BKMS Whistleblowing System Privacy Policy
Fondium B.V. & Co. KG and its subsidiaries (hereinafter “FONDIUM”, “we” or “us”) take data protection and confidentiality very seriously and adhere to the provisions of the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) as well as current national data protection regulations. Please read this information on data protection law carefully before submitting a report.
Purpose and legal basis of the whistleblowing system
The whistleblowing system (BKMS® System) serves for securely and confidentially receiving, processing and managing reports concerning violations of the compliance rules of FONDIUM. The processing of personal data within the framework of BKMS® System is based on the legitimate interest of our company in discovering and preventing abuses and thereby averting damage for FONDIUM, its employees and customers. The legal basis for the processing of personal data is Article 6(1)(f) of the GDPR.
Controller
The controller responsible for data protection in the whistleblowing system is
1) FONDIUM B.V. & Co. KG
Flurstrasse 15-17
40822 Mettmann, Germany
Telephone: +49 (0) 2104 984 0
Fax: +49 (0) 2104 984 49 9
Email: info@fondium.eu
and
2) its subsidiaries
as parties with mutually autonomous responsibility (hereafter also: “FONDIUM”). The whistleblowing system is operated by a specialised company, EQS Group GmbH, Bayreuther Str. 35, 10789 Berlin, Germany, on behalf of FONDIUM.
Personal data and information entered into the whistleblowing system is stored in a database operated by EQS Group GmbH in a high-security data centre. Only FONDIUM employees can see the data. EQS Group GmbH and other third parties do not have access to the data. This is ensured in the certified procedure through extensive technical and organisational measures.
All data is stored encrypted with multiple levels of password protection according to a system of permissions so that access is restricted to a very small selection of expressly authorised persons at FONDIUM.
Our data protection officer
We have appointed a data protection officer for our company. You can contact them using the following means:
Dirk Kirchner
Data Protection Officer (DPO)
Email: dirk.kirchner@fondium.eu
Telephone: +49 2104 984 436
Central Office: +49 2104 984 0
Type of personal data collected
Use of the whistleblowing system is voluntary. We collect the following personal data and information when you submit a report using the whistleblowing system:
- your name, if you choose to reveal your identity,
- whether you are employed at FONDIUM, and
- the names and other personal data of persons whom you list in your report, if applicable.
Confidential handling of reports
Incoming reports are received by a small selection of expressly authorised and specially trained employees of the compliance organisation of FONDIUM and are always handled confidentially. The employees of the FONDIUM compliance organisation evaluate the matter and perform any further investigation required by the specific case.
While processing a report or conducting a special investigation, it may be necessary to share reports with additional employees of FONDIUM or employees of other group companies, e.g. if the reports refer to incidents in subsidiaries. We always ensure that the applicable data protection regulations are complied with when sharing reports.
All persons who receive access to the data are obligated to maintain confidentiality.
Information about the accused
We are legally obliged to inform accused parties of any reports received against them as soon as the disclosure of this information no longer jeopardises the investigation. Your identity as a whistleblower will not be disclosed unless we are legally bound to do so.
Rights of the data subjects
Pursuant to European data protection law, you and the persons named in the report have the following rights:
Right to access:
In accordance with Art. 15 GDPR, data subjects have the right to request confirmation as to whether we are processing data concerning them. They can request access to this data and the further information listed in Art. 15(1) GDPR as well as a copy of their data.
Right to rectification:
In accordance with Art. 16 GDPR, data subjects have the right to request the rectification or completion of data processed by us which concerns them.
Right to erasure:
In accordance with Art. 17 GDPR, data subjects have the right to request the immediate erasure of data concerning them. Alternatively, they can also request the restriction of the processing of their data in accordance with Art. 18 GDPR.
Right to data portability:
In accordance with Art. 20 GDPR, data subjects have the right to request the provision of their data made available to us by them and to request its transfer to another data controller.
Right to lodge a complaint:
Data subjects also have the right to lodge a complaint with the supervisory authority responsible for them in accordance with Art. 77 GDPR.
Right to object:
If personal data are processed on the basis of legitimate interests pursuant to Art. 6(1)(1)(f) GDPR, data subjects have the right to object to the processing of their personal data pursuant to Art. 21 GDPR, provided that there are grounds to do so resulting from their particular situation.
Retention period for personal data
Personal data is retained for as long as necessary to clarify the situation and perform a final assessment or for as long as a legitimate interest exists on the part of the company or retention is required by law. After the report processing is concluded, the data will be erased in accordance with statutory requirements.
Use of the whistleblowing system
Communication between your computer and the whistleblowing system takes place over an encrypted connection (SSL). Your IP address will not be stored during your use of the whistleblowing system. In order to maintain the connection between your computer and BKMS® System, a cookie is stored on your computer that merely contains the session ID (a session cookie). This cookie is only valid until the end of your session and expires when you close your browser.
It is possible to set up a secured postbox within the whistleblowing system with an individually chosen pseudonym/user name and password. This allows you to send reports to the respectively responsible FONDIUM employee either by name or in an anonymous, safe way. This system only stores data inside the whistleblowing system, which makes it particularly secure. It is not a form of regular email communication.
Note on sending attachments
When submitting a report or an addition, you can simultaneously send attachments to the responsible FONDIUM employee. If you wish to submit an anonymous report, please note the following security advice:
Files may contain hidden personal data that could jeopardise your anonymity. Please remove all such information before sending a file. If you are unable to remove such data or are uncertain about how to do so, copy the text of your attachment into your report text or send the printed document anonymously to the address listed in the footer, citing the reference number received at the end of the reporting process.
