SECURITY
All legal documents in one place.
Terms of Use alpha awards for Users
(Entrants and Judges)
Version September 2026
These Terms of Use apply to every natural person who registers as a user on https://www.alpha-awards.com (or an associated top-level domain and/or subdomain/alias) in order to submit content to a competition (“Entrant”) or to evaluate submitted content (“Judge”). They are accepted by confirmation during registration and apply in addition to the terms of participation of the respective organizer.
§ 1 Operator and role of 79BE
79 Blue Elephants GmbH, Längenfeldgasse 27B, 1120 Vienna, Austria (“79BE”) operates the online services on https://www.alpha-awards.com as a technical platform. The organizer of the respective competition is not 79BE, but the contract partner running the competition on https://www.alpha-awards.com (“Organizer”). The Organizer’s terms of participation and privacy notices also apply to participation; these Terms of Use govern exclusively the relationship between the user and 79BE in the use of the software.
§ 2 Registration and account
Use requires registration with complete and accurate data. The user is responsible for keeping their login details confidential and for all activities under their account and must notify 79BE immediately of any suspected unauthorized use.
§ 3 Submissions and grant of rights
The Entrant warrants that they hold the necessary rights (in particular copyright, trademark and personality rights as well as any required third-party consents) to the content they submit.
They grant 79BE the simple, non-transferable right to store and technically process this content on its own systems for the duration of the competition, including a customary grace period. The display of content to the jury and any presentation of winners take place on behalf of and in accordance with the instructions of the Organizer; the relevant rights of use are governed by the Organizer’s terms of participation.
§ 4 Prohibited content, right to report and block
Content that violates applicable law or the rights of third parties or contains malware is prohibited. 79BE is entitled to report such content and to block content or a user’s access in the event of a justified suspicion of a violation.
§ 5 Liability
The user uses the online services at their own risk. 79BE is not liable for slight negligence. In all other respects, the liability provisions of the 79BE T&Cs (§ 13 et seq.) apply mutatis mutandis to the relationship with the user.
§ 6 Data protection
Information on the processing of personal data by 79BE can be found in the privacy policy at hhttps://www.alpha-awards.com/sicherheitneu#datenschutzpartner.. The Organizer’s privacy notices also apply to processing in connection with the competition itself.
§ 7 Final provisions
79BE is entitled to amend these Terms of Use with effect for the future; the current version is available at https://www.alpha-awards.com/sicherheitneu#nutzungsbedingungen. Austrian law applies, excluding its conflict-of-law rules. For consumers, mandatory consumer protection provisions of their country of habitual residence remain unaffected. For users who are entrepreneurs, the place of jurisdiction is Vienna.
Privacy Policy alpha awards for Users
(Entrants and Judges)
§ 1 Operator and role of 79BE
9 Blue Elephants GmbH, Längenfeldgasse 27B, 1120 Vienna, Austria (“79BE”) operates the online services on https://www.alpha-awards.com as a technical platform. The organizer of the respective competition is not 79BE, but the contract partner running the competition (“Organizer”). 79BE processes the data listed below as a processor within the meaning of Art. 28 GDPR, exclusively on behalf of and on the instructions of the respective Organizer, on the basis of the data processing agreement (Annex 1 to the 79BE T&Cs). The controller for this data is the respective Organizer, not 79BE (§ 12 T&Cs, § 6 Terms of Use).
§ 2 Registration as a user
To submit or evaluate content, you register as a user (Entrant or Judge) in accordance with § 4.1 or § 4.2 of the T&Cs and the Terms of Use for Users. In doing so, the data specified by the respective Organizer for its competition is collected, but at least your name and email address. To manage your user account (login details, account security) in accordance with § 2 of the Terms of Use, 79BE also processes the necessary data on behalf of the Organizer.
§ 3 Submissions
As an Entrant, you provide content (image, video and audio files, descriptive texts, information on the persons/companies involved) together with the necessary usage rights (§ 4.1 T&Cs, § 3 Terms of Use).
§ 4 Evaluations
As a Judge, you view the submitted content during the defined judging period and submit evaluations (§ 4.2 T&Cs).
§ 5 Storage period
Submission data is handed over to the Organizer at the end of the submission period, evaluation data at the end of the judging period (§ 7 T&Cs). Access is deactivated when the Organizer’s contract term ends; any further retention by 79BE only takes place if separately agreed with the Organizer (§ C5 T&Cs).
§ 6 Obligation to provide data
Providing the data listed in § 2 is not required by law or contract, but is necessary to register as a user. Without this data, it is not possible to submit or evaluate entries in the competition.
§ 7 Exercising your rights
Under the GDPR, you have the right of access (Art. 15), rectification (Art. 16), erasure (Art. 17), restriction of processing (Art. 18), data portability (Art. 20) and objection (Art. 21). As 79BE is not the controller but the processor of this data, please contact the respective Organizer in the first instance to exercise these rights; 79BE will forward any requests addressed to it to the responsible Organizer.
Irrespective of this, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Austrian Data Protection Authority: Österreichische Datenschutzbehörde, Barichgasse 40–42, 1030 Vienna, phone +43 1 52 152-0, email dsb@dsb.gv.at, www.dsb.gv.at.
§ 8 Contacting 79BE
If you have questions about the technical processing by 79BE, you can reach us at: 79 Blue Elephants GmbH, Längenfeldgasse 27B, 1120 Vienna, phone +43 1 890 89 89, email office@alpha-awards.com. Data protection officer: RA Dr. Daniel Stanonik, Salztorgasse 2/8, 1010 Vienna, phone +43 1 904 33 55, email office@stanonik.at.
§ 9 Changes to this privacy policy
79BE is entitled to amend this privacy policy with effect for the future; the current version is available at https://www.alpha-awards.com/sicherheitneu#datenschutznutzer.
General Terms and Conditions
of 79 Blue Elephants GmbH
Structure of these T&Cs
These T&Cs consist of three parts:
- Part A – General provisions: applies to all contracts between 79BE and the contract partner, regardless of the service model.
- Part B – Additional provisions Premium: applies in addition where 79BE sets up and configures the online tool for the contract partner.
- Part C – Additional provisions Self-Service: applies in addition where the contract partner books a plan for independent setup and configuration.
Which parts apply in the individual case and how they relate to each other is governed by § 3.
Part A – General provisions
Part A – General provisions: applies to all contracts between 79BE and the contract partner, regardless of the service model.
§ 1 Preamble
79 Blue Elephants GmbH, Längenfeldgasse 27B, 1120 Vienna, Austria (hereinafter 79BE) develops, operates and distributes software for the digital management of competitions and carries out all activities useful and conducive to its business purpose, as well as other programming, software development and services. When using a service in connection with the software running on https://www.alpha-awards.com (or an associated top-level domain and/or subdomain/alias), these General Terms and Conditions of Business and Use (hereinafter “T&Cs”) apply exclusively.
79BE is entitled to amend these T&Cs at any time without the prior consent of the contract partner or to adapt them in the event of a change in a statutory provision. The current version of the T&Cs can be accessed at any time at https://www.alpha-awards.com/sicherheitneu#agb.
These General Terms and Conditions of Business and Use apply to all orders between 79BE and the contract partner, even if they are not expressly referred to. Side agreements, reservations, amendments or additions to these T&Cs require text form to be valid; this also applies to any waiver of the text form requirement. In particular, terms and conditions, terms of use or similar of contract partners or third parties do not become part of the contract, regardless of whether they contain terms that deviate from or supplement these terms.
§ 2 Definitions
79BE: 79 Blue Elephants GmbH, Längenfeldgasse 27B, 1120 Vienna, Austria.
Online services: the software operated by 79BE and the services based on it at https://www.alpha-awards.com (or an associated top-level domain and/or subdomain/alias).
Contract partner: the natural or legal person who makes use of the rights of use of the online services offered pursuant to § 4 (organizer of the competition).
Users: the contract partner’s customers who submit or evaluate content via the online services, including judges.
Submission: an entry created by a user, together with the content provided for it.
Service description: the current description of the individual services or plans, available at https://www.alpha-awards.com/pricingneu. The service description forms part of these T&Cs.
Price list: 79BE’s current price list, available at https://www.alpha-awards.com/pricingneu.
Premium service: the setup and configuration of the online tool by 79BE on the basis of an individual service description.
Self-service: the provision of the online services in a booked plan for independent setup and configuration by the contract partner.
Plan: the self-service package selected in the booking process, including the scope of functions and use defined therein.
Test environment: the non-public environment provided to the contract partner for checking the configuration before going live.
Go-live: the activation of the competition for users or making it publicly accessible.
§ 3 Service models and structure of these T&Cs
79BE provides its services in two service models. In the Premium model, 79BE sets up and configures the online tool for the contract partner on the basis of an individual service description. In the Self-Service model, 79BE provides the contract partner with the online services in the booked plan for independent setup and configuration.
Which service model applies results from the offer or the written order (Premium) or from the plan selected in the booking process (Self-Service). Both models can be combined: if setup, configuration or support services are commissioned in addition to a self-service plan (Premium add-on), Part B also applies to these services.
Regardless of the service model, 79BE is responsible for providing the online services and for their functioning in accordance with the contract. The contract partner is responsible for the competition it runs, in particular its terms of participation, the selection and involvement of the jury, the awarding of prizes and all content and data it or its users contribute.
79BE provides the agreed service on its own responsibility but is entitled to engage qualified employees or subcontractors to carry it out.
Part A applies to all contracts. Parts B and C apply in addition to Part A where the respective service model has been agreed. In the event of contradictions, the provisions of the applicable Part B or C take precedence over those of Part A. Individual written agreements between 79BE and the contract partner take precedence over both.
§ 4 Type of service
The subject of 79BE’s service is the provision of an online service on https://www.alpha-awards.com (or an associated top-level domain and/or subdomain/alias) for organizers of competitions and similar (hereinafter “contract partners”), which maps the workflow of a competition from submission (§ 4.1) through judging (§ 4.2) to the presentation of the winners (§ 4.3).
§ 4.1 Submission
79BE enables the contract partners’ customers (hereinafter “users”) to provide their relevant content to the contract partner on https://www.alpha-awards.com (or an associated top-level domain and/or subdomain/alias). 79BE is not liable for the content, links etc. provided by individual users. The prerequisite for being able to provide content on https://www.alpha-awards.com (or an associated top-level domain and/or subdomain/alias) is registration as a user.
The prerequisite for a submission is registration as a user and acceptance of 79BE’s Terms of Use for Users.
After registration, the respective user creates one or more entries (hereinafter “submission(s)”) on https://www.alpha-awards.com (or an associated top-level domain and/or subdomain/alias), for which a corresponding right of use (e.g. authorship) must exist. These are supplemented with multimedia content (image, video and audio files), descriptive texts and details of the persons/companies involved and subsequently submitted to the contract partner’s competition.
§ 4.2 Judging
79BE enables the contract partner to make the content submitted by users (see § 4.1) available for evaluation to judges (hereinafter also users) in an online judging tool. Judges can view the submissions online and submit evaluations during the defined judging period.
§ 4.3 Presentation of the winners
79BE enables the contract partner to present the winning entries on the landing page created. The detailed and current service descriptions of the individual services, which form part of these T&Cs, can be accessed at https://www.alpha-awards.com/pricingneu. The content on https://www.alpha-awards.com is provided solely for information and use within the meaning of these T&Cs.
§ 5 Contract partners and conclusion of contract
Contract partners of 79BE are, in principle, those natural and legal persons who make use of the rights of use of the services offered (§ 4) by 79BE.
The contract can be concluded in two ways:
(1) Premium: The basis for concluding the contract is 79BE’s respective offer, which sets out the scope of services and the costs. 79BE’s offers are subject to change and non-binding. The contract is concluded when the contract partner places a written order for the offer. With this written order, these T&Cs are automatically accepted.
(2) Self-Service: In the booking process on 79BE’s website, the contract partner selects a plan, provides the required data, confirms that these T&Cs apply and makes a binding offer by submitting the order. The contract is concluded with 79BE’s order confirmation or with the activation of access. The presentation of the plans on the website does not constitute a binding offer by 79BE.
In both cases, the service description and price list valid at the time the contract is concluded are decisive.
§ 6 Right of use
79BE grants the contract partner a time-limited right of use, defined as follows: running a competition via the tool https://www.alpha-awards.com within the meaning of § 4, provided to the contract partner on its own subdomain of https://www.alpha-awards.com. The respective scope of use is agreed separately in writing with the contract partner or, in the case of self-service, results from the booked plan.
79BE grants the right of use upon conclusion of the contract on condition that the contract partner fulfils its payment obligations. If the contract partner is in default of payment, 79BE may suspend the right of use and block access until payment is received, after a reminder in text form and setting a grace period of seven working days. For self-service, § C6 also applies.
If no agreements have been made on the purpose and scope of use, the agreed period of use is the customary scope in the industry (submission period max. 12 weeks, judging period max. 6 weeks). Consequently, any transfer, resale or similar of the rented services, whether for a fee or free of charge, and any use other than as provided for in the order are not permitted without 79BE’s consent. Any other or more extensive future use requires 79BE’s consent. Any modification, adaptation or imitation of the works provided for use is not permitted unless the right to adapt them has been granted in writing.
The contract partner may not modify, transfer, distribute, use as the basis for derivative works, pledge, re-license, sublicense, lend or rent the software, or use it for training third parties, commercial time-sharing or service bureaus. The contract partner is not permitted to reverse engineer, disassemble or decompile the software or attempt to determine any source code, algorithms, methods or techniques used in or integrated into the software, or to allow third parties to do so, unless and only to the extent expressly permitted by applicable law notwithstanding this restriction. Contract partners may not use the software as stand-alone software or in conjunction with third-party products, but only in conjunction with the product. Contract partners may not remove or alter any notices of trademarks, copyrights or other proprietary and restricted rights, legends or symbols in or on the software.
79BE and its licensors retain all rights to the software, including all patent rights, copyrights, trademarks, trade secrets and all other intellectual or industrial property rights in the software and all corresponding improvements, updates and derivative works. 79BE reserves all rights to the software. The contract partner does not acquire, either expressly or implicitly, any rights to the software other than those expressly granted under this contract.
§ 7 Scope of use
Upon conclusion of the respective usage contract, 79BE provides its contract partners with the online service https://www.alpha-awards.com in the version selected by the contract partner when placing the order or booking. The scope of use is defined by the service description of the selected services or the booked plan and includes only rights to use the software developed by 79BE. The handover of development data is never part of the offer and is excluded. All content on https://www.alpha-awards.com (or an associated top-level domain and/or subdomain/alias) – with the exception of the uploaded contributions and/or other user data – is the protected property of 79BE.
79BE is authorized to provide ancillary services that are connected with, necessary for or agreed in connection with the order itself, or to commission third parties to provide them in the name and for the account of its contract partner.
At the end of the submission period, the collected submission data, and at the end of the judging period, the evaluation data are handed over to the contract partner. 79BE is not obliged to retain usage and/or development data beyond the period in which an order is performed. If the contract partner wishes the data to be kept securely after the end of the project term, this requires an additional agreement.
The following services are available when using the online service https://www.alpha-awards.com:
§ 7.1 Submission
The scope of use of the submission service corresponds to the service description in § 4. Data volume and other usage restrictions result from the service description or the booked plan; for the self-service model, § C7 also applies.
§ 7.2 Judging
The scope of use of the judging service corresponds to the service description in § 4.
§ 7.3 Presentation of winning projects
The scope of use for presenting the winners corresponds to the service description in § 4 for the customary number of winning projects.
§ 8 Obligations of use
The online services on https://www.alpha-awards.com may only be used in accordance with the provisions of these T&Cs. In addition, the contract partner warrants on behalf of its users the following when using the online services on https://www.alpha-awards.com (or an associated top-level domain and/or subdomain/alias):
- The services are used exclusively with the tools provided by 79BE (e.g. the 79BE video player).
- The tools provided by 79BE are used exclusively for their intended purposes.
- When users upload individual contributions, no statutory and/or contractual provisions are violated. The upload also does not violate any official requirements.
- The user holds the respective rights, licenses, consents, approvals or similar to provide or publish their contributions and to name the subdomains.
- With every submission, the user lists the necessary credits for the relevant work.
- The data transfer limits pursuant to § 7 or the booked plan are not exceeded when using the online services on https://www.alpha-awards.com.
- Via the online services on https://www.alpha-awards.com, the user only offers contributions that are intended for this portal.
§ 9 Web hosting
79BE offers contract partners web hosting for the selected online services (see § 4). The web hosting is provided by a third-party provider. 79BE therefore gives no warranty for any web hosting services, including the uninterrupted availability of the relevant uploaded data. Consequently, 79BE’s liability for technical failures, data losses caused, interrupted data transfers or other problems in this connection is excluded.
79BE points out to the contract partner that restrictions or impairments of the services it provides may arise that are beyond 79BE’s control.
The contract partner shall notify 79BE immediately in text form of any recognizable disruptions to the support address stated in the service description. The contract partner shall bear any damage that is increased by a culpably delayed notification to that extent (§ 1304 ABGB).
§ 10 Payment
79BE is entitled at any time to make the provision of services dependent on the contract partner making advance payments or providing other security in a reasonable amount. The payment schedule results from § B5 (Premium) or § C6 (Self-Service). Ongoing costs are invoiced at the beginning of the term (landing page, winner presentation, etc.).
Unless otherwise agreed, 79BE’s invoices are due for payment without deduction within ten calendar days of the invoice date. Invoices are sent electronically to the email address provided by the contract partner.
In the event of late payment, default interest of 12% p.a. and a one-off reminder fee of EUR 40 are deemed agreed.
The contract partner undertakes to bear all costs and expenses associated with collecting the claim, in particular collection fees or other costs necessary for appropriate legal action. If the contract partner is in default of payment, 79BE may declare all services and partial services provided under other contracts concluded with the contract partner due immediately. The contract partner is not entitled to offset its own claims against claims of 79BE, unless the customer’s claim has been acknowledged by 79BE in writing or established by a court. Any right of retention by the customer is excluded.
§ 11 Value protection
The following index adjustment applies to the license costs for using the respective services. The consumer price index 2020 published monthly by Statistics Austria, or the index officially replacing it, serves as the measure for calculating value stability. The reference value for adjustments is the index figure published for the month in which the contract is concluded. Fluctuations of the index figure of up to 5% upwards or downwards are not taken into account. This range is to be recalculated each time it is exceeded upwards or downwards, with the first index figure outside the respective applicable range always forming the basis both for redetermining the amount owed and for calculating the new range. All rates of change are to be calculated to one rounded decimal place.
§ 12 Data protection
79BE processes personal data that the contract partner or its users contribute to the online services (in particular registration data, submissions, evaluations) exclusively on behalf of and on the instructions of the contract partner. In this respect, the contract partner is the controller and 79BE the processor within the meaning of the GDPR.
The details of this processing – including sub-processors, technical and organizational measures, transfers to third countries and the return and deletion of data – are governed by the data processing agreement pursuant to Art. 28 GDPR (Annex 1), which forms part of the contract and takes precedence over these T&Cs in data protection matters.
The contract partner is responsible for the lawfulness of the processing vis-à-vis its users, in particular for a valid legal basis, informing users pursuant to Art. 13 and 14 GDPR, and for the terms of participation and privacy notices of its competition.
79BE processes data for initiating, performing and invoicing the contract with the contract partner and for operating the website https://www.alpha-awards.com as the controller; details are set out in the privacy policy at https://www.alpha-awards.com/sicherheitneu#datenschutzpartner.
§ 13 Warranty and damages
79BE undertakes to carry out the tasks assigned to it with professional and commercial care to the best of its knowledge. Should any discrepancies nevertheless arise for the contract partner, the contract partner must assert and substantiate any complaints in writing within seven working days of the service being provided, unless other provisions of these T&Cs apply to individual points.
In the case of a justified notice of defects, the defects will be remedied within a reasonable period, with the contract partner enabling 79BE to take all measures necessary to investigate and remedy the defects.
If the defect is based on items provided or contributions made by the contract partner, any obligation to remedy the defect free of charge is excluded. In the self-service model, this applies in particular to defects resulting from the contract partner’s configuration (§ C2). In these cases, the services provided by 79BE are nevertheless deemed to have been provided in accordance with the contract, despite any limitations. At the contract partner’s request, 79BE will remedy the defect for a fee.
The reversal of the burden of proof pursuant to § 924 ABGB to the detriment of 79BE is excluded. The contract partner must prove the existence of the defect at the time of handover, the time at which the defect was discovered and the timeliness of the notice of defects.
Claims for damages by the contract partner, in particular due to delay, impossibility of performance, positive breach of contract, culpa in contrahendo, defective or incomplete performance, consequential damage caused by defects or unlawful acts, are excluded unless they are based on intent or gross negligence on the part of 79BE.
§ 14 Exclusion of liability
The online services offered in accordance with the service description in § 4 are used exclusively at the user’s own responsibility and risk. 79BE is not liable for slight negligence. In the case of gross negligence, its liability is limited to the amount of its fee (excluding ancillary costs and VAT).
79BE, its bodies, employees and representatives exclude any liability in connection with the online services offered on https://www.alpha-awards.com (or an associated top-level domain and/or subdomain/alias) and their use.
79BE does not warrant any particular properties with regard to the content and functionality of the online services offered (except § 4) and any pages linked to them, and in particular excludes any responsibility and liability for the following:
- the content of contributions provided by users of any kind;
- the backup or storage of contributions and information provided of any kind;
- damage of any kind resulting from data loss and/or data theft of the data provided by users (e.g. contributions);
- the content of linked pages on the website https://www.alpha-awards.com of any kind;
- errors, mistakes and inaccuracies of the online services provided on https://www.alpha-awards.com (or an associated top-level domain and/or subdomain/alias);
- personal injury or property damage of any kind resulting from the use of the online services on https://www.alpha-awards.com (or an associated top-level domain and/or subdomain/alias);
- any unauthorized access to or unauthorized use of the secure 79BE servers and/or any personal and/or financial data stored on them;
- any interruption or termination of transmission in connection with the online services on https://www.alpha-awards.com (or an associated top-level domain and/or subdomain/alias);
- any computer infections, viruses, Trojans and the like transmitted by third parties from or through the online services on https://www.alpha-awards.com (or an associated top-level domain and/or subdomain/alias);
- any errors in or incompleteness of the content, or losses or damage of any kind resulting from the use of any content made accessible – in whatever way – via the online services on https://www.alpha-awards.com (or an associated top-level domain and/or subdomain/alias);
- damage caused by third parties or subcontractors.
79BE expressly dissociates itself from and gives no warranty for any product/service advertised or offered by third parties via the online services on https://www.alpha-awards.com (or an associated top-level domain and/or subdomain/alias) or linked websites. 79BE is neither a contracting party nor responsible for monitoring transactions between contract partners, users and third-party providers of products or services.
79BE operates its online services from Austria and accepts no responsibility for their use being permitted and possible elsewhere. Anyone who accesses the online services on https://www.alpha-awards.com (or an associated top-level domain and/or subdomain/alias) from other locations does so voluntarily and is responsible for compliance with the local legal situation.
The contract partner is liable for all damage it has caused 79BE in connection with the relevant contractual relationship.
§ 15 Indemnification
Without prejudice to the (continued) validity of these T&Cs and without time limitation beyond the period of use of the online services on https://www.alpha-awards.com (or an associated top-level domain and/or subdomain/alias), each contract partner irrevocably undertakes to indemnify 79BE, its employees, bodies, affiliated companies and representatives against all damages, in particular from claims and damages including legal representation costs, arising from:
- access to and use of the online services on https://www.alpha-awards.com (or an associated top-level domain and/or subdomain/alias) by the user;
- breach of these T&Cs or any part of them;
- infringement of the rights of third parties, in particular (intellectual) property rights or personality rights; or
- any third-party claims based on user contributions.
Should third parties assert claims against 79BE on the basis of other violations by the contract partner and/or user, they expressly undertake to indemnify and hold 79BE harmless.
§ 16 Contract term
A contract between 79BE and the respective contract partner can be concluded for one-time or repeated use of the online services, whereby 79BE may terminate the contractual relationship with a contract partner in writing at the end of each period of use. For the self-service model, § C5 also applies.
In addition, the contract partner’s rights and licenses under this contract end and expire automatically, without any notice or action by 79BE being required, in the event that you violate provisions of this contract. After termination of this contract, contract partners shall refrain from any use of the software.
If notice of termination is not given in time, the contract is extended in accordance with the original contract term. Payments already made by the contract partner cannot be reclaimed after termination. The right to terminate for good cause remains unaffected for both parties.
79BE may terminate this contract early (with immediate effect), in particular and in addition to the other options for termination without notice set out in these T&Cs, for the following good causes and without observing any (further) grace period, if:
- bankruptcy proceedings are opened against the contract partner’s assets, or an application to open such proceedings is rejected for lack of assets to cover the costs;
- the contract partner is more than 1 week in default with a payment under these T&Cs;
- the contract partner violates any provision of these T&Cs, the rights of third parties, the law or public morality.
Upon termination of this contract, all claims of 79BE against the contract partner become due, insofar as they are not already due.
§ 17 Further development
The online services on https://www.alpha-awards.com (or an associated top-level domain and/or subdomain/alias) include the agreed functionalities. The design and functionalities are regularly optimized as part of ongoing development. Existing features are retained and optimized, which means that the tool may look and work differently than it does now; essential functions are retained.
§ 18 Attribution and references
Pursuant to § 20 UrhG (Austrian Copyright Act), 79BE is entitled to display the contract partner’s name or pseudonym, company name or logo on every online service it operates. In any case, pursuant to § 26 UrhG, 79BE retains the right to use images of the works/products it has designed for self-promotion in printed form or to make them available on the internet for this purpose, and to use the customer’s name and logo as a reference in the same form.
§ 19 Force majeure
Neither party is liable for non-performance or delayed performance of its obligations – with the exception of payment obligations – insofar as this is due to events beyond its control that were not foreseeable when the contract was concluded (force majeure), such as natural disasters, war, epidemics, official orders, strikes, large-scale failures of power, telecommunications or internet infrastructure, or attacks on IT systems that could not be averted despite appropriate security measures. The affected party shall inform the other party immediately. Deadlines are extended by the duration of the impediment. If the impediment lasts longer than 60 days, either party may withdraw from the contract with regard to the affected part of the service.
§ 20 Confidentiality
The parties mutually undertake to treat confidentially all confidential information and all other matters not intended for the public that come to their knowledge in the course of performing this contract, and neither to exploit them nor to make them accessible to third parties. This does not apply to recommendations. This duty of confidentiality continues to apply after termination of this contract.
§ 21 Final provisions
79BE is entitled to transfer its rights and obligations under contracts or agreements with contract partners to its respective individual or universal legal successor at any time and without the consent of the contract partners. The transfer of the contract partners’ rights and obligations under contracts or agreements with 79BE to their respective individual or universal legal successors requires 79BE’s express written consent.
Notices provided for in these T&Cs or by law are deemed received on the day they arrive at the address last provided in writing by the contract partners. A change of address must be communicated to the other contract partner expressly and in writing and takes effect two weeks after it arrives at the other contract partner’s address.
Austrian law applies to all legal questions arising from or in connection with these T&Cs, excluding its conflict-of-law rules (in particular excluding the UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods and the Austrian Private International Law Act). The parties agree that all disputes arising from the contractual relationship within the meaning of these T&Cs are subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the competent court in Vienna. The place of performance is Vienna.
In the event of a dispute, the contract partner is not entitled to suspend its performance under these T&Cs. The contract partner waives the right to contest the contract concluded under these T&Cs on grounds of error.
If any provision of these T&Cs, or a subsequent amendment or addition, is or becomes invalid, this does not affect the validity and effectiveness of the remaining provisions of these T&Cs. In the event of ineffectiveness, invalidity or unenforceability, a provision that is not ineffective, invalid or unenforceable and that comes as close as possible to the economic result of the provision in question is deemed agreed between the parties. The specific economic interest of the parties is to be determined in particular from the void, ineffective or unlawful provision.
Part B – Additional provisions Premium
This part applies in addition to Part A where 79BE sets up and configures the online tool for the contract partner (Premium service), including services commissioned as a Premium add-on to a self-service plan.
§ B1 Offer and service description
To create clear contractual relationships and ensure the efficient handling of orders, the scope of the order is defined as precisely as possible in the form of a service description when the offer is made.
Changes to or extensions of the scope of services after the order has been placed require text form and, unless expressly agreed otherwise, are invoiced according to the actual effort on the basis of the current price list. They may postpone agreed deadlines accordingly.
§ B2 Contract partner’s obligations to cooperate
The contract partner shall ensure that all documents, circumstances and instructions necessary for the optimal performance of the order are made available to 79BE in good time and in full. This also applies to all documents and circumstances that only become known during the performance of the order.
The contract partner bears the costs incurred if work has to be repeated or is delayed by 79BE as a result of its incorrect, incomplete or subsequently changed information.
The contract partner shall name a contact person with decision-making authority and ensure an organizational environment that allows the order to be implemented quickly and efficiently.
Should the contract partner’s information for creating the personalized online tool be deficient in any form, 79BE is not liable for any resulting damage (e.g. defects, damages, etc.).
§ B3 Deadlines and dates
The timeframe is set out in the offer. Agreements on deadlines and dates must be recorded or confirmed in writing. Contractually agreed delivery times begin on the day 79BE accepts the order, as soon as the contract partner has provided all necessary working documents and information.
Failure to meet deadlines and delivery times only entitles the contract partner to assert its statutory rights once it has granted 79BE a reasonable grace period of at least 14 days. This period begins when a reminder is received by 79BE. After the grace period has expired without result, the contract partner may withdraw from the contract. An obligation to pay damages for delay exists only in the case of intent or gross negligence on the part of 79BE.
Events of force majeure (§ 19) and delays by the contract partner in fulfilling its obligations to cooperate postpone agreed deadlines at least to the extent of the impediment.
§ B4 Review and acceptance
Once the personalized online tool has been completed, 79BE notifies the contract partner and makes the tool available for review. The contract partner must notify any change requests and defects in writing within five working days of provision.
The tool is deemed accepted if the contract partner does not report any defects within this period or if it activates the tool for submissions or makes it publicly accessible (go-live). Insignificant defects do not prevent acceptance.
If the contract partner puts the tool into operation despite outstanding change requests, 79BE is not liable for any defects, damages or other resulting disadvantages.
Change requests notified after acceptance that go beyond remedying defects are deemed an additional order pursuant to § B1.
§ B5 Payment schedule
Unless otherwise specified, 50% of the net order amount is deemed agreed as a down payment when the order is placed. The remaining 50% of the costs is transferred to the account stated on the invoice after the first service has gone online.
In all other respects, § 10 applies.
Part C – Additional provisions Self-Service
This part applies in addition to Part A where the contract partner books a plan for independent setup and configuration (self-service).
§ C1 Plan and booking
The contract partner selects a plan in the booking process on 79BE’s website. The scope of functions, scope of use and price of the plans result from the service description and price list valid at the time of booking. The conclusion of the contract is governed by § 5.
The self-service offer is aimed exclusively at entrepreneurs. In the booking process, the contract partner confirms that it obtains the service as part of its business, professional or other self-employed activity.
An upgrade to a higher plan is possible during the term upon payment of the price difference according to the current price list. A downgrade to a lower plan takes effect at the earliest at the end of the current contract period; payments already made are not refunded.
The contract partner is responsible for managing its user accounts and keeping its login details secure. It must notify 79BE immediately of any suspected unauthorized use.
§ C2 Subject matter and self-configuration
In self-service, 79BE provides the online services in the standard version of the booked plan. The scope of functions results exclusively from the service description of the plan. There is no entitlement to individual customization, extension or programming.
The contract partner sets up its competition itself. It is solely responsible for the accuracy, completeness and lawfulness of its configuration, in particular for categories, submission and judging deadlines, scoring logic and point calculation, required fields, texts and terms of participation, and the involvement of users and judges.
79BE does not check or verify the plausibility of the contract partner’s configuration, and this is not the subject of the contract.
§ C3 Test environment and go-live
79BE provides the contract partner with a test environment. The contract partner is obliged to check its configuration in the test environment before going live.
The contract partner goes live itself, and doing so is deemed confirmation that the configuration meets its requirements.
79BE is not liable for disadvantages arising from an incorrect, incomplete or post-go-live modified configuration by the contract partner; this applies in particular to submissions that are lost, incomplete, cannot be assigned or cannot be evaluated as a result, and to incorrect evaluation results.
Changes to the configuration after go-live – in particular during an ongoing submission or judging period – are made at the contract partner’s own risk.
§ C4 Scope of support
The contract partner receives support to the extent of the booked plan. Support is provided in German on working days; response times result from the service description of the plan.
Support includes information on operating the software and the remedying of software errors, but not the setup, configuration, data maintenance, training or content-related support of the competition.
79BE provides setup, configuration and support services exclusively upon separate order according to the current price list (Premium add-on). Part B also applies to these services.
§ C5 Term and renewal
The contract term results from the booked plan and begins with the activation of access.
Access is deactivated at the end of the contract term. The handover of submission and evaluation data is governed by § 7. Data is only retained beyond the end of the contract if separately agreed.
§ C6 Advance payment
The price of the booked plan must be paid in full in advance. Access is activated once payment has been received. This applies mutatis mutandis to each renewal period.
Additional services and additional costs resulting from exceeding limits (§ C7) are invoiced according to the current price list and must be paid within 10 calendar days of receipt of the invoice.
If the contract partner is in default of payment, 79BE is entitled, after prior written notice and setting a reasonable grace period, to block access until payment is received. In all other respects, § 10 applies.
§ C7 Limits per plan
The permitted number of submissions, judges, categories and competitions per plan, as well as data volume and storage limits, result from the service description of the booked plan.
Unless otherwise specified there, a data volume limit of 100 GB per competition applies.
79BE notifies the contract partner if limits are exceeded. The contract partner may remedy the excess within five working days or bear the additional costs according to the current price list; if there is no response, the costs are adjusted on the basis of the price list valid at the time the contract was concluded.
Privacy Policy alpha awards
for Contract Partners
§ 1 Controller and data protection officer
The controller within the meaning of the GDPR for the processing described in this privacy policy is 79 Blue Elephants GmbH, Längenfeldgasse 27B, 1120 Vienna, Austria, phone +43 1 890 89 89, email office@alpha-awards.com.
Data protection officer: RA Dr. Daniel Stanonik, Salztorgasse 2/8, 1010 Vienna, phone +43 1 904 33 55, email office@stanonik.at.
§ 2 Definitions
The definitions in § 2 of the 79BE T&Cs apply to this privacy policy. “Contract partner” is the natural or legal person who, as organizer, runs a competition via the online services. “Online services” means the software operated by 79BE at https://www.alpha-awards.com and the services based on it.
§ 3 Registration and booking in self-service
When you book a plan in the booking process (§ C1 T&Cs), 79BE processes the data provided – name or company name, billing and delivery address, email address, telephone number, login details, selected plan, IP address and time of booking – to initiate and conclude the contract (§ 5 T&Cs).
Legal basis: Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR (performance of a contract or pre-contractual measures).
Storage period: for the duration of the contractual relationship, then deletion unless statutory retention obligations apply (see § 5).
§ 4 Contract handling, access and support
To provide access to the online services and the test environment (§ C3 T&Cs), to communicate as part of support (§ C4 T&Cs), to notify you if limits are exceeded (§ C7 T&Cs), and to enforce payment obligations and block access if necessary in the event of default (§ 6, § C6 T&Cs), 79BE processes the data listed in § 3 as well as the history of communication and account use.
Legal basis: Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR (performance of a contract) and Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR (legitimate interest in proper contract handling and prevention of misuse).
Storage period: for the duration of the contractual relationship, then deletion unless statutory retention obligations apply.
§ 5 Invoicing and payment processing
For invoicing and payment processing (§ 10, § C6 T&Cs), 79BE processes billing and payment data.
Legal basis: Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR (performance of a contract) and Art. 6(1)(c) GDPR (statutory retention obligations).
Storage period: seven years in accordance with the retention obligations under Austrian commercial and tax law (§ 132 BAO, § 212 UGB).
§ 6 Your own users (entrants and judges)
For personal data that you as a contract partner or your users (entrants, judges) contribute as part of your competition – in particular registration data, submissions and evaluations – you yourself are the controller within the meaning of the GDPR. 79BE processes this data for you exclusively as a processor on your instructions, on the basis of the data processing agreement pursuant to Art. 28 GDPR (Annex 1 to the T&Cs). In particular, you are responsible for the lawfulness of the processing, for informing your users pursuant to Art. 13 and 14 GDPR, and for your own terms of participation and privacy notices (§ 12 T&Cs). Details for your users are set out in the alpha awards Privacy Policy for Users.
§ 7 Obligation to provide data
Providing the data listed in § 3 and § 5 is not required by law or contract, but is necessary for registration, booking and contract handling in self-service. Without this data, it is not possible to conclude a contract and therefore to use the online services.
§ 8 Recipients and service providers used
79BE uses service providers to operate the online services, in particular for web hosting (§ 9 T&Cs). These service providers only receive the data required to provide their respective service and are contractually obliged to maintain confidentiality and comply with the GDPR (data processing agreements pursuant to Art. 28 GDPR).
§ 9 Transfers to third countries
As a rule, personal data is not transferred to countries outside the EU/EEA as part of the processing described in this privacy policy. Where individual tools used as part of general website use transfer data to third countries (in particular the USA), this takes place on the legal basis stated there (standard contractual clauses or an adequacy decision of the European Commission); details are set out in the general privacy policy at https://www.alpha-awards.com/sicherheitneu#datenschutzpartner.
§ 10 Rights of data subjects
Under the GDPR, you have the following rights: right of access (Art. 15), right to rectification (Art. 16), right to erasure (Art. 17), right to restriction of processing (Art. 18), right to data portability (Art. 20), right to withdraw consent with effect for the future (Art. 7(3)) and right to object to processing based on Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR (Art. 21). To exercise these rights, please use the contact details in § 1.
Irrespective of this, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Austrian Data Protection Authority: Österreichische Datenschutzbehörde, Barichgasse 40–42, 1030 Vienna, phone +43 1 52 152-0, email dsb@dsb.gv.at, www.dsb.gv.at.
§ 11 Data security
79BE takes appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect personal data against loss, misuse and unauthorized access (including state-of-the-art encryption and TLS/SSL connections). These measures are regularly reviewed and adapted to technical progress.
§ 12 Changes to this privacy policy
79BE is entitled to amend this privacy policy with effect for the future, in particular in the event of changes to the online services or the legal situation. The current version is available at https://www.alpha-awards.com/sicherheitneu#datenschutzpartner.
Data Processing Agreement
pursuant to Art. 28 GDPR
§ 1 Subject matter and duration of the order
- Subject matter
The subject matter of the order results from the service agreement dated …………, to which reference is made here (hereinafter “service agreement”).
- Duration
The duration of this order (term) corresponds to the term of the service agreement.
§ 2 Specification of the order content
Details of the type and purpose of the intended processing or use are set out in section A of Annex 1 to this agreement.
The contractually agreed data processing is carried out exclusively in a member state of the European Union or in another contracting state of the Agreement on the European Economic Area. Any relocation to a third country requires the prior consent of the client.
This is ensured by binding corporate rules (Art. 46(2)(b) in conjunction with Art. 47 GDPR).
The types of personal data are listed in section B of Annex 1.
The categories of data subjects are listed in section C of Annex 1.
§ 3 Technical and organizational measures
- Before processing begins, the contractor must document the implementation of the necessary technical and organizational measures set out prior to the award of the order, in particular with regard to the specific performance of the order, and hand them over to the client for review. Once accepted by the client, the documented measures become the basis of the order. If the client’s review/audit reveals a need for adjustment, this must be implemented by mutual agreement.
- The contractor must ensure security pursuant to Art. 28(3)(c) and Art. 32 GDPR, in particular in conjunction with Art. 5(1) and (2) GDPR. Overall, the measures to be taken are data security measures and measures to ensure a level of protection appropriate to the risk with regard to the confidentiality, integrity, availability and resilience of the systems. The state of the art, the costs of implementation and the nature, scope and purposes of the processing, as well as the varying likelihood and severity of the risk to the rights and freedoms of natural persons within the meaning of Art. 32(1) GDPR, must be taken into account [details in Annex 1].
- The technical and organizational measures are subject to technical progress and further development. In this respect, the contractor is permitted to implement alternative adequate measures. The security level of the specified measures must not be undercut. Significant changes must be documented.
§ 4 Rectification, restriction and erasure of data
- The contractor may not rectify, erase or restrict the processing of the data processed on behalf of the client on its own authority, but only on documented instructions from the client. If a data subject contacts the contractor directly in this regard, the contractor will forward this request to the client without delay.
- Insofar as included in the scope of services, the deletion concept, right to be forgotten, rectification, data portability and access must be ensured directly by the contractor on documented instructions from the client.
§ 5 Quality assurance and other obligations of the contractor
In addition to complying with the provisions of this order, the contractor has statutory obligations pursuant to Art. 28 to 33 GDPR; in this respect, it ensures in particular compliance with the following requirements:
- Written appointment of a data protection officer who performs their duties pursuant to Art. 28 and 29 GDPR. Attorney-at-law Dr. Daniel Stanonik, phone +43 1 904 33 55, office@stanonik.at, has been appointed as the contractor’s data protection officer. Any change of data protection officer must be communicated to the client without delay.
- Maintaining confidentiality pursuant to Art. 28(3)(2)(b), Art. 29 and Art. 32(4) GDPR. When carrying out the work, the contractor only uses employees who have been bound to confidentiality and previously familiarized with the data protection provisions relevant to them. The contractor and any person acting under the authority of the contractor who has access to personal data may only process this data in accordance with the client’s instructions, including the powers granted in this contract, unless they are legally obliged to process it.
- The implementation of and compliance with all technical and organizational measures required for this order pursuant to Art. 28(3)(2)(c) and Art. 32 GDPR [details in Annex 1].
- The client and the contractor cooperate with the supervisory authority in the performance of its tasks upon request.
- Informing the client without delay of inspections and measures by the supervisory authority insofar as they relate to this order. This also applies insofar as a competent authority is investigating the contractor in the context of administrative offence or criminal proceedings relating to the processing of personal data in the course of order processing.
- Insofar as the client is itself subject to an inspection by the supervisory authority, administrative offence or criminal proceedings, a liability claim by a data subject or a third party, or any other claim in connection with the order processing by the contractor, the contractor must support it to the best of its ability.
- Verifiability of the technical and organizational measures taken vis-à-vis the client as part of its control powers pursuant to § 7 of this contract.
§ 6 Subcontracting
- Subcontracting within the meaning of this provision means services that relate directly to the provision of the main service. This does not include ancillary services that the contractor uses, e.g. telecommunications services, postal/transport services, maintenance and user service or the disposal of data carriers, as well as other measures to ensure the confidentiality, availability, integrity and resilience of the hardware and software of data processing systems. However, the contractor is obliged to make appropriate and legally compliant contractual arrangements and take control measures to ensure the data protection and data security of the client’s data, even in the case of outsourced ancillary services.
- The contractor may only engage subcontractors (further processors) with the client’s prior express written or documented consent.
a) The client consents to the engagement of the following subcontractors on condition of a contractual agreement in accordance with Art. 28(2)–(4) GDPR:
|
Subcontractor |
Address/country |
Service |
|---|---|---|
|
Hetzner Online GmbH |
Industriestr. 25, 91710 Gunzenhausen, Germany |
Hosting (the data is hosted at Hetzner; Hetzner has no access to the data) |
|
Mailjet SAS (Sinch-Gruppe) |
43 Rue de Dunkerque, 75010 Paris, France |
System email delivery via SMTP relay (registration confirmation, submission confirmation, password reset, jury invitation). Storage and delivery exclusively in EU data centers (Google Cloud, Frankfurt/DE and Saint-Ghislain/BE); open/click tracking disabled, no storage of contact lists. For customer support and operations, Mailjet uses group and service companies based in the USA (Mailgun Technologies, Inc.; Atlassian; Zendesk); safeguards: EU standard contractual clauses (Decision (EU) 2021/914) under the Sinch Data Processing Agreement v8 of 29 October 2025, and certification of Mailgun Technologies, Inc. under the EU-US Data Privacy Framework (register entry checked on 11 September 2026, status “Active”). Evidence in Annex 3. |
b) Outsourcing to subcontractors or changing the existing subcontractor is permitted insofar as:
- the contractor notifies the client of such outsourcing to subcontractors in writing or in text form a reasonable time in advance, and
- the client does not object to the planned outsourcing in writing or in text form to the contractor by the time the data is handed over, and
- a contractual agreement in accordance with Art. 28(2)–(4) GDPR is used as the basis.
- The transfer of the client’s personal data to the subcontractor and the subcontractor’s initial activity are only permitted once all requirements for subcontracting have been met.
- If the subcontractor provides the agreed service outside the EU/EEA, the contractor ensures its permissibility under data protection law by taking appropriate measures. The same applies if service providers within the meaning of para. 1 sentence 2 are to be used.
- Further outsourcing by the subcontractor is not permitted.
§ 7 Client’s control rights
- The client has the right, in consultation with the contractor, to carry out inspections or have them carried out by auditors to be named in the individual case. It has the right to satisfy itself of the contractor’s compliance with this agreement in its business operations by means of spot checks, which as a rule must be announced in good time.
- The contractor ensures that the client can satisfy itself of the contractor’s compliance with its obligations under Art. 28 GDPR. The contractor undertakes to provide the client with the necessary information upon request and, in particular, to demonstrate the implementation of the technical and organizational measures.
- Evidence of measures that do not relate only to the specific order may be provided by compliance with approved codes of conduct pursuant to Art. 40 GDPR.
- The contractor may claim remuneration for enabling inspections by the client.
§ 8 Notification of breaches by the contractor
- The contractor supports the client in complying with the obligations set out in Art. 32 to 36 GDPR regarding the security of personal data, notification obligations in the event of data breaches, data protection impact assessments and prior consultations. These include, among other things:
- ensuring an appropriate level of protection through technical and organizational measures that take into account the circumstances and purposes of the processing as well as the predicted likelihood and severity of a possible violation of rights through security vulnerabilities, and that enable relevant breach events to be detected immediately
- the obligation to report personal data breaches to the client without delay
- the obligation to support the client in fulfilling its duty to inform the data subject and to provide it with all relevant information without delay in this context
- supporting the client with its data protection impact assessment
- supporting the client in prior consultations with the supervisory authority
- The contractor may claim remuneration for support services that are not included in the service description or are attributable to misconduct by the client.
§ 9 Client’s authority to issue instructions
- The client confirms verbal instructions without delay (at least in text form).
- The contractor must inform the client without delay if it believes that an instruction violates data protection regulations. The contractor is entitled to suspend the execution of the instruction in question until it is confirmed or changed by the client.
§ 10 Deletion and return of personal data
- Copies or duplicates of the data are not made without the client’s knowledge. This does not apply to backup copies insofar as they are necessary to ensure proper data processing, or to data required to comply with statutory retention obligations.
- After completion of the contractually agreed work, or earlier upon request by the client – at the latest upon termination of the service agreement – the contractor must hand over to the client all documents that have come into its possession, processing and usage results created, and data stocks connected with the contractual relationship, or destroy them in a data protection-compliant manner after prior consent. The same applies to test and scrap material. The deletion log must be presented upon request.
- Documentation that serves as evidence of order-compliant and proper data processing must be retained by the contractor beyond the end of the contract in accordance with the respective retention periods. The contractor may hand it over to the client at the end of the contract to relieve itself of this obligation.
Annex 1
A. Re § 2: Additional details on the type and purpose of data processing
The contractor operates the award management platform “alpha awards” (software as a service) for the client for the competition ……. . The processing serves exclusively the submission, management, jury evaluation and analysis of competition entries on the client’s instructions and comprises the following steps:
- Registration and submission. Entrants register with an email address and password (stored as a hash), confirm the link sent to them and add the profile details specified by the client (e.g. salutation, name, company, position, address); in doing so, they accept the client’s terms of participation and privacy terms. They enter their contributions in the form fields defined by the client and upload files (images, PDFs, videos), which are converted into web-ready formats on the contractor’s servers. Submissions may contain third-party data (e.g. people shown in images); the entrant is responsible to the client for providing this lawfully.
- Storage. All data is stored on dedicated servers of Hetzner Online GmbH in Falkenstein (Germany), with a failover system at Hetzner’s Helsinki site (Finland); transfers are TLS-encrypted. Backup copies are kept on the server for 14 days on a rolling basis and are transferred to a Hetzner Storage Box exclusively in encrypted form. No processing takes place outside the EU.
- Management and system emails. The client’s administrators manage users, entries, categories and the jury, assign categories to judges and export submission data as XLS/CSV. The platform sends automated emails (registration and submission confirmation, password reset, jury invitation) via SMTP through Mailjet SAS (§ 6); only the recipient address and message text are transmitted, without names; tracking is disabled, and contact lists are not stored there.
- Provision to the jury and evaluation. Judges are invited by the client by email, log into the platform and only see the entries in their assigned categories; the client determines in the configuration which details and files are visible, in particular whether the entrant can be identified. The contractor does not transmit entries outside the platform. The jury evaluates manually based on the criteria defined by the client, weighted if applicable, optionally with comments; evaluations can be edited until the end of the judging phase and are assigned to the judge. The platform calculates point totals per entry and a sortable ranking per category. Individual evaluations by other judges cannot be viewed; depending on the configuration, total scores or comments are displayed anonymously. No artificial intelligence is used; no automated decision-making (Art. 22 GDPR) takes place, and the award decision is made by the client.
- Handover of results. The client sees progress and results per category and judge in the dashboard, exports evaluations and comments as XLS/CSV and receives the files after the submission deadline as ZIP archives via an access-protected, logged download. Publication via the platform only takes place on the client’s written instruction.
- Access, logging and deletion. The contractor’s employees have administrator access at application level and access to the production servers, exclusively for maintenance, troubleshooting or on instruction, with two-factor authentication and logging. Server and application logs (IP address, timestamp, user ID) are deleted after 30 days. The data is stored for the term of the service agreement; on instruction, records or competition cycles are deleted without delay, and in backup copies after 14 days at the latest. After the end of the contract, the client chooses within 30 days between return (export) and deletion; without instruction, the contractor deletes all data no later than 90 days after the end of the contract and confirms this with a deletion log upon request (§ 10).
B. Re § 2: Types of personal data
Address data, contact data, project-related data, submission data
C. Re § 2: Categories of data subjects
Entrants and judges of the competition
Annex 2
Technical and organizational measures pursuant to Art. 32 GDPR
Documentation of the technical and organizational measures to be taken pursuant to Art. 32 GDPR[1].
[1] This document serves to fulfil statutory requirements and is intended as a general description that makes it possible to assess provisionally whether the data security measures taken are appropriate with regard to the aspects addressed below. During the term of the contractual relationship, this data security concept must be continuously adapted and updated to the current circumstances of the order’s performance. All adjustments and changes in the procedures for performing the contract must be documented in writing. The document forms part of the contract and must be submitted to the client in the event of significant changes and otherwise annually for order control purposes.
|
1. |
Encryption – How is encryption ensured? Encryption transforms plain text, depending on additional information called a “key”, into corresponding ciphertext, which should be indecipherable to those who do not know the key. |
Encryption of backups; encryption of communication |
|
2. |
Ability to ensure confidentiality – How is the confidentiality of the data ensured on a permanent basis? Confidentiality means that personal data is protected against unauthorized disclosure. |
Electronic access control system; security doors and/or windows; bars on windows and doors; site security, gatekeeper; alarm system; video surveillance; special protective measures for the server room; individual log-in and password procedure; additional log-in for certain applications; management of permissions; documentation of permissions; encryption of communication between systems; encryption of backups; SSL encryption for web access |
|
3. |
Ability to ensure integrity – How is the integrity of the data ensured on a permanent basis? Integrity means ensuring the correctness (intactness) of data and the correct functioning of systems. When applied to “data”, integrity means that the data is complete and unchanged. |
Measures are taken to prevent damage to or alteration of the protected data during processing or transmission; use of access rights; system-side logging |
|
4. |
Ability to ensure resilience – How is the resilience of the systems ensured on a permanent basis? Resilience means the ability of IT systems to withstand disruptions and loads and to maintain proper operation even under increased load or partial failures. |
Redundant design of essential system components; load balancing; scalability of systems during peak loads; redundant power and network connection in the data center; DDoS protection; continuous monitoring of system utilization; regular patch and update management |
|
5. |
Ability to ensure availability – How is the availability of the data ensured on a permanent basis? Services, functions of an IT system, IT applications or IT networks, or information, are available if users can always use them as intended. |
Backup procedures; disk mirroring; virus protection/firewall; emergency plan; air conditioning; fire and extinguishing water protection; alarm system; suitable archiving premises |
|
6. |
Restoring availability and access – How is it ensured that personal data is quickly available and accessible again after security incidents? |
Backup procedures; emergency plan |
|
7. |
Unauthorized access to personal data – How is it prevented that data processing systems can be used by unauthorized persons? |
Individual log-in and password procedure; additional log-in for certain applications; management of permissions; documentation of permissions |
|
8. |
Processing of personal data only on instruction – How is it ensured that personal data is only processed in accordance with the controller’s instructions? |
Employees are bound by codes of conduct; employees are bound to data secrecy; training of all employees with access rights; designation of contact persons and responsible project managers for the specific order |