Privacy Statement

ITM is convinced of the major importance of protecting the personal details of the subscribers and visitors to the company's AskAnOwner website. ITM is always most careful with any information given. ITM particularly observes the prescriptions contained in the Dutch data protection act (Wet Bescherming Persoonsgegevens - Law on the Protection of Personal Information). This Privacy Statement is intended to inform you about ITM's policy regarding the gathering and use of private information.

1. Who are we?

ITM International B.V., abbreviated to ITM, is a company whose activities include the AskAnOwner site, where those who own and those who are interested in particular products can exchange information between themselves. ITM is the "body responsible" in the meaning of the Dutch data protection act for the procedures involving the personal information processed via the AskAnOwner site. Questions about or comments on the processing of personal data via AskAnOwner can be addressed to:

ITM International B.V.
Postbus 15262
1001 MG Amsterdam
e-mail: info@askanowner.com

2. What personal information does ITM process for AskAnOwner?

It is sufficient to provide no more than your e-mail address if you want to use AskAnOwner. But AskAnOwner processes more personal details. For your personal My Profile you can provide more personal information. In addition, AskAnOwner records the messages you exchange with others, your password and other information obtained with cookies (see below).

3. Cookies

A cookie is a small file placed on your hard disk by a server. This is information about you as visitor to the site. A cookie can be recognised only by the server you have obtained it from. A cookie allows AskAnOwner to see that you have returned to a certain page and helps AskAnOwner to investigate your behaviour and preferences. Cookies recognise your password and in this way help AskAnOwner to make your visit to the site 'personal' by causing our server to 'remember' who you are. Some advertisers on the AskAnOwner website use cookies to obtain the same kind of information. However ITM has no way of checking the use of cookies by other websites, companies or marketeers. ITM is not responsible for the way the data protection legislation and other relevant laws and regulations are observed by third parties.

4. What is ITM's aim in processing personal information for AskAnOwner?

ITM asks for and collects personal information that enables AskAnOwner to contact you after you have registered. AskAnOwner uses this information for - among other things - directing messages to you corresponding to the questions you have asked and to the interests expressed in your profile. AskAnOwner can also send you relevant information at third parties' request. But this will only happen if you have given prior permission. The third parties in question are not given your e-mail address or any other personal details.

5. What personal information can be viewed by third parties?

Some of your personal information that you have input under My Profile can be seen by third parties. You can check this publicly available information under your Public Profile. At any time you wish you can change or remove personal information contained in My Profile. Personal information that you reveal in answers or questions are available to AskAnOwner users and cannot be removed, not even after you have terminated your participation in AskAnOwner.

6. Who are the third parties that ITM provides personal information to?

ITM supplies no personal information that has been gathered for AskAnOwner to third parties unless ITM is ordered to do so by the Dutch courts. However it can happen that ITM supplies aggregated data, i.e. data based on your personal information and that of others, to third parties. But personal information about you cannot be derived from the aggregated data.

7. For how long does ITM keep the personal information?

ITM does not keep the personal information any longer than can be reasonably supposed to be necessary in order to allow AskAnOwner to function appropriately, but only up to a maximum of two years after termination of your membership of AskAnOwner. Once your membership has ended, your personal information is no longer accessible to third parties.

8. How does ITM protect your personal information?

ITM makes efforts to be as careful as possible with your personal information. Misuse is discouraged by the application of checked access procedures and both material and physical security measures. ITM recommends that you use a password when using AskAnOwner in order to protect access to your account. If another person, including family and/or people you live with, visit and use the site with the aid of your password, you are responsible for that person's actions. The same applies to persons who use your account from a public area with an internet connection, such as an office or an internet café, without consulting you. When you visit AskAnOwner using a shared computer, we advise you to log off after using the site and remove the cookies from the hard disk.

9. Changes

ITM reserves the right to change this AskAnOwner Privacy Statement as the occasion arises. Any such changes will be reported on this page. We therefore advise you to visit this page regularly. Major changes will also be communicated to you via e-mail or some other way.

10. Links

AskAnOwner can contain links to third-party websites. With regard to these sites, however, ITM is not responsible for their observance of the Dutch data protection act and/or other relevant legislation and regulations.

11. General Conditions

This Privacy Statement is part of the General Conditions applying when using AskAnOwner.

Version date: 21st September 2004