Privacy Policy

Introduction

The Privacy Act 1988 requires us to have a privacy policy.

Our Privacy Policy outlines what kinds of personal and sensitive information we collect, why we collect this information, and how we handle it.

Personal Information

Personal information is information or an opinion about an identified individual or an individual who is reasonably identifiable.

Sensitive Information

Sensitive information is a subset of personal information and includes information or an opinion about your:

racial or ethnic origin
political opinions
religious beliefs or affiliations
philosophical beliefs
sexual orientation
criminal record
health information
genetic information.

What we collect

We may collect personal information about you when it’s reasonably necessary for, or directly related to, our functions or activities.

We may collect sensitive information about you:

where you consent
when the collection is authorised or required by law
the collection is otherwise allowed under the Privacy Act.

The kinds of personal information we may collect during the provision of services may include the following.

Information about you, such as your:

name
address
gender
date of birth
contact details.

Information about your circumstances, such as your:

employment status and history
education status
financial situation
cultural and linguistic background
health and welfare
disabilities
family circumstances.

Information about your family and other related persons, such as any:

partners
children
dependants
carers
nominees or authorised representatives.

Information about your interactions with us, such as:

payments or services we provide you
feedback and complaints
any other special service arrangements.

How we collect information

We collect your personal information through a variety of channels. This includes paper forms or notices, online portals, correspondence, face to face or over the telephone.

We use social networking services such as Facebook, Twitter, Google, Zoom, MS Teams to talk with the public and our staff. When you talk with us using these services we may collect your personal information to communicate with you and the public.

The social networking service will also handle your personal information for its own purposes. These services have their own privacy policies. You can access the privacy policies for these services on their websites.

Data exchanges

We do not exchange data with other agencies except with your permission by way of a referral.

Why we collect information

We collect personal information about you where it is reasonably necessary for, or directly related to, one or more of our service provisions.

To deliver payments and services

We may collect your personal information when it is reasonably necessary for delivering payments or services. For example, we may collect your personal information to:

confirm your identity
communicate with you, including by SMS or email
provide advice about available support
ensure correct payments are made
manage complaints and feedback
participate in merits and judicial review matters
manage and respond to requests for information

The reasons we collect your personal information will depend on the payments and services you access or are seeking.

For employment and recruitment

We collect personal information to establish and maintain records for the employment and recruitment of staff.

For market research

We may use your personal information to conduct statistical analysis and market research to improve our service delivery.

To provide you with a more personalised experience

We may use information about your online experience to help us improve our services.

We may need to share your personal information if we’re authorised or required by law to do so.

How we store personal information

We take reasonable steps to protect your personal information against misuse, interference and loss, and from unauthorised access, modification or disclosure. These steps include:

storing paper records securely as per Australian government security guidelines
only accessing personal information on a need-to-know basis and by authorised personnel
monitoring system access which can only be accessed by authenticated credentials
ensuring our buildings are secure
regularly updating and auditing our storage and data security systems.

When no longer required, we destroy or archive personal information in a secure manner.

How to access and correct information about you

You have the right to both ask:

for access to personal information that we hold about you
that we correct personal information we hold about you.

If you ask, we must give you access to your personal information, and take reasonable steps to correct it if we consider it is incorrect, unless there is a law that allows or requires us not to.

We will notify you in writing, and explain our reasons if we refuse to give you access to, or correct, your personal information.

Updating information about you

It’s important to tell us if your circumstances change to ensure you are receiving the correct service.

How to make a complaint about privacy

If you wish to complain about how we’ve handled your personal information, first try to resolve the issue with the person you’ve been dealing with. If you’re not satisfied, you can ask to speak to their supervisor.

How we deal with your complaint

We will always respond to your feedback.

We will use the information from your feedback to investigate and resolve individual issues. We will also use the information to provide feedback to staff or our business areas. Your information will be stored and used to assist us to improve the delivery of our services.

If we do not resolve your complaint to your satisfaction, you can contact the NSW Ombudsman.