1. About this Privacy Policy
Skills4Sea is an Erasmus+ cooperation project focused on the development, assessment and recognition of non-technical skills in maritime education and training.
This Privacy Policy explains how personal data is processed when you visit the Skills4Sea project website, contact the project team, register interest in events or reviews, or submit information through the Industry Validation forms.
This notice applies to skillsforsea.com and, while publicly accessible, skillsforsea.com. The separate Skills4Sea learning platform is not covered by this website notice and may have different data-processing arrangements.
2. Data Controller and Contact
Website data controller: [Insert the full registered legal name of the organisation responsible for the website’s personal data, and any joint controllers if applicable]
Registered postal address: [Insert the controller’s postal address]
Privacy enquiries and data protection requests: info@skillsforsea.com
Personal information may also be handled by the relevant Skills4Sea partner organisation when that organisation is responsible for organising a project event or reviewing an authorised submission. Where applicable, the identity and role of that organisation will be communicated to participants.
3. Personal Data We Collect
Contact enquiries: Your name, email address, selected enquiry topic and message. Messages submitted through the website’s contact form are delivered to the project contact mailbox rather than stored as contact-form entries in the WordPress database.
Industry validation and project participation: Depending on the form, we collect names, email addresses, organisations, countries, professional roles, requested review scopes, event references, participant codes, responses, comments, feedback ratings and optional language or accessibility arrangements.
Institutional endorsement and adoption submissions may additionally contain representatives’ roles and authority, review information, decisions, supporting evidence references, follow-up information and publication permissions.
Administrative records: The Industry Validation Hub stores submissions in the WordPress database, including submission references, dates, review statuses and administrative review notes. Access to individual submissions and exports is restricted to authorised website administrators.
Authorised website accounts: WordPress may process usernames, account emails, login and session information to manage website administration.
Technical information: Hosting and security systems may process IP addresses, access times, browser information and request details needed to operate and protect the website. Forms also use short-lived anti-abuse controls.
Please do not enter passwords, unrelated personal information, learner records, medical diagnoses or other sensitive information into free-text fields.
4. Why We Process Personal Data
We use personal information to respond to enquiries, manage requested event registrations and industry review invitations, collect feedback and administer validation, endorsement and adoption processes.
Where forms request your agreement to these purposes, processing is based on consent under Article 6(1)(a) of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
We may also process information where necessary for legitimate interests relating to project management, verification, record accuracy, fraud prevention and website security, subject to individuals’ rights and interests (Article 6(1)(f) GDPR).
Where applicable law requires specific records or disclosures, processing may be based on compliance with a legal obligation (Article 6(1)(c) GDPR).
Project evaluation and reporting will use aggregated or anonymised information wherever feasible.
We do not use website form submissions for unrelated commercial advertising. Any optional promotional communications introduced in the future will require an appropriate separate legal basis and, where necessary, an opt-in.
5. Who May Receive Your Information
Personal information may be accessible to authorised Skills4Sea administrators, relevant project partners and event organisers where necessary for the purpose of the submission.
Hosting providers, technical support providers and email delivery services may process information on our behalf under applicable contractual and confidentiality arrangements.
Information may also be disclosed to Erasmus+ granting or audit bodies and competent authorities where properly required.
Organisational endorsements, representative details, quotations and logos are not automatically authorised for public publication. Publication is subject to the specific permissions requested and verification of the representative’s authority.
We do not sell personal data.
6. Data Retention
Contact enquiries are retained for the time needed to address the enquiry and necessary follow-up.
Event registrations, participation interests and feedback are retained for the period necessary to organise, evaluate and document the relevant activity.
Validation, endorsement, adoption and attendance records may need to be retained for project verification, reporting and applicable Erasmus+ grant auditing obligations. Depending on the applicable grant agreement, relevant records may need to be maintained for several years following the final grant payment.
Technical records are retained according to their operational purpose and applicable hosting and security arrangements.
When personal information is no longer required for an identified purpose or applicable retention obligation, we will arrange for its secure deletion or anonymisation, subject to necessary backup cycles and legal restrictions.
7. International Data Transfers
Skills4Sea involves partner organisations in several countries, including Türkiye.
Where project activities require personal data to be accessed or transferred outside the European Economic Area, the responsible organisation must apply the requirements of the GDPR, including an appropriate international transfer mechanism where required.
Individuals may request further information about applicable recipients and safeguards by contacting the project privacy contact.
8. Cookies and Website Operation
The website may use cookies and similar technologies necessary for basic operation, security and WordPress administration.
Additional cookies or personal data collection may arise from optional plugins, analytics tools or embedded third-party content if enabled.
Where consent is legally required for non-essential technologies, an appropriate choice must be provided before their use.
Visitors may manage or delete cookies through their browser settings. Disabling essential cookies may affect website functionality.
The website’s cookies and external services should be reviewed whenever new plugins or embedded content are introduced.
9. Your Data Protection Rights
Subject to applicable law, individuals may exercise the following rights:
- Access to their personal data.
- Rectification of inaccurate or incomplete information.
- Erasure where applicable.
- Restriction of processing.
- Data portability where applicable.
- Objection to processing in relevant circumstances.
- Withdrawal of consent at any time, without affecting processing lawfully carried out before withdrawal.
Requests may be sent to info@skillsforsea.com.
We may request reasonable identity verification before processing a request. Certain information may need to be retained where an applicable legal obligation or another lawful ground requires this.
Individuals may also lodge a complaint with a competent data protection supervisory authority, including an authority in the EU/EEA country where they normally live or work or where they consider an infringement to have occurred.
10. Data Security and Automated Decisions
We use proportionate technical and organisational safeguards, including access restrictions, form validation and anti-abuse controls, to protect personal information.
No internet service can guarantee absolute security.
Website submissions are reviewed by authorised staff. The website forms are not used for solely automated decisions producing legal or similarly significant effects on individuals.
11. External Websites and the Learning Platform
The website may contain links to external services, including project social media pages and the separate Skills4Sea learning platform.
Those services may operate under their own privacy policies and terms. Visitors should review the relevant policies before providing personal information through them.
12. Changes to this Privacy Policy
This Privacy Policy may be updated to reflect changes in project activities, website functionality, service providers or applicable law.
The latest revision date will appear at the beginning of this page.
For privacy-related questions, please contact info@skillsforsea.com.