ALPERNWho we are
ALPERN ("we"), based in Switzerland, runs alpern.ch and decides how your personal data are processed here. Questions and requests: privacy@alpern.ch.
In short
- Without an account you can read the home page and these legal pages. The radars, the other tools and the courses are for signed-in alpha testers (by invitation). We do not track you, show no ads and use no analytics.
- If you ask to join the alpha test, we keep your request (email, name and what you tell us about your work) to decide on it.
- If you open a client space, we keep only what it needs: your email, your name if you give it, your products, your reading progress, your alert choices and your certificates.
- Everything is stored in Switzerland (Infomaniak, Geneva). We do not sell or share your data, and we send nothing abroad.
- You can see, download, correct or delete your data at any time; deleting your account in your space removes it from the service at once (backup copies expire within 180 days).
What we process and why
| Data | Why | How long |
|---|---|---|
| Visiting the site: IP address, date and time, page requested, browser type (server logs of our host) | To deliver the pages and keep the site secure | Up to 10 days, then deleted by the host |
| On your device only: reading marks, ticks in templates, hints of the site guide | So the site remembers your progress in this browser. These data stay in your browser; we do not receive them. Text you type in templates is never stored. | Until you clear your browser data |
| Client space account: email address; name (optional, printed on certificates); date of creation and last visit | To let you sign in and run your space | Until you delete your account, or after 24 months without sign-in (we email you 30 days before) |
| Alpha access request: email address, name; bank or company, role and a note if you give them; date of the request and of our decision | To decide who joins the alpha test. We receive your request by email. | Approved: kept as long as your account exists. Declined or not answered: deleted after 12 months |
| Sign-in links | To sign you in without a password. We store only a scrambled (hashed) version of the link. | 20 minutes; each link works once |
| Products and access codes you used | To give you access to what you are entitled to | As long as your account exists |
| Reading progress | To show your progress on every device and to issue certificates | As long as your account exists |
| Certificates: name, product, date, certificate ID | To issue your certificate. Anyone who has the ID can check it at alpern.ch/space/certificate/ and sees name, product and date. | As long as your account exists |
| Alerts: the topics you follow, how often, date of the last email | To send you the alert emails you asked for. Each email has a one-click unsubscribe link. | Until you switch alerts off or delete your account |
| Abuse protection: scrambled (hashed) IP address and email address | To limit repeated sign-in attempts | 24 hours |
| Messages you send us | To answer you | As long as needed to deal with your request |
| Backups of the client-space database | To restore the service after a technical failure. Backups are encrypted in transit, kept in Switzerland and on our own computer, and used only for restoring. | Our host keeps 7 days; our own backups are kept up to 180 days, then deleted. If you delete your account, it disappears from the live service at once and from the backups when they expire. |
We use your data only for these purposes. We make no automated decisions about you.
Cookies
We set two cookies, and only when you sign in to your client space: alp_s keeps you signed in (30 days; it cannot be read by scripts) and alp_in only tells the page that you are signed in. Both are necessary for the service you asked for. We use no tracking or advertising cookies.
Who receives your data
Only our hosting provider, Infomaniak Network SA, Rue Eugène Marziano 25, 1227 Les Acacias (Geneva), Switzerland, which hosts the website, the database and the email service on our behalf and under a data processing agreement. We do not sell, rent or share your data with anyone else. We do not transfer personal data abroad.
When we email you (sign-in links, alerts), the message passes through the email provider you chose for your own mailbox.
How we protect your data
Encrypted connections (HTTPS) only; database outside the public part of the website; sign-in links and sessions stored only as hashes; sessions that cannot be read by scripts; checks against requests from other websites; limits on repeated attempts; access to the server limited to us.
Your rights
Under the Swiss Federal Act on Data Protection you can:
- ask whether we process data about you and get a copy (FADP art. 25). We answer within 30 days, free of charge;
- receive the data you gave us in a common electronic format (art. 28);
- have inaccurate data corrected and have your data deleted, or object to their processing (arts. 30 and 32).
Most of this you can do yourself in your space (name, alerts, "Delete my account"). For anything else, write to privacy@alpern.ch from the email address of your account.
If you think we process your data unlawfully, you can contact the Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner (FDPIC), Feldeggweg 1, 3003 Bern, www.edoeb.admin.ch.
Changes
We update this notice when our processing changes. The date at the top shows the latest version. If a change affects your client space, we tell you by email before it applies.