Deutsche Telekom Smart Speaker: Data is processed exclusively within the European Union

In the Handelsblatt article of October 23rd, 2019 on Deutsche Telekom´s Smart Speaker, some points are, in our opinion, incorrectly presented. Here is our statement.

1. Data processing outside the EU

The article in the Handelsblatt gives the impression that data are processed outside the EU. That is not correct. No data is processed outside Europe. Unfortunately, the wording of our privacy notices is somewhat misleading. We are therefore revising this wording in order to make it even more comprehensible, because access from non-EU countries is only granted in very exceptional cases for maintenance purposes of the technical platform.

2. Opt-in vs. opt-out process

Contrary to the description in the Handelsblatt, the opt-out process is very transparent. Customers are clearly informed during the Smart Speaker setup process that they can object to the use of their data. With a link, they can jump directly to the corresponding passage.

Even later, they have the option to object to the use of their data at any time in the "Hallo Magenta" app. In addition, the customer can view his language data in the app and delete individual or all data. It is important to us that our customers have transparency and control over their data. We have opted for this in order to be able to guarantee the continuous further development of the voice platform at the same time.