e-businessguide

This statement applies to user interactions with the e-businessguide website, at www.e-businessguide.gov.au

In this privacy statement, the expressions DCITA, we, us and our are a reference to the Commonwealth of Australia. This site is operated by the Department of Communications, Information Technology and the Arts (DCITA).

DCITA has a commitment to privacy in accordance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Guidelines for Federal and ACT Government World Wide Websites issued by the Australian Privacy Commissioner. This statement tells you how we collect information from you and how we use it.

Site visit data

If you visit our site to read or download information, we log the following information:

Your web server's address
The name of the top level domain from which you access the Internet (eg. .gov, .com, .edu, .org, .au, .nz etc)
The pages you have accessed and the documents downloaded
The previous Internet address from which you linked directly from our site
The Internet address to which you linked directly from our site.

This information is provided by your browser and will be used for statistical purposes only. No attempt will be made to identify users or their browsing activities except, in the unlikely event of an investigation, where a law enforcement agency may exercise a warrant to inspect the Internet Service Provider's logs.

Use of cookies

A cookie is a small file that an Internet website sends to your browser when you access information at that site. This website uses "cookies" for maintaining contact with you while you are in a www.e-businessguide.gov.au 'session'. The cookie allows this website to recognise you as an individual as you move from one page to another and this information is used to gather meaningful statistics about the site's usage and it is analysed to improve the design of the site. No personal information is gathered. A cookie does not identify you personally but it does identify your computer.

At the end of your session or when you close your browser, the cookie is immediately deleted. If you do not finish or close your session (ie. stay logged on), the website will automatically log you off after about 20 minutes. The cookie stored within your browser will expire when you close your web browser.

Please note that some browsers can be configured to allow cookies to be accessed by servers other than the originating server. Most browsers can also be configured to notify the user when a cookie is received, allowing you to either accept or reject it.

Links to other sites

This site contains links to other sites. DCITA is not responsible for the privacy practices or the content of such websites.

Data collection

Data that in some way identifies the user is gathered during interactions with this website in the following circumstances:

Computer information: It is a necessary part of visiting any website that the user's web-browser provides the machine's identity (its IP-address) to the web-server, so that the server can address the reply to the correct machine. In addition, the browser type and operating system are provided.

Navigation and click-stream data: Browsing any website, including this site, generates a trail of the pages that are visited, and the time apparently spent displaying each page.

Online forms: There are no online forms for data collection within this site.

Data storage, use and disclosure, and retention

All personal data described in the preceding section is stored securely, and archived for a period of at least 12 months and possibly up to 7 years. We may collect personal information for:

website and system administration, including monitoring to prevent security breaches
customisation of the website to the user's needs
evaluation, research and development.

We involve service providers and other agencies in order to effectively operate this website. For instance, contractors who provide information technology or telecommunications services to us may need to access collected personal information from time to time to ensure that the website is functioning properly.

Identified data can only be re-disclosed to the user if the user provides the unique request session number. Identified data may be disclosed to a third party only in circumstances in which it is legally authorised, such as in the investigation of a criminal offence, and in compliance with a search warrant or subpoena.

Accountability

The staff who operate this site, and most Commonwealth government agencies, are subject to the Commonwealth Privacy Act 1988.

Disclaimer

Our disclaimer in relation to e-businessguide website is contained at http://www.e-businessguide.gov.au/disclaimer.

Privacy Statement

Our privacy statement in relation to the e-businessguide website is contained at http://www.e-businessguide.gov.au/privacy.

Guidelines for privacy statements on Federal and ACT Government World Wide Websites can be found at: http://www.privacy.gov.au/government/index.html

Contact

If any collected personal information is not accurate, or is not relevant to the purpose for which it was collected, or if that personal information is not up to date or complete, or if that personal information is misleading, you can e-mail us webmaster@dcita.gov.au to advise of appropriate corrections, deletions and additions. For further information, contact DCITA via e-businessguide@dcita.gov.au.