Privacy Policy

Who We Are

star-k.ae is operated by STAR-K Certification, Inc. (“STAR-K”, “we”, “us”), 122 Slade Ave, Suite 300, Pikesville, MD 21208, USA. For the purposes of the PDPL, STAR-K is the Controller: it decides why and how personal data collected through this website is processed.

Questions about this policy or your data, and complaints, can be sent to our UAE Contact at uae@star-k.org or +971 506599381, or to our global office at rabbimushell@star-k.org or +1 410-484-4110.

What We Collect

• Enquiry form: your name, email address, company, country, the products you want certified, your message, and the type of request you choose.
• Application form: if you apply online, the company, contact, product and facility details the application asks for.
• Email and phone: anything you choose to send us directly.
• Usage data, only with your consent: if you accept analytics cookies, Google Analytics records how the site is used, such as pages viewed, approximate location, device and browser, and how you arrived. See Cookies and Analytics.

The site is meant for businesses and is not directed at children. Please do not send us personal data about children, or sensitive details such as health or financial information.

Why We Use It

• To answer your enquiry and send the information you ask for.
• To assess and process an application for kosher certification and related services.
• To follow up on your enquiry or application.
• If you consent to analytics, to understand how the site is used and improve it.
• To meet legal obligations and protect our rights.

We process your personal data on the basis of your consent, given when you send us an enquiry or application or accept analytics cookies; where it is needed to take steps you request before entering into a certification contract, or to perform that contract; and where it is needed to comply with the law. We use it only for the purposes above. We do not sell your personal data, and we do not use it for advertising.

Is Providing It Required?

Your name and email address are needed for us to reply. The other fields are optional, but leaving them out may mean we need to ask you for them before we can help. Analytics cookies are entirely optional.

Who We Share It With

• STAR-K staff who handle enquiries and certification, in the UAE and at our headquarters in the United States.
• Service providers that process data for us as Processors, under contract: our website host, Google (Analytics, if you consent; web fonts; the map on our Contact page), Jotform (the online application form) and our email provider.
• Authorities, if the law requires it.

Transfers Outside the UAE

STAR-K is based in the United States and our service providers may store data in the US, Europe or elsewhere. The PDPL allows personal data to be transferred outside the UAE to countries with an adequate level of protection and, otherwise, in the cases it sets out – including with your consent, or where the transfer is needed to perform a contract with you. We transfer data only on one of those bases, and we remain responsible for your data when it is processed abroad.

Cookies and Analytics

The site sets one small cookie to remember your cookie choice. Analytics cookies from Google Analytics are set only if you select “Accept” in the cookie banner. If you decline, no analytics cookies are stored.

You can change your choice at any time using Cookie settings, also in the footer of every page. You can also block or delete cookies in your browser.

Our Contact page shows an embedded Google Map, and the site loads fonts from Google. These connect your browser to Google, which receives your IP address.

How Long We Keep It

We keep enquiry details for as long as needed to deal with your enquiry and any follow-up, and generally for no longer than three years after our last contact, after which we erase them unless the law requires us to keep them. Information that becomes part of a certification file is kept for as long as the certification relationship and our record-keeping obligations require. Analytics data is kept according to Google Analytics retention settings.

Your Rights

Under the PDPL you have the right to:

• withdraw your consent at any time (this does not affect processing already done);
• obtain information about the personal data we hold about you, why we process it and who we have shared it with, and a copy of it;
• receive your personal data in a structured, machine-readable form and have it sent to another controller, where technically feasible;
• have inaccurate personal data corrected, and have personal data erased where it is no longer needed or the law requires it;
• ask us to restrict or stop processing your personal data in the cases the law sets out;
• object to decisions based solely on automated processing that significantly affect you (we make none).

Email uae@star-k.org with your request or complaint. We may need to confirm your identity. We reply as soon as we can and within the time the law sets. If you are not satisfied with our response, you may complain to the UAE Data Office.

Security

The site uses HTTPS, and access to enquiries and applications is limited to the people who need it. No system is completely secure, so please do not send passwords or financial details through the forms. If a personal data breach affecting you occurs, we will inform you and the UAE Data Office as the law requires.

Links to Other Sites

The site links to other websites, including star-k.org and our partners. Their privacy practices are their own.

Changes to This Policy

We may update this policy. The date at the top shows when it last changed.