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ARTICLE · 03 APRIL 2018

Handle with care: new obligations in the event of a data breach

Bryks Lawyers
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Businesses should create or update their data breach response plans to comply with the Notifiable Data Breaches scheme. 

AustraliaPrivacy
Dorota Bryks
Dorota Bryks
Karina Wong (Formerly With Bryks Lawyers)
Karina Wong (Formerly With Bryks Lawyers)
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The Privacy Act 1988 (the Act) was amended on 22 February 2018 to place new obligations on entities in responding to data breaches of personal information. The Privacy Amendment (Notifiable Data Breaches) Act 2017 introduced the Notifiable Data Breaches scheme under Part IIIC of the Act, requiring certain entities to notify both the Australian Privacy Commissioner (Commissioner) and affected individuals if an eligible data breach occurs, with large penalties for non-compliance.

Who has an obligation to notify in the case of breach?

The entities required to notify in the case of breach fall under three main categories:

  1. Entities that have obligations to protect the personal information they hold under Australian Privacy Principle 11 of the Act (APP Entities):

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