Protection of Personal information

Privacy Policy

The following information concerns the protection of your personal data. These are the data that allow you to be identified directly or indirectly, for example your first name, surname, e-mail address and IP address.
The person responsible for processing your personal data is the Federal Public Service for Public Health, Food Chain Safety and Environment, located at Galileo Avenue 5 box 2, 1210 Brussels, registered under enterprise number 0367.303.762.

Personal data is collected whenever

• you surf on the pages of this website. These begin with http://www.biocide.be in your browser. If a link takes you to another portal site, a website, an online application or a social network, you must refer to the terms and conditions for the processing of personal data of the providers of those services;
• you contact us.

You are protected in accordance with:

• European Regulation 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016 (entered into force on 25 May 2018) on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data (General Data Protection Regulation) ;
• The Law of 8 December 1992 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data. (consolidated version, Dutch) 
• 23 MAY 2001 - Royal Decree establishing the Federal Public Service for Health, Food Chain Safety and Environment. (consolidated version, Dutch) 
• The law of 21 December 1998 on product standards to promote sustainable production and consumption patterns and to protect the environment, public health and employees (consolidated version, Dutch) 

1.    Legal bases and purposes of the processing

Personal data is collected and processed in order to

• inform you (automatic dispatch of the electronic newsletter, dispatch of brochures)
• answer your questions
• process case files that concerning you.

Data is also collected and processed anonymously :  

• for statistical and qualitative purposes, in order to improve our services
• to provide you with an answer in your language.

If your request for information or service is intended for another department, we will provide you with the particulars of that department and you are free to contact them or not.

2.    Processed data

Personal data are automatically collected and processed in the following two situations (see table below) : 
 

Data of a non-personal nature are automatically collected, without linking them to your IP address and therefore respecting your anonymity. They are used to compile statistics and to improve the content of the portal:

• your choice of language
• the search engine used
• the key words used
• the website from which you came
• the pages consulted
• the time during whick each page was consulted
• a list of downloaded files
• the date and time of access
• the browser used
• the platform and/or operating system installed on your computer.

3.    Use of cookies
See our cookie policy below.

 4.    Storage duration
The retention period :

• of your IP address is 12 months
• of the cookies varies according to the type of cookie (up to a maximum of 2 years)
• of the exchanges via the contact form and via e-mail is 5 years.

In exceptional cases, such as legal proceedings, your personal data may be stored for a longer period.

5.    Security
The FPS of Health, Food Chain Safety and Environment guarantees the security (integrity and confidentiality) of your personal details. They are protected against, among other things, unauthorised access, unlawful use, loss and unauthorised changes.
To this end, we use security techniques and procedures that we will not describe in detail here for security reasons.  
Please note that suitable physical, technical and organisational measures are taken to ensure a level of security appropriate to the risks involved.

6.    Right of access, rectification, objection and deletion
You have certain rights with regard to the personal data that we use: the right of access, the right of modification, the right to object and the right to have the data erased. Please contact us if you wish to exercise any of these rights.
Your request will be dealt with within 30 calendar days. If your request is complex or our services have to deal with numerous requests, this period will be extended by 60 days.
To exercise your rights, please send an e-mail or a letter to our Data Protection Officer, together with a scan or a copy of your ID card, including your signature:
Federal Public Service Health, Food Chain Safety and Environment
You can find our address at the bottom of this page.
dpo@health.fgov.be 

7.    Transfer of data 
We do not transfer your data to third parties.

8.    Complaints
If you believe that the FPS Public Health, Food Chain Safety and Environment has not processed your personal data in accordance with the applicable regulations, you are entitled to lodge a complaint with the Data Protection Authority:
Data Protection Authority
Rue de la Press 35
1000Brussels
contact@apd-gba.be 

9.    Contact 
For information about our data protection policy, please contact our Data Protection Officer: DPO@health.fgov.be

10.    Newsletter
The personal data you give us when you subscribe to our newsletter will only be used to send the newsletter. Your data will not be divulged to third parties, nor used for commercial purposes. You can unsubscribe at any time via a link at the bottom of the newsletter.