Privacy Policy of Samsung.com E-commerce Platform
Samsung Electronics, including its affiliate group companies, know how important privacy is to our customers. We want to make sure you understand how we collect and use your personal information. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect and use your personal information on Samsung.com, enabling us to provide this online sales platform (the “E-Commerce Platform”) and allowing you to browse and purchase our products. Different Samsung entities in the Samsung group of companies will collect and process your data for different purposes, in particular Samsung Samsung Electronics (UK) Ltd and Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd located in Korea (collectively “Samsung Electronics”).
If you decide to use the Samsung Upgrade Programme, credit and/or insurance services via our E-Commerce Platform your personal data will be processed by partner companies who assist us in operating these services. The privacy policies of these companies will be made available to you at the point at which your personal data is provided to them.
WHAT INFORMATION DO WE COLLECT?
Samsung Electronics collects your personal information in a variety of ways.
Information You Provide Directly
We collect information from you when you use our E-Commerce Platform. For example:
• When you sign in to our E-Commerce Platform using Samsung account we will receive access to information from your account such as your name or email address. If you order a product from us, we will collect your purchase details and will ask for your name, address, contact information and shipping information and method of payment to process your order.
• In order to provide responses to you when you contact customer service, we may need information to verify your identity and the product you are inquiring about.
• When you interact with our Customer Services staff, your communications will be transmitted through our systems.
Information About Your Use of the E-Commerce Platform.
In addition to the information you provide, we will collect information about your use of our E-Commerce Platform. We will collect:
• Information about the product you purchase – hardware model, IMEI number, serial number.
• Device information - IP address, cookies, beacons.
• Log information –any information stored in cookies that we have set on your device.
• Other information about your use of the E-Commerce Platform, including how you interact with content offered through the Platform.
Third Party Analytics
Through certain Services, we may collect personal information about your online activities on websites and connected devices over time and across third-party websites, devices, apps and other online features and services. We may use third-party analytics services on the Services, such as those of Google Analytics. The service providers that administer these analytics services help us to analyze your use of the Services and improve the Services. The information we obtain may be disclosed to or collected directly by these providers and other relevant third parties who use the information, for example, to evaluate use of the Services, help administer the Services and diagnose technical issues. To learn more about Google Analytics, please visit http://www.google.com/analytics/learn/privacy.html and https://www.google.com/policies/privacy/partners/.
Your Options
You can choose not to provide us with certain types of information, such as information requested as part of registering a Samsung account. In some cases, this may limit your ability to use some services. We will do our best to explain these limitations when we are asking for your information so you can make an informed decision.
HOW DO WE USE YOUR INFORMATION?
We will use the information we collect for the following purposes:
• to provide you with services, including the opportunity to enter into a sales agreement with the operator of the Samsung online store as well as options to trade in a device, take out insurance or obtain credit for the purchase;
• to provide customized content and provide personalized services based on your past activities on our E-Commerce Platform;
• to provide customized advertising, promotions, and offers on our website, third party websites, and online platforms (for example, a social media site) if we consider that you will be interested in them;
• to provide promotions and offers by way of direct marketing communications only where you have given us your separate consent
• to analyse our products and services to help us better understand more about our customers in order to offer the most relevant communications, services and experiences to you;
• to ask you for your opinions on our products and services and to carry out customer surveys with your separate consent if required;
• to comply with the law and legal process; and
• to protect the rights, property, or safety of Samsung, or any of our respective affiliates, business partners, or customers.
We use and combine the information we collect about you from our E-Commerce Platform, devices, or other lawful ways to provide you with a better experience. For example, you can use your Samsung account details not only on the E-Commerce Platform, but for other services which use Samsung account. We also use the information you provide directly or through other sources as described above to provide content you may like or that you have personalized to your specific taste. Sometimes, you may have choices regarding your information. Check out the WHAT ARE YOUR RIGHTS? section to learn more.
Samsung processes personal information for the purposes described above. Samsung’s legal basis to process personal information includes processing:
i. so that we can keep our promise to you, such as providing you with the E-Commerce Platform;
ii. to promote our business interests, for example, to manage our relationship with you and improve your customer service experience, including communications on our website, third party websites, and online platforms;
iii. to comply with law and legal process; andiv. with your consent, for example to provide direct marketing communications. However, if you give consent, you can always revoke this by contacting us as specified in the CONTACT US section of this Privacy Policy.
WHO DO WE SHARE YOUR INFORMATION WITH?
We will disclose your information internally within our business, but only to those who need it to further provide you with services or to help with your request.
We will also disclose your information to the following entities, only to the extent that this will be necessary to perform our services:
• Affiliates. Other Samsung Electronics Group companies we control or own.
• Business Partners. Partners who we work together with to provide you the services you have requested or opted to buy. These business partners control and manage your personal information, including the partner who provides our trade in option. They will have their own privacy policies which set out details of how they use your personal data.
• Service Providers. Carefully selected companies that provide services for or on behalf of us, such as companies that help us with repairs, customer contact centers, customer care activities, financial services, advertising, including customized advertising on our website, third party websites, or online platforms, conducting customer satisfaction surveys, billing, or that send emails on our behalf. These providers are also committed to protecting your information.
• Other Parties when required by law or as necessary to protect our services. There may be instances when we disclose your information to other parties. For example, it may be necessary by law and legal process, or by other court order from governmental authorities to disclose your information. They may also seek your information from us for the purpose of law enforcement, national security, anti -terrorism or other issues that are related to public security.
• Other Parties in Connection with Corporate Transactions: We may disclose your information to a third party as part of a merger or transfer, acquisition or sale, or in the event of a bankruptcy.
HOW DO WE KEEP YOUR INFORMATION SECURE?
We take data protection seriously. We have put in place physical and technical safeguards to keep the information we collect secure. However, please note that although we take reasonable steps to protect your information, no website, Internet transmission, computer system, or wireless connection is completely secure.
WHERE DO WE SEND YOUR DATA?
Your use of our E-Commerce Platform will involve the transfer, storage, and processing of your personal information within and outside of your country of residence consistent with this policy. In particular, your personal information will be transferred to the Republic of Korea. Please note that the data protection and other laws of countries to which your information may be transferred might not be as comprehensive as those in your country.
In addition, your use of the Services may also involve the transfer, storage, and processing of your personal information to other countries; such countries include, without limitation, countries in the European Economic Area, the United States of America, Brazil and India. We will take appropriate measures, in compliance with applicable law, to ensure that your personal information remains protected. Such measures include the use of Standard Contractual Clauses to safeguard the transfer of data outside of the EEA. To request more information, or to obtain a copy of the contractual agreements in place, please see our contact details below in the Contact Us section.
WHAT ARE YOUR RIGHTS?
Your personal information belongs to you. You can ask us to provide details about what we’ve collected, and you can ask us to delete it or correct any inaccuracies. You can also ask us to restrict or limit processing, sharing, or transfer of your personal information, as well as providing your personal information that we have collected to you so you can use it for your own purposes. We will not delete data that we are required by law to retain.
To make a request concerning your rights or to make an enquiry, contact us as specified in the CONTACT US section.
HOW LONG DO WE KEEP YOUR INFORMATION?
We will not keep your personal information for longer than is necessary for the purpose it was collected. This means that information will be destroyed or erased from our systems when it is no longer required.
We take appropriate steps to ensure that we process and retain information about you based on the following logic:
1. at least the duration for which the information is used to provide you with a service;
2. as required under law, a contract, or with regard to our statutory obligations; or
3. only for as long as is necessary for the purpose for which it was collected, is processed, or longer if required under any contract, by applicable law, or for statistical purposes, subject to appropriate safeguards.
WHAT THIRD PARTY SERVICES DO WE USE?
Some of the additional services such as online payments and credit services, content, advertising, and functionality in our services are provided by third parties. These third parties may also use cookies, beacons, tracking pixels, and other tools to collect information about your use of their and/or our services. These third parties are not controlled directly by Samsung, so we recommend that you check their privacy policies and/or terms and conditions to understand how they use your data and provide services.
For some apps and services, including social networks, we receive and store sign-in information, as well as other information that you allow us to receive when you connect with these apps and services.
COOKIES, BEACONS, AND SIMILAR TECHNOLOGIES
We, as well as certain third parties that provide content, advertising, or other functionality on our Services, use cookies, pixels, beacons, and other technologies in certain areas of our services, as explained in more detail below.
Cookies
Cookies are small files that store information on your computer, TV, mobile phone, or other device. They enable the entity that put the cookie on your device to recognise you across different websites, services, devices, and/or browsing sessions. Cookies serve many useful purposes. For example:
• Cookies can remember your sign-in credentials so you don’t have to enter those credentials each time you log on to a service.
• Cookies help us and third parties understand which parts of our services are the most popular because they help us to see which pages and features visitors are accessing and how much time they are spending on the pages. By studying this kind of information, we are better able to adapt the services and provide you with a better experience.
• Cookies help us and third parties understand which ads you have seen so that you don’t receive the same ad each time you access a service.
• Cookies help us and third parties provide you with relevant content and advertising by collecting information about your use of our services and other websites and apps.When you use a web browser to access the services, you can configure your browser to accept all cookies, reject all cookies, or notify you when a cookie is sent. Each browser is different, so check the “Help” menu of your browser to learn how to change your cookie preferences. The operating system of your device may contain additional controls for cookies.Please note, however, that some services may be designed to work using cookies and that disabling cookies may affect your ability to use those services, or certain parts of them.
We use the following types of cookies on our website:
Essential Cookies
These enable you to order products and receive services from our website;
Performance Cookies
Theses enable us to analyse the performance and design of our website and detect errors. For example, this type of cookie allows us to recognise that you have visited our website before and shows which sections of our website are most popular by allowing us to see which pages visitors access most frequently and how much time visitors spend on each page. We use, without limitation, Google Analytics, Adobe, and similar analytics cookies to achieve this.For example, the information generated by the cookie about the use of the website will normally be stored on a Google server in the United States. However, if you are located within the EU or the European Economic Area, your IP address will be shortened by Google beforehand. In exceptional cases only, your full address will be transmitted to a Google server in the United States and shortened there. On our behalf, Google will use this information for the purpose of compiling reports on website activity and providing other services relating to website activity and internet usage. The IP address transmitted from your browser as part of Google Analytics will not be associated with any other data held by Google. You may prevent web usage data (including your IP address) generated by the cookie from being transmitted to Google and processed there if you download and install this Browser-Plugin (http://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout?hl=en).
Functional Cookies
which allow us to deliver a better user experience. For example, this type of cookie ensures that the information displayed on your next visit to our website will match up with your user preferences, or your Samsung account from which you linked to our website, or the fact that you linked to our website via an email sent to you by Samsung or one of our trusted third party service providers contacting you on our behalf.
Advertising Cookies
which enables us and our carefully selected partners to deliver advertisements to you, or contact you directly where you have separately consented to such communications, which match your interests by, for example, collecting information about products you have browsed or ordered on our website. For example, and without limitation, we use Google remarketing tags to allow our retail partners to advertise products which you have browsed on our website. For further information about how Google remarketing tags work, please click here: http://www.google.co.uk/think/products/newremarketing-tag.html. Our website may also display content from a third party website or service, which may result in cookies from third parties being stored on your hard drive or browser. We do not control the storage of these cookies and you should refer to the privacy policies of the relevant third party for more information.
Other Local Storage
We, along with certain third parties, may use other kinds of local storage technologies, such as Local Shared Objects (also referred to as “Flash cookies”) and HTML5 local storage, in connection with our services. These technologies are similar to the cookies discussed above in that they are stored on your device and can be used to store certain information about your activities and preferences. However, these technologies may make use of different parts of your device from standard cookies, and so you might not be able to control them using standard browser tools and settings. For information about disabling or deleting information contained in Flash cookies, please click here “http://helpx.adobe.com/flash-player/kb/disable-local-shared-objects-flash.html”.
Beacons and/or Pixels
We, along with certain third parties, may also use technologies called beacons or pixels that communicate information from your device to a server. Beacons and pixels can be embedded in online content, videos, and emails, and can allow a server to read certain types of information from your device, know when you have viewed particular content or a particular email message, determine the time and date on which you viewed the beacon and pixels, and the IP address of your device. We and certain third parties use beacons and pixels for a variety of purposes, including to analyse the use of our Services and (in conjunction with cookies) to provide content and ads that are more relevant to you.
When you access and use our Services (except for websites provided by third party service providers), you will be asked to provide your separate consent to the storage of cookies (which includes other local storage technologies, beacons, pixels and other information on your devices) by us. You will also be asked to provide your separate consent to the access of such cookies (which includes local storage technologies, beacons, pixels and information) by us and by the third parties mentioned above. Your experience of our website/services may be affected if you do not accept cookies, and further information will be provided to you at the time we ask you for this specific consent.
CONTACT US
You can contact us to update your preferences, correct your information, submit a request or ask us questions.
Data Controller
Samsung Electronics (UK) LimitedSamsung House, 2000 Hillswood Drive, Chertsey, Surrey KT16 0RS
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.129, Samsung-ro, Yeongtong-gu,Suwon-si, Gyeonggi-do 16677, Korea
If you have any specific questions, please contact us at:
European Data Protection Officer
Samsung Electronics (UK) Limited
Samsung House, 2000 Hillswood Drive, Chertsey, Surrey KT16 0RS
You can also contact us by visiting our Privacy Support Page. We are a global company with offices across Europe. This means that we will ensure your request or query is dealt with by the data protection team based in your region.
You may lodge a complaint with the relevant supervisory authority if you consider that our processing of your personal information infringes applicable law. Contact details for all EU Supervisory Authorities can be found here.