Privacy Policy

Stand: 19.04.2026 · This privacy policy applies to the website trust24.org and all associated services.

1. Data Controller

If you have any questions about the processing of your personal data, you can contact us at any time by email.

2. Principles of Data Processing

We only process personal data insofar as this is permitted by law or you have given your consent. We adhere to the following principles:

• Lawfulness: Data is only processed on the basis of one of the legal grounds set out in Art. 6 GDPR.
• Purpose limitation: Data is only collected for specified, explicit and legitimate purposes.
• Data minimisation: We only collect data that is actually necessary for the respective purpose.
• Accuracy: We ensure that stored data is correct.
• Storage limitation: Data is not stored longer than necessary.
• Integrity and confidentiality: We protect your data through technical and organisational measures.

3. What Data We Collect

Depending on how you use our platform, we process the following categories of data:

When visiting the website

• IP address (anonymised after a short time)
• Date and time of access
• URLs accessed
• Browser type and version
• Operating system
• Referrer URL (the page from which you came to us)

Legal basis: Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR (legitimate interest in the secure and stable provision of the website).

During registration

• Name or pseudonym
• Email address
• Password (stored encrypted, never in plain text)
• Date of registration
• Verification status

Legal basis: Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR (performance of a contract / pre-contractual measures).

When using the platform

• Reviews written (text, star ratings, date)
• Business listings submitted
• Listing claim requests (name, email, message)

4. User Account & Registration

A user account is required for certain functions (writing reviews, adding businesses, claiming listings). By registering, you consent to the processing of the data mentioned.

Your password is stored exclusively as a bcrypt hash. We have no access to your plain-text password.

You can have your account deleted at any time. To do so, send an email to info@trust24.org. After deletion, your personal account data will be irrevocably removed. Published reviews may remain in anonymised form where there is a legitimate interest (informing the public).

5. Reviews & Content

When you write a review, it will be published under the name you provided. Please do not use your real name if you wish to remain anonymous.

Reviews are publicly visible and may be indexed by search engines. We reserve the right to remove reviews that violate our terms of use.

6. Cookies & Storage

We use technically necessary cookies and session data to operate the website:

• Session cookie: Enables you to stay logged in during your visit. Deleted when the browser is closed.
• CSRF token: Protects forms against cross-site request forgery attacks. Technically necessary.

We do not use tracking cookies, advertising cookies or third-party cookies. Consent for cookies is therefore not required, as only technically necessary cookies are used (Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR).

7. Server Logs

Our hosting provider automatically collects and stores server log files. These contain, among other things, IP address, browser type and pages accessed. This data is used exclusively to ensure system security and stability and is deleted after no more than 30 days.

This data is not merged with other data sources.

8. Third Parties & External Services

Google Fonts

We load fonts from Google Fonts (Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA). In doing so, your IP address is transmitted to Google. Legal basis: Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR. Google Datenschutzerklärung.

SMTP2GO (Email Delivery)

For sending transactional emails (registration confirmation, password reset), we use SMTP2GO (Postmark Technologies Inc.). Your email address and the content of the respective email are transmitted. Legal basis: Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR. smtp2go.com/privacy-policy.

Hosting

The website is hosted on a server in the EU. The hosting provider processes access data as part of data processing on behalf pursuant to Art. 28 GDPR.

9. Retention Period

• User account: Until deletion by you or us.
• Reviews: Until deletion or anonymisation.
• Server logs: Maximum 30 days.
• Emails: In accordance with the email service provider's retention periods.
• Password reset tokens: 1 hour after creation.
• Sessions: Until the end of the browser session.

After the respective period has expired, the data is automatically deleted or anonymised.

10. Your Rights

Under the GDPR, you have the following rights:

• Access (Art. 15 GDPR): You can request information about the data stored about you.
• Rectification (Art. 16 GDPR): You can request the correction of inaccurate data.
• Erasure (Art. 17 GDPR): You can request the deletion of your data, provided no legal retention obligation exists.
• Restriction (Art. 18 GDPR): You can request the restriction of processing.
• Data portability (Art. 20 GDPR): You have the right to receive your data in a machine-readable format.
• Objection (Art. 21 GDPR): You can object to processing based on legitimate interests.
• Withdrawal (Art. 7(3) GDPR): Consent given can be withdrawn at any time with effect for the future.

To exercise your rights, contact: info@trust24.org

You also have the right to lodge a complaint with a data protection supervisory authority. The competent authority depends on your place of residence.

11. Data Security

We employ technical and organisational security measures to protect your data:

• SSL/TLS encryption of the entire website (HTTPS)
• Passwords are stored exclusively as bcrypt hashes
• CSRF protection for all forms
• Rate limiting to protect against brute-force attacks
• Regular security updates of the software used
• Database access only via encrypted connections

12. Minors

Our service is not directed at children under the age of 16. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children under 16. If you are a parent or guardian and discover that your child has provided us with data, please contact us at info@trust24.org.

13. Changes to this Policy

We reserve the right to update this privacy policy as needed, for example in the event of changes to our services or the legal situation. The date of the last update is stated above. Significant changes will be communicated to registered users by email.

14. Contact & Complaints