Please note:

By registering or using the Pearls of Nature website you consent to the collection, use and transfer of your information under the terms of this privacy policy.

1 Introduction

When you visit and use the Pearls of Nature website, depending on the type of use, various items of information regarding your PC system, your personal details and your usage will be transmitted to Pearls of Nature.

In the privacy policy below we explain which items of information and personal data are concerned and how we use them. Please take the time to read it carefully.

In this privacy policy we use certain terms defined in our terms and conditions. These include the terms Pearls of Nature, Enquiry, Job, Quotation Procedure, User, Member, Membership Agreement, Customer, Bidder, Contractor, Fees for Use and so on. Rather than repeating the definitions in this privacy policy, when used in this privacy policy those terms will have the same meaning as in the terms and conditions.

The most important thing however at this point: Sensitive and responsible handling of your personal data is a fundamental part of a reliable customer-oriented business activity. Even at the data collection stage the principle of obtaining only what is necessary is very important. We collect and use personal data only insofar as absolutely necessary for using Pearls of Nature or implementing the contractual relationship, as prescribed by law, or as you allow us. We will not pass on any personal data to unauthorised third parties without your consent.

This privacy policy only applies if you enter the Pearls of Nature website directly. If you enter the Pearls of Nature site via external websites which are not offered by Pearls of Nature itself but by third parties, (e.g. via affiliated partners), this privacy policy does not apply. In such cases please contact the service provider concerned with regard to privacy policy matters.

2 What is personal data?

For the purposes of this policy Personal data is information about a living individual who can be identified from that data and any other data in the possession of, or likely came into the possession of, the data controller, which in this case is us.

3 Nature, scope and purpose of the data processing on Pearls of Nature

3.1
If you visit the Pearls of Nature website without prior registration or logging-in, we only gather the information necessary to allow you to open the web pages you have called up on your computer. We also acquire some data to improve the security and efficiency of Pearls of Nature and data that we are required to collect by law. The data collected for the purposes mentioned above include the IP address allocated to your computer, the name and URL of the file requested, and the time of the request. These allow identification, but are stored only for as long as we need them for technical purposes or for a special reason, e.g. to provide evidence of improper or illicit use or as required by law.
3.2
You do not have to register until you want to view or enter Enquiries via Pearls of Nature or participate in Quotation Procedures, or if you would like to take part in the competitions offered by Pearls of Nature. The system then asks for various data required to carry out the Quotation Procedures, for the Membership Agreement, or to participate in Quotation Procedures and/or competitions (for example to determine the winner and send the prize). Such data includes your name, address and contact information. We also store a member profile and payment information for paying the Fees for Use. Finally, details of the type and content of the Quotation Procedures in which you have participated as the Customer or Bidder are stored. The mobile phone number collected during registration to verify the Member’s account is used exclusively for this purpose and not used for advertising purposes.
3.3
In addition, we ask Members who are service providers for copies of the appropriate documents to verify individual details entered in the Member's profile, namely (1) with regard to the name and address data, the identity card of the proprietor or the other contact, and (2) confirmation of registration as a company, where applicable, (e.g. certificate of incorporation) or the proof of self-employed status, plus copies of any diploma, or comparable certificates or qualifications and evidence of membership of any trade or professional societies or associations. These documents are stored in electronic form on Pearls of Nature for the duration of the Membership.
3.4
To improve its services on the Internet, Pearls of Nature draws up anonymous User profiles. Identification of individual Users is then not possible. You can object to the use of your data in this way at any time.
Top of Page

4 Cookies

4.1
A cookie is a text file which a website or a web server sends to your browser to store on your system. It recognises your PC system, but not you personally.
4.2
Pearls of Nature uses session cookies to recognise Members who have logged-in previously when they move around on the website. The only information stored in these cookies is that which enables us to detect whether your PC system is logged-in to Pearls of Nature, and with which user name. This saves you from having to enter your log-in data repeatedly when using Pearls of Nature. We also store the log-in data as a permanent cookie, so that Pearls of Nature will recognise your PC again, even after the browser has been shut down for a time, and allow you to access certain Pearls of Nature functions without logging-in again (but submitting Quotations and other functions will or may require a new log-in). You can however easily block this permanent cookie when logging-in. Finally, we place a permanent cookie which only records whether there is a pop-up blocker installed on your PC, so that Pearls of Nature will operate correctly.
4.3
You can adjust your browser to tell you in advance when you receive a cookie, so that you can block the cookie if you want to. You can also completely block cookies via your browser. This may however mean that some pages of Pearls of Nature will either not operate, or will only operate in a restricted manner.
4.4
When you log-off completely from Pearls of Nature or, if you have not accessed anything else after logging in, when you close the browser, the session cookies we have set are automatically deleted by your web browser, depending on its settings. The permanent cookies only work for one month, after which time they will be automatically deleted or become inactive.

5 Passing on personal data to third parties / checking your address and creditworthiness

5.1
We will use your personal data ourselves or through associated firms only in sofar as necessary to provide services on the internet, and to implement the Membership Agreement or as otherwise allowed by law.
5.2
In addition to this, individual personal data is sent to third parties where necessary to carry out the Jobs placed via Pearls of Nature and to enable Members to make use of Pearls of Nature in accordance with the Membership Agreement. This includes sending the contact data to the other contracting party when a Job is placed, so the Bidder's contact data is sent to the Customer and the Customer's contact data is sent to the successful Bidder and the persons or firms who provide individual parts or functions of the Pearls of Nature services on the internet, e.g. conducting payment transactions. Without this information being provided, Jobs placed on Pearls of Nature could not be carried out, as participants would not be able to contact each other. Content placed on Pearls of Nature, particularly Jobs including the description and the associated diagrams or other documents entered by the Customer, in the context of cooperation, (e.g. the Pearls of Nature partner programme) are also published on third party websites via the Internet. The data transferred in this case is the content, which can also be called up publicly on Pearls of Nature; the data placed in the Member’s account or other personal data is not divulged.
5.3
A Pearls of Nature User is only allowed to use the personal information communicated to him exclusively for the purpose of carrying out the Job.
5.4
To verify address data entered or to check the creditworthiness of our Users we also reserve the right to obtain information on the User through third parties. For this purpose, the information collected during registration including the name of the individual or the business, address and date of birth, if appropriate, are sent to a business credit agency or other credit reference agency to check the address and creditworthiness of the user in question. The credit agency is also required to protect the data. In the event of any breach of contract (e.g. termination for failure to pay, debt recovery proceedings or enforcing a judgment), we may also send personal data to the credit reference agency. In such case the data will only be transferred and stored to the extent necessary to protect our interests or the interests of the general public and providing that the User's interests which should be protected are not harmed. The User shall be expressly informed of the intended recipient of the data before it is transferred.

6 Consent / Withdrawal of consent

6.1
6.1 On granting your consent in the context of registration on Pearls of Nature you make the following declaration:
6.1.1
"I consent to Pearls of Nature collecting, using and communicating my personal data to third parties according to the above privacy policy. This applies accordingly whether or not we have entered into a Membership Agreement.
6.1.2
I consent to Pearls of Nature making content which I have drawn up, such as descriptions of Jobs, Member ratings, entries to a forum, Enquiries or bids, publicly accessible.
6.1.3
I consent to Pearls of Nature using my personal data for its own marketing purposes (newsletter, vouchers, advertising, etc.) and for the purposes of quality assurance and improving the Pearls of Nature service. Use for quality assurance and improvement purposes includes storing information on errors and problems which I encounter when using Pearls of Nature in order to resolve them. When they have been successfully resolved the information shall be deleted or anonymised.
6.1.4
I consent to Pearls of Nature contacting me by e-mail, telephone or by other methods for quality assurance and market research purposes and in particular for User surveys. However if this is entrusted to a third party, then before my contact data is passed on, my express consent to this shall be obtained, which I can refuse without stating reasons. If I refuse my consent, my contact data shall not be passed on to the third party."
6.2
You can withdraw the consent granted above for processing your data at any time with future effect. In addition you have a right, free of charge, to information about, correction or blocking of, and if appropriate deletion of, your stored data. Insofar as you voluntarily supplied the data and it is no longer needed to carry out Quotation Procedures or to implement the Membership Agreement or anything else, you can delete it yourself via your Membership account. In sofar as it concerns information necessary to use Pearls of Nature, this can only be deleted when the Membership Agreement is terminated as set out in our terms and conditions. For cancellation or other queries on deleting your data please contact us.

7 Data Protection officer and the right to information

7.1
Please direct further questions on privacy policy matters to the Pearls of Nature company data protection officer whose name and contact details appear in the Company Details.