Report your suspicion of malpractice using eQ Whistleblower

What kinds of matters can I report?

eQ Group uses a notification channel through which clients, employees and other stakeholders can submit a notification of suspected malpractice or unethical activity at eQ. The notification channel is not designed for processing customer complaints, however. You can submit a customer complaint by contacting eQ’s customer service.

How can I submit a notification?

You can report your suspicion using eQ Whistleblower, which is maintained by the Finland Chamber of Commerce, our external partner. You can use eQ Whistleblower to submit a notification with your own name or anonymously, in which case you can also have an anonymous discussion with the processor of the notification. eQ Whistleblower is only intended for notifications submitted in good faith. Good faith means that you must have a justifiable reason for believing that the information in your notification is accurate at the time of submission. You do not need to be able to prove that your suspicion is true, however.

You can access eQ Whistleblower at https://eq.ilmoituskanava.fi (in Finnish)

According to section 8 of the Whistleblower Act, in certain situations (for example, when you have reasonable grounds to assume that your notification will not lead to appropriate action) you can report malpractice to the centralised external reporting channel of the Office of the Chancellor of Justice. More information about the subject is available at https://oikeuskansleri.fi/en/centralised-external-reporting-channel

How is my notification processed?

Your notification is processed in confidence. The identities and positions of a person who has submitted a notification in good faith, the subject of the notification and any other parties mentioned in the notification are protected in all circumstances. Notifications can only be accessed by persons authorized for processing by eQ Group, and we do not disclose personal data you have provided in the notification to outsiders without your consent, except when appropriate processing of the notification would require disclosure for an official or legal process, for example. Other experts from outside the company can be authorized to process your notification, as necessary.

How will I receive a response?

You will receive acknowledgment of your notification within seven days. Processors may ask you for further information about your notification via eQ Whistleblower. They will also inform you via eQ Whistleblower within three months of the action we will take on the basis of your notification. Please remember to store the code you receive after submitting the notification, so you can later log in to your notification and communicate with the processors of the notification.

Further information about concealment of the whistleblower’s identity

eQ Whistleblower has been implemented with an external partner, the Finland Chamber of Commerce, to conceal the whistleblower’s identity. The Finland Chamber of Commerce provides the technical implementation of eQ Whistleblower and does not receive notifications. Processors authorized by eQ Group receive notifications submitted via eQ Whistleblower and process them in confidence. Only authorized processors have access to notifications.

A notification can be submitted anonymously. Processors do not obtain metadata or IP addresses by which a whistleblower could be identified. All notifications are encrypted upon creation using a symmetric and asymmetric, strong encryption algorithm that cannot be decrypted or altered afterwards. Processors only learn the date and time and the contents of the notification.

A notification can also be submitted with one’s own name. Personal data contained in a notification can only be accessed by authorized processors, and we do not disclose a whistleblower’s personal data to outsiders without specific consent, except when appropriate processing of a notification would require disclosure for an official or legal process, for instance.

Sensitive personal details, such as a personal identity code, health information or other details related to private life, should not be included in a notification, unless they are necessary for describing the matter or processing the notification.

Further information about the processing of personal data in eQ Whistleblower is available in the privacy policy.

According to section 8 of the Whistleblower Act, in certain situations (for example, when you have reasonable grounds to assume that your notification will not lead to appropriate action) you can report malpractice to the centralised external reporting channel of the Office of the Chancellor of Justice. More information about the subject is available at https://oikeuskansleri.fi/en/centralised-external-reporting-channel