Privacy Policy: How do I draft the ‘collection of personal information clause?’

If you have a website, your Privacy Policy sets out how your business will deal with personal information that is provided to you from people visiting your website and customers purchasing products through your website. If you run an online business, it would also be a good idea to have a Website Terms of Use and Terms and Conditions to work in conjunction with your Privacy Policy. Your online solicitor can draft all of these documents.

It is important for businesses that collect personal information to have a detailed Privacy Policy which explains to customers how their business will collect, use, disclose and store their personal information, and your customer’s rights. If you don’t currently have a Privacy Policy, speak with a online solicitor about getting one drafted.

What should a Privacy Policy address?

Your Privacy Policy should address each of the matters raised under the Australian Privacy Principles. It is important that the Collection of Personal Information clause details the information your business collects, either through visitors directly entering information through the website, as well as information collected simply by the visitor being on your website e.g. information relating to cookies.

Your Collection Of Personal Information clause should explain in detail which types of personal information you will collect from your customers and should outline the following:

• The personal information you are collecting e.g. name, marital status, date of birth, contact details including email, phone number and address;
• Whether you will be collecting any demographic information or information about preferences, opinions and interests; and
• What information is collected automatically e.g. through cookies and web beacons.

Conclusion

It is important that your business complies with the Privacy Act and makes clear to its customers exactly what personal information is being collected when they visit your website, use your service or purchase a product. The clause in relation to the collection of information and the types of information that is being collected should be one of the first clauses in your Privacy Policy.

After this clause will be a clause that sets out how you will use and disclose the personal information that has been collected.

If you require assistance with writing your Privacy Policy, you should speak with an experienced online solicitor. At LegalVision, we draft Privacy Policies on a regular basis, so if you’re in need of legal advice, contact us on 1300 544 755 and speak with one of our online solicitors.