Informed Consent

Before contracting the service provided by Genelink, S.L. (hereinafter, "Koko Genetics"), you must read, show your agreement, and expressly accept the terms of this legal and informed consent agreement (hereinafter, the "Consent"). Through this Consent, you expressly acknowledge and accept: (i) being aware of the process through which Koko Genetics will provide the service; and (ii) being aware of the benefits, limitations, and potential risks associated - directly or indirectly - with it. It is necessary that you clearly understand: (i) the context of the genetic information to which, through the provision of the service by Koko Genetics, you will have access; and (ii) the possible consequences of having such knowledge.

Purpose of the Genetic Analysis you request from Koko Genetics

The analysis and interpretation service provided by Koko Genetics that you request is designed for purely informational purposes based on the scientific evidence available and used by Koko Genetics. Specifically, through the provision of the service by Koko Genetics, you will be informed about aspects that promote the prevention and/or treatment of certain conditions, pathologies, and/or diseases in your pet. You expressly acknowledge and accept that the information obtained through the provision of the genetic analysis service you request from Koko Genetics is not intended to diagnose any condition, pathology, or disease in your pet and, under no circumstances, does it intend to or can it replace the personalized and specialized care of any healthcare professionals.

Saliva Sample Provided to Koko Genetics

You guarantee that the saliva sample provided is from your pet. In this regard, you guarantee that you are not acting on behalf of any third party, including, but not limited to, insurance companies, companies related – directly or indirectly – to the healthcare or veterinary field, or any other type of company or individual who may have an interest in obtaining information about an insured person, employee, executive, or any other persons without the necessary prior authorization. Additionally, if you reside outside of Spain, by accepting this Consent or any other documents required for contracting the service, you expressly confirm that you are not subject to any legal prohibitions or restrictions, including, but not limited to, prohibitions or restrictions related to the shipment of saliva samples from your country of residence or, in general, any prohibitions or restrictions related – directly or indirectly – to the contracting of genetic services such as the one requested from Koko Genetics. Additionally, you acknowledge and accept that the provision of the saliva sample and the processing of genetic data does not imply the acquisition of any rights in your favor over the scientific research or services or products developed by Koko Genetics or by organizations or individuals associated with Koko Genetics.

Deoxyribonucleic Acid Analysis (DNA)

You give your permission to Koko Genetics, its employees, administrators, directors, contractors, subcontractors, and collaborators to carry out the requested services of analyzing the DNA extracted from your saliva sample. For the appropriate purposes, you are informed that the data processing centers contracted by Koko Genetics have all the necessary health licenses to perform the analysis.

Results of Genetic Analysis (Report)

You authorize Koko Genetics to transmit the results (report) of the DNA analyses, in whole or in part, to you and to the persons you authorize in advance and in writing. You acknowledge and accept that the information provided by Koko Genetics after performing your genetic analysis as requested may be positive or negative. Consequently, you acknowledge and accept that you are aware that this information provided may be unexpected and may cause you emotional stress. However, you also acknowledge and accept that if the genetic information indicates that your pet is a carrier of a certain condition, pathology, or disease, it does not mean that it will inevitably develop it. Furthermore, you acknowledge that, as scientific research in genetics advances, in order to more fully assess the meaning and information related to DNA within the context of these advances, you may need to use these services again.

Protection of Your Genetic Data

Your genetic information obtained as a result of the service provided by Koko Genetics is subject to our Personal Data Protection Policy [to access this Personal Data Protection Policy, click here]. In summary, as stated in that Personal Data Protection Policy, Koko Genetics ensures your right to store and access your genetic and personal information confidentially and securely.

Genetic Data

The laboratory contracted by Koko Genetics to process the saliva sample will analyze the DNA solely for the purpose of determining the genetic information of your pet. Neither the laboratory nor Koko Genetics will seek any other agents, markers, or biological or chemical components in your saliva apart from your DNA. Additionally, the laboratory will not have access to any of your personal data (including your name and surname) or your pet's data, as the data will undergo a dissociation process. A unique barcode will be used by Koko Genetics to link the genetic data derived from your saliva sample to your Koko Genetics customer account. In any case, for added security, any remaining DNA and saliva provided will be destroyed two (2) months after the completion of the requested analysis.

Security

In compliance with applicable regulations and Koko Genetics' internal policies, rigorous security measures will be employed to prevent unauthorized access, unauthorized modification, transmission, or destruction of your data. This security system includes regular audits of our systems and security measures.

Confidentiality

In compliance with Spanish legislation regarding the protection of personal data, specifically in accordance with the provisions of Organic Law 15/1999 on the Protection of Personal Data (hereinafter referred to as the "LOPD") and Royal Decree 1720/2007 of December 21, which approves the Regulation implementing the LOPD (hereinafter referred to as the "LOPD Regulation"), Koko Genetics informs you that the personal data you provide will be used in a completely confidential manner and incorporated into the corresponding files owned by Koko Genetics, duly registered in the General Registry of the Spanish Data Protection Agency (hereinafter referred to as the "AEPD"), for the purpose of adequately providing the contracted service. Additionally, in compliance with the provisions of the LOPD Regulation, you are informed that you may exercise your rights of access, rectification, cancellation, and opposition regarding your personal data held in the files of Koko Genetics by submitting a written request, proving your identity, and addressing it to Koko Genetics. For more information, you can consult our Personal Data Protection Policy by clicking here.

Research

Koko Genetics is particularly committed to genetic research and has reached agreements to conduct studies and research with prestigious entities in the sector. For these purposes, we request your authorization to use the data collected by Koko Genetics completely anonymously for transfer to the entities or individuals with whom the organization has reached the aforementioned agreements, so that they have access to the raw genetic data, as well as its interpretation, regardless of the country of origin. This data processing will always be based on the provisions of Article 9.2 j) of the GDPR. I expressly authorize Koko Genetics to transfer the anonymous data derived from the DNA analysis of my pet for any studies, research, and statistics they deem necessary.

Risks

Koko Genetics understands that it is of great interest to help its customers access and understand the genetic information of their pets. However, this process of accessing and understanding genetic information is complex and not without risks. In this regard, you acknowledge and accept these potential risks. For illustrative purposes, the following considerations are presented that you should take into account and accept through this Consent given before completing the contracting process of Koko Genetics' service:

Discovery of Unexpected Information

It is highly likely that you will obtain genetic information about your pet that you do not expect. Such genetic information can cause emotional stress and, in certain cases, may alter your life. In particular, you may discover things about your pet that could be concerning. For example, that they are carriers of a certain condition, pathology, or disease. In this regard, you have the right to revoke this Consent at any time upon written request (this right does not exempt you from the financial obligations assumed when contracting the service with Koko Genetics).

Minimal Errors in the Analysis

Without prejudice to the following paragraph, you are informed that Koko Genetics follows rigorous quality protocols in the DNA analysis process. However, an extremely small percentage (<0.05%) of the data generated during the process carried out in Koko Genetics' external laboratory may be incorrect or not interpretable.

Future Genetic Research

Future scientific research in genetics may alter, either wholly or partially, the interpretation of DNA, as new genetic markers may be discovered in relation to the risk of various conditions, pathologies, or diseases.

Do Not Share Your Genetic Data

The genetic data you share with third parties, whether it comes from the service provided by Koko Genetics or other sources, may be used against your own interests. You are hereby informed that Koko Genetics strongly recommends that you do not share your genetic information with third parties, including family, friends, and coworkers. Even if you decide to share genetic information with a healthcare professional, you run the risk of that information becoming part of your pet's medical record and potentially being accessible to unwanted third parties in the future (such as healthcare service providers or insurance companies). You acknowledge that even if you share seemingly minor or unimportant genetic information at the time of sharing, that information could become relevant in the future as genetic research progresses and new discoveries are made (such as the discovery of new genetic markers related to the risk of various conditions, pathologies, and diseases). In any case, you agree to: (i) assume responsibility for any consequences arising from sharing access to your pet's genetic data with third parties, and (ii) release and hold harmless Koko Genetics, its employees, administrators, directors, contractors, subcontractors, collaborators, successors, and assigns from any liability arising from: (A) the use or transmission of any information provided by you and/or obtained as a result of the service requested from Koko Genetics, and (B) the transmission or use of genetic information or other personal data provided by you to third parties, whether intentional or inadvertent, or whether accessed by third parties for diagnosis or other purposes.

Specific Regulations by Country

Consumer regulations require that the user is aware of the terms and conditions of contracting the product offered through the Website from the country of purchase. Koko Genetics disclaims all responsibility arising from the user's lack of knowledge of this information and any non-compliance with applicable local regulations by the user.

Privacy

In the current world, there are real dangers of identity theft, credit card fraud, and other risks. We strive to find a balance between these conflicting realities and the need to share information with other users. Ultimately, if you require absolute privacy and security, you agree not to provide your personal information or raw data to the Koko Genetics platform. If you do not agree and have already provided your personal information or raw data, you commit to deleting them immediately.

Security

For Koko Genetics, privacy, confidentiality, and data security are of utmost importance. That is why we employ the most advanced security protocols and highest encryption technology, along with physical, technical, and administrative measures to maximize security in accordance with current legislation. All connections to and from our website are covered by the SSL cryptographic protocol. Our servers and data are hosted in the cloud, allowing us to have multi-layered protection against DoS/DDoS attacks, utilizing the latest Cisco network technology and fast-access hard drives. This is further complemented by server backups, database backups, and comprehensive backup of all Koko Genetics information. Our applications perform automatic auditing of changes, ensuring that any data modification is recorded so that appropriate action can be taken if necessary. Confidential user data at Koko Genetics is encrypted, ensuring that no relationship can be established between genetic information, users, and personal data. The data is stored in an encrypted format and decrypted only when necessary, ensuring that no relationship can be established between genetic information, users, and personal data. However, while Koko Genetics has made every effort to create a secure and reliable platform for you, we cannot guarantee the complete confidentiality of any communication, material, or personal information provided to Koko Genetics through the website. Information such as raw data and personal data may be stored as backup or recovery copies. When a registered user at Koko Genetics deletes or requests the removal of raw data and/or profile information, the copies of that stored information will be deleted within 30 days of the user's request at the latest.

Research

Whenever you give us express consent to do so, we may use your data for our own research purposes to develop or improve applications. At Koko Genetics, we believe that each individual contribution, combined with that of tens of thousands of users, can make a difference and help make amazing scientific discoveries. Your contribution through surveys or forms, along with genetic information, combined with that of many other users, can make a difference in research.

Email Addresses

All individuals who register on the website must provide a valid email address to receive communications and notices from Koko Genetics. You agree to maintain the security of your login information and keep your email address updated.

DNA Data

The raw DNA data uploaded to Koko Genetics is owned by the person who uploaded it. When you upload a file, you will be assigned a kit number at the end of the upload process. This number is unique to individual raw genetic data and will be used on the pages of this website to identify your data. If you need to contact the website administrator regarding your data, you must provide the kit number associated with your data. You can request the deletion of your personal data at any time by contacting us at [email protected].

Rights of the Data Subject in the EU

You have certain rights with respect to your personal data, including the rights outlined below. For more information about these rights or to submit a request, please email us at [email protected]. Please note that in some circumstances, we may not be able to fully comply with your request, for example, if it is frivolous or extremely impractical, if it jeopardizes the rights of others, or if it is not required by law, but in such circumstances, we will still respond to notify you of such a decision. In some cases, we may also need you to provide additional information, which may include personal data, if necessary to verify your identity and the nature of your request.

<p><strong>Access:</strong> You can request more information about the personal data we have about you and request a copy of such personal data. If you have an account, you can also access some of your personal data by logging into your account.</p>

<p><strong>Erasure:</strong> You can request that we erase some or all of your personal data from our systems.</p>

<p><strong>Withdrawal of Consent:</strong> If we are processing your personal data based on your consent (given at the time of collecting such data), you have the right to withdraw your consent at any time.</p>

<p><strong>Portability:</strong> You can request a copy of your personal data in a machine-readable format. You can also request that we transmit the data to another data controller where technically feasible.</p>

<p><strong>Objection: </strong>You can contact us to let us know that you object to us continuing to use or disclose your personal data for certain purposes.</p>

<p><strong>Restriction of Processing:</strong> You can request that we restrict the further processing of your personal data.</p>