Privacy Policy

1. Data Controller

The data controller responsible for this website under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is:

Full contact details are available in our Legal Notice (Impressum).

2. What Data We Collect

We do not collect any personally identifiable information directly. The data processed is limited to:

• Usage data — pages visited, time on page, referral source, browser type, device type, and approximate geographic location (country/city). This is collected automatically via Google Analytics, only if you have consented.
• Cookies — Google Analytics sets cookies in your browser to distinguish users and track sessions. See Section 5 for details.

We do not collect your name, email address, or any other directly identifying data unless you voluntarily submit it (e.g. via a contact form).

3. Legal Basis for Processing

We process data on the following legal bases under the GDPR:

• Consent (Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR) — for Google Analytics and non-essential cookies. Consent is collected via our cookie banner and can be withdrawn at any time.
• Legitimate interests (Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR) — for technically necessary functions required to operate the website.

4. Google Analytics

This site uses Google Analytics, a web analytics service provided by Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA (for EU users: Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland).

Google Analytics is only activated after you have accepted cookies via our cookie banner (Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR). Without your consent, no analytics cookies are set and no data is transmitted to Google.

Data transfer to the US: Google Analytics transfers data to servers in the United States. This transfer is carried out on the basis of Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) approved by the European Commission under Art. 46(2)(c) GDPR, and the EU–U.S. Data Privacy Framework (adequacy decision of 10 July 2023). For more information, see the Google Privacy Policy.

You can opt out of Google Analytics tracking at any time by declining cookies in our banner, or by installing the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on.

5. Cookies

Cookies are small text files placed on your device when you visit a website. We only set non-essential cookies (Google Analytics) after you have given consent.

You can control and delete cookies through your browser settings. Withdrawing consent via the cookie banner will prevent new analytics cookies from being set.

6. Affiliate Links

Some links on this site are affiliate links, labelled as “Ad” or “Affiliate Link”. If you click through and sign up or make a purchase, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

When affiliate networks process click data, this may involve the transfer of data (e.g. click IDs) to third parties, on the basis of Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR (legitimate interest in commission tracking). Please refer to the relevant affiliate network's privacy policy for details.

For full disclosure of how affiliate relationships affect our editorial content, see our Terms and Conditions.

7. Third-Party Links

This site contains links to external websites (the tools we review). We are not responsible for the privacy practices or content of those sites and encourage you to read their privacy policies.

8. Data Retention

Google Analytics data is retained for 14 months by default, after which it is automatically deleted. We do not maintain any personal databases of user information.

9. Your Rights (GDPR)

As a data subject under the GDPR, you have the following rights:

• Right of access (Art. 15) — you may request information about the personal data we hold about you.
• Right to rectification (Art. 16) — you may request correction of inaccurate data.
• Right to erasure (Art. 17) — you may request deletion of your data under certain conditions.
• Right to restriction of processing (Art. 18).
• Right to data portability (Art. 20).
• Right to object (Art. 21) — you may object to processing based on legitimate interests.
• Right to withdraw consent (Art. 7(3)) — you may withdraw any consent at any time via our cookie banner, with effect for the future.

Since we collect no directly identifying data ourselves, most requests will be directed to Google's privacy controls. To exercise your rights, contact us at the address in our Legal Notice.

10. Right to Lodge a Complaint

You have the right to lodge a complaint with a data protection supervisory authority. As this site is operated from Germany, the relevant authority is determined by the operator's federal state. A list of German supervisory authorities is available at the Federal Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information (BfDI).

11. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Changes will be posted on this page with an updated "Last updated" date. Continued use of the site after changes constitutes acceptance of the revised policy.

12. Contact

For any questions about this Privacy Policy, please contact us via the details listed in our Legal Notice.