject”). An identifiable natural person is one who can be identified, directly or indirectly, in particular by reference to an identifier such as a name, an identification number, location data, an online identifier or to one or more factors specific to the physical, physiological, genetic, mental, economic, cultural or social identity of that natural person.
3.2 Data subject
Data subject is any identified or identifiable natural person, whose personal data is processed by the controller responsible for the processing.
3.3 Processing
Processing is any operation or set of operations which is performed on personal data or on sets of personal data, whether or not by automated means, such as collection, recording, organisation, structuring, storage, adaptation or alteration, retrieval, consultation, use, disclosure by transmission, dissemination or otherwise making available, alignment or combination, restriction, erasure or destruction.
3.4 Restriction of processing
Restriction of processing is the marking of stored personal data with the aim of limiting their processing in the future.
3.5 Profiling
Profiling means any form of automated processing of personal data consisting of the use of personal data to evaluate certain personal aspects relating to a natural person, in particular to analyse or predict aspects concerning that natural person's performance at work, economic situation, health, personal preferences, interests, reliability, behaviour, location or movements.
3.6 Pseudonymisation
Pseudonymisation is the processing of personal data in such a manner that the personal data can no longer be attributed to a specific data subject without the use of additional information, provided that such additional information is kept separately and is subject to technical and organisational measures to ensure that the personal data are not attributed to an identified or identifiable natural person.
3.7 Controller or controller responsible for the processing
Controller or controller responsible for the processing is the natural or legal person, public authority, agency or other body which, alone or jointly with others, determines the purposes and means of the processing of personal data; where the purposes and means of such processing are determined by Union or Member State law, the controller or the specific criteria for its nomination may be provided for by Union or Member State law.
3.8 Processor
Processor is a natural or legal person, public authority, agency or other body which processes personal data on behalf of the controller.
3.9 Recipient
Recipient is a natural or legal person, public authority, agency or another body, to which the personal data are disclosed, whether a third party or not. However, public authorities which may receive personal data in the framework of a particular inquiry in accordance with Union or Member State law shall not be regarded as recipients; the processing of those data by those public authorities shall be in compliance with the applicable data protection rules according to the purposes of the processing.
3.10 Third party
Third party is a natural or legal person, public authority, agency or body other than the data subject, controller, processor and persons who, under the direct authority of the controller or processor, are authorised to process personal data.
3.11 Consent
Consent of the data subject is any freely given, specific, informed and unambiguous indication of the data subject's wishes by which he or she, by a statement or by a clear affirmative action, signifies agreement to the processing of personal data relating to him or her.
4. Processing of Usage Data when accessing our Website
For statistical and system-related purposes, our web servers store every visit and retrieval of the content provided in a log file. The log file contains the following information:
- IP address, timestamp (date and time of access) of the requesting computer
- Web pages/file names accessed
- Web browser and operating system of the requesting computer
- Amount of data transferred and notification of successful retrieval
This data is stored for security reasons, for example to defend against attempted attacks on our web servers. The stored IP address is only analyzed in the event of an attack on our systems (Art. 6 (1) (f) GDPR). No assignment of a natural person to this stored usage data takes place. The logged data is stored for a period of 30 days. It is then deleted by the system.
4.1.1. Error-Logs
Error logs are created for the purpose of identifying and rectifying errors. This is absolutely necessary in order to be able to react as quickly as possible to possible problems in the presentation and implementation of content. This data is generally anonymous and therefore does not allow any conclusions to be drawn about a natural person. The legal basis for this can be found in Section 15 (1) TMG and Art. 6 (1) sentence 1 f) GDPR. If an error message occurs, general data such as the domain name of the website, the web browser and web browser version, the operating system, the IP address and the timestamp when the corresponding error message/specification occurs are recorded. These error logs are stored for up to 60 days.
4.1.2. Use of the contact form
If you have any questions or suggestions to improve our Website, you can use the contact form provided on our website or contact us by e-mail. When you use the contact form, we process the information you provide (mandatory fields of the contact form: First name, last name, email address, message) to process your request and any follow-up questions (Art. 6 para. 1 letter b Alt. 2 GDPR).
4.1.3 Contact via E-Mail
If you have any questions, for example about our offers, you can contact us by e-mail. We will use the information you provide to process your request and any follow-up questions (Art. 6 para. 1 letter b Alt. 2 GDPR).
4.1.4. Registration for SharePoint
Our website offers users the opportunity to register in order to request access to the Hector Schools SharePoint platform.
To obtain access, you must first complete the activation form provided on this website. Your data will be reviewed and, if eligible, your account will be activated accordingly.
Login Instructions
Please enter your KIT account name (in the format "ab1234") as the "Benutzername" and your corresponding password in the "Passwort" field.
External Access (KIT)
If you are affiliated with KIT and wish to access the SharePoint from external networks (outside the KIT network or over eduroam), you must first establish a connection using a Virtual Private Network (VPN). Detailed instructions can be found on the website of the KIT IT Center.
Legal Basis: The processing of your personal data is based on Art. 6 para. 1 lit. b GDPR (performance of a contract or pre-contractual measures) and Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f GDPR (our legitimate interest in controlling access to protected content and infrastructure).
The personal data collected through the registration form — such as your name, institutional affiliation, and email address — will be used solely to verify your eligibility and provide access to the SharePoint. Your data will not be shared with third parties and will be deleted when no longer needed, unless legal obligations require a longer retention period.
5. Creating and editing your application profile
We offer applicants the opportunity to apply online for our study programs. The application is voluntary. When using the application form, we process the information you provide (mandatory fields of the application: Form of address, first name, surname, date of birth, nationality, place and country of birth, address, mobile phone number and e-mail address, application documents) within the applicant selection process (Legal Basis: Art. 6 para. 1 lit. b GDPR). After completion of the applicant selection process, your applicant data will be deleted within three years in the event of a negative decision.
You can modify and edit your application profile within the application period as long as you do not submit your application. After submitting your application, you will only have reading access until the end of the application process. Of course, you can withdraw your application at any time and we will delete your application and all associated documents - apart from the deletion request itself - immediately.
If candidates do not submit their application within the application period, they also will only be granted reading access until the end of the application process.
5.1 Collection, processing, and use of personal data
By creating an application profile and submitting your application, you agree to the electronic processing of your personal data and their transmission to the administration office of the Graduate School on Functional Materials as well as to the Principle Investigators. Your personal data will be used for processing your application at the Graduate School on Functional Materials exclusively. They will be treated strictly confidentially in accordance with the legal regulations and will not be disclosed to third parties. (Legal Basis: Art. 6 para. 1 lit. b GDPR).
5.2 Deletion of personal data
If your application is not successful, your personal data will be deleted automatically four months after the application deadline according to the Federal Data Protection Act. If you want to withdraw your application during the ongoing proceedings, please send an email to alexandra.pehle∂kit.edu. Then, your application will no longer be taken into consideration. Your data will be deleted four months after the application deadline. (Legal Basis: Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f GDPR). We have a legitimate interest in retaining the application documents until it is certain that the application process has been completed and no further legal consequences can arise from it.
6. Integration of third-party services and content
6.1. Cookies
Cookies are text files that are stored on your computer and saved by your browser. The purpose of using cookies is to make our website more user-friendly, effective and secure (Art. 6 (1) (f) GDPR). If you do not want cookies to be used, you can configure your browser settings so that you can refuse the storage of cookies.
To understand these settings, the following links may be helpful, otherwise you should use the 'Help' option in your browser to get more information.
Cookie Einstellungen in Firefox
Cookie Einstellungen in Chrome
If you have any further questions relating to data protection, please do not hesitate to send an Email to sekretariat∂idschools.kit.edu.
7. Matomo web analysis
We use the web analysis service Matomo (www.matomo.org) on this website.
We use Matomo for the purpose of recording and analysing the activities of our visitors on our website and thus making the website more user-friendly and optimising it so that we can better achieve our marketing goals. For example, we can better understand when visitors access our site, which pages they view and where they access them from. In addition, we can also measure which specific actions website visitors take (e.g. which buttons they click on, which areas are frequently viewed, which purchases are made, etc.).
We use this data to create anonymised user profiles for the aforementioned purposes and evaluate them. We process the data collected using Matomo (including your anonymised IP address) on our servers in Germany and do not pass it on to others.
The legal basis for the reach analysis is Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f) GDPR. As the website operator, we have a legitimate interest in analysing the user behaviour of our visitors in order to improve our website and our marketing measures.
7.1.1. Legal basis
The legal basis for the reach analysis is Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f) GDPR. As the website operator, we have a legitimate interest in analyzing the user behavior of our visitors in order to improve our website and our marketing measures. Since we use cookies to analyze reach and store them on your device, we ask for your consent and process your data exclusively on the basis of Art. 6 para. 1 lit. a GDPR and § 25 para. 1 TTDSG. You can withdraw your consent at any time.
7.1.2. General
If a consent has been requested, the processing is carried out exclusively on the basis of Art. 6 para. 1 lit. a GDPR and § 25 para. 1 TTDSG, insofar as the consent includes the storage of cookies or access to information in the user's terminal device (e.g. device fingerprinting) within the meaning of the TTDSG. Consent can be revoked at any time.
7.1.3. IP anonymization
The IP address is anonymized immediately after processing and before it is stored. This is done in such a way that we shorten your IP address before analyzing it so that it can no longer be clearly assigned to you.
7.1.4. Objection possibilities
If you do not agree to the storage and analysis of this data from your visit, you can object to its storage and use at any time by using the consentmanager. In this case, a so-called opt-out cookie will be stored in your browser, which means that Matomo will not collect any session data. Please note that the complete deletion of your cookies means that the opt-out cookie will also be deleted and may have to be reactivated by you.
8. Security of your data
We use suitable technical and organizational security measures to protect your personal data against accidental or intentional manipulation, loss, destruction or access by unauthorized persons. These security measures are continuously improved in line with technological developments.
8.1. SSL or TLS encryption
This site uses TLS encryption (formerly SSL) for security reasons and to protect the transmission of confidential content, such as inquiries you send to us as the site operator via the contact form. We prefer to use the latest TLS versions (1.2 and 1.3). Older TLS versions (TLS < 1.2) are no longer supported by our server for security reasons. If you have problems accessing the website, we recommend that you update your browser. You can recognize an encrypted connection by the fact that the address line of the browser changes from "http://" to "https://" and by the lock symbol in your browser line.
If TLS encryption is activated, the data you transmit to us cannot be read by third parties.
9. Your rights
We will fulfill your rights below, insofar as the legal requirements for the assertion of rights are met.
9.1. Right of confirmation
Each data subject shall have the right granted by the European legislator to obtain from the controller the confirmation as to whether or not personal data concerning him or her are being processed. If a data subject wishes to avail himself of this right of confirmation, he or she may, at any time, contact any employee of the controller.
9.2. Right of access
Each data subject shall have the right granted by the European legislator to obtain from the controller free information about his or her personal data stored at any time and a copy of this information. Furthermore, the European directives and regulations grant the data subject access to the following information:
- the purposes of the processing;
- the categories of personal data concerned;
- the recipients or categories of recipients to whom the personal data have been or will be disclosed, in particular recipients in third countries or international organisations;
- where possible, the envisaged period for which the personal data will be stored, or, if not possible, the criteria used to determine that period;
- the existence of the right to request from the controller rectification or erasure of personal data, or restriction of processing of personal data concerning the data subject, or to object to such processing;
- the existence of the right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority;
- where the personal data are not collected from the data subject, any available information as to their source;
- the existence of automated decision-making, including profiling, referred to in Article 22(1) and (4) of the GDPR and, at least in those cases, meaningful information about the logic involved, as well as the significance and envisaged consequences of such processing for the data subject.
If a data subject wishes to avail himself of this right of access, he or she may, at any time, contact any employee of the controller.
9.3. Right of rectification
Each data subject shall have the right granted by the European legislator to obtain from the controller without undue delay the rectification of inaccurate personal data concerning him or her. Taking into account the purposes of the processing, the data subject shall have the right to have incomplete personal data completed, including by means of providing a supplementary statement.
If a data subject wishes to exercise this right to rectification, he or she may, at any time, contact any employee of the controller.
9.4. Right of erasure
As the data subject, you have the right at any time to request that the personal data concerning you be deleted. In such a case, we will carry out a detailed review and delete the data in question if the requirements for this are met.
9.5. Right to restriction of processing
As the data subject, you have the right to request that we restrict processing at any time. In such a case, we will carry out a detailed review and restrict access to and use of the data in question if the requirements for this are met.
9.6. Right to data portability
As a data subject, you have the right at any time to request that the personal data concerning you be deleted. In such a case, we will carry out a detailed review and delete the data in question if the requirements for this are met.
9.7. Right to object
If your data is processed to protect legitimate interests, you have the right to object to this processing at any time by contacting us using the contact details provided if your particular situation gives rise to reasons that conflict with this data processing. We will then terminate this processing, unless it serves overriding interests worthy of protection on our part.
9.8. Right of revocation
If you have consented to the processing of your data, you have the right to revoke this consent at any time for the future. This does not affect the legality of the processing up to the point of revocation. Please contact the controller using the contact details provided.
If the data subject wishes to exercise the right to withdraw the consent, he or she may, at any time, contact any employee of the International Department des Karlsruher Instituts für Technologie gGmbH.
9.9. Automated individual decision-making, including profiling
The International Department des Karlsruher Instituts für Technologie gGmbH does not use automated individual decision-making or profiling.
9.10. Right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority
As a data subject, you can contact the responsible "Landesbeauftragen für Datenschutz und die Informationsfreiheit Baden-Württemberg" at any time if you have a complaint:
P.O. Box 102932
70025 Stuttgart Deutschland
Tel.: +49 (0) 711/615541-0
E-Mail: poststelle ∂does-not-exist.lfdi bwl de
10. Existence of a requirement to provide personal data
Some of the data collected is required to visit the website. In order to be able to answer inquiries, the processing of certain data of inquiring persons is mandatory. Failure to provide this data may mean that the use of the website is only possible to a limited extent or that contact inquiries cannot be answered.
11. Changes to our privacy policy
In order to ensure that our privacy policy always complies with the current legal requirements, we reserve the right to make changes at any time. This also applies in the event that the privacy policy has to be adapted due to new or revised services, for example new services. The new privacy policy will then apply the next time you visit our website.
Last update: 14.11.25
12. Do you have any questions about data protection?
If you have any questions about data protection, please contact our data protection officer.