Section 135AA of the National Health Act 1953 (Cth) requires the Australian Information Commissioner to issue legally binding guidelines for the handling of certain health information within the Medicare Benefits Program (Medicare) and the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS).

These guidelines cover the storage, use, disclosure, and retention of an individual's Medicare and PBS claims information, and limit the matching of claims information held by Australian government agencies. A breach of the guidelines is an "interference with privacy" under the PA 1988.

The most recent guidelines came into effect from 1 July 2008. The guidelines can be found at www.privacy.gov.au.

Under Part VIIC of the Crimes Act 1914 (Cth) ("Crimes Act (Cth)"), a person is able to disregard some old criminal convictions, and is protected against unauthorised use and disclosure of this information. This is known as the Commonwealth Spent Convictions Scheme ("the Scheme").

A "spent" conviction is a conviction that satisfies the following conditions:

The Personal Property Securities Act 2009 (Cth) ("PPS Act") creates a scheme that will bring the various Commonwealth, State and Territory laws and registers regarding personal property security interests into one national PPS Register, under one national PPS law. The PPS Act and PPS Register are scheduled to commence in May 2011, when interests may be registered and searched. (Visit www.ppsr.gov.au for further information.)

The PPS Act protects grantors, secured parties and others from misuse of the Register (such as illegitimate searches and registrations), with civil penalties to protect people's privacy. A breach of certain limitations is also an interference with privacy under the PA 1988. A breach may also give rise to damages.

Personal property means property other than land, buildings or fixtures that form a part of land. It can include tangibles such as cars, crops and machinery; and intangibles such as contract rights and intellectual property.

A personal property security is when a "secured party" takes an interest in personal property as security for a loan or other obligation, or enters into a transaction that involves the supply of secured finance. A secured party is a person or entity that has a security interest in the collateral of someone else (the grantor). Collateral is personal property (consumer or commercial) with a security interest attached.

Registrations on the PPS Register include data about the grantor's property or collateral and may contain information such as a person's name and date of birth. Registrations will also include data about the secured party, such as the secured party's identifier and address for service, though the secured party's details will not be searchable. Grantors must be notified when a secured party makes a registration against them.

The telecommunications sector is regulated by both the PA 1988 and specific obligations set out in the Telecommunications Act 1997 (Cth) ("Telecommunications Act") and the Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Act 1979 (Cth). Those specific obligations include prohibiting a telecommunications provider from disclosing personal information, subject to limited exemptions. Since 2001, many organisations in the telecommunications industry are required by the PA 1988 to comply with the NPPs (see: "National Privacy Principles (NPPs)", above).

The Telecommunications Act provides for the registration of telecommunications codes under a self-regulatory framework. These codes are developed by industry through Communications Alliance Ltd (an industry body), and may be registered with the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA). The ACMA consults with the OAIC on the codes.

There are a number of privacy obligations in telecommunications codes registered by the ACMA, such as Calling Number Display (C522:2007), Handling of Life Threatening and Unwelcome Calls (C525:2006) and Integrated Public Number Database (C555:2007). For more information, go to the Communications Alliance Ltd website at www.commsalliance.com.au.

A national "Do Not Call" Register (DNC Register) began operating in May 2007, administered by the ACMA. The DNC Register allows people to register their home phone, domestic mobile and fax numbers in order to opt out of a wide range of unsolicited telemarketing calls. Government bodies and emergency services numbers may also register. This is a free service. The Do Not Call Register Act 2006 (Cth) makes it illegal for any non-exempt telemarketer in Australia and overseas to contact a number listed on the register without consent.

There are exemptions for government bodies, educational or religious organisations, registered political parties, independent members of parliament, electoral candidates and charities. Market and social researchers may call to conduct standard opinion polling and questionnaire research, subject to a national industry standard. Businesses that have an existing relationship with a person may also call numbers on the DNC Register, but can be contacted directly to stop further calls. Enquiries and complaints relating to the DNC Register are handled by the DNC Register operator (or in some cases, the ACMA) and can be made online at www.donotcall.gov.au or by calling 1300 792 958.