OAIC To Provide A Privacy Management Framework & Other News

IN THIS UPDATE

• Office of the Australian Information Commissioner to provide a Privacy Management Framework
• Australian Securities and Investments Commission report highlights importance of cyber resilience
• Supreme Court of Queensland hands down damage assessment in online defamation case

Office of the Australian Information Commissioner to provide a Privacy Management Framework

During Privacy Awareness Week (3-9 May 2015), the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) will release a Privacy Management Framework to assist organisations develop or review their privacy program and to help them meet the obligations of Australian Privacy Principle (APP) 1.2 which requires organisations to have a privacy compliance system. The framework will assist in various areas such as planning, risk assessment, incident management, conducting reviews and committing to best practices. When announcing the initiative, Privacy Commissioner Timothy Pilgrim noted that an effective privacy compliance program should be part of an organisation’s normal business processes, involve regular monitoring and be driven by the CEO and senior management who are ultimately responsible for privacy governance within an organisation.

• View Mr Pilgrim's speech here

Australian Securities and Investments Commission report highlights importance of cyber resilience

On 19 March 2015, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) published Report 429 Cyber resilience: Health Check (ASIC report) to help regulated organisations improve their ability to prepare, respond and recover from a cyber attack while continuing their operations. ASIC considers cyber attacks to be a major risk for its regulated population especially as electronic linkages between financial systems allow the impact of cyber attacks to spread rapidly, potentially affecting the integrity of national and global markets. The ASIC report aims to assist regulated organisations with improving their cyber resilience by increasing awareness of cyber risks (Section B and Appendix 1), encouraging collaboration between industry and government (Section C) and identifying how cyber risks should be addressed as part of current regulatory requirements (Section D and Appendix 2). The report also recommends that organisations review their cyber resilience and includes a list of health check questions. ASIC considers cyber resilience an important area of focus and plans to incorporate it into some of its future surveillance programs.

• View the Report 429 Cyber resilience: Health Check here

Supreme Court of Queensland hands down damage assessment in online defamation case

On 17 April 2015, the Supreme Court of Queensland ordered disgruntled businessman Paul Grant Klerck and five other defendants to pay damages arising from 10 publications made on the internet against Klerck's former business partner, Jarrod Sierocki. Klerck and Sierocki had started an insolvency business together in 2010 but parted ways soon after. After separating their business, Klerck started to make various defamatory statements on a number of websites and over two emails – one sent to Sierocki and a solicitor known to both, and another sent to Sierocki's wife. The damages awarded to Sierocki and his company were in excess of A$100,000 with additional restrictions placed on what Klerck can publish on the internet or otherwise with reference to this case.

• View the Supreme Court of Queensland judgment here