Privacy Commissioner Statement relating to Additional Safeguards for Contact Tracing Information
The Privacy Commissioner welcomed the introduction of legislation to provide additional safeguards for personal information and health information collected by Service NSW in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, including data collected by the Service NSW check-in app.
If passed by the Parliament, the Service NSW (One-stop Access to Government Services) Amendment (COVID-19 Information Privacy) Bill 2021 will promote public trust in the collection of personal and health information by Service NSW for contact tracing and other purposes related to the management of COVID-19 and strengthen the Government’s commitment to robust privacy protections for this information.
Given the likelihood of an on-going need for Service NSW to collect personal and health information in coming months and possibly into 2022, it is appropriate for the Government to legislate these measures to further enhance the privacy protections already in place in relation to the collection and use of this information.
The legislation will assist in supporting the continued acceptance by the community of public health requirements for the collection of personal and health and information for contact tracing purposes and promote public trust in these requirements.
ENDS
For further information, please contact:
The Manager, Communications and Corporate Affairs on 0435 961 691 or email communications@ipc.nsw.gov.au
About the Information and Privacy Commission:
The Information and Privacy Commission NSW (IPC) is an independent statutory authority that administers New South Wales’ legislation dealing with privacy and access to government information. The IPC supports the Information Commissioner and the Privacy Commissioner in fulfilling their legislative responsibilities and functions and to ensure individuals and agencies can access consistent information, guidance and coordinated training about information access and privacy matters.
About the NSW Privacy Commissioner
Samantha Gavel was appointed as NSW Privacy Commissioner on 4 September 2017. Her role is to promote public awareness and understanding of privacy rights in NSW, as well as provide information, support, advice and assistance to agencies and the general public.
For further information about the IPC visit our website at www.ipc.nsw.gov.au
