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Legal Notice

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Legal information on data protection (Privacy Notice)

We treat your data in accordance with the same high standards that you expect from our products and services. Our aim is to create and maintain the basis for a trusting business relationship with our customers and prospective customers. The confidentiality and integrity of your personal data is of particular concern to us.

Who is responsible for data processing?

Bayerische Motoren Werke Aktiengesellschaft, Petuelring 130, 80788 Munich, Germany; registered office and registered court: Munich HRB 42243 (hereinafter "BMW") shall provide information about events, products and the possibility to update BMW Software on the website bmw.com and is responsible for data processing in this context.

What data do we process and for what purpose?

The data collected in connection with the usage of this website is processed for the following purposes:

A. Fulfillment of the contractual obligation to provide updates for software used in vehicles (Art. 6(1) lit. (b) GDPR)
For the provision of this service, the following potentially personal information is processed for the provision of services by BMW and commissioned service providers:

  • Contact Data (e.g. IP address) 
  • Unique visitor ID
  • Geolocation
  • Account Data (e.g. VIN)

The processed personal data is automatically deleted after 4 weeks, unless it is needed for longer for the provision of the special service.

B. Advertising communication and market research based on consent (Article 6 (1) lit. (a) GDPR)
If you have separately given your consent to the further use of your personal data, your personal data may be used in accordance with the scope described in the consent, e.g. for advertising purposes and/or market research, and may be passed on to third parties. Details on this can be found in the respective declaration of consent, which can be revoked at any time.

C. Data transmission to selected third parties 
BMW may provide the data collected under point A to third parties in anonymous form for the purpose of use for e.g. push notification services.

Data collected is shared with carefully selected and screened service providers and business partners with whom we work to provide you with products and services. We only do this for BMW AG within the framework of the strict requirements of data processing on behalf of BMW AG, to fulfill a contractual obligation (e.g. forwarding to a payment service provider) or on the basis of your express consent (e.g. forwarding to the insurance provider of the BMW protection cover, if you so wish).

How long do we store your data for?

We store your personal data only for as long as the relevant purpose requires it. If data is processed for multiple purposes, the data will be automatically deleted or stored in a form that cannot directly be traced back to you, as soon as the last specified purpose has been fulfilled.

How is your data stored?

We store your data based on the state of the art. For example, the following safeguards are used to protect your personal information from misuse or any other unauthorized processing:

  • Access to personal data is restricted to a limited number of authorized persons for the stated purposes only.
  • The data collected will only be transmitted in encrypted form.
  • Sensitive data is stored only in encrypted form.
  • The IT systems for processing the data are technically isolated from other systems to prevent unauthorized access, e.g. through hacking.
  • In addition, access to these IT systems is continuously monitored to detect and ward off misuse at an early stage.

Who do we share information with and how do we protect it?

BMW is a company with an international presence. Personal data is preferably processed within the EU by BMW employees, national sales companies, authorized dealers, and service providers commissioned by us.

If data is processed in countries outside the EU, BMW will ensure that your personal data is processed in accordance with European data protection standards thanks to EU-standard agreements, including the appropriate technical and organizational measures. If you would like to see the specific safeguards for the transfer of data to other countries, please contact us using the communication channels listed below.

For certain countries outside the EU, such as Canada and Switzerland, the EU has already determined a comparable level of data protection. Given the comparable level of data protection, data transmission to these countries does not require any special approval or agreement.

How can you view and change your data protection settings?

You can view and change the settings relevant to data protection here at any time.

Contact details, subject rights, and your right to complain to a supervisory authority.

If you have any questions about the way we use your personal data, please contact BMW customer service, either by email at kundenbetreuung@bmw.de or by calling +49 89 1250- 16000 (daily 8 am - 8 pm)].
You can also contact the responsible data protection officer: 

Datenschutzbeauftragter
BMW AG
Petuelring 130
80788 Munich, Germany datenschutz@bmw.de

As an individual whose data is subject to processing, you may assert certain rights against us in accordance with the GDPR and other relevant data protection regulations. The following section contains explanations of your rights under the GDPR.

Rights of affected persons

In accordance with the GDPR, you, as an affected person, are entitled to the following rights in particular:

Right of access by the data subject (Art. 15 GDPR):

You may request information about the data we hold about you at any time. This information includes, but is not limited to, the categories of data we have processed, the purposes for which we have processed this data, the origin of the data if we did not collect it from you directly, and, if applicable, the recipients to whom we have transferred your data. You can request a copy of your data free of charge. If you are interested in obtaining additional copies, we reserve the right to charge you accordingly.

Right to rectification (Art. 16 GDPR):

You can ask us to rectify your data. We will take reasonable measures to keep the information we hold and process about you accurate, complete, and up to date, based on the most current information available to us.

Right to erasure (Art. 17 GDPR):

You can request the deletion of your data, provided there are legal requirements in place to support this. This may be the case under Art. 17 GDPR if:

  • The data is no longer required for the purposes for which it was collected or otherwise processed;
  • Your consent, which is the basis of data processing, is revoked and there is no other legal basis for the processing;
  • You object to the processing of your data and there are no overriding legitimate grounds for processing, or you object to the processing of data for direct marketing purposes;
  • The data was processed unlawfully, unless processing is necessary
  • to ensure compliance with a legal obligation that requires us to process your data;
  • particularly with regard to legal retention periods;
  • to enforce, exercise, or defend legal claims.

Right to restriction of processing (Art. 18 GDPR):

You may require us to restrict the processing of your data if

  • You dispute the accuracy of the data for the period of time that we need to verify the accuracy of the data;
  • The processing is unlawful but you refuse the deletion of your data and instead demand a restriction of use;
  • We no longer need your information but you need it to enforce, exercise, or defend legal claims;
  • You have lodged an objection against processing as long as it is not clear whether our justified reasons outweigh yours.

Right to data portability (Art. 20 GDPR):

At your request, we can transfer your data to another person in charge as far as technically possible. However, you are entitled to this right only if the data processing is based on your consent or is necessary to execute a contract. Rather than receive a copy of your data, you may also ask us to transfer the data directly to another person in charge specified by you.

Right to object (Art. 21 GDPR):

You may object to the processing of your data at any time for reasons that arise from your particular situation, if the data processing is based on your consent or on our legitimate interests or those of a third party. In this case, we will no longer process your data. The latter does not apply if we can provide compelling legitimate reasons for the processing that outweigh your interests or we need your data to enforce, exercise, or defend legal claims.

Time limits for the fulfillment of subject rights

We make every effort to comply with all requests within 30 days. However, this period may be extended for reasons relating to the specific subject right or complexity of your request.

Restriction of information in the fulfillment of subject rights

In certain situations, we may be unable to provide you with information about all your data owing to legal requirements. If we have to refuse your request for information in such cases, we will inform you at the time of the reasons for the refusal.

Complaints to supervisory authorities

BMW takes your rights and concerns very seriously. However, if you believe that we have not adequately addressed your complaints or concerns, you are entitled to file a complaint with a competent data protection authority.

2. Cookies

What is a cookie?

A cookie is a small file that stores Internet settings. Almost every website uses cookie technology. It is downloaded by your Internet browser on the first visit to a website. The next time this website is opened with the same user device, the cookie and the information stored in it is either sent back to the website that created it (first-party cookie) or sent to another website it belongs to (third-party cookie). This enables the website to detect that you have opened it previously with this browser and in some cases to vary the displayed content.

Some cookies are extremely useful, as they can improve the user experience on opening a website that you have already visited a number of times. Provided you use the same user device and the same browser as before, cookies remember for example your preferences, how you use a site, and adapt the displayed offerings to be more relevant to your personal interest and needs.

More information about cookies and their use on this website, you can find here.

3. Copyrights

© Copyright BMW AG, Munich, Germany. All rights reserved. The text, images, graphics, sound files, animation files, video files, and their arrangement on the BMW Group websites are all subject to copyright and other intellectual property protection. These objects may not be copied for commercial use or distribution, nor may these objects be modified or reposted to other sites. Some BMW websites may contain images whose copyrights are attributable to third parties.

4. Warranty, liability

The information on this website is provided "as is" and without warranty of any kind, expressed or implied, including (but not limited to) any implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for any particular purpose, or non-infringement of third party rights. While the information provided is believed to be accurate, it may include errors or inaccuracies. In no event shall BMW AG be liable to any person for any special, indirect or consequential damages relating to this material, unless caused by gross negligence or intentional misconduct. BMW AG is not responsible for the contents of websites that are maintained by third parties and therefore waives its liability for any links from this website to other websites.

5. Trademarks

Unless otherwise indicated, all trademarks on this website are subject to trademark rights of BMW AG, including marks, model names, logos, and emblems.

6. Licences

The BMW Group has sought to create an innovative and informative website. However, you also need to understand that the BMW Group must protect its intellectual property, including its patents, trademarks, and copyrights. Accordingly, please appreciate that no license to use the intellectual property of BMW Group companies or the intellectual property of third parties has been granted by this website.

7. Guidelines on fuel consumption and CO2 Emissions

Further information on the official fuel consumption, the official specific CO2 emissions and the electric energy consumption of new passenger cars can be found in the guidelines on fuel consumption, CO2 emissions and electric energy consumption of new passenger cars which are available free of charge at all retail outlets and from DAT Deutsche Automobil Treuhand GmbH (DAT), Hellmuth-Hirth-Str. 1, 73760 Ostfildern-Scharnhausen, Germany and at http://www.dat.de/leitfaden/LeitfadenCO2.pdf.

8. Web push notifications

Our website offers you the chance to register to receive free and personalised push notifications from BMW AG. We use the tool from Urban Airship Germany GmbH, Thurn-und-Taxis-Platz 6, 60313 Frankfurt, to create and send these push notifications. The push notifications let you know when there is new content on the BMW.com website.

In order to be able to provide you with push notifications, Airship processes your browser ID, and your device ID for mobile devices, on our behalf. As part of this service and based on your consent, Urban Airship Germany GmbH stores and processes additional information (collectively referred to as “usage data”) regarding your topics of interest, whether you open push notifications, your type of end device, operating system, browser and, if applicable, other device settings that you use. The data is processed for the purpose of optimising the push notification service according to your consent in accordance with Art. 6 (1) lit a of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

To register, you only have to consent to receive push notifications in your browser.

You can revoke your consent to receive push notifications at any time, which will unsubscribe you from further push notifications. To do this, you can deactivate push notifications in your browser. Please open the following link for directions of how to do this according to different browser types:

Google Chrome: https://support.google.com/chrome/answer/3220216

Apple Safari: https://support.apple.com/de-de/guide/safari/manage-website-notificationssfri40734/mac

Mozilla Firefox: https://support.mozilla.org/de/kb/push-benachrichtigungen-firefox

Revoking your consent does not affect the legality of any processing carried out on the basis of your consent up until the revocation.