Data protection information for the BSH whistleblowing system (BKMS® System)
Data protection policy
We take data protection and confidentiality very seriously and adhere to the provisions of the Data Protection Regulations applicable (e.g. EU-GDPR). Please read this data protection information carefully before submitting a report.
Purpose of the whistleblowing system and legal basis
The whistleblowing system (BKMS® System) serves the purpose of securely and confidentially receiving, processing and managing reports regarding violations of the compliance rules of BSH Hausgeräte GmbH. The processing of personal data in the BKMS® System is based on the legitimate interests of our company to detect and prevent misconduct and thus avoid damage to BSH, its employees and customers. Article 6 (1) (f) EU-GDPR serves as legal basis for this data processing.
Responsible authority
The party responsible for data protection in the whistleblowing system is
- BSH Hausgeräte GmbH, Carl-Wery-Str. 34, 81739 Munich for itself and also as provider of the BKMS® System for
- its subsidiaries using the BKMS® System
as parties with mutually autonomous responsibility (hereafter also: „BSH“). The reporting system is operated by a specialised external service provider, EQS Group GmbH, Bayreuther Str. 35, 10789 Berlin in Germany, on behalf and in the name of BSH.
Personal data and information entered into the reporting system are stored in a database operated by EQS Group GmbH in a high-security data centre, acting as processor for BSH. Only BSH has access to the data. EQS Group GmbH and other third parties do not have access to the data. This is ensured in the certified procedure through extensive technical and organisational measures.
All data are stored encrypted with multiple levels of password protection so that access is restricted to a very small selection of expressly authorised persons at BSH.
Type of the collected personal data
Use of the reporting system takes place on a voluntary basis. If you submit a report via the whistleblowing system, we collect the following personal data and information:
- your name, if you choose to reveal your identity,
- whether you are employed at BSH, and
- the names of persons and other personal data of persons that you name in your report.
Confidential handling of reports
Incoming reports are received by a small selection of expressly authorised and specially trained employees of the central Compliance department of BSH in Munich, Germany and are always handled confidentially. The employees of the central Compliance department of BSH will evaluate the matter and perform any further investigation required by the specific case.
During the processing of a report or the conduction of a special investigation, it may become necessary to share reports with additional employees of BSH 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 concerning the protection of personal data. We 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 of the accused person
Provided the allegations are adequately substantiated and will therefore be further investigated, we are bound by the data protection laws applicable (e.g. European data protection law) to inform the accused persons that we have received a report concerning them, unless this threatens further investigations into the report or this is prohibited by local laws (e.g. DIRECTIVE (EU) 2019/1937 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL, of 23 October 2019, on the protection of persons who report breaches of Union law. In doing so, your identity as whistleblower is not revealed as far as legally possible.
Use of the reporting portal
Communication between your computer and the reporting system takes place over an encrypted connection (SSL). Your IP address will not be stored during your use of the reporting system. In order to maintain the connection between your computer and the BKMS® System, a cookie is stored on your computer that merely contains the session ID (a so-called null cookie). This cookie is only valid until the end of your session and expires when you close your browser.
It is possible to set up a postbox within the reporting system that is secured with an individually chosen pseudonym / user name and password. This allows you to send reports to the responsible employee at the central Compliance department of BSH either by name or in an anonymous, safe way. This system only stores data inside the reporting system, which makes it particularly secure. It is not a form of regular e-mail communication.
Note on sending attachments
When submitting a report or an addition, you can simultaneously send attachments to the responsible employee at the central Compliance department of BSH. If you wish to submit an anonymous report, please take note of the following security advice: Files can contain hidden personal data that could compromise your anonymity. Remove this data before sending the files. If you are unable to remove this data or are unsure 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.
Retention period of personal data
Personal data is retained for as long as necessary to clarify the situation and perform an evaluation of the report or a legitimate interest of BSH exists or it is required by law. After the report processing is concluded and any retention periods are expired, this data is deleted in accordance with the statutory requirements.
Your point of contact for all questions relating to data protection
If you have any questions relating to data protection or exercising your rights, you can use the following contact information to get in touch with our data protection officer directly:
- BSH Hausgeräte GmbH
- Data Protection Officer
- Carl-Wery-Str. 34
- 81739 Munich, Germany
Rights of the data subjects
According to European data protection law, you and the persons named in the report have the right to inquiry, rectification, erasure, restriction of processing and the right to object to processing of personal data concerning them. If the right of objection is claimed, we will immediately examine to what extent the stored data is still necessary for the processing of a report. Data that is no longer required is deleted immediately. In addition, you have the right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority.
- Your right to information about your data: We will provide you with information about the data we hold about you on request. Please use the following contact channels for your requests: compliance-investigations@bshg.com
- Your right to correct and complete your data: We will correct inaccurate information about you if you notify us accordingly. We will complete incomplete data if you notify us accordingly, provided this data is necessary for the intended purpose of processing your data.
- Your right to delete your data: We will delete the information we hold about you on request. However, some data will only be deleted subject to a defined period of retention, for example because we are required to retain the data by law in some cases, or because we require the data to fulfil our contractual obligations to you.
- Your right to have your data blocked: In certain legally determined cases, we will block your data if you would like us to do so. Blocked data is only further processed to a very limited extent.
- Your right to withdraw consent: You can withdraw consent given for your data to be processed with effect for the future at any time. The legality of processing your data remains unaffected by this up to the point at which your consent is withdrawn.
- Your right to object to the processing of your data: You can object to the processing of your data with effect for the future at any time, if we are processing your data on the basis of one of the legal justifications set out in article 6(1e or 1f) of Regulation (EU) 2016/679. In the event that you object we will cease processing your data, provided that there are no compelling and legitimate grounds for further processing. The processing of your data for the purposes of direct marketing never constitutes compelling and legitimate grounds for us.
- Your right to data portability: At your request, we can make certain information available to you in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format.
- Your right to appeal to a regulatory authority: You can lodge an appeal pertaining to data protection with a data protection authority. To do so, contact the data protection authority responsible for your place of residence or the data protection authority under whose jurisdiction we fall (named below).
Bavarian Data Protection Authority (BayLDA), www.baylda.de.