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PRIVACY AND CONFIDENTIALITY
Personal Data
When you visit www.Siemens-home.com you may be asked to give us personal information such as your name, postal or e-mail addresses or telephone number. It is your option to provide the information requested. If you give us personal information, that information will be treated confidentially and maintained in accordance with the law of the State of California. It will be stored in a secure location and will be accessible solely by designated BSH staff or authorized agents. Please note that BSH does not sell your personal information. If you request, however, BSH may share your information with an authorized BSH distributor, BSH dealer, or BSH service center, in order to provide you with better service. The information we learn from customers helps us personalize and continually improve your experience at www.Siemens-home.com. BSH is the sole owner of the personal information collected on this website. The data will not be used for any purpose other than customer care. If you permit us via “opt-in”, we may use your information to request your participation in surveys and/or promotions, and we may send you product information, updates or special offers. For these purposes, the information may be stored, processed, and, if necessary, passed on to other home appliance companies within the BSH group or its authorized agent and representatives. Your personal data will not be disclosed to third parties. If you no longer wish to receive our promotional materials you may opt-out of receiving such communications at any time by sending us an e-mail. Additional terms and conditions regarding the processing of your data may also be provided to you before you sign up for a particular service.
Cookies
In order to provide a customized, personal service, BSH may use cookies to store and help track your information. Cookies are small files of information that are stored on your computer's hard drive for future reference. You can reset your browser either to notify you when you receive a cookie, or to refuse to accept cookies. Please note that cookies let you use our services more easily and let us keep track of certain statistical information that helps us improve our site. Certain areas of most sites may not function properly if you reject a cookie.
IP addresses
An IP address is a number that is automatically assigned to your computer whenever you are surfing on the web. We use IP addresses to analyze trends, administer the site, track user's movement, gather broad demographic information for aggregate use and compile statistics that show the daily number of visitors as well as the daily requests received for particular files. IP addresses are anonymous and not linked to personally identifiable information.
Links
www.Siemens-home.com may contain links to other websites. If you are linked to a third parties' website a new window may be opened. Thus, please recognize that you have entered a new website, because websites of third parties sometimes also use the name SIEMENS and the SIEMENS Logo. BSH does not assume any liability for the performance, quality, accuracy, timeliness, reliability, or any other aspect of products or services on these website, and can make no representation or warranty with regard to such third party sites. BSH is neither responsible for third parties' legal or privacy policies, nor for their processing of personal data.
Copyrights
Copyright of all Siemens web pages is owned exclusively by Siemens Corporation,
© Copyright 2006, all rights reserved. No material may be copied for commercial use, or for distribution, nor may any material be modified, altered, recast in a different context, or “mirrored” onto different web pages. Some Siemens Internet sites also contain images that are subject to the copyright of their providers.
Trademarks
Unless otherwise indicated, all marks displayed on BSH websites are subject to the trademark rights of BSH, including each of BSH's brands, its model names, its corporate logos and emblems, and any tag lines or other identifying indicia.
Limitation of Liability
THIS INFORMATION IS PROVIDED BY BSH "AS IS" AND WITHOUT REPRESENTATION OR WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING (BUT NOT LIMITED TO) WITHOUT LIMITATION ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR ANY PARTICULAR PURPOSE, OR NON-INFRINGEMENT. WHILE THE INFORMATION PROVIDED IS BELIEVED TO BE ACCURATE, IT MAY INCLUDE ERRORS OR INACCURACIES. BSH WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES OF ANY KIND ARISING FROM THE USE OF THIS WEBSITE OR RELIANCE ON INFORMATION THEREIN, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, PUNITIVE, AND CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES.
No Licenses
BSH has sought to achieve an innovative and informative website. We hope that you will be as enthusiastic as we are about this creative effort. However, you also need to understand that BSH must protect its intellectual property, including its patents, trademarks, copyrights and trade secrets. Accordingly, please appreciate that no license to BSH’s intellectual property or the intellectual property of third parties shall be deemed to be granted by this website.
Termination
These terms are effective unless and until terminated by either you or BSH. Both parties may terminate this Agreement at any time. BSH has no obligation to grant you access to web pages, and may block anyone’s access privilege’s at any time. Upon termination of this Agreement, BSH will immediately destroy all your personal information.
Law
This Privacy Policy and this website shall be governed under and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of California. By your use of this website, you agree to be bound by the laws and jurisdiction of California as it may pertain to any dispute that may arise in connection with this website.
Siemens cares about our customers. We are providing this information as a courtesy to help you protect against identity theft and other misuses of your personal information. While the Internet has become an indispensable tool, it is also a technology which can be abused by criminals to con and trick innocent victims, to misappropriate one’s identity and personal information, in order to defraud and steal.
COURTESY NOTICE TO OUR CUSTOMERS
Identity Theft & Other Misuses of Your Personal Information
Siemens cares about our customers. We are providing this information as a courtesy to help you protect against identity theft and other misuses of your personal information. While the Internet has become an indispensable tool, it is also a technology which can be abused by criminals to con and trick innocent victims, to misappropriate one’s identity and personal information, in order to defraud and steal.
“Phishing”
Whereas thieves in the real world “fish” for information and victims to scam, the same type of concept on the web has come to be known as “phishing”. Cyber-criminals engaged in phishing are akin to real-world criminals trolling the sea of online consumers in hopes of hooking unsuspecting victims. These criminals seek to entice you and hook you into providing your personal information, by approaching you under a deceitful cloak of authenticity. For example, they may send you fake e-mails which appear to be coming from legitimate web sites. They will most often use the names, trademarks, and overall look of popular and famous brand names. The return e-mail addresses and web sites they direct you to may closely resemble the real sites being copied. In addition, these criminals further trick innocent victims by setting up “mirror” web sites which look exactly like the official site of a legitimate business, with URL addresses that closely resemble the real business’ web address.
STEPS YOU CAN TAKE TO PROTECT YOURSELF
Be Sensitive & Alert - Learn to Detect Fake E-Mails
Admittedly, it can be difficult to detect fake e-mails that are seeking to defraud you. But the more alert and sensitive you are to this type of crime, the less susceptible you will be to becoming a victim. You must learn to be guarded, skeptical, and vigilant in protecting your personal information.
For one, you should never respond to e-mails asking you for your personal information—particularly credit card, bank, and social security information. Legitimate, reputable businesses do not ask for sensitive personal information in e-mails; they collect it on their sites after you visit and decide to do business with that site, and they use encryption technologies and other software to protect your information. If you receive such an e-mail, even if it appears to be from a source you recognize and trust, you should delete it. Do not open any attachments, particularly the .exe attachments which commonly contain computer viruses. If you feel reasonably safe that the e-mail is legitimate (for instance, you just ordered a product from a company, and soon thereafter they send you a request for additional information necessary to process your order), then you should consider contacting the company directly by phone or through their official website—and not by return e-mail.
Secondly, you should never click into a link that is embedded within a suspicious e-mail. If you want to go to a web site for a particular company, you should shut down your web browser, start it up again, and find the business’ official, legitimate web site on your own. You are much safer seeking out a web-based businesses on your own, as opposed to linking onto a web site from an e-mail. Also realize that the less you know about a web-based business, the riskier it is for you to conduct business with that site (this is simply common sense, and no different from doing business with people in the real world).
Third, closely review the “fine print” in e-mails and on the business’ web site. Review the company’s refund and return policies, and warranty statements. See if there are negative or undesirable conditions attached to the transaction. Also see where they are located (you always have more legal recourse with a company that is USA-based, and especially if the company is within the same state that you reside). And remember--if an offer sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
Fourth, you should closely monitor your financial accounts (bank, credit cards, phone bills, etc.) for any unusual activities.
Finally, be smart about your passwords. Don’t give them out or keep them in easily-discoverable places. Choose passwords that are non-obvious (don’t use your birthday or address, for example), and use an unusual combination of letters and numbers; you don’t want to use a password that someone else (whether by themselves or through the aid of a computer) could easily guess. Also refrain from using the same password for every account, to avoid the risk of having someone discover your password and being able to unlock all of your accounts.
How to Recognize E-Mail from Siemens
Siemens never asks customers to provide any information in an e-mail. Periodically, Siemens sends out e-mails containing product news and promotions. If a link from within the e-mail takes you to a web site, make sure the address begins with http://www.siemens-home.com
Steps to Take if You've Become an Identity-Theft Victim
If you think you’ve become the victim of identity theft, you need to act fast. Immediately contact your credit cards to determine if there’s been any unusual activity, and place a freeze on the accounts. Place a freeze on your bank accounts. If your fears are confirmed, and someone has stolen your identity, then you must cancel your credit cards and bank accounts and set up new ones with fraud alerts on them. Report the incident to the authorities (law enforcement authorities are overwhelmed with identity theft cases, but it’s important to officially document the incident). Visit the Federal Trade Commission web site at www.ftc.gov; the FTC offers an “Affidavit of Identity Theft” that can be notarized and sent to creditors and agencies to validate and authenticate the incident. You can also contact your local Consumer Credit Counseling Service at 800-388-2227 (or you may locate a regional bureau at www.nfcc.org) for assistance in clearing false claims from his or her credit report. Finally, you must contact the three major credit agencies to report the incident, and ask that a fraud alert be placed on your file:
Trans Union
www.tuc.com
Fraud Victim Assistance Department
P.O. Box 6790
Fullerton, CA 92834
1-800-680-7289 (to report fraud), or 1-800-916-8800 (to order a credit report)
Experian
www.experian.com
P.O. Box 1017
Allen, TX 75013-0949
1-888-397-3742 (to report fraud), or 1-888-397-3742 (to order a credit report)
Equifax
www.equifax.com
P.O. Box 740241
Atlanta, GA 30374-0241
1-800-525-6285 (to report fraud), and 1-800-685-1111 (to order a credit report)
This list is not exhaustive, and is provided herein as a courtesy.
Privacy Policy © Copyright 2006, BSH Home Appliances Corporation (manufacturer of Siemens home appliances), Huntington Beach, California, USA. All Rights Reserved.
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