Privacy

We respect your right to privacy.

We comply with the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs) in the Privacy Act 1988 (the Privacy Act). The Privacy Act regulates how:

we collect, use, disclose and store personal information including sensitive information
you can access and correct records containing your personal information

Privacy Policy

This page is a summary of how the department handles personal information. For more details see our Privacy Policy.

Collecting personal information

We collect personal information that is necessary for, or related to, our functions and activities. We only use and disclose personal information for the purpose it was collected, or for other uses authorised by law.

We may collect your personal information when you:

access and use our website and web based channels
talk to our representatives via telephone or in person
complete an application.

Occasionally, we may also collect personal information from third parties or a private source. However, we will only do this if:

you consent
we are required or authorised under an Australian law or a court/tribunal order, or
it is reasonable or practicable for us to collect information in this way instead of collecting it directly from you

We may receive unsolicited personal information about you from a third party. We determine whether we could have collected it or not if we had dealt with you directly. If we couldn't have, we will destroy or de-identify it. If we could have, we only use it for the purposes it could have been collected.

You can choose not to provide us with information. However, should you choose not to identify yourself we may not be able to adequately provide you a service.

How we manage your personal information

We generally only use and disclose personal information for the purposes for which it was provided. However, there are exceptions to this such as:

for a directly related purpose
we are required or authorised under an Australian law to do so
where we have your consent to do so

We may disclose your personal information to third parties—including overseas suppliers and service providers—for purposes related to our functions or activities. We take reasonable steps to ensure that overseas recipients do not breach privacy obligations under the Privacy Act. However, overseas recipients may be required to comply with local legislation instead.

How we protect your personal information

We:

maintain all personal information in a secure environment
will not release any personal information except in accordance with the Privacy Act
take all reasonable steps to protect personal information from misuse, interference, loss, unauthorised access, modification or disclosure
may hold personal information in electronic or hard copy form
destroy or de-identify personal information when it is no longer required
take reasonable steps to ensure personal information stored by us is kept accurate, up to date, complete and relevant

How you can access and change your personal information

Contact us to request access, or make a correction, to your personal information. Most of the time, we will provide you access to, or correct, your records. We will not charge you for this service. Where we can’t grant you access, or make the requested change, we will provide written reasons.

Links to other websites

This website links to other websites. We are not responsible for the content or the privacy practices of other websites. We encourage you to examine each website's privacy policy.

Google Analytics

We use Google Analytics, a web analytics service provided by Google Inc. ("Google"), to help improve the efficiency and usability of this website.

Google Analytics uses first-party cookies and JavaScript code to gather statistics about how the website is accessed. It anonymously tracks how you interact with this website, including where you came from and what you did on the site. This information (including your IP address) is transmitted to and stored by Google on servers located outside Australia. Google is based in the United States of America (USA). To contact Google, see Google's Contact us page.

Google uses this information to evaluate your use of our website, compile reports on website activity and provide other website and internet usage services. Google may transfer this information to third parties where required to do so by law, or where they process information on Google's behalf.

By using this website, you consent to the processing of data about you by Google in the manner described in Google's Privacy Policy and for the purposes set out above. Relevant legislation of the USA will apply. You can opt out of Google Analytics if you disable or refuse the cookie, disable JavaScript, or use the opt-out service provided by Google.

MailChimp

We use MailChimp, which provides online tools that can be used to create, send, and manage emails. MailChimp may collect personal information, such as distribution lists which contain email addresses, and other information relating to those email addresses. For further information about the type of personal information MailChimp collects, refer to the MailChimp Privacy Policy.

We will only use this information to:

create, send and manage emails relating to the work of the department
measure email campaign performance
improve the features for specific segments of customers
evaluate your use of our website
compile reports on website activity for website operators, and
provide other services relating to website activity and internet usage

MailChimp may transfer this information to 3rd parties where required to do so by law, or where such third parties process the information on MailChimps’s behalf. MailChimp collects information about:

when you visit the website
when you use the services
your browser type and version
your operating system and other similar information

MailChimp is based in the United States of America (USA) and the information collected about your use of the website (including your IP address) will be transmitted to and stored by MailChimp on servers located outside Australia.

By subscribing to our eNewsletter, you will be taken to have consented to your personal information being used as described above. This means:

You consent to your personal information being collected, used, disclosed and stored as set out in Mail Chimp’s Privacy Policy and agree to abide by Mail Chimp’s Terms of Use.
You understand and acknowledge that this service utilises a MailChimp platform, which is located in the United States of America (USA) and relevant legislation of the USA will apply.
As you have consented to the disclosure of your personal information to MailChimp, Australian Privacy Principle 8.1 contained in Schedule 1 of the Privacy Act will not apply.
You understand and acknowledge that MailChimp is not subject to the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and you will not be able to seek redress under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) but will need to seek redress under the laws of the USA.

You can opt out of our mailing list if you choose the ‘unsubscribe’ service provided by MailChimp in every email, or contact us.

MailChimp has the endorsement of TRUSTe’s Privacy Seal, which means this privacy policy has been reviewed by TRUSTe for compliance with their program requirements including transparency, accountability, and choice related to the collection and use of your personal information. TRUSTe is an independent third party that operates a globally-recognised privacy trustmark.

Our Privacy Policy details how we handle personal information.

Contact us

Direct all privacy enquiries, complaints or requests to the Privacy Contact Officer.

Email privacy@industry.gov.au
Post: Privacy Contact Officer, Legal Branch, Department of Industry, Innovation and Science, GPO Box 2013, Canberra ACT 2601