Privacy Policy

Last updated: September 2026

1. Introduction

STCS ("we", "our", or "us") is committed to protecting your privacy and handling your personal data responsibly. This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect, how we use it, and your rights regarding your personal data when you visit our website.

By using this website, you agree to the collection and use of information in accordance with this Privacy Policy.

2. Data Controller

Swiss Transplant Cohort Study
Spitalstrasse 12
4056 Basel, Switzerland

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or how your personal data is processed, please contact us using the details above or here.

3. Information We Collect

Depending on how you use our website, we may collect:

Information you provide

When you interact with our website, we may collect personal information that you voluntarily provide, including:

Your name
Your email address
The content of messages submitted through our contact form

If you register for access to the members-only section of our website, we may also collect information necessary to create and manage your account, such as:

Your name
Your email address
Your username or login credentials
Your institutional or organizational affiliation (where applicable)
Any additional information requested during registration

Authentication and access to the members-only section are managed through Keycloak. Keycloak processes the information necessary to securely authenticate users and manage access to restricted areas of the website.

We collect only the information necessary to provide and manage access to our services.

Automatically collected information

When you visit our website, certain technical information may be collected automatically, including:

IP address
Browser type and version
Operating system
Pages visited
Date and time of your visit

This information is primarily used to ensure the secure operation of our website and to improve its performance.

4. How We Use Your Information

We process personal data only for legitimate purposes, including to:

Operate and maintain our website
Respond to enquiries submitted through our contact form
Create and manage user accounts
Provide access to restricted content and member services
Communicate with registered users regarding their accounts
Maintain the security and integrity of our website
Detect, prevent, and investigate fraudulent, abusive, or unauthorized activity
Improve our services
Comply with applicable legal obligations

We do not sell, rent, or otherwise disclose your personal data for marketing purposes.

5. Embedded Third-Party Content

Our website may include content provided by third parties, such as embedded videos from YouTube or links to or embedded content from LinkedIn.

We also use Google reCAPTCHA to protect our website and forms against spam, abuse, and automated submissions. When you interact with reCAPTCHA, Google may collect technical information about your device and your interaction with the service for security and verification purposes. The processing of personal data by Google is governed by Google's privacy policy.

When you view or interact with such embedded content, these providers may collect information about your visit, including your IP address, browser information, and your interactions with the embedded content. If you are logged into your account with these providers, they may associate your visit with your account.

The processing of data by these third-party providers is governed by their respective privacy policies. We encourage you to review them before interacting with embedded content.

6. Cookies and Analytics

Our website may use cookies or similar technologies to improve functionality and understand how visitors use the site.

If analytics tools are used, they collect aggregated information about website usage. These tools do not identify individual visitors unless required for security purposes.

You can manage or disable cookies through your browser settings. Please note that some website features may not function properly if cookies are disabled.

7. Sharing of Personal Data

We may share personal data only where necessary for the operation of our website, including with:

Our website hosting provider
Our user management service, which provides and manages certain IT infrastructure and authentication services, including Keycloak
IT service providers supporting the website
Other service providers acting on our behalf

These providers process personal data only under appropriate contractual safeguards and only for the purposes of providing their services.

We may also disclose personal data where required by law or to protect our legal rights.

8. Data Retention

We retain personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes described in this Privacy Policy or to comply with legal obligations.

If you would like your personal data to be deleted or anonymized, you may contact us using the contact details provided. We will assess your request and take appropriate action in accordance with applicable data protection legislation. Please note that certain data may need to be retained where required by law or for legitimate purposes.

9. Data Security

We implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect personal data against unauthorized access, loss, misuse, alteration, or disclosure.

While we strive to protect your information, no method of electronic transmission or storage can be guaranteed to be completely secure.

10. External Links

Our website may contain links to third-party websites.

We are not responsible for the content, privacy practices, or security of external websites. We encourage users to review the privacy policies of any third-party sites they visit.

11. Your Rights

Subject to applicable Swiss data protection legislation and, where applicable, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), you may have the right to:

Request access to your personal data
Request correction of inaccurate or incomplete personal data
Request deletion of your personal data where applicable
Restrict or object to certain processing activities
Withdraw consent where processing is based on consent
Request information about how your personal data is processed

To exercise these rights, please contact us using the contact details provided.

12. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in legal requirements or our practices.

The latest version will always be available on this website, together with the date of the most recent update.

13. Contact

If you have any questions regarding this Privacy Policy or the processing of your personal data, please contact us here or via:

Swiss Transplant Cohort Study
Spitalstrasse 12
4056 Basel, Switzerland