Misuse, Suspension and Withdrawal of Certificates

Misuse

Misuse of the certificate is present

• in the case of violations of the regulations for the use of the certificate listed in the certification manual, in particular the rights and obligations of the certificate holder, or
• if the requirements associated with the certification are no longer fulfilled or have been achieved as a result of incorrect factual claims.

If the Fraunhofer Personnel Certification Authority becomes aware of misuse or unauthorized changes to the certificates as a result of complaints from third parties or self-reporting by the certificate holders, the misuse will be prosecuted and, in the case of severe misuse or misuse that has not been stopped, the certificate will be revoked. The decision is made by the head of the Fraunhofer Personnel Certification Authority. The status of the certificate holder's certificate shall be set to "not valid". Recertification is not possible. In particularly serious cases, the candidate may be blocked from all further procedures by the Fraunhofer Personnel Certification Authority. The head of the Fraunhofer Personnel Certification Authority decides on this.

If the Fraunhofer Personnel Certification Authority becomes aware of misuse of a certificate by the certificate holder, the staff or the secretariat of the Fraunhofer Personnel Certification Authority first checks whether it is actually a case of misuse.

The certificate holder is then informed about the violation and asked to comment on that issue. In addition, an assessment of the severity of the violation is made. The head of the Fraunhofer Personnel Certification Authority can decide whether the certificate is to be revoked immediately or suspended with a deadline until the certificate holder has stopped the misuse. If the deadline is not met, the certificate will be revoked.

The certificate holder will be informed about the decision of the head of the Fraunhofer Personnel Certification Authority by the secretariat or an employee of the Fraunhofer Personnel Certification Authority.

In the event of a suspension of the certificate due to misuse, the certificate holder will be asked to put an end to the misuse without delay and must provide evidence of this in due time. The head of the Fraunhofer Personnel Certification Authority decides on the reactivation of the certificate. The certificate holder will also be informed about this decision by the Fraunhofer Personnel Certification Authority.

Correspondence with the certificate holder is recorded and filed in paper form. The head of the secretariat is responsible for this.

The deadlines for suspensions or withdrawals in the event of misuse are described in the following paragraphs on "Suspension" and "Withdrawal".

Suspension

In case of

• misuse of the certificate (see above),
• non-fulfillment of monitoring requirements,
• or self-reporting of non-compliance by certificate holder (within four weeks),

the certification will be suspended.

If the Fraunhofer Personnel Certification Authority becomes aware of a reason for suspension, the case will examined immediately. First, the head of the Fraunhofer Personnel Certification Authority checks whether there is actually a reason for suspension. The certificate holder is informed about the result of the check and, if necessary, asked to comment on the issue. Based on the information obtained, the head of the Fraunhofer Personnel Certification Authority makes the decision on the suspension. A decision on the suspension must be made no later than one week after the examination of the facts has begun.

When it has been decided that the certificate is suspended, the certification is immediately suspended. In this case the certificate may not be used and the status of the certificate holder's certificate must be set to "not valid". The certificate holder is informed about the suspension by the Fraunhofer Personnel Certification Authority (by the secretariat or a member of the Fraunhofer Personnel Certification Authority staff) and asked to remedy the reason for suspension. The observed abuse or violation of the rights and obligations must be demonstrably discontinued or reversed immediately, but no later than two weeks after the receipt of the letter informing the certificate holder of the abuse. The missing evidence in case of non-fulfillment of monitoring can be provided within 6 months.

During the suspension, the certificate holder must immediately stop making any references to the certification that contain a reference to the Fraunhofer Personnel Certification Authority or the certification.

The certification will be reactivated if it has been proven to the Fraunhofer Personnel Certification Authority that the reason for the suspension has been removed or reversed. The decision regarding suspension and reactivation of the certificate is made by the head of the Fraunhofer Personnel Certification Authority. The certificate holder shall also be informed in writing about the decision regarding reactivation of the certificate by the Fraunhofer Personnel Certification Authority within a period of two weeks after the receipt of the proof that the reason for suspension has been remedied.

Correspondence with the certificate holder shall be recorded and filed in written form. The head of the secretariat is responsible for this.

Withdrawal

The certificate can be withdrawn if:

• serious misuse or unstopped misuse of the certificate has occurred,
• the monitoring requirements are not fulfilled
• the certificate holder does not behave in accordance with the rights and obligations of a certificate holder as defined in the normative document
• the professional work of the certificate holder demonstrably does not meet the requirements of a Usability Engineer.

If the Fraunhofer Personnel Certification Authority becomes aware of a reason for the withdrawal of a certificate, the case will be examined immediately (secretariat or staff of the Fraunhofer Personnel Certification Authority). The certificate holder is informed about the allegations and, if necessary, asked to comment on this issue. Based on the information obtained, the head of the Fraunhofer Personnel Certification Authority decides on the withdrawal of the certificate. A decision on the withdrawal must be made no later than two weeks after the start of the examination of the facts and will be sent to the certificate holder in writing.

If the certificate is withdrawn, the status of the certificate shall immediately be set to "not valid". The former certificate holder must immediately stop making any reference to the certification that contains a reference to the Fraunhofer Personnel Certification Authority or the certification. The certificate must be returned to the Fraunhofer Personnel Certification Authority without delay. It remains the property of the Fraunhofer Personnel Certification Authority. Recertification is not possible. In particularly serious cases, the candidate may be blocked from all further procedures by the Fraunhofer Personnel Certification Authority. The head of the Fraunhofer Personnel Certification Authority decides on this. The former certificate holder will also be informed of this decision by the Fraunhofer Personnel Certification Authority.

Correspondence with the certificate holder is recorded and filed in written form. The head of the secretariat is responsible for this.