Privacy Policy

The following notes give a simple overview of what happens to your personal data when you use our app or website. Personal data is any data by which you can be personally identified.

The controller within the meaning of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), other national data protection laws of the member states and other data protection regulations is:

The key points

The website stolpersteine-guide.de shows no advertising and sets no tracking cookies. We count page visits with Plausible Analytics, without cookies and without identifying you. Apart from that we only include services of other providers where a feature needs them: the map (Mapbox), videos only after your click (YouTube) and payments when you support us (Stripe).

Scope of the processing of personal data

We generally process personal data of our users only insofar as this is necessary to provide a functional website and our content and services. Personal data of our users is regularly processed only with the user's consent. An exception applies in cases where prior consent cannot be obtained for practical reasons and the processing of the data is permitted by law.

Legal basis for the processing of personal data

Where we obtain the consent of the data subject for processing operations involving personal data, Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR serves as the legal basis. When processing personal data that is necessary for the performance of a contract to which the data subject is a party, Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR serves as the legal basis. This also applies to processing operations that are necessary to carry out pre-contractual measures.

Where processing of personal data is necessary to comply with a legal obligation to which our company is subject, Art. 6(1)(c) GDPR serves as the legal basis.

In the event that vital interests of the data subject or another natural person require the processing of personal data, Art. 6(1)(d) GDPR serves as the legal basis.

If processing is necessary to safeguard a legitimate interest of our company or a third party, and the interests, fundamental rights and freedoms of the data subject do not outweigh the former interest, Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR serves as the legal basis for the processing.

Data deletion and storage period

The personal data of the data subject is deleted or blocked as soon as the purpose of storage no longer applies. Data may also be stored if this has been provided for by the European or national legislator in EU regulations, laws or other provisions to which the controller is subject. Data is also blocked or deleted when a storage period prescribed by the aforementioned standards expires, unless there is a need to continue storing the data in order to conclude or perform a contract.

Visiting the website and server log files

When you visit the website, our servers automatically process information your browser sends: IP address, date and time, the page requested, the page visited before (referrer) and browser and operating system. This data is technically necessary to deliver the pages and to keep the service secure. It is not combined with other data and is deleted after a short time unless it is needed to investigate an attack. The legal basis is Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR; our legitimate interest is the stable and secure operation of the website.

Biographies, towns, photos and the search are loaded from our own content server at stolpersteine-guide.de. We use search terms only to show the results. Video preview images and the app store badges are delivered through our own server so that your browser does not connect to Google or Apple for them. The fonts are stored on our server as well.

The website uses SSL/TLS encryption so that your requests cannot be read by third parties.

Cookies and browser storage

We do not set cookies for analytics or advertising. The website only stores the following in your browser:

• a cookie with the chosen language (i18n_redirected, valid for one year) so that your next visit opens in your language;
• in local storage, when you closed the note about our app (sg-app-banner-dismissed) so that it does not appear again for 14 days;
• in local storage, data of the Mapbox map library, including a random identifier not linked to you, which Mapbox uses to count map loads.

These entries are necessary for the feature you use (Section 25(2) no. 2 TDDDG). You can delete them at any time in your browser settings.

Audience measurement (Plausible Analytics)

To see which pages are visited and how often, we use Plausible Analytics, a service of Plausible Insights OÜ, Västriku tn 2, 50403 Tartu, Estonia. Plausible sets no cookies and stores nothing in your browser. It records the page visited, the page visited before, browser, operating system, device type and the country derived from the IP address. Your IP address is not stored; to count unique visits, Plausible combines it with browser details into a check value that changes daily and cannot be traced back to you. The data is processed on servers in the EU and only evaluated in aggregate. The script and the counting run through our own server, which passes the details including your IP address on to Plausible and keeps none of them itself. The legal basis is Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR; our legitimate interest is to improve the service based on how it is used. More information can be found in Plausible's data policy.

Map (Mapbox)

For the map we use Mapbox, a service of Mapbox, Inc., 740 15th Street NW, 5th Floor, Washington, DC 20005, USA. When the map is shown, your browser loads map data directly from Mapbox servers. Your IP address, the map area shown and details about your browser and device are transmitted to Mapbox, including to the USA. Mapbox also records that a map was loaded; we have switched off the additional transmission of performance data. The legal basis is Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR; our legitimate interest is to show where the Stolpersteine lie on a map. More information can be found in Mapbox's privacy policy.

Videos (YouTube)

Some biographies contain videos from YouTube, a service of Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland. A video is only loaded when you click “Load video”. Until then there is no connection to YouTube. After the click your browser loads the video in privacy-enhanced mode (youtube-nocookie.com) directly from Google. Among other things, your IP address and details about your device are transmitted to Google, possibly including to the USA. The legal basis is your consent under Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR. Consent applies only to that video and is not stored; after reloading the page the video is blocked again. More information can be found in Google's privacy policy.

Audio recordings

Some biographies contain audio recordings stored with other providers, for example the public broadcaster Südwestrundfunk. When such a biography opens, your browser requests details of the audio file from the provider's server and loads the file when you play it. The provider receives your IP address. The legal basis is Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR; our legitimate interest is to make the initiatives' recordings available.

Supporting us with Stripe

If you support us with an amount, you are taken to a payment page of Stripe, a service of Stripe Payments Europe, Limited, 1 Grand Canal Street Lower, Grand Canal Dock, Dublin, D02 H210, Ireland. Stripe processes the details you enter there, such as email address and payment details, to handle the payment. We receive the payment details from Stripe, such as name, email address, amount and time, but not full card or account details. The legal bases are Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR for handling the payment and Art. 6(1)(c) GDPR for statutory retention obligations; we keep payment records for up to ten years in line with commercial and tax law. More information can be found in Stripe's privacy policy.

Being named as a supporter

When paying you can choose to enter a name. We show this name publicly as a thank-you on the start page, the “Support” page and next to biographies. Without a name we only count your contribution anonymously. We do not publish other details such as the amount or your email address. The legal basis is your consent under Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR. You can withdraw it at any time by email to ahoi@stolpersteine-guide.de; we will then remove the name promptly.

Contact and access requests

If you contact us by email or phone, we process your details to answer your request. Initiatives that want to enter their Stolpersteine can request access through a form at forms.stolpersteine-guide.de; we use the details entered there only to handle the request and set up the access. The legal basis is Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR, for other requests Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR. We delete the details once the request is dealt with and no retention obligations apply.

Links to other websites

The website links to the initiatives' websites, the app stores of Apple and Google and our pages on Instagram and Facebook. This content is not embedded. Only when you follow a link does the respective provider's privacy policy apply.

The Stolpersteine Guide app

The app for iOS and Android needs no user account and creates no profiles. It only transmits the data to the services named here that is required for the respective purpose. We ourselves receive no data that would let us identify individual users.

Content from our server

The app loads Stolpersteine, biographies, photos, audio files and tours from our server (stolpersteine-guide.de). For technical reasons, the IP address, the time of the request and the requested content are processed in server logs. These logs serve only the secure operation of the service and are deleted after a short time. Search queries are processed only to answer them and are not stored. The legal basis is Art. 6 (1) (f) GDPR (legitimate interest in operating the app).

Location

With your permission, the app uses your device's location to show your position on the map, to find Stolpersteine and tours near you and to guide you from stone to stone during a tour. The location is used only while the app is open; the app does not record your location in the background. To calculate walking routes within a tour, start and destination coordinates are sent to Mapbox (see below). We do not store location data. You can revoke the permission at any time in your device's settings; the app then remains usable without location features. The legal basis is your consent (Art. 6 (1) (a) GDPR).

Maps and routes (Mapbox)

The map and the walking routes are provided by Mapbox Inc., 740 15th Street NW, Washington, DC 20005, USA. When the map loads, your IP address and the displayed map section are transmitted to Mapbox. The Mapbox maps SDK also collects anonymised usage and location data (telemetry) that Mapbox uses to improve its map data; this data is not linked to you as a person and is not used for advertising. Mapbox also processes data in the USA on the basis of the EU standard contractual clauses. Further information can be found in Mapbox's privacy policy. The legal basis is Art. 6 (1) (f) GDPR (legitimate interest in a working map).

Crash reports (Sentry)

To detect and fix crashes and errors, the app uses the Sentry service of Functional Software Inc., 45 Fremont Street, San Francisco, CA 94105, USA. In the event of an error, technical details are transmitted: the error message and program state, app version, device type, operating system version, language and a randomly generated installation identifier with no link to you as a person. The data is stored on Sentry servers in the European Union and deleted after 90 days. Further information can be found in Sentry's privacy policy. The legal basis is Art. 6 (1) (f) GDPR (legitimate interest in a stable app).

YouTube videos

For some biographies the app offers videos from YouTube. A video is loaded only after you have explicitly agreed in the app. Only then is data (including your IP address and device data) transmitted to Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland; Google may link this data to your Google account if you are signed in. Further information can be found in Google's privacy policy. The legal basis is your consent (Art. 6 (1) (a) GDPR).

Operating system and app stores

Apple (App Store, iOS) and Google (Google Play, Android) process their own data in the course of installing and running the app, for example to provide updates or in the operating system's crash reports. We have no influence on this. Further information can be found in the privacy policies of Apple and Google.

Your rights

You have the right at any time to

• access the data we hold about you (Art. 15 GDPR),
• have incorrect data corrected (Art. 16 GDPR),
• have your data erased (Art. 17 GDPR),
• restrict processing (Art. 18 GDPR),
• data portability (Art. 20 GDPR),
• object to processing based on Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR (Art. 21 GDPR),
• withdraw consent with effect for the future (Art. 7(3) GDPR).

Simply contact us at the address above. You can also lodge a complaint with a data protection supervisory authority (Art. 77 GDPR), for example the authority responsible for us, the Saxon Data Protection and Transparency Commissioner, datenschutz.sachsen.de.

Last updated: October 2026