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ARTICLE · 05 DECEMBER 2012

Federal Parliament passes the Privacy Amendment (Enhancing Privacy Protection) Act 2012

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Businesses should use the lead-in time to understand these reforms and prepare for the impact of the new privacy laws.

AustraliaPrivacy
Alison Baker
Alison Baker
Rhiannon Nixon
Rhiannon Nixon

Yesterday, the Federal Parliament passed legislation, the Privacy Amendment (Enhancing Privacy Protection) Act 2012 (Cth) (Amending Act) which significantly reforms the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) (Privacy Act).

These reforms will have a considerable impact on most public and private sector organisations. Although the changes will not commence until March 2014, it is important for businesses to use the 15 month lead-in time to understand the new privacy laws and prepare for their impact on their current privacy policies and processes.

What are the major privacy reforms?

The most significant reforms introduced by the Amending Act are summarised below.

CREATION OF THE AUSTRALIAN PRIVACY PRINCIPLES (APPS)

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