Australia's proposed new Privacy Principles have been released in draft form. Submissions to government regarding the draft legislation are due by 27 July 2010.

Key changes to the law in the draft legislation are:

• cross border disclosures: an increase in the potential liability of an Australian entity (to Australian individuals) for acts of an offshore entity that are inconsistent with the new Australian Privacy Principles (APPs);
• direct marketing: the use and disclosure of personal information for the purpose of direct marketing is restricted; and
• privacy policies and notices: additional information will need to be included in privacy policies and notices.

The draft principles will apply to all private sector organisations conducting business in Australia and all Commonwealth government agencies that handle personal information. All organisations will need to review their privacy policies, notices and practices to ensure that they can comply with the APPs.

This article is available in full at Mondaq.