At Qwant, transparency, security, and the protection of your personal data have always been a top priority. This document aims to inform you about the types of data we collect, why we collect it, how we manage it, as well as your privacy rights and how you can exercise these rights.
This Privacy Policy applies to the website www.qwant.com (the “Site”), accessible from your computer, tablet, and smartphone (“Device”) . This policy governs the processing of personal data of all “Users” accessing the Site. It also governs the processing related to the use of the search engine and its new features (the “Services”).
You may not be subject to all the processing mentioned below. Indeed, since the new features are not accessible to all Users, some processing is only carried out with your consent and/or upon the creation of your user account (See « Why Qwant processes your data and uses cookies »)
Qwant, located at 42 Avenue de la Porte de Clichy, 75017 Paris, acts as the data controller within the meaning of Article 4.7 of the GDPR. You can contact the Data Protection Officer (“DPO”) via the following address: legal@qwant.com
Table of contents
Why Qwant processes your data and uses cookies?
Qwant remains your search engine, preserving your privacy without targeted advertising or storing your search history, thus guaranteeing neutral and unfiltered results without using advertising cookies on your Device. Your data remains confidential, and the processing of your data remains the same.
Qwant also gives you the opportunity to test our new features integrating artificial intelligence once a month. Details on the processing of your data are available in the “Non-Consent” processing table.
Qwant offers its users several new ways to use its Services. You can create a user account to gain unlimited access to new features. In this case, certain data processing is necessary to ensure the proper functioning of these Services (including the transmission of the IP address). Information about this processing is provided in the “Non-Consent” processing table.
If you wish to receive personalized ads based on your interests or searches, you can consent to the use of analytical or personalization advertising cookies. Details on this processing and its purposes are available in the “Consent” processing table. If you do not wish to, simply refuse them during the consent collection and through our cookie manager.
What Data is processed on our Site?
| CATEGORY | DATA CONCERNED | RETENTION PERIOD |
User account data | When you register on our site, you provide us with data such as your email address, marketing email preferences, and profile language. We will also have access to the date of your last login. When you use Google and Apple authentication, you automatically authorize us to access your email address from these partners to simplify the creation of your user account. | 13 months from your last activity on your user account. If you request the deletion of your user account, it will be deleted as soon as possible. |
| Service data | You provide us with information when you respond to surveys. | 13 months from your last activity on your user account. |
| Browsing data | When you use our Site, we automatically and anonymously collect information about how you use our Services, including your clicks or interactions with ads. This includes, for example, search keywords and search fields used to trigger a query. | 13 months maximum |
| Device data | If you consent during your use of our Services, we automatically collect technical data: – Technical identifiers (cookie identifier) – Technical characteristics of the device you use to access our Services, such as the type of device (smartphone, computer, etc.) and the operating system (version, language, system date and time, etc.) We also collect your IP address for the proper functioning of our Services (see « Providing the necessary functionalities for our Services to work ») | Deletion of the entire IP address after 6 months and cookie identifiers and other intersession identifiers used to identify a specific account or device after 18 months by Microsoft. These data are aggregated and retained by Qwant for 25 months. |
If you have not consented or are not subject to the Services offered, we automatically collect technical data: – Technical characteristics of the device you use to access our Services, such as the type of device (smartphone, computer, etc.) and the operating system (version, language, system date and time, etc.) – Salted hash of the IP address (with a salt changing at least every three months), market segment of a query, date and time of the visit, information about the country and chosen language. | Anonymized by Microsoft after 6 months. These data are aggregated and retained by Qwant for 25 months. |
How are your data used by us and our partners?
Only in the case of creating a User Account and accessing new features (such as unlimited access to artificial intelligence):
PURPOSE | DESCRIPTION | LEGAL BASIS | PARTNERS |
WITH YOUR CONSENT | |||
Sending commercial communications from Qwant | If you have agreed to receive commercial communications from us (newsletters), we will use your account data to communicate with you. Only Qwant can be the sender of these communications and will not commercialize them. | Consent | Batch & Qwant |
Conducting audience measurements | We may use your browsing data to better understand how our Services are used, for example, by identifying the content of our Services. This helps us in our continuous improvement efforts of our Services. | Your consent expressed through our cookie manager. Purpose: “Audience Measurement”. | Microsoft Advertising & Microsoft Clarity |
Allowing advertising partners to display personalized ads Cookies | Through our advertising platform, we allow our advertising partners to use your Device and browsing data, subject to your consent, to personalize the ads displayed on our Services and assess their effectiveness. Generally, these partners act as data controllers, meaning they define the purposes and methods of using your data, ensure its confidentiality, and guarantee compliance with laws and regulations. | Your consent expressed through our cookie manager. Purpose « Personalization of ads and performance measurement ». | Microsoft Advertising |
Use of limited data to select ads Cookies | The ads presented to you may be based on limited data, such as your Device and/or browsing data (e.g., to limit the number of times a particular ad is shown to you). | Your consent expressed through our cookie manager. Purpose: “Use limited data to select ads” | Microsoft Advertising |
Measuring ad performances Cookie | We use your browsing and Device data to measure how you interact with ads. This data can be used to determine how effective an ad has been for you or other users and whether the advertising objectives have been met. This allows us to understand the relevance of advertising campaigns. | Your consent expressed through our cookie manager. Purpose: “Measure content performance”. | Microsoft Advertising |
Understanding advertising through data combination Cookie | Reports may be generated based on the combination of data sets (browsing data, aggregated data, statistical data) regarding your and other users’ interactions with advertising or non-advertising content to identify common characteristics. | Your consent expressed through our cookie manager. Purpose: “Understand advertising through data combination”. | Microsoft Advertising |
Using profiles to select personalized ads Cookies | We use your Device and browsing data to present you with ads based on your advertising profiles. These profiles are created based on your activity on our Service or other websites or applications (the content you view). | Your consent expressed through our cookie manager. Purpose: “Use profiles to select personalized ads”. | Microsoft Advertising |
Creating profiles for personalized advertising Cookies | Information about your activity on these Services may be retained and combined with other information about you (browsing data and Device data). This information is then used to create or improve a profile about you (which may include possible interests and personal information). Your profile can be used (also later) to present you with advertisem*nts that seem more relevant based on your potential interests by this entity and other entities. | Your consent expressed through our cookie manager. Purpose: “Create profiles for personalized advertising”. | Microsoft Advertising |
Measuring content performance Cookies | Your browsing data may be used to determine whether the content presented to you and how you interact with it can be used to determine whether content (non-advertising, for example) has reached its target audience and matches your interests. | Your consent expressed through our cookie manager. Purpose: “Measure content performance”. | Microsoft Clarity |
Developing and improving services Cookies | Your browsing data is used to improve products and services and to create new products and services based on user interactions and audience type. This specific purpose does not include developing or improving user profiles and identifiers. | Your consent expressed through our cookie manager. Purpose: “Developing and improving services”. | Microsoft Advertising |
You can refuse all these cookies and:
- Use our services without creating a User Account,
- Refuse all these processes.
NON CONSENT | |||
Managing your user account | If you have created an account, we use your account data to manage your User Account, allow you to log in, and send you communications necessary for its proper functioning. | Contract execution | Batch, Qwant & Shadow. |
Displaying standard (non-personalized) ads. Without a User Account | We use your browsing data to offer you contextual advertising that exclusively depends on the keywords entered when the ad is displayed. In this case, we do not display targeted ads and do not integrate any cookies. | Legitimate interest | Our advertising partners |
Statistics and audience measurements | We may use your account data (excluding email address), Device data, and browsing data to manage the Site in an aggregated way. This management requires the use of traffic and/or performance statistics without your identity being known to Qwant. These measures are essential to analyze the Site’s operation and to provide our Services:
| Legitimate interest Purpose: “Statistics and audience measurements” | Piwik & Qwant |
A/B Testing | Occasionally, we may conduct A/B tests. These tests allow us to compare different versions of our engine or features to see which works best. The objective is to understand user preferences and improve the usability and effectiveness of our search engine. In this context, we only use aggregated and anonymised data, such as the number of clicks on a feature or the time spent on a page, to assess the performance of the different versions tested. For these tests, Qwant’s provider retains an anonymous identifier generated randomly and kept for 6 months from the first visit. | Purpose : A/B Testing | Qwant & Piwik. |
Measuring the effectiveness of certain contextual advertising results | To establish an aggregated measure of the effectiveness of ads provided by our partner Microsoft and to strengthen its means of detecting fraudulent clicks, Qwant can also transfer the following data for certain categories of ads: if you click on a Microsoft network ad and return to the same Qwant results page: – The measurement of the time elapsed between your click on the ad and your possible return to the results page. This data shared with Microsoft is used exclusively for the purposes mentioned above and cannot be used for other purposes. In particular, it cannot be used for user profile-based advertising on Qwant or third-party services. This data is transmitted to this partner within the European Union and may be retained in accordance with Microsoft’s Privacy Policy for a maximum period of 18 months. | Necessary for contract execution | Microsoft & Qwant |
Providing the necessary functionalities for our Services to work (processing user requests,displaying ads, functioning of new features) | Qwant retains the keywords entered associated with a pseudonymous identifier calculated from the User Account data and the salted hash of your IP address for 1 month. After this period, the keywords are no longer associated with an identifier and retained for 12 months for aggregated statistical analysis purposes. To provide relevant results when we do not have the answers to your queries ourselves, we have a partnership with Microsoft to provide our search results and contextual ads based on the entered keywords and your geographic region. For this purpose, Qwant can transfer the following pseudonymized data to this partner related to your query:
Additionally, for the security and reliability of our partner’s services (spam detection, automated activity, fraudulent ad clicks), Qwant may also collect and transfer your full IP address to this partner. Finally, as part of providing new features, Qwant shares your IP address with Microsoft to provide you with contextual ads and better search results. | Contract execution and legitimate interest. | Qwant & Microsoft Advertising. |
Managing dereferencing requests | When you wish to exercise your right to dereferencing, we use your account data and/or the data you provide within the form to respond to your dereferencing request. | Legitimate interest | Qwant |
Managing information requests | When you request information, we use your account data and/or the data you provide within the contact form to respond to your request. | Legitimate interest | Qwant |
Who are Qwant's Partners?
PiwikPro
We use Piwik Pro Analytics Suite to collect statistical data on Site users based on online identifiers. We create user profiles based on browsing history and usage metrics such as bounce rate and pages viewed. PiwikPro Analytics Suite also creates aggregated data sets related to site usage as part of the necessary processing for the site’s proper functioning.
Microsoft
Qwant recently launched a new search experience and partners with Microsoft to explore how you use and interact with our Services. Qwant is committed to collecting only the necessary information to improve your search experience and offer targeted ads based on your preferences, allowing you to consent or not to this collection and data sharing, with the possibility of revoking this consent at any time.
For more information on how Microsoft collects and uses your data, see Microsoft’s Privacy Policy and Microsoft Clarity.
Batch
We collaborate with Batch to ensure the efficient management of your account, ensuring its proper functioning for transactional emails and, with your consent, in managing our email marketing campaigns.
We do not transmit any other data to Batch than those indicated in “User Account Data”.
Shadow SAS
Shadow acts as a subcontractor for maintaining our identity and access management solution. There is no data transfer between SHADOW and QWANT. SHADOW does not have access to your personal data in any way.
How are your data used for advertising purposes?
Collection via Microsoft Advertising and Microsoft Clarity
Only if you decide to create a User Account and consent through our cookie manager to Microsoft using cookies for advertising purposes, Microsoft will be able to exploit the advertising spaces on our Services. Microsoft will then auction these advertising spaces in real-time, allowing the highest bidders to access them.
By accepting this use, Microsoft can collect information from our Services about the advertising spaces sold through their intermediary as well as your Device and browsing data. This data could be combined with other information about you they possess to present you with personalized ads during your navigation on our services and on third-party services.
If you want to know more about how Microsoft Advertising uses your data, you can visit their privacy policy here.
Furthermore, regarding Bing search queries, Microsoft anonymizes stored queries by deleting the entire IP address after 6 months and cookie identifiers and other intersession identifiers used to identify a specific account or device after 18 months.
Finally, if you refuse cookies from our cookie manager, Microsoft will only collect Device Data as indicated above. If you initially consented to the use of cookies for advertising purposes by Microsoft but later change your choice, any information collection about you by Microsoft will immediately cease.
Our Advertising Partners
We work with several advertising partners to offer our ads. Generally, these partners act as data controllers, meaning they define the purposes and methods of using your data, ensure its confidentiality, and guarantee compliance with laws and regulations.
When you visit one of our advertisers’ ads, you can oppose their data processing by visiting their privacy policies.
What are your rights and how to exercise them?
In accordance with the law related to data processing, files, and liberties as well as the GDPR, you have the following rights regarding your personal data:
- Right to access your processed data in an understandable format,
- Right to rectify and update incorrect or incomplete data,
- Right to erasure if the data is no longer necessary for the initial purpose, if you have withdrawn your consent on which the data processing is based, if the data is subject to unlawful processing, or if the data must be erased to comply with a legal obligation,
- Right to object to your data being used for commercial prospecting or other purposes based on our respective interests,
- Right to data portability, i.e., to request Qwant to communicate the data in a structured, commonly used, and machine-readable format
These rights are exercised by sending a request to the following email address: legal@qwant.com
You can also exercise your rights by postal mail to the DPO at the following address:
Data Protection Officer
42 avenue de la Porte de Clichy
75017, Paris
Furthermore, you can file a complaint with the data protection authority of your country (for France, it is the CNIL – www.cnil.fr).
We may also need to modify or update this policy. Any changes will be displayed on this page and/or other relevant locations to keep you informed.
- Mise à jour : 20/05/2024
