Scientific American Privacy Policy changes — 20200801_rev01

183

223

_\- Geographic location_

184

224

185

225

_\- Time of visit_

186

226

187

227

_\- Referring site, application, or service_

188

228

189

We use the information we get from the providers only to determine the most useful information you are looking for, and to improve and optimize this website. We do not combine the information collected through the use of the tools with personal data.

229

We use the information we get from the providers only to determine the most useful information you are looking for, and to improve and optimize this website.

190

230

231

If you do not express a preference regarding tracking we will track your behaviour online for the purposes described above; this data will not be shared outside of SpringerNature. You can stop this tracking using our Privacy Preference Centre. The legal basis for this processing via Google Analytics is Art. 6 sec. 1 sent. 1 lit.f GDPR and represents our legitimate interest to analyse our website's traffic to improve the user's experience and to optimise the website in general.

232

233

We do not share information on your web behaviour with any 3rd party providers without your explicit consent. Consent is provided by clicking the appropriate button on the web banner that appears on your first visit to the website. You can update or withdraw your consent by visiting our Privacy Preference Centre. The legal basis for this processing is Art. 6 sec. 1 sent. 1 lit. a GDPR and represents you consent to accepting 3rd party targeting cookies.

234

191

235

Depending on the provider the information generated about your use of the website may be transferred to and processed in third countries, e.g. the United States. For further information about the potential risks of a cross border data transfer please refer to section XI. The tools collect only the IP address assigned to you on the date you visit this site, rather than your name or any other identifying information. The provider will use this information in order to evaluate your use of the website, to compile reports on website activities and to provide other services relating to website and internet use to us.

192

236

193

The legal basis for this processing is Art. 6 sec. 1 sent. 1 lit. f GDPR and represents our legitimate interest to analyze our website's traffic to improve the user's experience and to optimize the website in general_._

237

**Google Analytics**

194

238

195

**Google Analytics / Google Tag Manager**

239

The legal basis for the data transfer is Art. 28 GDPR in conjunction with the data processing agreement.

196

240

197

We have activated the IP-anonymization within the Google Analytics service, and your IP address will be truncated within the area of member states of the European Union or other parties to the Agreement on the European Economic Area. Only in exceptional cases the whole IP address will be first transferred to a Google server in the USA and truncated there. The IP-address your browser conveys within the scope of Google Analytics will not be associated with any other data held by Google.

241

You may refuse the use of cookies by selecting the appropriate settings on your browser or by amending your preferences. In addition to that you may prevent the collection of the information generated by the cookie about your use of the website (including you IP address) and the processing of this data by Google if you download and install the browser

242

plug-in available at the following link: http://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout

198

243

199

You may refuse the use of cookies by selecting the appropriate settings on your browser; however please note that if you do this you may not be able to use the full functionality of this website. In addition to that you may prevent the collection of the information generated by the cookie about your use of the website (including you IP address) and the processing of this data by Google if you download and install the browser plug-in available at the following link: [http://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout](http://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout)

244

**IX. Third party content, social media plugins**

200

245

201

_\- Pseudonymous: IP Address_

246

1\. Social Media plug-ins

202

247

203

You can use the scientificamerican.com cookie banner, or your browser, to manage your cookie settings and opt out of these cookies at any time.

248

We use the following social media plug-ins: Facebook, Twitter. This allows you to communicate with such services and like or comment from our website. Social media plug-ins enable a direct communication between your device and the servers of the social media provider, allowing the social media provider to communicate with you and collect information about you browsing our website. This processing is based on Article 6 sec. 1 sent. 1 lit. f GDPR and represents our legitimate interest to improve your website experience and to optimise our services.

204

249

205

IX. Third party content, social media plugins, and Do Not Track

250

Transfer of personal data takes place whether you have an account with the provider or not.

206

251

207

1\. Links to third party websites

252

Please note that we neither have the control of the extent of personal data that is collected by the respective plug-in provider nor do we know the processing's purpose or the period your personal data will be retained.

208

253

209

This website may contain links to third party websites. We are not responsible for the content and the data collection on respective third party websites; please check the privacy policy of respective websites for information of respective websites' data processing activities.

254

Further information about the processing of your personal data in the provider's course of operation is provided via their respective privacy policy. Moreover, you will be provided with further information with regard to your rights and setting concerning privacy.

210

255

211

2\. Social media plugins

256

a. Facebook Social plugins

212

257

213

Our website may use social media plugins to enable you to easily share information with others. When you visit our website, the operator of the social media plugin that is on our website can place a cookie on your computer that lets that operator recognize individuals on their website who have previously visited our website. If you have previously logged into the social media website while browsing on our website, social media plugins may allow that social media website to receive directly identifiable information about you that shows you have visited our website. The social media plugin may collect this information for visitors who have logged into social networks, whether or not they specifically interact with the plugin on our website. Social media plugins also allow the social media website to share information about your activities on our website with other users of their social media website. We do not control any of the content from social media plugins. For more information about social plugins from social media websites, you should refer to those websites' privacy and data sharing statements.

258

We use so-called social plugins ("plugins") of the social networking site facebook.com provided by Facebook Inc., 1601 S. California Ave, Palo Alto, CA 94304, USA ("Facebook"). The plugins can be identified by one of Facebook's logos (white "f" on blue tile or a "thumps-up"-sign) or by the additional text "Facebook Social Plugin". The list of Facebook Social Plugins and their appearance can be accessed via: http://developers.facebook.com/plugins.

214

259

215

3\. Do Not Track

260

If a user visits one of the websites using such a plugin, the user's browser directly connects to Facebook's servers. The plugin and its content are made available directly on Facebook's servers and included in the website by the user's browser.

216

261

262

Due to the integration of the plugin Facebook collects the information that a user is visiting the corresponding website. If the user is logged in on Facebook at the moment he or she visits the website, Facebook may be able to connect the visit on the website to the user's Facebook account. If the user interacts with the plugin - for example if he or she presses the like button or comments on something - the user's browser transmits this information to Facebook. Facebook stores this information. If a user is not a member of Facebook, Facebook may collect and store the user's IP-address. Facebook states that it only collects anonymized IP-addresses in Germany.

263

264

The reason for and scope of the data acquisition and information about the way in which the data is processed and used by Facebook, as well as the user's rights in this respect and settings options for protecting the users privacy can be found under: http://www.facebook.com/policy.php.

265

266

If the user is a member of Facebook and does not wish Facebook to collect personal data via this homepage and to link this with his data stored on Facebook, the user needs to log off from Facebook before going to this homepage.

267

The user may also block Facebook's plugins using add-ons for the user's browser, for example the "Facebook Blocker".

268

269

b. Twitter

270

271

We use the twitter-button. The button is provided by Twitter Inc., 795 Folsom St., Suite 600, San Francisco, CA 94107, USA. ("Twitter") The buttons are marked using the text "Twitter" or "Follow" and a stylized blue bird. The button enables the user to share an article or a website of this homepage on Twitter or to follow the provider on Twitter.

272

273

If a user visits one of the websites using such a button, the user's browser directly connects to Twitter's servers. The Twitter-button and its content are loaded directly from Twitter's servers and included in the website by

274

the user's browser. According to the provider's knowledge, Twitter collects the user IP-address and the website's URL when the button is loaded from Twitter's servers. However, this data is only be used for loading and displaying the Twitter-button.

275

276

Further information can be found in Twitter's privacy statement under: [https://twitter.com/privacy](https://twitter.com/privacy).

277

278

Should you have any questions regarding our privacy policy, please contact us via the email address [dataprotection@springernature.com](mailto:dataprotection@springernature.com).

279

280

2\. Do Not Track

281

217

282

There are different ways you can prevent tracking of your online activity. One of them is setting a preference in your browser that alerts websites you visit that you do not want them to collect certain information about you. This is referred to as a Do-Not-Track ("DNT") signal. Please note that currently our website does not respond to these DNT signals from web browsers. At this time, there is no universally accepted standard for what a company should do when a DNT signal is detected.

218

283

219

284

X. Information sharing

220

285

221

286

Where personal data is disclosed to third parties for the purposes mentioned above the legal basis for the transfer of your personal data is Article 6 sec. 1 sent. 1 lit. b and f GDPR. Some of the recipients may reside outside the EEA. For further information about cross border transfer in general and transfers outside of the EEA see section on Cross border data transfers.

222

287

+This policy was last updated on 01/07/2020.
 This is the privacy policy ("policy") for _scientificamerican.com_ which is run and provided by Springer Nature America, Inc. (**we**, **us** and **our**). Springer Nature America, Inc. (_Scientific American)_ is located at 1 New York Plaza New York, NY 10004_._ We can also be contacted at sadigital@sciam.com.
 We will only use the personal data gathered over this website as set out in this policy. Below you will find information on how we use your personal data, for which purposes your personal data is used, with whom it is shared and what control and information rights you may have.
 I. Summary of our processing activities
 _\- Administer your account;_
 _\- Communicate with you;_
 _\- (behavioral) Advertising and profiling_
+_\- Facilitate attendance of conference_
 _\- Provide access (where appropriate) to other Springer Nature group content if you so request_
 For this, the legal basis is Article 6 sec. 1 sent. 1 lit. b GDPR. The use of your personal data for behavioral advertising and profiling is done for the legitimate interest to improve your experience while using the website, Article 6 sec. 1 sent. 1 lit. f GDPR.
 We use the personal data and contact data you provide by registration to inform you directly about our additional products and services. The use of your personal data for directly advertising related products and services is a legitimate interest for us as a provider of this website, Article 6 sec. 1 sent. 1 lit. f GDPR.
 \. Web shop
 For the use of our web shop you have to set up an account as described under IV. Your customer account retains your personal data for future purchases. You can change your personal data in your account's settings. To delete your account, please contact customer service at help@sciam.com. If you have made a purchase with your account, your account cannot be deleted. However, we can render your account inoperable by removing your personal information, including your email address. We will not perform any action to your account without your expressed permission. This processing is based on Article 6 sec. 1 sent. 1 lit. b.
 By statutory law we are required to retain the provided financial data in relation to transactions (including address, payment and order information) for ten years. However, after 2 years we will restrict the processing of your personal data to comply with the statutory requirements and will not process the personal data any further. Regarding this, the retention of your personal data is based on Article 6 sec. 1 sent. 1 lit. c GDPR.
+\. Newsletters
+\. Article alerts and Newsletters
 With your email address you can subscribe to our newsletters that provide you with the latest news about our products and services if you consent to receiving such newsletters.
 You can further sign up for our newsletter via Facebook. For this purpose, we are using Facebook Lead Ads, a service by Facebook Inc., 1601 South California Avenue, Palo Alto, CA 94304 U.S. ("Facebook"). Lead Ads makes it even easier for you to sign up for our newsletter as the form will already be pre-populated via Facebook with your data and you only need to submit the form. Of course, you have the opportunity to amend and review the data before submission. For more information on how lead ads works see here - https://www.facebook.com/business/ads/lead-ads.
 The legal basis for this processing is Article 6 sec. 1 sent. 1 lit. a GDPR. Your email address will be retained as long as you subscribe to our newsletters.
+You can unsubscribe from this service by opting out via the link provided in each newsletter.
+You can unsubscribe from this service by opting out via the link provided in each newsletter. If you inquired about a product or service and no longer wish to be contacted, you can email [onlineservice@springernature.com](mailto:onlineservice@springernature.com), citing the name of the product or service, and request that your email address be removed.
+\. Nature Conferences
+Springer Nature America, Inc. ("SNAI") \[1 New York Plaza, Suite 4500, New York, NY 10004-1562, USA\] and for China, Macmillan Information Consulting Services (Shanghai Co. Ltd) \[10-11unit, 42 Floor, The Center,
+Changle Road, XuHui District, 200031 Shanghai, CHINA\], affiliates of Springer Nature Limited (together "Springer Nature entities"), collect personal data from attendees to Nature conferences to facilitate registration and plan for the events. This includes data categories such as: Identification data (which may include name, address, telephone number, email address), entity type (e.g. academic, government, industry), position titles, curriculum vitaes, professional license information, dietary requirements, gender, information for travel arrangements (i.e., passport data, date of birth) and payment information. We also request information relating to requirements for reasonable accommodation where physical assistance may be needed to attend. We may collect data through a third party vendor such as Eventsforce Solutions Ltd.
+Eventsforce act as a data processor on our behalf. The use of your personal data in relation to conference attendance is based on Article 6 sec. 1 sent. 1 lit. b GDPR and Art. 9 sec. 2 lit. a GDPR with regard to all health-related information you share with us in order to enable us to provide the required physical assistance to you.
+With the consent of attendees, we may use personal data, specifically identification data such as name and email address, to share information with attendees about future Nature conferences or other products, services and special offers. We'll continue to send you information and store your data until you ask us to be removed. This notification service is based on your consent, Article 6 sec. 1 sent. 1 lit. a GDPR.
 VI. Automated decision making
 We do not use your personal data for automated decision making which produces legal effects concerning you or similarly significantly affects you, however we do use your personal data to offer you content and services which we believe may be of interest.
+VII. Online advertising
+VII. Online advertising, e-commerce and related tools
 We present online advertising provided using the services of _Google DFP, Google AdExchange, Google AdSense, Sovrn OnScroll_. Respective advertisement is labelled as "ADVERTISEMENT" or "AdChoices". In order to do so, we collect statistical information about you that will be processed by _Salesforce DMP, Oracle MOAT, Google Analytics, Google DFP, Google AdExchange, Google AdSense, Sovrn OnScroll_. This processing is based on Article 6 sec. 1 sent. 1 lit. f GDPR and represents our legitimate interest to improve your website experience and to promote our products and services. The above providers will be automatically informed about your visit on our website. For such purpose, a web beacon is used to place a cookie on your computer.
 Please note that we neither have the control of the extent of personal data that is collected by the respective plug-in provider nor do we know the processing's purpose or the period your personal data will be retained. Your personal data will be transferred to and processed inside and outside of the EEA. For further information about the potential risks of a cross border data transfer refer to **XI.**
 It is possible that the above providers may disclose your personal data to its business partners, third parties or authorities.
 You can prevent the installation of such a cookie (i) by a respective setting of your browser that blocks the installation of third party cookies, (ii) by deactivating the interest-related advertising under https://adssettings.google.com/authenticated, (iii) generally blocking cookies under https://support.google.com/ads/answer/7395996 or (iv) by deselecting the option for tracking cookies via the Springer Nature cookie preference centre.
 Further information about the processing of your personal data in the provider's course of operation is provided by its privacy policy. Moreover, you will be provided with further information with regard to your rights and settings concerning privacy. You can access the provider's privacy policy by following these links:
+Google AdExchange - [https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en](https://policies.google.com/privacy)
+[Yahoo](https://policies.yahoo.com/xa/en/yahoo/privacy/index.htm)
+[Twitter](https://twitter.com/en/privacy)
+[Facebook](https://en-gb.facebook.com/policy.php)
+[Criteo](https://www.criteo.com/privacy/)
+[Google AdExchange](https://policies.google.com/privacy)
+[Google AdSense](https://policies.google.com/privacy)
+[Oracle MOAT](https://moat.com/privacy)
+[Google Ad Manager](https://policies.google.com/privacy)
+[Brightcom](https://www.brightcom.com/privacy-policy/)
+[Rubicon Project](https://rubiconproject.com/rubicon-project-advertising-technology-privacy-policy/)
+[Pubmatic](https://pubmatic.com/legal/privacy-policy/)
+[Appnexus](https://www.appnexus.com/fr/corporate-privacy-policy)
+[Permutive](https://permutive.com/privacy/)
+[Microsoft Bin Ads](https://about.ads.microsoft.com/en-gb/resources/policies/microsoft-advertising-privacy-policy)
+[Baynote](https://cop.evidon.com/companies/baynote)
+[CJ Affiliate](https://www.cj.com/legal/privacy-uk)
+[Hotjar](https://www.hotjar.com/legal/policies/privacy/)
+[Marvellous Machine](https://marvellousme.com/privacy-policy/)
+[SAP Marketing Cloud](https://www.sap.com/uk/about/legal/privacy.html)
+Google AdSense - [https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en](https://policies.google.com/privacy)
+Google AdWords Remarketing
+Sovrn OnScroll - [https://www.sovrn.com/privacy-policy-eu/](https://www.sovrn.com/privacy-policy-eu/)
+Salesforce DMP - [https://www.salesforce.com/products/marketing-cloud/sfmc/salesforce-dmp-privacy/](https://www.salesforce.com/products/marketing-cloud/sfmc/salesforce-dmp-privacy/)
+Oracle MOAT - [https://moat.com/privacy](https://moat.com/privacy)
+Google Analytics - [https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en](https://policies.google.com/privacy)
+Google DFP - [https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en](https://policies.google.com/privacy)
+Google AdWords Remarketing and Facebook Custom Audience
 In this website, we use the remarketing or "Similar audiences" feature of AdWords offered by Google Inc., 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043 USA, hereinafter referred to as "Google"
 Google uses cookies/tracking technologies, i.e., text files that are stored on your computer and that allow us to analyze your use of our website. Information generated by Cookies/tracking technology on your use of this website (including your IP address) will be transferred to a Google server in the U.S. and stored on that server. After that, the last three digits of the IP address will be deleted by Google so that it is no longer possible to clearly match this IP address with personal data. Google has obtained a Privacy Shield Certification and agreed to compliance with the Privacy Shield Treaty between the EU and the U.S. on the collection, use and storage of personal data from EU member states, as published by the U.S. Department of Commerce. Google will use this information to analyze your use of the website, to create website activity reports for the website operators and to provide additional services in connection with the use of the website and the internet. Furthermore, Google may transfer this information to third parties, if it is required to do so in accordance with statutory provisions or if third parties process data on behalf of Google.
 Third party providers, including Google, place advertisements on websites on the internet. Third party providers, including Google, use stored cookies/tracking information to place advertisements based on previous visits of a user on this website.
 - https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/6004245?hl=de
 - http://www.google.com/policies/technologies/ads/
 You may object to data collection and storage for the purpose of remarketing at any time - this objection will be effective for the future, but not retroactively - by deactivating interest-based advertising in Google or by deactivating the services on the website of the Network Advertising Initiative. Note: in that case, you may not be able to use all features of this website anymore. By using this website, you grant your consent to the processing of data collected about you by Google in the manner and for the purpose described above.
+Furthermore, this Website uses retargeting tags and Custom Audience of Facebook Inc., 1601 South California Avenue, Palo Alto, CA 94304 U.S., hereinafter referred to as "Facebook".
+Facebook Custom Audience
+This Website uses retargeting tags and Custom Audience of Facebook Inc., 1601 South California Avenue, Palo Alto, CA 94304 U.S., hereinafter referred to as "Facebook".
 When you visit our web pages, remarketing tags will build a direct connection between your browser and the Facebook server. This way, Facebook learns that you have visited our web page with your IP address. This will enable Facebook to match your visit of our pages with your user account. The information obtained this way can be used to display Facebook ads. Please note that we as the provider of the webpages do not receive any information on the contents of data transferred and their use by Facebook.
 With regard to the use of Custom Audience we would like to point out that Facebook and third parties use cookies, web beacons or similar technologies to collect or gather information on this website. Based on the data gained we can make our Facebook activities more efficient and, e.g., arrange for contents or ads to be shown only to visitors of our website. The data collected this way will encrypted and transferred to Facebook and is anonymous for us, e.g., we cannot see personal data of individual users.
 For further information on the privacy policy of Facebook and Custom Audience please refer to https://www.facebook.com/about/privacy/ or https://www.facebook.com/business/a/online-sales/custom-audiences-website.
 If you do not wish your data to be collected via Custom Audience, you can deactivate custom Audience using this [link](https://www.facebook.com/about/privacy/).
+**ResearchGate**
+You can sign up for products and services via ResearchGate. For this purpose, we are using ResearchGate OnSite Lead Collection, a service by ResearchGate GmbH, Chausseestr. 20, 10115 Berlin, Germany ("ResearchGate"). OnSite Lead Collection makes it even easier for you to sign up for products and services as the form will already be pre-populated via ResearchGate with your data and you only need to submit the form. Of course, you have the opportunity to amend and review the data before submission. For more information on how on-site lead collection works see here - https://solutions.researchgate.net/advertising/, with link to the privacy policy [here](https://www.researchgate.net/privacy-policy).
+The legal basis for this processing is Article 6 sec. 1 sent. 1 lit. a GDPR. Your email address will be retained as long as you request our products and services, or until you request the removal of your email address.
+You can unsubscribe by opting out via the link provided in each newsletter. You can also email onlineservice@springernature.com, citing the name of the product or service, and request that your email address be removed.
 VIII. Analytics
+For statistical analyses we use the web analytics Google Analytics to collect information about the use of this site.
+**OneTrust**
+Onetrust places the following cookies on your computer:
+OptanonAlert, OptanonConsent, \_dc\_gtm\_UA-xxxxxxxx
+This allows us to identify if the cookie banner is displayed, which choices you made and how to act upon those choices (Opt-in or Opt-out of cookie categories). These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences. To review your current settings please go to our Privacy Preference Centre. These cookies do not store any personally identifiable information.
+You can set your browser to block these cookies, but some parts of the site may then not perform as designed.
+For more information about privacy policies and Onetrust, please refer to the Onetrust website: https://Onetrust.com/privacy-notice/.
+For statistical analyses we use web analytics services such as Google Analytics, collect information about the use of this site.
 **General tracking information**
 _The tools collect information such as:_
 _\- Device and browser information (operating system information, Mobile device identifier, mobile operating system, etc.)_
 _\- Geographic location_
 _\- Time of visit_
 _\- Referring site, application, or service_
+We use the information we get from the providers only to determine the most useful information you are looking for, and to improve and optimize this website. We do not combine the information collected through the use of the tools with personal data.
+We use the information we get from the providers only to determine the most useful information you are looking for, and to improve and optimize this website.
+If you do not express a preference regarding tracking we will track your behaviour online for the purposes described above; this data will not be shared outside of SpringerNature. You can stop this tracking using our Privacy Preference Centre. The legal basis for this processing via Google Analytics is Art. 6 sec. 1 sent. 1 lit.f GDPR and represents our legitimate interest to analyse our website's traffic to improve the user's experience and to optimise the website in general.
+We do not share information on your web behaviour with any 3rd party providers without your explicit consent. Consent is provided by clicking the appropriate button on the web banner that appears on your first visit to the website. You can update or withdraw your consent by visiting our Privacy Preference Centre. The legal basis for this processing is Art. 6 sec. 1 sent. 1 lit. a GDPR and represents you consent to accepting 3rd party targeting cookies.
 Depending on the provider the information generated about your use of the website may be transferred to and processed in third countries, e.g. the United States. For further information about the potential risks of a cross border data transfer please refer to section XI. The tools collect only the IP address assigned to you on the date you visit this site, rather than your name or any other identifying information. The provider will use this information in order to evaluate your use of the website, to compile reports on website activities and to provide other services relating to website and internet use to us.
+The legal basis for this processing is Art. 6 sec. 1 sent. 1 lit. f GDPR and represents our legitimate interest to analyze our website's traffic to improve the user's experience and to optimize the website in general_._
+**Google Analytics**
+**Google Analytics / Google Tag Manager**
+The legal basis for the data transfer is Art. 28 GDPR in conjunction with the data processing agreement.
+We have activated the IP-anonymization within the Google Analytics service, and your IP address will be truncated within the area of member states of the European Union or other parties to the Agreement on the European Economic Area. Only in exceptional cases the whole IP address will be first transferred to a Google server in the USA and truncated there. The IP-address your browser conveys within the scope of Google Analytics will not be associated with any other data held by Google.
+You may refuse the use of cookies by selecting the appropriate settings on your browser or by amending your preferences. In addition to that you may prevent the collection of the information generated by the cookie about your use of the website (including you IP address) and the processing of this data by Google if you download and install the browser
+plug-in available at the following link: http://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout
+You may refuse the use of cookies by selecting the appropriate settings on your browser; however please note that if you do this you may not be able to use the full functionality of this website. In addition to that you may prevent the collection of the information generated by the cookie about your use of the website (including you IP address) and the processing of this data by Google if you download and install the browser plug-in available at the following link: [http://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout](http://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout)
+**IX. Third party content, social media plugins**
+_\- Pseudonymous: IP Address_
+\. Social Media plug-ins
+You can use the scientificamerican.com cookie banner, or your browser, to manage your cookie settings and opt out of these cookies at any time.
+We use the following social media plug-ins: Facebook, Twitter. This allows you to communicate with such services and like or comment from our website. Social media plug-ins enable a direct communication between your device and the servers of the social media provider, allowing the social media provider to communicate with you and collect information about you browsing our website. This processing is based on Article 6 sec. 1 sent. 1 lit. f GDPR and represents our legitimate interest to improve your website experience and to optimise our services.
+IX. Third party content, social media plugins, and Do Not Track
+Transfer of personal data takes place whether you have an account with the provider or not.
+\. Links to third party websites
+Please note that we neither have the control of the extent of personal data that is collected by the respective plug-in provider nor do we know the processing's purpose or the period your personal data will be retained.
+This website may contain links to third party websites. We are not responsible for the content and the data collection on respective third party websites; please check the privacy policy of respective websites for information of respective websites' data processing activities.
+Further information about the processing of your personal data in the provider's course of operation is provided via their respective privacy policy. Moreover, you will be provided with further information with regard to your rights and setting concerning privacy.
+\. Social media plugins
+a. Facebook Social plugins
+Our website may use social media plugins to enable you to easily share information with others. When you visit our website, the operator of the social media plugin that is on our website can place a cookie on your computer that lets that operator recognize individuals on their website who have previously visited our website. If you have previously logged into the social media website while browsing on our website, social media plugins may allow that social media website to receive directly identifiable information about you that shows you have visited our website. The social media plugin may collect this information for visitors who have logged into social networks, whether or not they specifically interact with the plugin on our website. Social media plugins also allow the social media website to share information about your activities on our website with other users of their social media website. We do not control any of the content from social media plugins. For more information about social plugins from social media websites, you should refer to those websites' privacy and data sharing statements.
+We use so-called social plugins ("plugins") of the social networking site facebook.com provided by Facebook Inc., 1601 S. California Ave, Palo Alto, CA 94304, USA ("Facebook"). The plugins can be identified by one of Facebook's logos (white "f" on blue tile or a "thumps-up"-sign) or by the additional text "Facebook Social Plugin". The list of Facebook Social Plugins and their appearance can be accessed via: http://developers.facebook.com/plugins.
+\. Do Not Track
+If a user visits one of the websites using such a plugin, the user's browser directly connects to Facebook's servers. The plugin and its content are made available directly on Facebook's servers and included in the website by the user's browser.
+Due to the integration of the plugin Facebook collects the information that a user is visiting the corresponding website. If the user is logged in on Facebook at the moment he or she visits the website, Facebook may be able to connect the visit on the website to the user's Facebook account. If the user interacts with the plugin - for example if he or she presses the like button or comments on something - the user's browser transmits this information to Facebook. Facebook stores this information. If a user is not a member of Facebook, Facebook may collect and store the user's IP-address. Facebook states that it only collects anonymized IP-addresses in Germany.
+The reason for and scope of the data acquisition and information about the way in which the data is processed and used by Facebook, as well as the user's rights in this respect and settings options for protecting the users privacy can be found under: http://www.facebook.com/policy.php.
+If the user is a member of Facebook and does not wish Facebook to collect personal data via this homepage and to link this with his data stored on Facebook, the user needs to log off from Facebook before going to this homepage.
+The user may also block Facebook's plugins using add-ons for the user's browser, for example the "Facebook Blocker".
+b. Twitter
+We use the twitter-button. The button is provided by Twitter Inc., 795 Folsom St., Suite 600, San Francisco, CA 94107, USA. ("Twitter") The buttons are marked using the text "Twitter" or "Follow" and a stylized blue bird. The button enables the user to share an article or a website of this homepage on Twitter or to follow the provider on Twitter.
+If a user visits one of the websites using such a button, the user's browser directly connects to Twitter's servers. The Twitter-button and its content are loaded directly from Twitter's servers and included in the website by
+the user's browser. According to the provider's knowledge, Twitter collects the user IP-address and the website's URL when the button is loaded from Twitter's servers. However, this data is only be used for loading and displaying the Twitter-button.
+Further information can be found in Twitter's privacy statement under: [https://twitter.com/privacy](https://twitter.com/privacy).
+Should you have any questions regarding our privacy policy, please contact us via the email address [dataprotection@springernature.com](mailto:dataprotection@springernature.com).
+\. Do Not Track
 There are different ways you can prevent tracking of your online activity. One of them is setting a preference in your browser that alerts websites you visit that you do not want them to collect certain information about you. This is referred to as a Do-Not-Track ("DNT") signal. Please note that currently our website does not respond to these DNT signals from web browsers. At this time, there is no universally accepted standard for what a company should do when a DNT signal is detected.
 X. Information sharing
 Where personal data is disclosed to third parties for the purposes mentioned above the legal basis for the transfer of your personal data is Article 6 sec. 1 sent. 1 lit. b and f GDPR. Some of the recipients may reside outside the EEA. For further information about cross border transfer in general and transfers outside of the EEA see section on Cross border data transfers.
 In addition, we ourselves have a legitimate interest in enabling the Licensee to use the usage data to conduct respective evaluation and assessments is also in our interest as it makes our service more attractive for the Licensees.
 If the Licensee resides outside the EEA, the transfer is safeguarded by a Commission's adequacy decision such as the Privacy Shield or EU Standard Contractual Clauses. You can find further information about the aforementioned safeguards by contacting onlineservice@springernature.com.
 You may object to the transfer of the usage data to the Licensee at any time without reason by sending an email to onlineservice@springernature.com.
+\. Research Square
+We work closely with Research Square (of which Springer Nature is an investor) to provide Springer Nature authors with optional services to improve their manuscript and provide greater transparency into the peer review process.
+Research Square (Research Square R&D LLC, 601 W. Main St. Suite 102, Durham, NC, USA) provides software and services to the research community to help them communicate, publish and promote their research.
+Where enabled on the journal Springer Nature authors are provided with access to a private author dashboard upon submission to the journal which provides granular insight into the status of their manuscript as it progresses through the peer-review process, and a place where authors can improve their manuscript via free and paid for services offered by Research Square, should they wish.
+Where offered during submission, authors will be able to opt in to the In Review service which posts their manuscript as a permanent, public,
+preprint on the Research Square platform. The preprint will be published under a CC-BY license.
+To be able to offer both services, Springer Nature will send Research Square R&D LLC data on the author's manuscript and status updates as it progresses through the peer-review process. The data transferred includes: manuscript metadata (title, authors (names, email addresses, corresponding author details) subject areas, keywords, funding information); manuscript, figure, table and supplementary information files (but not cover letters and any other files explicitly indicated to be for use of editorial staff only) of initial submissions only for hybrid and subscription titles, and all versions for Open Access titles; notification and date of key stages in the peer-review process. These stages include but are not limited to: passing of initial checks, manuscript assignment to an editor, peer reviewers invited, peer reviewers agreed, peer review reports returned, editorial decision. For journals that operate an open or transparent peer review model for all submitted manuscripts, the reviewer reports (but not reviewer identities) are also passed to Research Square. For these titles only the reviewer reports are posted in the private author dashboard and never publicly.
+Research Square uses this data to populate the peer review timeline in the private author dashboard, and surface free and paid for services that are appropriate to the author depending on where their manuscript is within the peer-review process. If authors have opted in for the In Review service during submission this data will be used to post the manuscript as a public preprint and populate the public peer review timeline (if offered).
+Research Square acts as a data processor on our behalf, please see their Privacy Policy and Terms of Service for further information as to how Research Square will process your data.
 XI. Cross border data transfers
 Within the scope of our information sharing activities set out above, your personal data may be transferred to other countries (including countries outside the EEA) which may have different data protection standards from your country of residence. Please note that data processed in a foreign country may be subject to foreign laws and accessible to foreign governments, courts, law enforcement, and regulatory agencies. However, we will endeavor to take reasonable measures to maintain an adequate level of data protection when sharing your personal data with such countries.
 In the case of a transfer outside of the EEA, this transfer is safeguarded by privacy the Privacy Shield and EU Model Clauses. You can find further information about the aforementioned safeguards by following this link [https://ec.europa.eu/info/law/law-topic/data-protection\_en](https://ec.europa.eu/info/law/law-topic/data-protection_en)
 \. take legal actions in relation to any potential breach of your rights regarding the processing of your personal data, as well as to lodge complaints before the competent data protection regulators;
 \. require (i) to receive the personal data concerning you, which you have provided to us, in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format and (ii) to transmit those data to another controller without hindrance from our side; where technically feasible you shall have the right to have the personal data transmitted directly from us to another controller;
 \. not to be subject to any automated decision making, including profiling (automatic decisions based on data processing by automatic means, for the purpose of assessing several personal aspects) which produce legal effects on you or affects you with similar significance; and/or
+_. Your California Privacy Rights_**:** We may share your personal data with third parties for their own direct marketing purposes. If you would like to learn more about the types of personal data we share and who we share it with, or to opt-out from such sharing, please contact us using the contact details set out below.
+_. Your California Privacy Rights_**:** Please see https://www.scientificamerican.com/page/california-consumer-privacy-statement/
 You may (i) exercise the rights referred to above or (ii) pose any questions or (iii) make any complaints regarding our data processing by contacting us using the contact details set out below.
 XV. Minors
+Our website is not directed at children and we do not knowingly collect any personal data from children under 13 years old through our website. However, if the parent or the guardian of a child under 13 years old believes that the child has provided us with personal data, the parent or guardian of that child should contact us at dataprotection@springernature.com to request the deletion of this data from our files.
+Our website is not directed at children and we do not knowingly collect any personal data from children under 16 years old through our website. However, if the parent or the guardian of a child under 16 years old believes that the child has provided us with personal data, the parent or guardian of that child should contact us at dataprotection@springernature.com to request the deletion of this data from our files.
 XVI. Contacting us
 Please submit any questions, concerns or comments you have about this privacy policy or any requests concerning your personal data by email to our Group Data Protection Officer. You can contact our Group Data Protection Officer via dataprotection@springernature.com.
 The information you provide when contacting us at dataprotection@springernature.com will be processed to handle your request and will be erased when your request is completed. Alternatively, we will restrict the processing of the respective information in accordance with statutory retention requirements.
 XVII. Amendments to this policy
+We reserve the right to change this policy from time to time by updating our website respectively. Please visit the website regularly and check our respective current privacy policy. This policy was last updated on 16/05/2018.
+We reserve the right to change this policy from time to time by updating our website respectively. Please visit the website regularly and check our respective current privacy policy. This policy was last updated on 01/07/2020.

Privacy Policy

Full text changes — 20200501_rev01 to 20200801_rev01