Privacy policy

This English version is only for reference. In case of doubt, the German version of this privacy policy shall prevail.

1. Introduction and Summary

Anonymity and confidentiality are our top priorities. That is why we only collect data that is necessary for the functioning of our services. We treat your data with care and confidentiality and delete it as soon as we no longer need it. Below, we explain how we do this. In case of doubt, the German version of this privacy policy shall prevail.

Certain cases are also governed by our Terms of Use and, where applicable, the regulations of VSETH.

1.1 What information we collect

When using the chat service, the messages you send us are only stored for the duration of the conversation. All messages are deleted once the conversation has ended.

When you visit our website, your IP address and information about your browser and computer are stored. This is necessary in order to resolve technical problems and prevent misuse of our services. We also process and store data that you provide to us via forms on the website (contact form, participation form).

When you use our telephone service, your telephone number is not displayed to us, but it is recorded by the ETH telephone system and stored for a limited period of time.

When you use our email service (anonymous email form), your messages are stored for a maximum of six months after the conversation has ended and are then automatically deleted.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us at any time.

2. Responsible person / Data protection officer

The commission ‘Nightline Zurich’ (“Nightline” or ‘we’) of the Association of Students at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (VSETH) is responsible for data processing via this website and our services:

Nightline Zurich
Association of Students at ETH (VSETH)
CAB
Universitätsstrasse 6
CH-8092 Zurich

If you have any questions regarding data protection, please contact our data protection officer (in accordance with Art. 10 DSG):

Fabio Rentsch, info@nightline.ch

3. General principles and legal basis

We process personal data in accordance with Swiss data protection law, in particular the Federal Act on Data Protection and the Ordinance on Data Protection.

As a matter of principle, we only process personal data to the extent necessary to provide a functional website and to deliver our services. Personal data is processed with the consent of the data subject, unless prior consent cannot be obtained for practical reasons or the processing of the data is permitted by law.

The following are possible justifications for the processing of personal data: your consent; the performance of a contract or pre-contractual measures; legal obligations; vital interests of data subjects and third parties; or our legitimate interests, provided that the interests of the data subject do not outweigh these.

In any case, we ensure transparent and proportionate processing and delete or anonymise the personal data of a data subject as soon as there is no longer any reason to store it. If, in the course of our services, personal data is provided to us by a user from a third party, it is the responsibility of the user to obtain the consent of the person concerned or to ensure compliance with data protection regulations.

We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to ensure adequate data security. Access to our website and our online services is always encrypted (SSL/TLS, HTTPS). However, we cannot guarantee absolute data security.

4. Provision of the website

4.1 Description and scope of data processing

Every time you visit our website, our system automatically collects data and information from the computer system of the accessing computer. The following data is collected:

Information about the browser type, version and languages used
The operating system used
The IP address of the access
Date and time of access
The last website visited in the same browser window
The pages visited on our website

The data is stored in parts in the system’s temporary memory, in log files and in a database of access data. This data is not stored together with other personal data relating to the same person.

4.2 Purpose and legal basis of data processing

The temporary storage of the IP address by the system is necessary to enable the website to be delivered to the user’s computer. For this purpose, the user’s IP address must remain stored for the duration of the session.

Storage in log files is done to ensure the functionality of the website. In addition, the access data serves to optimise the website and to ensure the security of our information technology systems. The data is not evaluated for marketing purposes.

4.3 Duration of storage

Temporarily stored IP addresses for the provision of the website are deleted at the end of each session. Log files are removed after three months at the latest. Access data can also be stored indefinitely if the IP addresses of users have been deleted or altered so that it is no longer possible to identify the client accessing the site. The longer storage of access data can be objected to at any time via the ‘Do Not Track’ setting in the accessing browser software.

5. Chat service

5.1 Description and scope of data processing

Our chat platform records the time of registration and an anonymised part of the user’s IP address in log files. For technical reasons, the full IP address is temporarily stored for the duration of the conversation. In justified exceptional cases, Nightline reserves the right to retain the full IP address beyond the duration of the conversation (see Terms of Use).

If messages are entered and sent in the chat, they are stored together with the date and time of the message for the duration of the conversation. By voluntarily sending the message, you expressly consent to this data processing. The data is used exclusively for the processing of the conversation.

5.2 Purpose and legal basis of data processing

The processing of personal data from the sending of messages serves solely to process the contact request after the user has given their consent. The other personal data processed in the chat system serves to prevent misuse of the service and to ensure the security of our information technology systems.

5.3 Duration of storage

Personal data from the chat will be deleted after the end of the respective conversation. In exceptional cases, longer storage may be necessary (see Terms of Use) to prevent misuse of the service or to protect the vital interests of data subjects and third parties. In these cases, the data will be deleted as soon as the purpose of storage no longer applies.

5.4 Right to object

The user may revoke their consent to the processing of personal data at any time. The objection can be made by sending a message in the chat or by leaving the chat session (closing the browser window). In such a case, the conversation cannot be continued.

6. Mail offer

6.1 Description and scope of data processing

To use our email service, you must register with a pseudonym. No personal data needs to be provided. However, all data mentioned under ‘Provision of the website’ will be collected and processed as described there. By registering, you expressly consent to this data processing. When registering, you can voluntarily provide an email address to receive notifications about new replies. By providing your email address, you also expressly consent to this use.

Messages written in the system are sent to us and stored together with the date, time, pseudonym and email address (if provided) for approximately one semester. The messages are only accessible to our employees.

6.2 Purpose and legal basis of data processing

The processing of personal data from voluntary email messages serves to process the contact request after the user has given their consent. All other personal data processed in connection with the email service serves to prevent misuse of the service and to ensure the security of our information technology systems.

6.3 Duration of storage

Email messages are deleted within a maximum of six months after the conversation has ended.

6.4 Right to object

Users may revoke their consent to the processing of personal data contained in email messages at any time. To have the data deleted prematurely, please contact our data protection officer.

7. Telephone offer

7.1 Description and scope of data processing

Our website provides a telephone number for contacting us. When this number is called, the caller’s telephone number is processed in the telephone systems of ETH Zurich and the providers involved. Normally, the Nightline number is not disclosed. In exceptional cases (see Terms of Use), however, it may be stored. By voluntarily calling the Nightline telephone number, you expressly consent to this data processing.

Telephone calls are not recorded, nor is any personal data communicated during the call noted beyond the duration of the call.

7.2 Purpose and legal basis of data processing

The personal data provided will be processed solely for the purpose of handling the contact during the call and will be processed with the consent of the caller. In exceptional cases, it may be necessary to record the telephone number or other personal data (see Terms of Use) in order to prevent misuse of the service or to protect the vital interests of data subjects and third parties. The data will be stored for as long as necessary.

8. Rights of the data subject

If we process your personal data, you as the data subject have rights under the Swiss Data Protection Act. These include:

Right to information
Right to data disclosure or transfer
Right to correction
Right to object

The supervisory authority for data protection in Switzerland is the Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner (FDPIC).

9. Final provisions and licence information

We reserve the right to change or supplement this privacy policy at any time. The current privacy policy is published on our website.

Many thanks to Professor Dr Thomas Hoeren and the DFN Association’s Legal Research Centre for providing a freely available sample privacy policy, which served as a template. This privacy policy is licensed under Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 4.0.