Cookie Policy
We, Teststar GmbH, use the following cookies in connection with our platform: www.teststar.com own and third-party cookies. Cookies are small text files that are stored on the device used when you visit our platform (e.g. computer, tablet, smartphone) and store different information depending on the type of cookie, such as login status, device information, IP addresses, websites visited). On our platform we differentiate between
- Strictly Necessary Cookies
- statistics cookies
- marketing cookies
We ask for your prior consent to integrate cookies that are not absolutely necessary. You can decide for yourself at any time which types of cookies and similar technologies we use. You can make your personal settings here.
1st category: strictly necessary cookies
Strictly necessary cookies ensure functionality without which you cannot use our platform as intended. These cookies are necessary to operate our platform and pursue our business purposes.
Your consent is not required for the use of strictly necessary cookies.
Strictly necessary cookies cannot be deactivated via our cookie settings. You can generally deactivate cookies in your browser at any time.
1. Description of strictly necessary cookies used:
We use our own strictly necessary cookies to ensure the ability to navigate the platform or access secure areas of our platform.
We also use cookies in the "strictly necessary" category to recognize whether you want to remain logged into your profile for a limited period of time or whether you have agreed to receive push notifications (see Section IV).
A distinction is made between so-called permanent cookies and temporary session cookies. Session cookies are stored for the duration of a browser session and are deleted when the browser is closed. Permanent cookies are not deleted when the respective browser session is closed, but are stored on the user's device for a longer period of at least one year.
The legal basis for the processing of information collected by means of strictly necessary cookies is Art. 6(1)(f) UK GDPR to protect our legitimate interests (pursuing our business purposes, ensuring the stability and security of our platform; providing our platform). This also applies to users in Australia, in line with the Australian Privacy Act 1988 and APP 6, which allow the processing of personal information when it is necessary for the organisation’s legitimate functions or activities and where individuals would reasonably expect such processing.
2. Description of integrated third-party services that use strictly necessary cookies:
a) Google Recaptcha
In connection with your registration, we use the cookie-based service reCAPTCHA to prevent automatic registrations and to detect bots. The provider of this service is Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA.
The service includes sending the IP address and, if applicable, other data required by Google for the reCAPTCHA service to Google. The integration of reCAPTCHA is based on our legitimate interests in determining individual responsibility on the Internet and preventing misuse and spam (Art. 6(1)(f) UK GDPR). This also applies to users in Australia, in line with the Australian Privacy Act 1988 and APP 6, which allow the processing of personal information when it is necessary for the organisation’s legitimate functions or activities including preventing misuse and ensuring the security of the platform.
To the extent that personal data is processed by Google LLC in the USA as part of the integration of reCAPTCHA, Google LLC has certified itself for the so-called Privacy Shield in order to ensure an appropriate level of data protection during processing.
For more information about Google reCAPTCHA and Google’s privacy policy, please visit the following links: https://www.google.com/intl/de/policies/privacy/, and https://www.google.com/recaptcha/intro/android.html.
2nd category: Statistics
We use so-called statistical cookies as part of integrated services and functions from third-party providers in order to better understand the use of our platform and to further develop our offering. With the help of these cookies, we can, for example, determine the number of visitors and interest in certain services on our platform and optimize our content.
1. Description of integrated services that use statistical cookies:
a) Google Analytics
We have integrated the web analysis service Google Analytics from Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA ("Google") on our platform. Google Analytics uses so-called "cookies", text files that are stored on the device you use (e.g. computer) and that enable an analysis of your use of the platform. The information generated by the Google Analytics cookie about your use of the website is usually transferred to a Google server in the USA and stored there. On this website, Google Analytics has been extended by the code "gat._anonymizeIp();" to ensure anonymous collection of IP addresses (so-called IP masking). This means that your IP address is shortened in advance by Google within the EU member states or other member states or the European Economic Area.
The full IP address will only be transmitted to a Google server in the USA in exceptional cases and then shortened there. Google will use this information to evaluate your use of the website, to compile reports on website activity for website operators and to provide other services related to website activity and internet usage.
The IP address transmitted by your browser as part of Google Analytics will not be associated with any other data stored by Google. You can prevent the collection of data generated by the Google Analytics cookie relating to your use of the website (including your IP address) and the processing of this data by Google by downloading and installing the browser plug-in available under the following link: http://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout?hl=de
You can also prevent Google Analytics from collecting data by clicking on the following link. An opt-out cookie will be set that prevents future collection of your data when you visit this platform:
Further information on terms of use and data protection can be found at http://www.google.com/analytics/terms/de.html or at https://www.google.de/intl/de/policies/.
To the extent that personal data is processed in the USA by the parent company Google LLC as part of the integration of Google Analytics, Google LLC has certified itself for the so-called Privacy Shield in order to ensure an appropriate level of data protection during processing.
We only use statistical cookies, such as those from the third-party provider Google, with your prior consent. You can make or change your decision at any time in your cookie settings.
If you give your consent, the data collected via cookies will be processed on the basis of our legitimate interests in understanding and evaluating how our website is used (Art. 6(1)(f) UK GDPR). This also applies to users in Australia, in line with the Australian Privacy Act 1988 and APP 6, which permit the processing of personal information for the organisation’s legitimate functions or activities, including understanding user behavior and optimizing services.
The Google statistics cookies are stored for a period of two months.
b) Trustpilot
We have integrated a mini-application of the feedback system from Trustpilot (Trustpilot A/S, Pilestræde 58, 5, 1112 Copenhagen, Denmark) on our platform.
If you visit a subpage of our platform on which this mini-application (widget) is integrated, Trustpilot collects and stores information using cookies that you have accessed the corresponding subpage of our platform. In addition, other metadata (e.g. device information, IP address) is transmitted directly from your internet browser to Trustpilot and processed. The processing of this data is subject to TrustPilot's own data protection regulations.
We only use statistical cookies, such as those from the third-party provider Trustpilot, with your prior consent. You can make or change your decision at any time in your cookie settings.
The Trustpilot statistics cookies are stored for a period of one (1) year.
3rd category: Marketing
We would also like to recognize visitors and members of our platform on third-party websites and platforms and draw your attention to our attractive offers and advertisements on external websites. To make this possible, we have integrated third-party marketing technologies on our platform (so-called remarketing and retargeting). These remarketing and retargeting technologies are based on third-party cookies or tracking pixels (hereinafter referred to as "marketing cookies") and collect information about your usage behavior in connection with our platform and our advertisements on external websites. We use this information to
- measure the success of our advertising activities;
- to control interest-based and behavioral advertising on external websites;
- to prevent our advertising from being shown to you multiple times.
We only use all marketing cookies from the third-party providers responsible below (e.g. Google, Facebook, Snapchat) for the aforementioned purposes with your prior consent. You can make or change your decision at any time in your cookie settings.
1. Description of integrated services that use marketing cookies:
a) ayeT-Studios
We use the “Conversion Pixel” ayeT Studios GmbH, Lister Pl. 2, 30163 Hannover (“ayeT Studios”) on our platform.
If you access our platform via an advertising campaign managed by ayeT Studios, ayeT Studis places a so-called conversion pixel on your device.
This allows the behavior of users to be tracked after they have been redirected to our platform by clicking on the advertising campaign. The information collected using pixels is not used to identify you personally, but rather helps us with the statistical analysis and optimization of the use of our platform.
Further information on data protection at ayeT Studios can be found here:
https://www.ayetstudios.com/privacy-policy
This marketing cookie is stored for a period of one (1) year.
b) Bing Ads
We use the conversion and tracking tool “Bing Ads” on our platform, a service of Microsoft Corporation, One Microsoft Way, Redmond, WA 98052-6399, USA (“Microsoft”).
If users have accessed our platform via a Bing Ads (advertisement), Microsoft stores cookies on the users' devices to enable an analysis of the use of our platform by users (so-called "conversion measurement"). Microsoft and we can thus recognize that a user has clicked on an ad, was redirected to our platform and reached a previously determined landing page (conversion page). We only learn the total number of users who clicked on a Bing ad and were then redirected to the conversion page. No IP addresses are stored. No personal information about the identity of the users is disclosed.
In addition to our cookie settings, you can use the Microsoft opt-out page (http://choice.microsoft.com/de-DE/opt-out) contradict the tracking process of Bing Ads.
This marketing cookie is stored for a period of one (1) year.
Users can find further information on data protection and the cookies used by Microsoft Bing Ads in Microsoft’s privacy policy: https://privacy.microsoft.com/de-de/privacystatement.
c) belboon
We also use the affiliate advertising network of belboon (belboon GmbH, Weinmeisterstr. 12-14, 10178 Berlin) on our platform. The conversion tracking pixel of belboon is used as part of this.
If you have accessed our platform via an advertising medium from this affiliate advertising network, a cookie will be set. This cookie serves the sole purpose of correctly allocating the success of an advertising medium and the corresponding billing within the advertising network. A cookie stores
only the information about when a certain advertising medium was clicked on from a device is placed. In the tracking cookies, an individual sequence of numbers that cannot be assigned to the individual user is stored and the time of the user's action (click or view) is documented.
The corresponding affiliate advertising network also collects information about the end device from which an action (e.g. registration on the platform) is carried out, e.g. the IP address, the operating system and the browser used.
This marketing cookie is stored for a period of one (1) year.
Further information on data protection at belboon can be found here: https://www.belboon.com/de/ueber-us/datenschutz/
d) Facebook Pixel and Website Custom Audiences
We also use the remarketing function “Custom Audiences” from Facebook Inc. (“Facebook”) on our platform. This allows users of the platform to be shown interest-based advertisements (“Facebook Ads”) when they visit the social network Facebook or other websites that also use the process. Our interest is to show you advertisements that are of interest to you in order to make our platform more interesting for you. Your browser automatically establishes a direct connection to the Facebook server. We have no influence on the scope and further use of the data collected by Facebook through the use of this tool and therefore inform you according to our level of knowledge: By integrating Facebook Custom Audiences, Facebook receives the information that you have accessed the corresponding web page on our website or clicked on an ad from us. If you are registered with a Facebook service, Facebook can assign the visit to your account. Even if you are not registered with Facebook or have not logged in, there is a possibility that the provider will find out and save your IP address and other identification features.
In addition to our cookie settings, as a logged-in Facebook user you can use the “Facebook Custom Audiences” function at https://www.facebook.com/settings/?tab=ads#_ deactivate.
This marketing cookie is stored for a period of one (1) year.
Further information on data processing by Facebook can be found at https://www.facebook.com/about/privacy.
e) Facebook social media plug-ins
We have integrated the so-called "Like" button from the provider Facebook on our platform. You can use the "Like" button to tell other users of the social network "Facebook" that you have visited and recommended our platform.
If you access a page with an integrated Facebook plug-in, your IP address and the information that you have visited this page will be sent to Facebook. If you are logged into your Facebook account while visiting our platform, Facebook will also link your visit to the platform to your Facebook account. This allows Facebook to associate your visit to our platform with your Facebook account. You can log out of Facebook before visiting our platform if you do not want Facebook to associate the data collected via our website with your Facebook profile.
This marketing cookie is stored for a period of one (1) year.
For further information, please see Facebook’s privacy policy: http://www.facebook.com/policy.php.
f) Google Ads Conversion
Our platform also uses so-called "conversion tracking" from Google Ads (formerly Google Adwords) to draw attention to our offers and services using advertising materials (so-called Google Ads) on external websites. If you click on an ad from the Google advertising network, a cookie is stored on your device. The analysis values for this cookie usually include the unique cookie ID, number of ad impressions per placement (frequency), last impression (relevant for post-view conversions) and opt-out information (marking that the user no longer wishes to be contacted). This cookie expires after 30 days and does not contain any personal data. If you visit certain websites within these 30 days, Google recognizes that you have clicked on an ad and that you have then been redirected to our platform. Each Google Ads customer is assigned a different cookie. Cookies cannot therefore be tracked via the websites of Google Ads customers. We ourselves do not collect or process any personal data in the advertising measures mentioned. We only receive statistical evaluations from Google. Based on these evaluations, we can see which of the advertising measures used are particularly effective. We do not receive any further data from the use of advertising materials, and in particular we cannot identify users based on this information. The information collected using the cookie is used to create statistical evaluations for Google Ads customers. Google Ads customers can use this to find out the total number of users who were redirected to their website via advertisements. Due to the marketing tools used, your browser automatically establishes a direct connection to the Google server. We have no influence on the scope and further use of the data collected by Google through the use of this tool and therefore inform you according to our level of knowledge: By integrating Google Ads Conversion, Google receives the information that you have accessed the corresponding part of our website or clicked on one of our advertisements. If you are registered with a Google service, Google can assign the visit to your account. Even if you are not registered with Google or have not logged in, there is a possibility that the provider will find out and save your IP address. In addition to our cookie settings, you can prevent participation in this tracking process by deactivating the cookie for Google Ads Conversion Tracking at https://www.google.de/settings/ads deactivate.
Further information on data protection at Google can be found here: http://www.google.com/intl/de/policies/privacy Google has submitted to the EU-US Privacy Shield, https://www.privacyshield.gov/EU-US-Framework.
g) Pinterest
In order to better understand user behavior on our platform and to make our services more tailored to your interests, we use components of the social network "Pinterest" (Pinterest Inc., 808 Brannan St., San Francisco, CA 94103, USA) on our platform.
With the help of the Pinterest pixel, we can track the effectiveness of our advertisements for statistical and market research purposes by seeing whether users were redirected to our platform after clicking on one of our advertisements in the Pinterest social network (so-called “conversion”).
This marketing cookie is stored for a period of one (1) year.
Further information on data protection at Pinterest can be found here:
https://policy.pinterest.com/de/privacy-policy
h) Reddit Conversion Tracking
We use the “Reddit Conversion Pixel” of Reddit Inc., 520 Third Street, Suite 305, San Francisco, CA 94107, United States (“Reddit”) on our platform.
If you access our platform via a Reddit advertisement, Reddit places a so-called conversion cookie on your device.
The information obtained through Reddit conversion cookies is used to create conversion statistics for us. This tells us the total number of users who responded to our ad and were then redirected to our platform, which was provided with a Reddit pixel. This cookie does not serve to identify you personally, but helps us with the statistical analysis and optimization of the use of our platform.
This marketing cookie is stored for a period of one (1) year.
Further information on privacy at Reddit can be found here:
https://www.reddit.com/help/privacypolicy/
i) Snap Pixel and Website Custom Audience
For the purpose of analyzing and optimizing our platform and services, we use the so-called "Snap Pixel" of the social network Snapchat, which is operated by Snap Inc., Market Street, Venice, CA 90291, USA ("Snapchat").
With the help of the Snap pixel, Snapchat is able to determine the visitors to our platform as a target group for the display of advertisements (so-called "Snapchat ads"). Accordingly, we use the Snapchat pixel to only display the Snapchat ads we place to those Snapchat users who have also shown an interest in our platform or who have certain characteristics (e.g. interests in certain topics or products that are determined based on the websites visited) that we transmit to Snapchat (so-called "custom audiences").
With the help of the Snap Pixel, we also want to ensure that our Snapchat ads correspond to the potential interests of users and do not appear annoying. With the help of the Snap Pixel, we can also track the effectiveness of Snapchat ads for statistical and market research purposes by seeing whether users were redirected to our platform after clicking on a Snapchat ad (so-called "conversion").
This marketing cookie is stored for a period of one (1) year.
Snapchat processes the data in accordance with Snapchat's data usage policy. Accordingly, general information on the display of Snapchat ads can be found in Snapchat's data usage policy: https://www.snap.com/en-US/privacy/privacy-center/.
j) Taboola
In order to improve the user-friendliness of our platform, we use the so-called "Taboola pixel" on our platform, which is operated by Taboola, Inc., 1115 Broadway, 7th Floor, New York, NY 10010, USA ("Taboola").
Using the Taboola pixel, Taboola collects user information about visitors to our platform (device-related data and log data) and uses this to create pseudonymous user profiles that enable us to provide visitors with individual recommendations for content and ads based on surfing behavior and visitor interests. The usage profiles are created using pseudonyms; according to Taboola, they are not merged with the data about the bearer of the pseudonym.
This marketing cookie is stored for a period of one (1) year.
In addition to our cookie settings, you can object to the collection by the Taboola pixel and the use of your data for the above purposes at any time. Taboola provides a direct objection option for this, which you can access under the following link in the section "Users' options for choice and objection ("Opt Out")" under the following link:
https://www.taboola.com/privacy-policy#user-choices-and-optout
For more information about Taboola, please visit https://www.taboola.com/privacy-policy.
k) Twitter Pixel and Website Custom Audiences
For the purpose of analyzing and optimizing our platform and services, we use the so-called "Twitter Pixel" of the social network Twitter Inc., 1355 Market Street, Suite 900, San Francisco, CA 94103, USA ("Twitter").
We use Twitter’s services to better understand user behavior on our platform and to make our services more tailored to users’ interests.
Accordingly, we use the Twitter pixel to only show our advertising on the social network Twitter to those users who have also shown an interest in our platform or who have certain characteristics (e.g. interests in certain topics or products determined based on the websites visited) that we transmit to Twitter (so-called “custom audiences”).
With the help of the Twitter pixel, we can also track the effectiveness of our advertisements for statistical and market research purposes by seeing whether users were redirected to our platform after clicking on an advertisement (so-called “conversion”).
This marketing cookie is stored for a period of one (1) year.
Further information on data protection at Twitter can be found here:
https://twitter.com/de/privacy.
l) YouTube
We have embedded YouTube videos on our platform that are stored on www.youtube.com and can be played directly from our platform. YouTube is a service provided by Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA ("Google").
If you visit a subpage of our platform that includes YouTube videos, Google uses cookies to collect information about the fact that you have accessed the corresponding subpage of our platform. In addition, other metadata (e.g. device information, IP address) is transmitted directly to Google and processed. The processing of this data is subject to Google's own data protection regulations.
You can find Google’s privacy policy here: https://www.google.com/policies/privacy/.
For further information please visit https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/2801895?hl=en.
The marketing cookies are stored for a period of one (1) year.