Merz Social Media Privacy Notice

This Notice describes the information we process when you engage with Merz on social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter, LinkedIn and Vimeo. For more information about the privacy practices of the social media providers themselves you should review the privacy notices for each social media platform.

What kind of information do we collect?

To engage with you on social media in a way that is relevant to you, we process information about you that is known as “personal data.” The types of information we collect depend on how you engage with us and on which social media platform.

Things you and others do and provide.

We collect the content you provide when you post or engage with Merz (e.g., clicking “like” or another emoticon or leave a comment) on social media. This can include metadata such as the location of a photo or the date a file was created. If you post information about yourself on social media, Merz may collect, store and analyze such data, including:

Your full name
Your life events, such as birthdays, weddings, and graduation
Your preferences, political beliefs, interests and opinions
Your purchasing habits
Your home and work location
Your social status, such as whether you are married, divorced or have children orsiblings
Your age, gender, sexual orientation race, religion, preferred language or other ethnographic
and demographic information
Your connections, friends, acquaintances, and groupmembership
Hashtags you use and virtual groups you to which you belong
Your health, aesthetic treatment history or interest in aesthetic treatments
Your personal opinions about Merz products
Your biometric data, photographs and other images or videos you post
Your feedback or complaints about Merz products

Some of this information may be subject to special protections under the laws of your country. We shall collect personal information from you limited to the minimum scope for achieving the purpose of handling the information so that we can facilitate your use of the website or receipt of our services in accordance with the laws of the country where you reside.

Does this information influence the ads or the content that I see?

Yes. It does. We use your personal data to provide you with more relevant, personalized content and advertising. Online behavioral advertising enables us to provide relevant and useful ads to you based on your expressed preferences collected as you react and interact with content on social media. You may learn more about online behavioral advertising at www.aboutads.info/consumers. The personal data that we collect from you as described above may be used to predict your interest in future ads related to those interests.

Sharing Your Personal Information

We may share your personal data among the Merz family of companies for internal communication purpose and also for the other purposes as specified in this Notice. We may also share personal information with authorized third-party service providers that perform services for us to help us manage our business and provide goods and services to our customers. For example, we may use service providers to host, maintain, and operate the websites, manage social media profiles, send communications, conduct research, manage and analyze information, and perform other services for us. If we share your personal information with third-party service providers, we do not authorize them to use or disclose it for any purpose other than the intended purpose.

Merz relies on the support of specialized technical service providers for the technical processing of personal data. In individual cases, Merz works with companies and other entities that have special expertise in specific areas or subject knowledge (such as tax auditors, lawyers, and consulting firms, for example). These service providers are carefully selected and are legally and contractually committed to ensuring a high level of data protection. We only pass on personal data to third parties for purposes other than those specified in this Notice if there is a legal obligation to do so or if you have provided your express consent to such disclosure.

Merz does not sell personal information.

International Transfer of Personal Information

Since we are a multinational corporation, where it is necessary and appropriate and in order to better provide services for you or for essential management purposes, at times, personal data may be transferred between countries (which includes the transfer of your personal data to other Merz companies or service providers located outside your home country). If we transfer your personal data to countries that do not have adequate data protection standards, we will proceed to do so by taking appropriate measures to ensure adequate data protection standards in line with the relevant data protection laws. We will also apply protection measures to these personal data where necessary and appropriate, which in some cases may include entering into various standard contractual clauses with the recipient and ensure compliance with the special requirements on transfers of personal data to such countries.

Opt-Out/Cookies

To opt-out of sharing information for online behavioral advertising you will need to set your browser to limit the information that it gathers. Most browsers are set to accept cookies automatically. You can disable the use of cookies at any time or set your browser to alert you when cookies are being sent. If you disable cookies, you may not be able to use some or all of the features of social media. To disable cookies, please click here: http://www.youronlinechoices.com/uk/ .

Many social media channels will allow you to opt-out of online behavioral advertising by adjusting your account settings. Different sites do this in different ways. We encourage you to review the privacy notices and privacy settings for each social media channel in which you engage.

If you have questions about this notice or Merz’s privacy practices more generally, please contact the Merz Privacy Officer(s) at the following email addresses:-