Privacy policy

The protection of your personal data is important to us. This is why we would like to inform you about how we use your personal data when you surf on our website, when you use our applications or when you find us on social networks or when you come to meet us at Vias institute

1. Who is responsible for the processing of your personal data?

1.1. Vias institute, Cooperative society registered as a social enterprise, the registered office which is located at 1130 Brussels, Chaussée de Haecht 1405, registered with the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises under the number 0432.570.411 (hereinafter "Vias institute" or "we") is responsible for the processing of your personal data via the websites, applications and social networking platforms on which Vias institute is present and, in general, when Vias institute processes your data when you use our services.

1.2. The DPO (“Data Protection Officer”) of Vias institute can be reached by post at the aforementioned address or by e-mail at dpo@vias.be.

1.3. For the “Driver Improvement” activities”, Via Secura ASBL is responsible for the processing of your personal data the registered office of which is located at 1130 Brussels, Chaussée de Haecht 1405, registered with the Crossroads Bank under the number 0673.510.986 (“Via Secura”). 

1.4. If you have any questions about the processing of your data, you can contact us at the address mentioned in point 1.1 or by e-mail via dpo@vias.be.

2. For what purposes and on what legal basis are your personal data processed?

2.1. Vias institute processes personal data from websites and applications, including the social networking platforms on which it is present, for the following purposes:

  • in order to respond to and follow up on the questions and comments you have sent us. This may include responding to (i) requests for brochures and price lists, e.g. for training courses, coaching sessions, workshops or mentoring programmes, (iii) requests to receive an offer, (iv) requests to subscribe to newsletters, and (v) general questions and remarks that you send to us via our websites, applications and social network pages. This processing is based on the need to perform the contract to which you are a party, or the need to take steps at your request to conclude a contract, as well as on our legitimate interest in responding to your questions and comments;
  • in order to identify yourself and register with one of our departments (CARA, medical and psychological reintegration tests the follow-up of which is required in the event of drunk driving or repeat offences, professional supervision programme described in the Royal Decree of 26 November 2010 relating to the installation of the alcohol ignition interlock device and the mentoring programme, Vias institute's training courses (including via alternative judicial measures - "Driver improvement") in order to enable Vias institute to provide you with its services, including the analysis of the results and the question of specific procedures for each department.
  • for the administration of your orders and to send you the ordered products when you order a product via our webshop;
  • in order to review, analyse and improve the functioning of websites and applications, and to optimize customer services and the fulfilment of our missions in general;
  • in order to fight against fraud and infringements, and the management of disputes and litigation, including intervention against statements on social networks that would be denigrating, discriminatory or insulting, or contrary in any way to the law in force. This processing is based on our legitimate interest, as the person responsible for the websites, applications and social network pages on which we are active, to detect and repress cases of fraud and infringements, as well as cases of unacceptable or illegal statements, to secure our IT systems and to take legal action.
  • possible analyses in the context of a corporate reorganization or acquisitions. This processing is based on the legitimate interest of Vias institute and the parties involved in the envisaged operations to carry out the said operations successfully;
  • to provide support services to Via Secura;
  • compliance with the legal obligations to which we would be subject.

2.2. In case you use the services offered by Via Secura, Via Secura processes your personal data in order to identify you and to register you with the "Driver Improvement" service) and to provide you with the "Driver Improvement" services, including the analysis of the results and the question of the specific procedure for the "Driver Improvement".

2.3. For direct marketing purposes, we only use your personal data (for the purpose of contacting you to provide you with information and advertising about Vias institute and Via Secura products and services, and to send you offers that match your interests, such as invitations to events, (e.g. training courses, coaching sessions, workshops, mentoring programmes, campaign launches or special offers), provided that you have given your consent (e.g. by ticking the appropriate box or by placing an order or other contact), except in cases where the regulations do not require your consent.

2.4. Our research department, "Knowledge Centre" or "KCC", conducts various studies on the causes of road accidents in Belgium. These studies may be carried out on behalf of other parties or on Vias institute's own initiative (whether or not in cooperation with other parties). When studies are commissioned by other parties, Vias institute may act as a processor, i.e. Vias institute does not itself determine the purposes and means of processing, but only processes personal data on behalf of another party (the controller). In such cases, the privacy policy of the other party in question is applicable. When Vias institute acts as the controller (whether or not in cooperation with other parties), the present privacy policy applies.

To perform studies, Vias institute processes your personal data for exploratory, descriptive, and in-depth analyses, prevalence measurements, behavioural measurements, making forecasts and observations, and preparing reports or statistics. The legal basis for this processing is our legitimate interest in enabling the Knowledge Centre to conduct road safety studies.

In some situations, including when Vias institute processes special categories of personal data, the present privacy policy is not applicable. For these special studies, the people concerned are informed about the processing of their personal data in a separate privacy policy.

3. Where do we collect your personal data?

3.1. The personal data we process as part of our research activities we obtain either directly from the people involved (e.g. research participants) or from other parties. For example, we ask for records from competent authorities when our research requires that the most objective, official information on road accidents and road safety is examined. In any case, such information will be limited to that which is strictly necessary to achieve the purposes of the study and personal data from those official sources will be pseudonymised as far as possible.

4. What categories of personal data do we process?

4.1. Vias institute processes the following categories of personal data for the purposes listed above:

  • your personal identification data such as first and last name, address, e-mail address, phone (including mobile phone), and personal characteristics (age, sex, date of birth) and language;
  • the name and identifying data of your company/organization and your function within it, as well as your professional contact data, if you communicate these to us when you act on behalf of your company/organization;
  • the passwords and identifiers you use for identification purposes on certain parts of our websites;
  • your preferences regarding the use of the website;
  • IP addresses;
  • information regarding disputes and litigation;
  • data you enter via forms on our websites (e.g. when you place an order via our webshop);
  • other data that you provide us with spontaneously, for example (i) when you ask us questions by e-mail, or (ii) when you contact us by telephone via the telephone numbers on our website or when you ask us to call you;
  • the data you provide us spontaneously when you contact us via social networks;
  • the data that we would be legally obliged to process.

Only personal data which are necessary for the purposes concerned shall be processed for this purpose. Providing us with the relevant personal data is voluntary, but it is a necessary condition for us to be able to respond to a request for information from you and for us to be able to follow up on it.

4.2. Due to the specific activities of the different departments of Vias institute, Vias institute also processes department-specific data when you use our services.  This concerns, in addition to the data mentioned above:

4.2.1. For CARA:

  • physical details (weight, height, and so on);
  • electronic location data (GSM/GPS);
  • occupational details;
  • education and training;
  • electronic identification information (IP address, cookies, and so on);
  • family data;
  • criminal proceedings and offences;
  • health data;
  • psychological data;
  • images;
  • driving licence information;
  • the so-called "model VII" (the certificate concerning the fitness to drive a vehicle in the form provided for by model VII of Annex 6 of the Royal Decree of 23 March 1998 on driving licences);
  • technical data sheet.

4.2.2. For medical and psychological tests:

  • physical details (weight, height, and so on);
  • electronic location data (GSM/GPS);
  • occupational details;
  • education and training;
  • electronic identification information (IP address, cookies, and so on);
  • family data;
  • memberships and membership cards;
  • criminal proceedings and offences;
  • consumption customs;
  • health data;
  • psychological data;
  • hobbies and interests;
  • financial details.

4.2.3. For the professional mentoring programme described in the Royal Decree of 26 November 2010 on the installation of the alcohol ignition interlock device and on the mentoring programme:

  • electronic location data (GSM/GPS);
  • occupational details;
  • education and training;
  • family data;
  • memberships and membership cards;
  • criminal proceedings and offences;
  • consumption customs;
  • health data;
  • psychological data;
  • hobbies and interests;
  • information collected through the notification document ("Avertissement"/"Kennisgeving") of the public prosecutor's office (duration of the alcohol ignition device, legal basis for the imposition of the alcohol ignition device in the judgement, competent public prosecutor);
  • data from periodic and additional downloads of the alcohol ignition interlock device.

4.2.4 For “Driver Improvement” (service offered by and under the responsibility of Via Secura):

  • financial details (only for paid training courses)
  • electronic location data (GSM/GPS);
  • occupational details;
  • education and training;
  • electronic identification information (IP address, cookies, and so on);
  • family data (except for paid training sources);
  • memberships and membership cards; (not for paid training courses);
  • consumption customs;
  • health data (not for paid training courses);
  • psychological data (not for paid training courses).

4.2.5. For our Knowledge Centre:

  • Identification data: data directly related to your identity (e.g. first name, surname, date of birth, gender, nationality);
    • Contact information: data enabling communication (e.g. correspondence address, address for delivery, e-mail address, telephone number);
    • Professional characteristics: data related to your organisation, your employer and your professional activity (e.g. position within an organization);
    • Vehicle data: data related to your vehicle (e.g. registration, year of manufacture, make, model, approval number, number plate, chassis number, insurance, yearly inspection);
    • Observation data: data related to observed behaviours (e.g. seat belt use, use of child restraint system at the front or back, drivers' behaviour, distraction at the wheel, phone use at the wheel);
    • Location and research data: data related to your location or your routes (e.g. measurement location, distance travelled, time, speed);
    • Self-reported data: data reported by yourself (e.g. safety feelings, aggressivity);
  • Images: data related to sketches and pictures or other visual material in which you may appear (e.g. accident location, number of lanes, presence of a central reservation).

5. Who has access to your personal data?

5.1. Only Vias institute employees, staff and management have access to your personal data to the extent necessary for the purposes specified above. As far as “Driver Improvement” is concerned, Vias institute employees, staff and management have access to your personal data to the extent necessary for the purposes specified above, and Vias institute staff and management have access to your personal data for support services from Vias institute to Via Secura.

5.2. We also use service providers who process your data on our behalf. These may be affiliated companies, but also external service providers such as service providers who elaborate or process the questionnaires. Service providers may only use personal data to the extent necessary for the purposes specified above. These service providers are legally and contractually obliged to take appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect your personal data against loss or unauthorized processing.

5.3. In the scope of the research activities of the Knowledge Centre, we may share your personal data with others, such as our clients (e.g. national or European governmental authorities), our partners (both private and public organisations) and specialised receivers carefully selected to process your personal data for Vias institute.

5.4. We may also share your personal data with third parties who, in the event of a business reorganization or takeover, are involved in these transactions, but only for the purpose of evaluating and executing these transactions. Generally, we may also share your personal data with advisors and lawyers for the purposes of advice, litigation, and dispute resolution.

5.5. We do not pass on your data to third parties without your permission unless we are legally obliged to do so or on the basis of a judicial or administrative order or an instruction from a competent authority or institution.

5.6. Our websites, applications and social network pages may contain links or references to other sites, for your information or ease of use. We are not responsible for the content of these sites or the processing of your personal data by these sites, including the social networking platforms on which we are active. We refer in this respect to the privacy rules and policies of the relevant social networking sites and platforms.

6. Are your personal data communicated outside the EU?

In principle, your personal data are not communicated outside the EU. 

Should your data nevertheless be exported outside the EU, you will be informed when you register for this service and you will also be informed of the existence or absence of an adequacy decision by the Commission stating that the level of protection offered by the third country in question is adequate and, where appropriate, of the adequate safeguards to effect such transfer.

7. How long are your personal data stored?

We will store your personal data for as long as necessary for the purposes set out in this policy. 
This means that these data are kept (i) in order to answer and follow up on the questions you ask us via our website: until [12] months after your request has been processed or, if a business relationship arises, for as long as that relationship is ongoing, (ii) when you sign up to receive newsletters: until you no longer wish to receive them, (iii) for the fight against fraud and offences and for the management of disputes: as long as the dispute is ongoing, (iv) for use in connection with business reorganizations or acquisitions: as long as our contractual relationship is ongoing, (v) for direct marketing: as long as stated in the information provided to you when you give your consent, (vi) for orders via the webshop: as long as it takes to provide you with the product and to track the order, and (vii) to comply with other legal requirements: as long as required by law.

8. Do we use automated decision making?

Article 22 of the GDPR provides that individuals have the right not to be subject to a decision based exclusively on automated processing producing legal effects or significantly affecting them in a similar way. Vias institute and Via Secura do not use such automated decision making.

9. What measures do we take for safe processing?

9.1. Vias institute and Via Secura take appropriate and reasonable technical and organizations measures to ensure, in view of the potential risks, an adequate level pf security to maintain the integrity, confidentiality and availability of your personal data. These measures include, among others, the following: (i) that we store personal data in secure operating environments that are not accessible to the public and to which only duly authorized employees, collaborators, managers, representatives and subcontractors of Vias institute and Via Secura have access; and (ii) that we verify the identity of registered users of our websites before allowing them to access their personal data.

9.2. The third-party service providers we use are also legally and contractually obliged to take appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect personal data against loss or unauthorized processing.

10. What are your rights under the GDPR? 

In accordance with the GDPR, you have:

  • the right to ask us to consult, rectify or delete the personal data we process about you;
  • the right to ask us to restrict the processing of your personal data, as well as the right to object to such processing;
  • the right to ask us to obtain the personal data you have provided in a structured, common, and machine-readable form in order to transfer them to another data controller (referred to as the "data transfer right");
  • the right to withdraw your consent at any time regarding processing operations based on your consent, without prejudice to the lawfulness of the processing operation carried out on the basis of the consent prior to withdrawal;
  • the right to complain to the supervisory authority.

Some of these rights can only be exercised within the conditions and limits set out in the GDPR.  In any event, you always have the absolute right to object to the further use of your personal data for direct marketing purposes.
Our contact data for the exercise of your rights are indicated in point 1 of this notification.  When you exercise your rights, we may ask you to provide us with additional information to help us verify your identity and find your data.

11. What are cookies and what cookies do we use?

A cookie is a small data file that a web server sends to your browser and which is stored on your device's hard drive. Cookies allow us to recognise you as representative of a User the next time you visit our site with the same device and the same Internet browser. The main purpose of cookies is to facilitate your use. Cookies save you time and adapt our site to your interests and needs. A cookie is also intended to inform the web server that you return to a specific page. Cookies can also be used to speed up your future visit and use of our site. To improve the use of our site, we may allow third parties to send cookies to your browser. We only store in our cookies encrypted personal data that reasonably exclude effective identification. You can accept or reject cookies. Most Internet browsers automatically accept cookies, but you can usually modify your browser settings to decline cookies if you wish. If you choose to decline cookies, you may not be able to use our site at all or only partially. You can find further information on how to set or change your browser settings in the user manual or help function of your Internet browser. Here you will find information on how to block cookies for different browsers.

We use the following cookies:

The Website uses "cookies".

Essential cookies: they are necessary to use the website and guarantee a secure identity check. These are the following cookies:

  • User-token: this cookie assigns a unique login to every user connecting via a general login.
  • Download: this cookie keeps the files that a user adds to his download basket up to date.

Functional cookies: they ensure that our website runs quickly and provide a personalized browsing experience, for example by remembering passwords and certain preferences such as language settings. These are the following cookies:

  • Language: this cookie remembers a user's language choice.
  • Accepter cookies: this cookie remembers whether a user has accepted the cookie banner.
  • PHPSESSID: this cookie is used to identify the PHP session allowing additional functionalities on the website.

Analytical Cookies: These enable us to analyse our website, for example to check the number of visitors to the website and the duration of their visit, where they have clicked, and which parts of the website are visited most frequently. This enables us to continually improve the operation of our site for you. These are the following cookies:

Cookie Google analytics:

  • _gai: this cookie saves data on the use of the site (which pages are visited, time spent on the page/site, the origin of the visitor, and so on).
  • _gid: this cookie saves data on the use of the site (which pages are visited, time spent on the page/site, the origin of the visitor, and so on).

Social media and external cookies: When you are connected to your social media sites (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube etc.) and you give your consent on our site for these categories of cookies, you have the possibility to benefit from additional functionalities. Think for example of the simple sharing of information via Facebook Like, Twitter, etc. For cookies generated by social media and any data they obtain in this way, we refer to the statements made by these parties on their own websites. Please note that these statements may be changed regularly. Vias institute does not intervene in this respect.

Your cookies preferences

You can adjust your cookie preferences below:

      These cookies are required for the website to work and cannot be disabled.
      These cookies increase the user-friendliness of a website by remembering your choices (e.g. language preferences, region, login).
      These cookies collect data about the performance of a website such as the number of visitors or the time visitors spend on a web page.

      These cookies can be set by advertisers on our website. They may be used by those companies to profile your interests and show you relevant ads on this website or other websites. They do not directly store personal information, but they are based on unique identifiers of your browser and Internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will see fewer ads targeted at you.

      12. Modifications

      Vias institute and Via Secura reserve the right to make changes to this privacy policy should this prove necessary in the light of changes in legislation or directives from the competent supervisory authority, as well as should our data processing processes undergo changes. Changes will always be communicated via our website https://www.vias.be.  We therefore recommend that you visit our website regularly to keep yourself informed of any changes.