Draft privacy laws were tabled in federal parliament last week to implement the first tranche of reforms recommended by the Attorney-General’s Department.

“Strong privacy laws are essential to Australians’ trust and confidence in the digital economy and digital services provided by governments and industry,” Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus said.

“Australians have a right to have their privacy respected, and when they are asked to hand over their personal data they have a right to expect it will be protected.”

Mr Dreyfus says the Privacy Act 1988 has not kept pace with changes in the digital world, as demonstrated by recent large data breaches where criminals exposed sensitive personal information.

The Privacy and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2024 “represents a significant step forward” in protecting Australians, he says. 

McCabes principal Mathew Kaley says reform areas affecting the insurance industry include a new statutory tort to address serious invasions of privacy; automated decision-making; tiered penalties; overseas disclosures; and security of personal information.

The statutory tort will allow for a greater range of civil actions and representative actions for breaches of privacy.

On automated decision-making, he says the measure will require privacy policies to include details of personal information that is used by computer programs to make decisions or “do a thing that is substantially and directly related to making a decision” that may significantly affect an individual’s rights or interests.

Based on the drafting, the measure could have a broad application for insurers, Mr Kaley says.

Click here to see the bill.