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 agreement and informed consent (hereinafter, the "Consent"). Through this Consent, you expressly declare and accept: (i) to know the process through which Koko Genetics will perform the service; and (ii) to be 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 derived from 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 a purely informational purpose based on the available scientific evidence 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 declare that you know 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, in no case, is it intended to, nor can it, replace the personalized and particularized care of any health 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, for purely illustrative purposes, insurance companies, companies related –directly or indirectly– to the health or veterinary field, nor any other type of company or individual who may have an interest in obtaining information about an insured person, employee, manager, or any other person without the required prior authorization. Additionally, if you reside outside of Spain, by accepting this Consent or any other documents necessary for contracting the service, you expressly confirm that you are not subject to any legal prohibition or restriction, including –for purely illustrative purposes– 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 you request 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 in your favor of any right over the scientific research or the services or products that are developed by Koko Genetics or by organizations or individuals associated with Koko Genetics.

Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) analysis

You give your permission to Koko Genetics, its employees, administrators, managers, 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 appropriate health licenses to perform the analysis.

Results of the genetic analysis (report)

You authorize Koko Genetics to transmit, in whole or in part, the results (report) of the DNA analyses to both you and the people you authorize in advance and in writing. You declare 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 such information provided may be unexpected and cause you situations of emotional stress. However, you also declare that you know and accept that in the event that the genetic information indicates that your pet is a carrier for developing a certain condition, pathology, or disease, it does not mean that it will inevitably develop it. Likewise, you declare that you understand that, as scientific research in genetic matters advances, in order to more fully assess the meaning and information related to DNA within the context of such advances, you may need to resort to 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 learn about said Personal Data Protection Policy, click here]. In summary, as indicated in said Personal Data Protection Policy, Koko Genetics ensures your right to store and consult 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 for the sole purpose of determining the genetic information of your pet. Neither said laboratory nor Koko Genetics will search your saliva for any other agent, marker, or biological or chemical component that is not your DNA. Likewise, said laboratory will not have access to any of your personal data (including your name and surname) or your pet's, as the data will be subjected to a dissociation process. A unique barcode will be what allows Koko Genetics to link the genetic data derived from your saliva sample to your account as a Koko Genetics client. In any case, for greater security, two (2) months after finishing the requested analysis, the remains of the DNA and saliva provided will be destroyed.

Security

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

Confidentiality

In compliance with the provisions of the Spanish regulations regarding the protection of personal data and, specifically, in accordance with the provisions of Organic Law 15/1999 on the Protection of Personal Data (hereinafter "LOPD") and Royal Decree 1720/2007, of December 21, which approves the Regulation for the development of the LOPD (hereinafter, the "LOPD Regulation"), Koko Genetics informs you that the personal data you provide us 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, the "AEPD"), for the purpose of adequately providing the contracted service. Likewise, in compliance with the provisions of the LOPD Regulation, you are informed that you may exercise the rights of access, rectification, cancellation, and opposition with respect to your personal data that are in the files of Koko Genetics by means of a written request, proving your identity, and addressed to Koko Genetics. For more information, you can consult our Personal Data Protection Policy by clicking here.

Research

Koko Genetics is particularly sensitive to genetic research and has reached agreements to carry out studies and research with prestigious entities in the sector. For these purposes, we request your authorization to use the data collected by Koko Genetics in a completely anonymous manner for its transfer to the entities or individuals with whom the entity 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 analysis of my pet's DNA for as many studies, investigations, and statistics as it deems necessary.

Risks

Koko Genetics understands that it is of great interest to help its clients access and understand the genetic information of their pets. However, this process of accessing and understanding genetic information is complex and not free of risks. In this regard, you declare that you know and accept said possible risks. For purely illustrative purposes, below are several considerations that you should take into account and accept by means of this Consent granted before completing the process of contracting the Koko Genetics service:
Discovery of unexpected information
It is very likely that you will obtain genetic information about your pet that you do not expect. Such genetic information may cause you situations of emotional stress and, in certain cases, could alter your life. In particular, you may discover things about your pet that could worry you. For example, that it is a carrier of a certain condition, pathology, or disease. In this sense, you have the right to revoke this Consent at any time upon written request (this right does not exempt you from the economic obligations assumed when contracting the service with Koko Genetics).
Minimal errors in the analyses
Without prejudice to the provisions of 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 the external laboratory of Koko Genetics may be incorrect or not interpretable.
Future genetic research
Future scientific research in genetic matters may alter –in whole or in part– the interpretation of DNA, as new genetic markers may be discovered in relation to the risk of suffering from various conditions, pathologies, or diseases.
Do not share your genetic data
The genetic data you share with third parties –whether they come from the service provided by Koko Genetics or from other sources– could be used against your own interests. You are informed that Koko Genetics strongly recommends that you do not share genetic information with third parties (including family, friends, coworkers). Even if you decide to share genetic information with a healthcare professional, you run the risk that such information could become part of your pet's medical history and, through that route, could eventually become accessible in the future to unwanted third parties (for example, healthcare service provider companies or insurance companies). You declare that you know that even if you share minor or seemingly unimportant genetic information at the time it is shared, such information could become relevant in the future, when genetic research has advanced and new discoveries have been made (for example, the discovery of new genetic markers related to the risk of suffering from various conditions, pathologies, and diseases). In any case, you agree to: (i) assume responsibility for the possible consequences derived from sharing access to your pet's genetic data with third parties; and (ii) release and hold harmless Koko Genetics, its employees, administrators, managers, contractors, subcontractors, collaborators, successors, and assignees 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 the genetic information or other personal data provided in the event that you have provided such information to third parties —whether it be intentional or inadvertent access or by third parties for diagnosis or other purposes—.
Country-specific regulations
Consumer regulations require that the user be aware of the contracting conditions of the product offered through the Website from the country of purchase. Koko Genetics disclaims all liability arising from the user's lack of knowledge of said information and any breach of applicable local regulations by the user.

Privacy

In today's world, there are real dangers of identity theft, credit fraud, etc. We try 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 agree to delete it immediately.

Security

For Koko Genetics, privacy, confidentiality, and data security are an absolute requirement. For that reason, we use the most advanced security protocols and the highest technology in encryption, in addition to physical, technical, and administrative measures to maximize security in accordance with current legislation. All connections to our website and from our website are covered by the SSL cryptographic protocol. Our servers and data are hosted in the cloud. This allows us to have security systems with multi-layer protection against DoS / DDoS, the latest technology in Cisco networks, and fast-access hard drives. All this is complemented by backups of the servers, the database, and all of Koko Genetics' information. Our applications perform an automatic audit of changes, so that any modification of the data is recorded in order to be able to act in case it is not correct. The confidential data of Koko Genetics users is encrypted so that a relationship can never be established between the genetic information, the users, and their personal data, as they are stored in an encrypted form and this is only decrypted when necessary so that a relationship can never be established between the genetic information, the users, and the personal data. However, although Koko Genetics has strived to create a secure and reliable Site for you, the total confidentiality of any communication, material, or personal information provided to Koko Genetics through the Site cannot be guaranteed. Information such as raw data and personal data can be saved as a backup or recovery copy. When a registered user of Koko Genetics deletes or requests the deletion of raw data and/or profile information, copies of that stored information will be deleted no later than 30 days after the user's request.

Research

Whenever you give us your express consent, we may use your data in our own research, to develop or improve applications. At Koko Genetics, we are convinced 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 and combined with that of many other users can make a difference in research.

Email addresses

All individuals who register on the Site 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 to keep your email address up to date.

DNA data

The raw DNA data uploaded to Koko Genetics is the property of 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 the individual raw genetic data, and will be used on the pages of this Site to identify your data. If you wish to contact the Site 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 info@kokogenetics.com.

Rights of the data subject in the EU

You have certain rights with respect to your personal data, including those set out below. For more information about these rights, or to submit a request, please email us at info@kokogenetics.com. 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 those circumstances, we will still respond to notify you of such a decision. In some cases, we may also need you to provide us with additional information, which may include personal data, if necessary to verify your identity and the nature of your request.

Access: You can request more information about the personal data we hold about you and request a copy of such personal data. If you are an account holder, you can also access some of your personal data by logging into your account.

Erasure: You can request that we erase some or all of your personal data from our systems.

Withdrawal of consent: If we are processing your personal data based on your consent (as indicated at the time of collection of such data), you have the right to withdraw your consent at any time.

Portability: 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 controller where technically feasible.

Objection: You can contact us to let us know that you object to the further use or disclosure of your personal data for certain purposes.

Restriction of processing: You can ask us to restrict further processing of your personal data.

Limitation of Liability

You agree that Koko Genetics, its employees, administrators, managers, contractors, subcontractors, collaborators, successors, and assignees shall not be liable for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or exemplary damages (including, but not limited to, damages for loss of profits, goodwill, use, data, or other intangible losses) resulting from: (i) the use or the inability to use the service; (ii) the cost of procurement of substitute goods and services resulting from any goods, data, information, or services purchased or obtained or messages received or transactions entered into through or from the service; (iii) unauthorized access to or alteration of your transmissions or data; (iv) statements or conduct of any third party on the service; or (v) any other matter relating to the service. In no event shall the total liability of Koko Genetics, whether in contract, warranty, tort (including negligence, whether active, passive, or imputed), product liability, strict liability, or other theory, arising out of or relating to the use of the site, service, or this agreement exceed the amount paid by you to Koko Genetics for the service.

Acceptance of Consent

By accepting this Consent, you declare that you have read, understood, and accepted the terms and conditions set out above. If you do not agree with any of the established conditions, we ask that you do not proceed with contracting the Koko Genetics service.