Privacy Act Review Report examines personal information handling in Australia

The Privacy Act Review Report was recently released by the Attorney-General, shedding light on the current state of privacy laws in Australia. The report revealed a number of key findings and recommendations for improving privacy protections for individuals and businesses. The report details several proposals to better the interaction of individuals and the handling of …

Victoria set to introduce new road rules regulating device use in vehicles

Victoria has implemented a new mobile phone detection camera system in an effort to crack down on distracted driving. Through the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI), the new cameras are capable of detecting when a driver is using their phone illegally while driving, even if the phone is in a holder or on a mount. …

Getty Images commences legal proceedings over unlawful use of copyrighted images in AI development

Getty Images, a widely popular stock photo company, has filed a lawsuit in London alleging that Stability AI unlawfully scrapped millions of images from its website to train artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms. Stability AI is a generative AI company that creates works of art from photos and/or text provided by users. According to Getty Images, …

ACCC penalises ING Bank for breach of Consumer Data Right Rules

ING Bank, one of Australia’s leading financial institutions, has recently been fined for alleged breaches of the Consumer Data Right (CDR) Rules. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has imposed penalties on the bank totalling $53,280 for failing to provide accurate and complete information to customers in a timely manner. The CDR Rules give …

What do the changes to unfair contract terms mean for SaaS businesses?

Recent changes to unfair contract terms laws in Australia will materially change the way that you prepare, negotiate and enforce standard form contract terms. For an overview of the recently announced changes, click here. Let’s get into what the changes will practically mean for you. The current state of play Currently, under the Australian Consumer …

Last modified on November 21st, 2022 at 4:50 pm

Federal Budget extends Cyber Hubs pilot

The Federal Budget has extended the operation of the Cyber Hubs pilot for a further six months until June 2023 and allocated an additional $31.3 million to the program. The Cyber Hub program was first announced in 2020 with the intention to strengthen government information technology by focusing investment on a smaller footprint of networks. …

Last modified on November 21st, 2022 at 4:52 pm

ACSC launches Critical Infrastructure Uplift Program

The Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC) has launched the Critical Infrastructure Uplift Program (CI-UP) to assist owners and operators of Critical Infrastructure assets. The CI-UP is available to any critical infrastructure organisations that are part of the ACSC Partnership Program. The CI-UP is designed to: Assist partners that own or operate Critical Infrastructure assets or …

Last modified on November 21st, 2022 at 4:53 pm

ASIC commences proceedings against cryptocurrency facility operator

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has commenced civil penalty proceedings against BPS Financial Pty Ltd (BPS) for making allegedly false, misleading, or deceptive representations and unlicenced conduct in respect of the non-cash payment facility, Qoin. BPS offered retail consumers and business owners access to the Qoin cryptocurrency token and digital wallet since 2020. …

Last modified on November 21st, 2022 at 4:55 pm

Amendment proposed to privacy legislation following national data breaches

The Australian Government has proposed the Privacy Legislation Amendment (Enforcement and Other Measures) Bill to strengthen Australia’s privacy and security framework following the increased data breaches. The Bill covers four main objectives: Significantly increase penalties for serious or repeated privacy breaches – most notably, the penalty cap will be raised from $2.22 million to greater …

Last modified on November 21st, 2022 at 4:58 pm

Uber drivers held to be employees in New Zealand

The New Zealand (NZ) Employment Court has handed down a landmark decision to declare that Uber drivers are to be classified as employees. The employment status of Uber drivers on the ride-sharing platform has been in contention in many nations around the world. In early 2021, the UK Supreme Court held that Uber drivers are …