This guideline explains what happens to your personal data when you use openHPI. You will learn which data we need, why we use it, and what rights you have.
“Personal data” means information that says something about you or can be linked to you. This includes, for example, your name, email address, or IP address.
The party responsible for openHPI is:
Hasso Plattner Institute for Digital Engineering gGmbH (HPI)
Prof.-Dr.-Helmert-Straße 2–3
14482 Potsdam
Germany
Website: https://www.hpi.de
openHPI: https://open.hpi.de
If you have questions about data protection or would like to exercise your data protection rights, you can contact datenschutz@hpi.de.
There is no general age restriction for openHPI. For users under the age of 16, consent from a parent or legal guardian is required during the registration process. You can view this consent at any time in your settings. Special protection rules under the TDDDG apply when processing the data of minors.
Your date of birth may be processed if this is necessary to comply with age requirements and other legal obligations.
Depending on how you use openHPI, different types of data may be processed. In particular, these include:
Some information is required in order for you to use openHPI. Other information is optional. When entering information, it should be clear to you which details are required.
Your data is primarily required so that openHPI can function and you can use its learning content. For example, it is processed to manage your account, save your learning progress, conduct examinations, and issue certificates or confirmations of participation. Your date of birth is printed on certificates and confirmations of participation for verification purposes. Your date of birth may also be processed if this is necessary to comply with age requirements and other legal obligations.
Data may also be used to communicate with you about your learning activities, identify technical errors, prevent misuse, operate the platform securely, and improve openHPI.
Depending on the type of processing, different legal bases under the GDPR may apply:
If you have given consent, you may withdraw it at any time with effect for the future.
If you publish a post, other users may be able to see it. If you do not use a separate display name, your real name may also be visible. Your chosen avatar may also be visible to other users.
If you do not want your real name to be publicly visible, you should use a display name. You can enter one in your account settings.
Do not publish sensitive information such as your private address, telephone number, health information, or other confidential details. You should also not publish personal data relating to other people without their permission.
openHPI uses cookies. These are small files that your browser stores on your device. Some cookies are necessary, for example, so that you remain logged in or can use the platform securely. Others store convenience settings such as the subtitle language or the volume of a video.
Consent is not always required for technologies that are strictly necessary. Other access to your device generally requires your consent. These requirements arise in particular from Section 25 of the TDDDG.
Matomo may be used to analyze how the platform is used. In this process, your IP address is shortened. Optional analytics cookies are only used where your consent is required and you have given it. You can withdraw such consent. You can also manage and delete cookies through your browser.
To allow you to continue learning later and track your progress, openHPI stores information about your learning activities. This may include learning content you have accessed, videos you have watched, assignments you have completed, examination results, and your learning progress.
If you meet the requirements of a learning offering, certificates or confirmations of participation may be created. For this purpose, your name and email address and, where applicable, your date of birth may be used.
openHPI data is generally stored on HPI servers.
However, external services are used for certain functions. These include, for example, Vimeo and Bunny for videos and Matomo for usage analytics. When such content is accessed, technical data such as your IP address may be transferred to these providers. This may also involve the transfer of data outside the European Union or the European Economic Area. In such cases, the applicable legal data protection requirements must be complied with.
Use of Vimeo: Our website displays content from the video portal Vimeo.com. Vimeo.com is operated by Vimeo LLC, 555 West 18th Street, New York, NY 10011, USA. When you visit one of our pages equipped with our video player, a connection is established to Vimeo's servers. Vimeo is informed which of our pages you visited (“referrer URL”). Vimeo also receives your IP address. Further information about how user data is handled can be found in Vimeo’s privacy policy at: https://vimeo.com/privacy
Use of Bunny.net: For the provision of video content, we use the Bunny.net service provided by BunnyWay d.o.o., Cesta komandanta Staneta 4A, 1215 Medvode, Slovenia. When you access a video embedded on our website, technical information such as your IP address, details about your browser and operating system, as well as information about the time of access, is transmitted to Bunny.net servers. The processing takes place for the purpose of technically reliable provision and delivery of the video content. The processing is based on Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR. Our legitimate interest lies in the secure and high-performance provision of our online services. Further information about data processing by Bunny.net can be found at: https://bunny.net/privacy
Data may also be transferred to public authorities where HPI is legally required to do so.
Your data is stored only for as long as it is required for the relevant purpose or as long as there is a legal obligation or another permissible reason for continued storage.
Your account and profile data is generally stored for as long as your openHPI account exists. Learning progress, examination results, and certificates of achievement may be stored for as long as they are required for your participation history or as proof of your achievements.
Support data is stored for the purpose of handling your request and afterwards for as long as necessary for documentation purposes or due to legal requirements.
Technical server log data is stored for no longer than four weeks. Session cookies disappear at the end of your session; the Matomo cookies referred to above have a lifespan of one week.
When data is no longer required, it is deleted or anonymized unless there are legal or other permissible reasons for continued storage.
HPI uses technical and organizational measures to protect your data against loss, misuse, alteration, and unauthorized access. These measures include, for example, secure login procedures, secure password storage, and access restrictions.
You can also help protect your data: keep your password confidential and do not share your login details with others. If you believe that someone is using your account without permission, contact support.
The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) gives you various rights. Among other things, you can find out what data is stored about you, have incorrect data corrected, and, under certain conditions, request that data be deleted or that its processing be restricted.
You can change or delete some data directly in your openHPI settings. If certain data is subject to a statutory retention obligation or another permissible reason for storage, it cannot be deleted immediately. If you have all data required for your user account deleted, you will no longer be able to use openHPI afterwards.
For questions or to exercise your data protection rights, you can contact HPI at datenschutz@hpi.de.
If you believe that your data is not being handled properly, you have the right to lodge a complaint with a data protection supervisory authority.
The authority identified as responsible for HPI is:
The State Commissioner for Data Protection and the Right of Access to Records of Brandenburg
Stahnsdorfer Damm 77
14532 Kleinmachnow
As a general rule, you may also contact a competent data protection supervisory authority at your place of residence or work.
openHPI does not make decisions based solely on automated processing that have legal effects or similarly significant consequences for you. Data may be analyzed in pseudonymized form in order to improve openHPI and learning on the platform. Possible learning recommendations or progress analyses are intended solely to support you in your learning.
The privacy policy may be updated if the platform, data processing activities, or legal requirements change. You can find the current privacy policy via the “Privacy” link on the openHPI websites.
This page was last changed at Fri, 09 Oct 2026 11:56:37 +0000.