Privacy Notice
Know how Cool Transport Logistics collects, uses, stores, and protects personal data in the course of providing its international perishable logistics services.
The company is committed to upholding the highest standards of data protection, ensuring transparency and accountability in all data processing activities.
General Principles of Data Processing
Cool Transport Logistics adheres to fundamental data protection principles in all its operations. These principles include transparency, ensuring individuals are fully aware of how their data is used; purpose limitation, meaning data is collected only for specified, legitimate purposes; data minimization, collecting only data that is strictly necessary; accuracy, maintaining correct and up-to-date data; storage limitation, retaining data only for as long as needed; integrity and confidentiality, protecting data from unauthorized access or processing; and accountability, demonstrating compliance with these principles.
Purpose and Scope of Data Collection
The primary reasons for collecting personal data are to facilitate the provision of international perishable logistics services. This encompasses a range of activities, including shipment booking, customs clearance, real-time tracking, and final delivery. Data collection is an essential prerequisite for fulfilling contractual obligations with customers and complying with various legal and regulatory requirements inherent in international trade.
Types of Personal Data Collected
Cool Transport Logistics collects various categories of personal data, differentiating between data obtained from customers, suppliers, and website visitors.
Customer Data: This includes essential contact information such as names, addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses. Financial details, including payment information and billing addresses, are collected for transaction processing. Comprehensive shipment specifics are also gathered, encompassing origin, destination, consignee details, precise cargo type, declared value, weight, dimensions, and, crucially, specific temperature requirements for perishable goods. Necessary customs information, such as tax identification numbers and import/export licenses, is also collected. Location data for shipment tracking is also noted.
Supplier/Partner Data: Contact, financial, and contractual details necessary for managing business relationships are collected.
Website/Technical Data: Information such as IP addresses, browser types, and website usage data is collected to ensure website functionality and improve user experience. Further details on this type of data are provided in the Cookies Policy.
Special Categories of Data: While generally not central to logistics operations, the policy acknowledges rare instances where such data might be processed (e.g., health data for specific medical perishables). In such cases, processing is strictly based on explicit consent or a clear legal basis, in full compliance with applicable regulations.
How Personal Data is Used
Collected personal data is processed for specific, legitimate purposes:
Service Provision: To execute and manage logistics operations, including processing shipments, providing tracking updates, handling customs formalities, and ensuring the timely and temperature-controlled delivery of perishable goods.
Communication: To facilitate essential communications, provide shipment updates, respond to inquiries, and manage customer relationships effectively.
Legal & Regulatory Compliance: To fulfill mandatory obligations related to customs, border security, tax laws, and other statutory requirements, including anti-money laundering (AML) checks and sanctions screening.
Security: To implement measures for fraud prevention, protect against unauthorized access to systems and data, and ensure overall cybersecurity.
Business Operations: For internal reporting, data analytics, and continuous improvement of services.
Marketing: For promotional communications, strictly based on explicit consent where required by law.
Legal Basis for Processing Data
Each data processing activity undertaken by Cool Transport Logistics is grounded in a clear legal basis, in compliance with GDPR Article 6 and similar national laws:
Contractual Necessity: Processing data that is indispensable for the performance of a contract with the data subject (e.g., executing a shipping agreement).
Legal Obligation: Processing required to comply with a legal or regulatory duty (e.g., providing data to customs authorities).
Legitimate Interest: Processing based on the legitimate interests of Cool Transport Logistics, provided these interests do not override the data subject’s fundamental rights and freedoms (e.g., for security, service improvement, internal analytics).
Consent: For specific processing activities where consent is the appropriate legal basis, such as direct marketing or handling special categories of data, in line with Colombian law.
Data Sharing and International Transfers
Personal data may be shared both internally and with external parties as necessary for business operations.
Internal Sharing: Data may be shared within Cool Transport Logistics’ internal departments and with employees who require access for the provision of services.
Third-Party Sharing: Data is routinely shared with essential partners in the supply chain, including airlines, shipping lines, road carriers, customs brokers, warehousing providers, and last-mile delivery services. This is fundamental to international logistics operations. Data may also be shared with third-party service providers supporting business functions (e.g., IT support, payment processing, marketing platforms). Furthermore, data is mandatorily shared with customs, border control, security agencies, and tax authorities in both origin and destination countries. For cargo insurance purposes, data may be shared with insurers, if applicable.
The inherent operational need for Cool Transport Logistics to share customer and shipment data extensively with a diverse array of international third parties and government authorities creates a complex web of data governance responsibilities and significantly amplifies potential legal liabilities beyond internal processing. This reality stems from the fact that major logistics companies consistently share data with affiliates, third parties, and authorities, which is not an optional practice but a fundamental requirement for international shipping. As the initial data collector, Cool Transport Logistics will be sharing personal data, such as consignee names, addresses, and cargo details, with entities located in various countries, each potentially subject to different data protection regimes.
This extended liability necessitates robust Data Processing Agreements (DPAs) with all third-party service providers, ensuring they commit to adequate data protection standards. For government authorities, the legal basis for sharing must be clearly understood and documented. The international nature of these transfers requires that legal mechanisms, such as Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) or reliance on adequacy decisions by the European Commission, are correctly applied and regularly reviewed. A data breach or misuse by any entity in this extended data chain could ultimately be traced back to Cool Transport Logistics, potentially leading to regulatory fines, legal action from data subjects, and severe reputational damage. For perishable goods, any data-related delay or error, such as incorrect customs data, could directly result in cargo spoilage and substantial financial claims, highlighting the critical link between data integrity, operational efficiency, and overall risk exposure.
Data Security and Retention
Cool Transport Logistics implements comprehensive technical and organizational security measures to protect personal data. These measures include encryption, robust access controls, regular security audits, mandatory employee training on data handling protocols, and well-defined incident response plans.
The company’s policy is to retain personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfill the specific purposes for which it was collected, or to comply with legal, accounting, or reporting obligations. Specific attention is paid to legal retention periods mandated by customs or tax authorities, which often require data to be kept for several years after the completion of a service.
Data Subject Rights
Individuals possess specific rights concerning their personal data, aligning with GDPR Articles 15-22 and Colombian data protection law. These rights typically include:
Right of Access: To obtain confirmation of whether their data is being processed and to access that data.
Right to Rectification: To have inaccurate or incomplete data corrected.
Right to Erasure (“Right to be Forgotten”): To request deletion of their data under certain conditions.
Right to Restriction of Processing: To limit how their data is used.
Right to Object to Processing: To object to processing based on legitimate interests or for direct marketing.
Right to Data Portability: To receive their data in a structured, commonly used, machine-readable format.
Right to Withdraw Consent: To withdraw consent at any time where processing is based on consent.
Clear instructions on how to exercise these rights are provided, along with expected response times.
Contact Information
For any data protection inquiries, Cool Transport Logistics provides clear and accessible contact details, including a designated Data Protection Officer (DPO) or an equivalent contact person or department. You may consult the privacy policy at any time by requesting it via email at co.cooltransportlogistics@gmail.com