Privacy

The department values the privacy of every individual and is committed to handling personal and health information (as defined in the Department of Justice Information Privacy Policy) in accordance with the privacy principles contained in the Privacy and Data Protection Act 2014 (Vic). Protecting your privacy by handling your personal information in this manner is an important aspect of our activities.

This Website Privacy Statement only applies to websites, webpages and electronic addresses operated, maintained or administered by the department under the domain name www.justice.vic.gov.au. This privacy statement does not apply to any linked or other webspaces. If you register to use a mobile application which collects personal information, the terms and conditions associated with the application (if any) will govern how that personal information is managed.   

This privacy statement explains how your personal information will be handled by the department when you access and interact with its webspaces including any service accessible through its webspaces that facilitates interactive information sharing. Examples of web services include social-networking services (e.g. Facebook), wikis (e.g. Wikipedia), blogs, micro-blogs (e.g. Twitter) and web feed services (e.g. RSS feed). The department recommends that you read any terms and conditions (including any privacy statement or policy) that apply to any web service as any such terms and conditions relating to the handling of your personal information by the web service will prevail over this privacy statement to the extent of any inconsistency.

The department may update this privacy statement from time to time. Any changes to this privacy statement will be published on this page.

Collection of your personal and health information

The types of personal information that the department may collect through its webspaces include:

• your name, email address, telephone number, IP address and other contact or identification details
• the content of any online application, enquiry, submission, subscription, survey or complaint that you submit to any of its webspaces
• the content of any other solicited or unsolicited electronic communication that you send to any of its webspaces
• any registration information that you provide to use any web service which is accessible through any of its webspaces
• the content of any comments that you post to, or otherwise make available on, any of its webspaces using any web service
• any other information that you provide to, or make available on, any of its webspaces
• metadata relating to any electronic communications that you send to any of the department’s webspaces (examples of metadata include your electronic address, time and date sent, time and date received, unique message identification, message type, message length, etc.)

The department relies upon you to ensure that any personal information that you provide to, or make available on, its webspaces is accurate, current, complete and relevant. The department also relies upon you to advise it of any changes to such personal or health information.

You can browse any of the department’s webspaces anonymously without disclosing any of your personal information to the department. However, if you do not provide any information requested on any of the department’s webspaces for the provision of a service then the department may not be able to provide the service to you.

Collection of personal information about other persons

At or before the time that you provide to, or make available on, any of the department’s webspaces any personal information about another person the department relies upon you to take reasonable steps to ensure that the person is aware:

• that such information will or has been provided to the department
• how the person can access his or her information
• the purposes for which the information was provided to the department
• to whom the department usually discloses information of that kind
• any law that requires the information to be provided to the department
• the main consequences (if any) for the person if all or part of the information is not provided to the department

You are not required to make a person aware of the above matters where doing so would pose a serious threat to the life or health of any person or would involve the disclosure of information given in confidence.

Use and disclosure of personal information

The department will not use or disclose any personal information that it collects through any of its webspaces unless the use or disclosure is:

• for the primary purpose for which the information was collected
• for a secondary purpose related or directly related (if sensitive information as defined in the department’s information privacy policy referred to above) to the primary purpose for which the information was collected and which the person would reasonably expect
• required or authorised by law
• for any other purpose permitted under the Privacy and Data Protection Act 2014 (Vic) or Health Records Act 2001 (Vic)

Subject to the requirements of the Privacy and Data Protection Act 2014 (Vic), the department may need to disclose personal information which it collects through its webspaces to:

• the department’s service providers which provide website, archival, auditing, professional advisory, banking, mailhouse, delivery, recruitment, call centre, technology, research, utility, security, electronic payment or application processing services
• organisations acting on your behalf, for example your solicitor or interpreter

The department will not use any of your personal information that it collects through its webspaces to add you to a mailing list without your consent.

Information provided to web services

Any personal information which you provide to, or make available on, any of the department’s webspaces using any web service may be accessible to other users of the web service who are not officers, employees or contractors of the department and, if the web service is provided by a third party, the third party. Other users of, and third parties which provide, such a web service may use or disclose your personal information which you provide to, or make available using, the web service for any purpose including for the purpose of sending you unsolicited electronic communications. You acknowledge and agree that the department is not responsible for any such use or disclosure.

Security

The department has implemented technology and security policies to protect the personal information which it collects through its webspaces. When accessing or using any of the department’s webspaces you should be aware that there are risks in transmitting information across the Internet. While the department strives to protect such information, it cannot ensure or warrant the security of any information transmitted over the Internet and you do so at your own risk. If you are concerned about providing sensitive information to the department over the Internet, you might prefer to contact the department by telephone or mail. The department uses SSL encryption where necessary to protect personal information which is provided to its webspaces for payment and other online transactions requiring such protection.

The department takes reasonable steps to protect personal information collected through its webspaces from misuse and loss and from unauthorised access, modification and disclosure. The department will also take reasonable steps to remove personal information from its system where it is no longer required for the purpose for which it was collected or any other purpose (including archiving) which is permitted in accordance with the Privacy and Data Protection Act 2014 (Vic).

Web statistics data collection

The department uses web analytics software to collect usage statistics for its webspaces. This information is not used by the department to identify you or match your identity with any of your personal information.

Clickstream data

The following non-personal information may be automatically recorded by the web server of any of the department’s webspaces for statistical and system administration purposes:

• your server address
• your top-level domain name (e.g. .com, .au, .gov)
• the date and the time of your visit to the site
• the pages you accessed and downloaded
• the address of the last site you visited
• your operating system
• the type of browser you are using

To the extent that any clickstream data could make you identifiable, the department will not attempt to identify you from such clickstream data unless necessary for the investigation of unlawful activity or otherwise permitted under the Privacy and Data Protection Act 2014 (Vic).

Cookies

Like many others, the department’s webspaces and web services accessible through the department’s webspaces may use cookies from time to time. Cookies are small data files that a webspace or web service places on a user's hard drive to record aspects of that user's experience of the webspace or web service respectively. Cookies are not used to identify you or record any of your personal information. The default settings of your browser may allow some or all cookies, but you can easily take steps to erase cookies from your hard-drive, block all cookies or receive a warning before a cookie is stored on your hard-drive. However, a webspace or web service may not function fully if you disallow cookies.

Web beacons

The department uses web beacons to record usage statistics for its webspaces. Web beacons are not used by the department to identify you or record any of your personal information.

Access and correction

To request access to, or correction of, any of your personal information held by the department, please contact us using the privacy contact details below to find out about access and correction procedures.

You can request access to your personal information directly without the need to make a formal application under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Vic). However, there are situations where it will not be appropriate to provide such access, and you will be required to make a formal freedom of information request, for example, where providing access would compromise the privacy of another person.

For further information on making a freedom of information request please visit the Freedom of Information website or contact:

Department of Justice
Freedom of Information unit
GPO Box 4356QQ
Melbourne VIC 3001
Tel: 03 8684 0063

Email: foi@justice.vic.gov.au

Privacy contact details

For further information about the handling of personal information by the department please contact:

Information and Privacy Unit
Department of Justice
GPO Box 4356
Melbourne VIC 3001

Email: privacy@justice.vic.gov.au

Issued date: 30 September 2014