Whether you can access information on yourself or whether an organisation or person can access information about you, will depend on what that information is and who has the information. There are three broad groups which collection information on people:

There is no general right for people to see the information held by businesses or other people. In other words, just because a person or company has a file on you does not automatically mean you have the right to see that file.

In contrast, the Commonwealth and State legislation gives people the right to access information held by government departments and agencies (for example, the Australian Taxation Office, Centrelink, the Police and Commonwealth and State health departments) and certain private sector entities. As well, the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) ensures that information collected is safely held and not abused (for example, it ensures that information not provided to a particular Commonwealth department or organisation is not transferred to another department or organisation without the knowledge or consent of that person, except in limited circumstances). At present, there is no privacy legislation applying to State government departments although Cabinet has issued privacy instructions to departments giving a measure of protection to South Australians.

Contacts