Data protection information
We 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. In the following, we would like to inform you about the collection, processing and use of personal data within the framework of the whistleblowing system. Please read this data protection information carefully before submitting a report.
Purpose and legal foundation of the whistleblowing system
The whistleblowing system (BKMS® System) serves to receive, process and manage reports of violations of statutory requirements and compliance rules of SMS group via a secure and confidential channel.
The processing of personal data within the framework of the BKMS® System is based on the legitimate interest (Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR) of our company in discovering and preventing harm to SMS group, its employees and business partners.
If a received report concerns an employee of SMS group, the processing also serves to prevent criminal acts or other infringements in connection with the employment relationship (Section 26 para. 1 German Federal Data Protection Act (BDSG)).
Responsible party
The party responsible for data protection in the whistleblowing system is SMS group, Compliance, Wiesenstraße 30 57271 Hilchenbach, Germany.
The whistleblowing system is operated by a specialised company, EQS Group GmbH, Bayreuther Str. 35, 10789 Berlin in Germany, on behalf of SMS group.
Personal data and information entered into the whistleblowing system are stored in a database operated by EQS Group GmbH in a high-security data centre. Only SMS group has access to the data. EQS Group GmbH and other third parties do not have access to the data. This is ensured by extensive technical and organisational measures within the certified process.
All data are encrypted and saved with multi-level password protection, so that access is limited to a very small number of explicitly authorised recipients at SMS group.
SMS group GmbH has appointed a data protection officer. Questions about data protection can be sent to SMS group GmbH, Eduard-Schloemann-Strasse 4, 40237 Duesseldorf, Germany, with subject “Data protection” or to dataprotection(at)sms-group.com.
Type of collected personal data
Use of the whistleblowing system is voluntary. When you wish to submit a report using the whistleblowing system, we collect the following personal data and information:
- Your name, if your choose to reveal your identity
- Whether you work at SMS group
- Potentially names of people or other personal data of people mentioned in the report.
Confidential handling of reports
Incoming reports are received and processed in a strictly confidential manner by a small circle of explicitly authorised and specially trained employees of the compliance organisation of SMS group. The employees of the compliance organisation of SMS group evaluate the matter and perform any further investigation required by the specific case. If a corresponding legal obligation exists or it is required by data protection law for investigation of the report, other conceivable categories of recipients include criminal justice authorities, anti-trust authorities, other administrative authorities and courts as well as international law offices and auditing firms hired by SMS group.
In the case of deliberate submission of false reports with the intent of discrediting an individual (denunciation), confidentiality cannot be guaranteed.
While processing a report or conducting a special investigation, it may be necessary to share reports with additional employees of SMS group or employees of other group companies, e.g. if the reports refer to incidents in subsidiaries. The latter may be based in countries outside the European Union or the European Economic Area with different regulations about the protection of personal data. We will 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
In certain cases, we are legally obligated to inform accused parties of the accusations made against them. This is legally required in cases in which it is objectively established that sharing of this information with the accused will definitely no longer impede the concrete investigation of the report. Insofar as legally possible, your identity will not be disclosed in this process, and it will be additionally ensured that no conclusions concerning your identity are possible.
Rights of the data subjects
Pursuant to European data protection legislation, you and the persons named in the report have a right of access, rectification, erasure, restriction of processing and right of objection to processing of your personal data. If the right to object to the processing of the personal data is invoked, the necessity of the stored data for the examination of a report will be evaluated immediately. Data that are no longer needed will be deleted at once.
To take advantage of your rights as a data subject, please contact compliance@sms-group.com
You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the supervisory authority.
Retention period of personal data
Personal data are 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 processing of the report is finished, the data are deleted in accordance with the corresponding statutory requirements.
Use of the whistleblowing system
The communication between your computer and the whistleblowing system takes place through an SSL-encrypted connection. Your IP address will not be stored during your use of the whistleblowing system. In order to maintain the connection between your computer and the BKMS® System, a cookie is stored on your computer that contains only the session ID (a so-called session cookie). The cookie is only valid until the end of your session and expires when you close your browser.
You can set up a secured postbox with your pseudonym/user name and password of choice in the whistleblowing system. This allows you to send reports to the respectively responsible employee of SMS group 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 e-mail communication.
Note on sending attachments
During the report submission or when submitting additional information, you can send attachments to the responsible employee of SMS group. If you wish to submit an anonymous report, please take note of the following security advice: files can contain hidden personal data that could put your anonymity at risk. Remove such data before sending. If you are unable to remove these 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.
Version: July 2020