ABS Privacy Policy for Managing and Operating Our Business

To help administer our business operations including when we:

• coordinate, produce and distribute statistics;
• respond to data requests; and
• maintain employee records.

We collect personal information only to coordinate our activities as a statistical agency or in our role as an employer.

Please see ‘Your personal information - managing and operating our business’ page for types of personal information we collect and how long we keep that information.

We collect personal information directly from you to support our business operations. This includes:

• when you apply for a job with the ABS
• as a user of ABS services
• when you request information or lodge a complaint.

We use your personal information only for the purposes for which it was given to us. These can include:

• maintaining employee and recruitment records
• keeping you informed and involved in ABS activities and initiatives
• assessing your requests to use ABS products like TableBuilder or DataLab
• consulting with you on our products and statistical collections
• responding to complaints, Freedom of Information requests and other inquiries

The ABS will not share any personal information in a way that is likely to identify you unless:

• we are returning it to you
• you have consented
• you would reasonably expect, or have been told, that we usually disclose information of this kind
• we are required or authorised by law. For example, if you make a privacy complaint about the ABS to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner, we may be required to supply your personal information to support the investigation.

The ABS will not disclose personal information to any overseas entity without your consent.

Security

We take the security of your personal information seriously. We set high standards for protecting your privacy, and the security and confidentiality of your information.

We secure all our information in accordance with the Protective Security Policy Framework. The cyber security controls for our IT systems comply with the Australian Signals Directorate's (ASD) Information Security Manual. ABS systems that store and process statistical data are subjected to independent security assessments by independent ASD certified security assessors.

We comply with the Privacy Act and the Archives Act 1983 in the storage, use and destruction of your personal information collected for managing and operating our business.

Third-party partnerships

We sometimes engage third-party providers to support our business operations, such as completing reference checks for recruitment purposes, using IT software, and applications. These providers are legally bound to meet privacy standards and our expectations. They will also have their own privacy policies, processes and security protections which we review to ensure their approach to privacy reflects our own. When we partner with third-parties who will handle personal information as part of our business operations, our responsibilities include establishing contractual arrangements and ensuring appropriate security assessments and privacy assessments are in place. 

You have the right to request access to, and correction of, your personal information collected for managing and operating our business. We will take all reasonable steps to address your request.

We are committed to protecting your privacy. We will treat any accidental or unauthorised disclosure of your personal information seriously and respond to it promptly.

If you lodge a complaint, we will take the following steps:

• acknowledge your contact within five working days of receiving your complaint
• ask for more information to help with our investigation if required
• respond to you within 30 days

If the matter is complex and our investigation is expected to take longer than 30 days, we will let you know and provide you with a new timeframe.

If you are not satisfied with our response to your complaint, you can request a review be undertaken by the ABS Privacy Officer or you may refer your complaint to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner.