Privacy Notice of Sciensano

Last updated on 2-5-2019 by Admin Drupal

Welcome to the Privacy Notice of Sciensano. Our Privacy Notice explains you in a clear, transparent and simple yet correct way when, why and how Sciensano collects, uses and protects personal information of the people who provide us with such personal information through the online contact form on its website (www.sciensano.be) or directly by email, letter or fax. When you decide to provide us with your personal data you confirm that you have read through these privacy conditions.

The data will be used in accordance with:

  • the consents that you have given
  • the law of 30 July 2018 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and
  • the 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 natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data (GDPR).

This Privacy Notice is also intended to assist you in making informed decisions when using our website.     
Please take a minute to read and understand it and please note that it should be read in conjunction with our General Terms and Conditions and our Cookie Policy.

About us

Sciensano can count on more than 700 staff members who commit themselves, day after day, to achieve our motto: Healthy all life long.

As our name suggests, science and health are central to our mission. Sciensano’s strength and uniqueness lie within the holistic and multidisciplinary approach to health. More particularly we focus on the close and indissoluble interconnection between human and animal health and their environment (the “One health” concept). By combining different research perspectives within this framework, Sciensano contributes in its unique way to everybody’s health.

For this, Sciensano builds on the more than 100 years of scientific expertise of the former Veterinary and Agrochemical Research Centre (CODA-CERVA) and the ex-Scientific Institute of Public Health (WIV-ISP).

The organization is registered under its official name “Sciensano” at the Belgian Crossroads Bank for Enterprises with enterprise number 0693.876.830, having its registered office at Rue Juliette Wytsman 14, 1050 Ixelles (Belgium).

What is your personal data?

Personal data relates to a living individual who can be identified from that data. Identification can be by the information alone or in conjunction with any other information in the Data Controller’s possession or likely to come into such possession.

What data do we collect?

In reference to information filled in the online contact form on its website (www.sciensano.be) or directly transmitted by email, letter or fax, Sciensano will solely collect the necessary information as to obtain the aimed results. 
You may send us or we may ask you for the following information:

  • your full name    
  • your date of birth    
  • your contact information such as your address and postal code, your email address, telephone number, mobile telephone number, fax number    
  • credit or debit card information, information about your bank account number and sort code or other banking information        
  • general information about yourself such as professional interests, your experience of our services and products or other services and products and your contact preferences    
  • your contact with us such as a note of a call, an email or letter you send to us or other records of any contact you have with us    
  • your website browsing information (which includes information about the websites you visit)
  • in the event that you apply for a job, we will require further professional information about yourself by way of a job application or your Curriculum Vitae.

Sciensano may also collect certain information about your hardware and software, this includes:

  • your IP address    
  • browser type    
  • operating system    
  • access time    
  • referring website adresses 

Who is collecting your data?

Sciensano is the data controller (“Data Controller”) for the purposes of the act.

How and why we collect and use your personal information

For the online contact form, we will ask you to fill in some of the abovementioned personal information. The reason we collect this data is to be able to respond on your questions sent by the use of this online contact form to Sciensano.        
The information Sciensano receives through applications (by email, fax or letter) is used to check if the candidate’s skills match the job opening. 
All data other than those mentioned above, which are transferred to Sciensano through direct contact by e-mail, fax or letter, will only be used for the purposes for which we received them.
We may also collect information about you from other organisations, if this is appropriate. We may also collect information about you from other companies, our business, or project partners.
Other reasons of the usage of your information can be:

  • to provide products and services that you have requested    
  • to ensure that the content on our website is presented in the most effective manner for you and your computer    
  • to perform statistical analyses measuring customer interest in various areas of our sites    
  • to develop and improve our products and services    
  • for our internal record-keeping.

Sharing of your information

We may share your information with:

  • partners or agents involved in delivering the products and services you have ordered or used
  • partners or agents engaged to perform services for and on behalf of Sciensano    
  • pension and payroll providers    
  • project partners and donors, and other professional advisers    
  • debt collection agencies or other debt recovery organizations    
  • law enforcement agencies regulatory organizations, courts, or other public authorities if we have to, or are authorized to by law.

We may need to transfer your information to partners or agents in countries outside the EU (European Union). This may happen if our partners and agents are based outside the EU, or if you use our services and products while visiting countries outside this area.

Storage and protection of your personal information

Information collected through the contact form on the website of Sciensano or directly transmitted by email, fax or letter is stored and processed locally and within the European Union. 
Sciensano uses reasonable and adequate safeguards to secure and protect the collected information and takes reasonable steps to verify the identity of the user who seeks to reach the collected personal information.    
Information transmitted to Sciensano is exclusively accessible to responsible people who need access to perform their duties.     
Sciensano will retain your personal information only for as long as reasonably necessary or required by law. 

Reporting Fraud

Sciensano is committed to ensuring your information is secure. As part of our efforts to protect your information, Sciensano will never send you emails asking for your personal information or for your registered password (if you are a registered user).
If you do receive such an email or are asked to disclose this information by someone claiming to work for Sciensano, please report the communication to us using the following methods:

  • send an email to  info@sciensano.be   
  • in writing to us at our registered address: Sciensano, Rue Juliette Wytsman 14, 1050 Ixelles, Belgium

Your choices regarding your information

It is your right to ask Sciensano whether your personal information has been processed by us. In order to exercise this right, you must address a formal request to Sciensano, clearly specifying what you want to consult, rectify or delete. The request must be dated, signed and accompanied by a copy of the front of your ID.    
If the response to this question is positive, you may request free access to your personal information held by us as well as the reason of the processing and the period during which we will store and process your personal information. You may also request to rectify and erase your personal information, object to the use of it, restrict the use of it and receive your personal information held by us. The deletion of data must be specifically justified. If those requirements are met, Sciensano will comply with your request as quickly as possible and report back to you. 
Sciensano endeavours to update the data as quickly as possible. Communications may still be sent using the original data until the modifications are completed.

How about cookies?

On our website, we use so-called “cookies”: more information in our cookie policy.
For more information about cookies and how you can delete them depending on the type of browser you use, we would like to refer you to the website All about cookies

How to contact us?

If you have any questions regarding this privacy notice, your rights regarding your personal information or the processing activities of Sciensano in reference to this online contact form, you can always contact us at
Sciensano
Rue Juliette Wytsman 14
1050 Ixelles, Belgium
+32 2 642 51 11 
+32 2 642 50 01
info@sciensano.be
www.sciensano.be 
You can contact Sciensano’s Data Protection Service and Data Protection Officer by e-mail dpo@sciensano.be 

If you wish to contact the national supervising authority, you can contact:
Data Protection Authority
Rue de la Presse 35
1000 Bruxelles (Belgium)
+ 32 (0)2 274 48 00
+32 (0)2 274 48 35
contact@apd-gba.be
www.dataprotectionauthority.be

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