Privacy Policy

1. Who we are

This website (smartlabs.be) is operated by SmartLabs, based in Leuven, Belgium. For any question about this policy or how your data is handled, you can reach us at office@smartlabs.be. SmartLabs is the data controller for the processing described here.

2. What data we collect

We only collect what is strictly needed to run the site and respond to people who contact us.

Data you actively provide

When you use a contact form on this site, we collect what you fill in — typically your name, your email address, your company or institution, and the content of your message. We may also collect any optional fields you choose to complete, such as the microscope system you use.

Data collected automatically

If you accept analytics cookies, Google Analytics 4 collects pseudonymous information about your visit: the pages you view, approximate location (country/region), the referrer, device and browser, and interaction events. IP addresses are anonymised. If you do not accept analytics, none of this is collected.

3. Why we process this data (legal basis)

• Contact form submissions — to respond to your enquiry and, if relevant, pursue a possible engagement. Legal basis: pre-contractual measures at your request and our legitimate interest in handling business enquiries (GDPR Art. 6(1)(b) and (f)).
• Analytics — to understand site usage and improve content. Legal basis: your consent (GDPR Art. 6(1)(a)), given via the cookie banner. You can withdraw it at any time.

4. Who processes your data on our behalf

We use a small number of reputable third-party services ("processors") to run the site:

• Formspree, Inc. (United States) — handles the delivery of contact-form submissions to our inbox. Formspree acts as a data processor under a Data Processing Agreement and relies on Standard Contractual Clauses for EU-to-US transfers. See Formspree's privacy policy.
• Google Ireland Limited / Google LLC — Google Analytics 4. Only active if you accept analytics cookies. Google acts as a data processor; IP anonymisation is enabled. See Google's privacy policy.
• Cloudflare, Inc. — hosts the static site and the CDN delivering it. Processes technical connection information (IP, request headers) as strictly necessary to serve pages. See Cloudflare's privacy policy.

We do not sell, rent, or share your personal data for advertising or profiling purposes.

5. International transfers

Some of the processors above are based in or may process data from the United States. Where this is the case, transfers are covered by the EU Commission's Standard Contractual Clauses and/or the EU–U.S. Data Privacy Framework, where applicable.

6. How long we keep data

• Contact-form messages: kept for as long as needed to answer your enquiry and, if a commercial discussion starts, for the duration of our working relationship plus the retention periods required by Belgian tax and accounting law.
• Analytics data: Google Analytics retains event-level data for 14 months by default.

7. Your rights

Under the GDPR you have the right to: access your data, have it corrected, have it erased, restrict or object to its processing, receive a copy in a portable format, and withdraw consent at any time. To exercise any of these rights, email office@smartlabs.be. We will respond within one month.

If you feel we haven't handled your data properly, you also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Belgian Data Protection Authority (Autorité de protection des données / Gegevensbeschermingsautoriteit).

8. Cookies

We use a single non-essential cookie (Google Analytics) that is only set if you accept it. Essential technical cookies, if any, are used only for the normal functioning of the site and do not track you.

See the separate cookie policy for the list of cookies and their purpose.

9. Changes to this policy

If we change this policy, we will update the "Last updated" date above. For substantive changes that affect how we process your data, we will make a reasonable effort to notify you before the change takes effect.