This submission was written by EFA board member John Pane and Vice Chair Kathryn Gledhill-Tucker.
Electronic Frontiers Australia has weighed in on the Report on the Review of the Privacy Act issued by the Attorney General on 23rd February 2023.
EFA holds the view that the proposed objects of the Privacy Act continues to send a clear and unacceptable message that while privacy is finally receiving some moderate recognition as an human right which benefits individuals, families, communities and society in the public interest, the requirement for it to be ‘balanced’ against the ever growing interests and insatiable data appetites of business and its further subordination to what is administratively convenient and expeditious for the government, still falls short of what is required by civil society.
The power imbalance between Big Tech, data platforms, data aggregators and ‘surveillance economy’ players continue leapfrogging ahead of the law, despite, at least in Australia’s case, the use of ‘technologically neutral principles’ to protect privacy. This power imbalance is even further accelerating due to advances in Algorithmic Decision Systems, Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning technologies and the hidden, secretive actors of the “Surveillance Economy” who follow our every move on-line and covertly collect and sell our personal information.
EFA proposes the objects of the Act be drafted to expressly state the revised Privacy Act is a human-rights-focused law with strong human rights protection that recognises a right to privacy as being foundational to the public interest in our country.
EFA holds the view that the Act includes a provision expressly stating that when interpreting a provision of the Act, the interpretation that would best achieve the purpose or object of the Act is to be preferred to other interpretations. This will ensure the Government achieves its regulatory principle of ‘privacy by default and design’.
Here’s the TL;DR version of what EFA is fighting for (and against!) in a new and improved Privacy Act. Read the full submission here.
For
- A Privacy Act that prioritises human rights and recognizes the right to privacy
- Holding organisations to a greater standard of transparency and accountability after serious or repeated privacy breaches
- “Privacy by default and design” becoming a regulatory principle, ensuring privacy measures are automatically built into systems, and not added as an afterthought
- A GDPR-like approach where data collection is limited to only what is necessary for a specific purpose, and the right for individuals to erase personal data
Against
- Individuals’ privacy compromised by the insatiable data appetites and interests of corporations
- Big Tech and data companies that have more power than the government can control
- Laws that fail to legally oblige companies to inform people when they change their privacy policies, and how they use people’s information
- The gap in privacy protections caused by exempting small businesses from the Privacy Act
Do you believe in the regulatory principle of “privacy by default and design”? Support limited data collection and individual control over personal data? Want to close the gap in privacy protections caused by exempting small businesses from the Privacy Act?
Stand with Electronic Frontiers Australia in demanding strong privacy protections in a revised Privacy Act. Donate or join today.
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