Privacy Policy

Bauer International Academy of Holistic Medicine ("we", "us", "our", or "BIAHM") is committed to protecting and respecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy, along with our Terms and Conditions (https://biahm.com/terms-and-conditions) and any other documents referred to in them, sets out the basis on which any personal information we collect from you, or that you provide to us, will be processed by us. Please read the following carefully.

By using the website at https://biahm.com (the "Site") and/or sharing personal information with BIAHM and its community of users, you accept and consent to the practices described in this Privacy Policy.

For the purposes of the General Data Protection Regulation (Regulation (EU) 2016/679) (the "GDPR"), the data controller is Bauer International Academy of Holistic Medicine, Bismarkstraße 3, 08527 Plauen, Germany. The Data Protection Officer is Nick Bauer, PhD, who can be contacted at biahm.info@gmail.com.

1. What This Privacy Policy Covers

This Privacy Policy pertains to your use of the Site and the services offered by BIAHM and covers how BIAHM treats personal information that it collects and receives from its users.

This Privacy Policy is incorporated into and is subject to the Terms and Conditions (https://biahm.com/terms-and-conditions). Your use of the Site, the services, and any information you provide on the Site is subject to the terms of this Privacy Policy and the Terms and Conditions.

2. What This Privacy Policy Doesn’t Cover

• 2.1 This Privacy Policy applies only to the Site, the services, and any other websites and services that are owned and operated by BIAHM from time to time. BIAHM does not exercise control over third-party websites, plug-ins, and applications linked to or from within the Site. These third-party sites may place their own cookies or other files on your computer or other devices, collect data, or solicit information from you. You are encouraged to read their privacy policies before you engage with them.

• 2.2 BIAHM uses technology to send, directly to your browser, the advertisements and links that appear on the Site. BIAHM automatically receives your IP address when this happens. BIAHM may also use other technologies (such as cookies, JavaScript, or web beacons) to measure the effectiveness of the advertisements and to personalize the advertising content (including pop-up adverts) to a specific audience.
• 2.3 See section 2 of our Cookie Policy.

3. The Information BIAHM Collects and How It Is Used

• 3.1 The information BIAHM collects is set out in this section. Failure to provide such information may mean that you are unable to receive the services or register as a Member.
• 3.2 You do not need to register for an account in order to visit the Site; however, you must subscribe to use the services. For these no-registration-required services, BIAHM collects the following information:
  • 3.2.1 General: You may provide us with personal information by filling in forms on our Site or corresponding with us by phone, e-mail, or otherwise. This includes information you provide when you apply for an account, subscribe to services, register for an online course or event, or other social media functions on our Site, enter a competition, promotion, or survey, and when you report a problem with our site. The information you provide may include your name, address, e-mail address, phone number, financial and credit card information, personal description, and professional information.
  • 3.2.2 Cookies: The Site uses cookies to distinguish you from other users of the Site. This helps BIAHM to provide you with a good experience when you browse the Site and also allows us to improve the Site. For detailed information on the cookies we use and the purposes for which we use them, see our Cookie Policy (https://biahm.com/cookie-policy).
  • 3.2.3 E-mail Messages: Note that if you send an e-mail to BIAHM, we may retain those communications and your e-mail address in order to reply to your inquiries, fulfill your requests, and improve our services.
• 3.3 To the extent that you submit to us any personal information belonging to third parties, you warrant that you have the consent of that third party to submit such data to us, including for such uses described in this Privacy Policy.

• 3.4 To access the Site’s content and services, you must subscribe as a "Member." BIAHM collects the personal information described above from Members and, in addition, collects the following types of personal information:
  • 3.4.1 Information you provide: When you register to become a Member, BIAHM asks you for certain personal information. Examples of such information include your full name, e-mail address, professional credentials, and payment details. We use the personal information that you provide to respond to your questions, provide you with the specific services you select, send you emails about Site maintenance and updates, and inform you of significant changes to this Privacy Policy.
  •  3.4.2 Profile Information: Members must disclose in their profiles their professional license or registration details and the organization that governs this license or registration. This enables BIAHM to provide you with written details of appropriately earned credits for your completed learning activities related to your professional governing jurisdiction.
  •  3.4.3 Your IP Address: In addition to your profile, you may also be identified in the BIAHM system by your IP address, the numerical address of the location from which you are connecting to the Site. That IP address may be traceable specifically to your computer, or it may only be traceable to the Internet Service Provider (ISP) you use to access the Internet, depending on what type of connection you have. In either case, BIAHM will have the ability to link your IP address to your contributions on the Site, which helps to prevent abuse and fraud.
  •  3.4.4 Contributions: When Members submit content to the Site (such as in the discussion forum), that information becomes publicly available to other Members worldwide via the Site, and each such “post” will be attached to the Member’s profile. Deleting or canceling your account may not permanently delete that content. This does not affect any of your rights under applicable law.
  •  3.4.5 Learning Log: When Members log learning activities, that information will be attached to the Member’s profile. We will store this information for as long as the account is active to ensure that it is always available for your professional development records.
  •  3.4.6 Email: Other Members may send messages to you through the Site; however, your email address will not be revealed to them unless you respond, or possibly if their email to you is “bounced” back to them. BIAHM may use Members’ email addresses to communicate with them periodically.
  •  3.4.7 Invitation emails: You may choose to opt-in to the BIAHM invitation emails when you register as a Member. You can choose to opt-out of BIAHM invitation emails by clicking the unsubscribe link at the bottom of the invitation email.
  •  3.4.8 Links: We may present links in a format that lets us keep track of when these links are clicked. We use this information to improve the quality of the services, to estimate traffic we send to third-party sites, and to customize content and advertising.
  •  3.4.9 Your contacts: To invite others to connect with you directly on the Site, you may enter their names and email addresses. This information will be used by us to send your invitation, including a message that you write. The names and email addresses of people you invite will only be used to send your invitation and reminders. You may also choose to manually enter or upload data about your contacts on the Site. All information entered as private will only be viewable by you and will not be searchable by others in the Site network without your permission. All information that you enter or upload about your contacts will be covered by the same terms of this privacy policy as cover your own personal information. If you enter the names and email addresses of any such third parties, you warrant that you have the consent of such third party to enter such personal information and thereby submit this to the Site.

4. The Basis on Which We Process Your Information

• 4.1 We will only process the data we collect about you if there is a reason for doing so, and if that reason is permitted under data protection law. We will have a lawful basis for processing your information if: it is necessary to perform or enter into our contract with you (as a member of BIAHM); we have a legitimate interest in processing your data; you have provided your consent; or we are under a legal obligation to do so.
• 4.2 Where we use your information for our legitimate interests, we make sure that we take into account any potential impact that such use may have on you. Our legitimate interests don’t automatically override yours, and we won’t use your information if we believe your interests should override ours unless we have other grounds to do so (such as your consent or a legal obligation). If you have any concerns about our processing, please refer to details of “Your Rights” in section 12 below.

5. BIAHM

Please refer to our BIAHM terms and conditions (https://biahm.com/terms-and-conditions) which set out how we use the personal information you provide to us for the purpose of receiving the BIAHM services.

6. When We May Share Your Information

We may share your personal and non-personal information with certain third parties in the circumstances set out below. We require all third parties to respect the security of your personal data and to treat it in accordance with the law. We do not allow our third-party service providers to use your personal data for their purposes and only permit them to process your personal data for specified purposes and in accordance with our instructions.

• 6.1 We may share personal information with professional organizations that have provided you with access to our services (such as professional member associations, educational institutions, and service providers such as clinics and hospitals) to demonstrate your engagement with our services.

• 6.2 We may share personal information with accrediting organizations to validate the award of continuing professional development points or continuing education units.

• 6.3 We may share personal and non-personal information with third-party contractors that provide processing and storage resources for operating the Site.

• 6.4 We may share non-personal information (such as anonymous website use data) with third parties to assist them in understanding the Site, including the usage of the Site and the services BIAHM provides and the success of advertisements and promotions.

• 6.5 We may have to share personal and non-personal information to comply with the Terms and Conditions (https://biahm.com/terms-and-conditions) and other agreements or to protect the rights, property, or safety of BIAHM and its users or others.

• 6.6 We also reserve our right to disclose information that we believe is appropriate or necessary to enforce the Terms and Conditions, take precautions against liability, to investigate and defend ourselves against any third-party claims or allegations, to assist government enforcement agencies, to protect the security or integrity of the Site, and to exercise or protect the rights, property, or personal safety of Site users or others.

• 6.7 In the event that BIAHM is acquired by or merged with a third-party entity, BIAHM reserves the right to transfer or assign the information BIAHM has collected from you as part of such merger, acquisition, sale, or other change of control. If BIAHM is involved in a change of control, we will provide notice before personal information becomes subject to a different privacy policy.
• 6.8 In the unlikely event of BIAHM’s bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, receivership, or assignment for the benefit of creditors, or the application of laws or equitable principles affecting creditors’ rights generally, we may not be able to control how your personal information is treated, transferred, or used.
• 6.9 Except as described in this Privacy Policy, we will not share your personal information with third parties unless you have elected to “opt-in” to such sharing of your information.
• 6.10 Please contact us for any additional questions about the management or use of personal information.

7. Your Choices

• 7.1 When you register as a Member, we ask you to provide us with certain personal information. If we want to use your personal information for purposes other than those described in this Privacy Policy, we will provide you with an effective way to opt-in to such use.
• 7.2 We will not collect or use personal information for reasons other than those described in this Privacy Policy unless we obtain your prior consent. You can decline to submit personal information to us, in which case you will not be able to participate as a Member.

8. Where We Store Your Personal Information

• 8.1 The data that we collect from you may be transferred to and stored at a destination outside of Europe. It may also be processed by staff operating outside of Europe who work for us or for one of our suppliers. Whenever we transfer your personal data out of Europe, we ensure a similar degree of protection is afforded to it by ensuring at least one of the following safeguards is implemented:
  • 8.1.1 We will only transfer your personal data to countries that have been deemed to provide an adequate level of protection for personal data.
  • 8.1.2 Where we use certain service providers, we may use specific contracts approved for use in Europe, which give personal data the same protection it has in Europe.8.2 All information you provide to us is stored on our secure servers. Any payment transactions will be encrypted using SSL technology. Where we have given you (or where you have chosen) a password that enables you to access certain parts of our Site, you are responsible for keeping this password confidential. We ask you not to share a password with anyone.

9. Information Security

• 9.1 Unfortunately, the transmission of information via the internet is not completely secure. Although we do our best to protect your personal information, we cannot guarantee the security of your data transmitted to our Site, and any transmission is at your own risk. Once we have received your information, we will use strict procedures and security features to try to prevent unauthorized access.
• 9.2 We have put in place procedures to deal with any suspected personal data breach and will notify you and any applicable regulator of a breach where we are legally required to do so.

10. How Long We Store Your Personal Information

We will store your personal information:

• 10.1 In respect of Members: For as long as the Member’s profile remains active unless you ask us to remove it.
• 10.2 In respect of personal information collected for any other purposes: Only for such a period as it is required to provide the services to you.

11. Updating Personal Information

You may update your personal information or prevent or restrict the processing of your personal information by visiting your profile page or contacting us at biahm.info@gmail.com.

12. Your Rights

Under data protection law, you have several rights concerning the data we hold about you. If you wish to exercise any of these rights, please contact our general support team using the contact details set out above. For additional information on your rights, please contact your data protection authority and see below.

• 1. The right to be informed: You have the right to be provided with clear, transparent, and easily understandable information about how we use your information and your rights. This is why we’re providing you with the information in this policy.
  2. The right of access: You have the right to request certain information about, access to, and copies of your personal information (if we’re processing it). Please note that you are entitled to request one detailed summary of that personal information at no cost, but for any further copies, we reserve the right to charge a reasonable fee based on administration costs.
  3. The right to rectification: You are entitled to have your information corrected if it is inaccurate or incomplete.
  4. The right to erasure: This is also known as the ‘right to be forgotten’ and, in simple terms, enables you to request the deletion or removal of certain of the information that we hold about you. However, please note that this will not apply if we are required to retain the information for compliance with a legal obligation.
  5. The right to restrict processing: You have rights to request that we stop using your personal information or limit the way in which we use it. When processing is restricted, we can still store your information but will not use it further.
  6. The right to data portability: You have the right to request that we return your personal information in an accessible and transferable format or that we send it directly to another company, where technically feasible.
  7. The right to withdraw consent: If you have given your consent to anything we do with your information (i.e., where we rely on consent as a legal basis for processing your information), you have the right to withdraw that consent at any time.
  8. The right to object to processing: You have the right to object to certain types of processing where we use it for our legitimate interests or for marketing purposes.

• 12.1 You can exercise your rights free of charge, but we reserve the right to charge a reasonable fee for such requests that are repetitive, manifestly unfounded, or excessive, per applicable law.
• 12.2 Under certain circumstances, you can request the transfer of your personal information directly to a third party where this is technically feasible. We may need to request specific information from you to help us confirm your identity and ensure your right to access your personal data (or to exercise any of your other rights). This is a security measure to ensure that personal data is not disclosed to any person who has no right to receive it. We may also contact you to ask for further information in relation to your request to speed up our response.
• 12.3 We try to respond to all legitimate requests within one month. Occasionally it could take us longer than a month if your request is particularly complex or you have made a number of requests. In this case, we will notify you and keep you updated.

13. Deleting Your Personal Information

The account cancellation facility allows you to request that all personal information relating to you be deleted from the Site and our database. We will honor your request provided the personal information is not required for compliance with a legal obligation under German law or for the establishment, exercise, or defense of a legal claim.

14. Complaints, Problems, and Correcting and Removing Personal Information

• 14.1 If you have a complaint, problem, or would like any personal information relating to you corrected or deleted, please e-mail us at biahm.info@gmail.com. We will forward your complaint, problem, or request to the appropriate internal department for a response or resolution.
• 14.2 Personal information will be corrected or deleted, as applicable, as soon as possible following receipt of the request. We try to answer every e-mail within two business days, but we may not always be able to do so.
• 14.3 If you do not receive an adequate resolution of a privacy-related problem, you may lodge a complaint with your national Data Protection Authority.

15. Limitations on Removing or Changing Information

Upon your request, we will delete your personal information from our active databases and where feasible from our backup media. You should be aware that it may not be technologically possible to remove every record of the information you have provided to us from our servers, and this action will prevent the Member from downloading activity data following the deletion of their data.

16. Notification of Data Breaches

In the event of a data breach, we will endeavor to alert all affected Members within 72 hours after we become aware of the full details of the data breach.

17. Our Commitment to Children’s Privacy

Protecting the privacy of young children is especially important. No part of the Site is intended for persons under 16. If you are under 16 years of age, then please do not use or access the Site at any time or in any manner. We do not knowingly collect personal information on the Site from persons under 18 years of age.

18. International Users

The Site is hosted in Germany and is intended for and directed to users in Germany. If you are accessing the Site from the United States, Asia, or any other region with laws or regulations governing personal information collection, use, and disclosure that differ from the laws of Germany, please be advised that through your continued use of the Site, which is governed by German law, this Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions, you are transferring your personal information to Germany and you consent to that transfer.

19. Changes to This Policy

This Privacy Policy may change from time to time. We will post those changes on this page and, if the changes are significant, we will provide a prominent notice. Please revisit this page frequently to stay aware of any material changes.

Your continued use of the Site constitutes your agreement to this Privacy Policy and any future revisions. Please exit the Site immediately if you do not agree to the terms of this Privacy Policy or any revised policy.

20. Contact

For more information about our privacy practices or if you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, please e-mail biahm.info@gmail.com or write to:

Bauer International Academy of Holistic Medicine

Bismarkstraße 3, 08527 Plauen, Germany

Phone: +49 01727894609

21. BIAHM Privacy Policy Definitions and FAQ

• 21.1 We define "personal information" as information that enables us to identify you directly or indirectly.

• 21.2 We define "non-personal information" as information that does not identify individuals, whether on its own or in conjunction with other information collected by us. This includes information that is collected from many people, anonymized, and aggregated into groups so that individual users cannot be identified.

• 21.3 We define "collected information" as both the personal and non-personal information that we collect from users.

• 21.4 "Opt-in" means you are actively indicating your preference to participate in a program, email, feature, tool, or enhancement on a website. Typically, if you "Opt-in" you must provide certain information, usually personal information, to the website or otherwise actively indicate your choice or preference to participate in the website program.

• 21.5 "Opt-out" means that if you do not take some action you are indicating your preference not to participate in a program, email, feature, tool, or enhancement on a website. Typically, if you "opt-out" you must uncheck a box next to a stated preference or otherwise take some action to indicate your preference not to participate in a program.

• 21.6 To use the services, we need to be able to authenticate you and protect your preferences and personal information from unauthorized access. To do that, we ask that you sign up for a unique account, typically secured by your unique email address, a password, and your name. No account information is shared with anyone other than us except as specified in the Privacy Policy or with your consent.

Last updated: September 2024