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Websites and personal information
Websites collect information about you. When browsing the web, you may not realise how much information is collected. But there are choices you can make about the personal information you share.
1. Websites collect personal information
Websites may ask you to give information about yourself, for example by using a form on a web page, or an email link. The purpose of collecting personal information may be clear. For example, the purpose may be to provide an online service such as shopping, banking, or contact with government.
If there is a website privacy notice, this may state the purpose of collecting information about you. A privacy notice may also state how a website uses and shares this information.
In New Zealand, the Privacy Act 1993 sets out your information privacy rights. Generally, this protection does not apply to non-New Zealand agencies.
More information
Is it safe to give personal information to a website?
2. Choices and personal information you give
If a website asks for information about you, you may have a choice about the details you give. For example, to receive regular news updates an email address that does not identify you may be enough.
But you may also choose to question why a website asks you for an item of personal information. You may refuse to provide this information. For example, you may think that a website asks for too much information. The information asked for may seem to be unnecessary or unfair. If you choose not to give information, this may mean you will not receive the service.
In some cases a government agency may have a legal right to ask for information e.g. when filing a tax return to Inland Revenue. Here, you may not have a right to refuse.
You may also have choices about how a website uses or shares information it holds about you. For example, a website may ask for your consent to use your information for other purposes.
If a website has a privacy notice this may give the purpose for collecting personal information. It may say how the website uses and shares this information and the choices you have.
3. Access to information about you held by a website
You may wish to find out what information a website holds about you. Contact details on a website may help you check whether information about you is accurate and up to date, and enable you to correct any errors.
If there is a website privacy notice, this may state contact details.
4. Security of personal information
A website’s security measures should protect the information you give. Security practices should also protect personal information a website shares.
Some websites may threaten the security and privacy of personal information sent to them, or even steal information from your PC.
More Information
Is my PC safe to send personal information over the Web?
5. Websites, personal information and children
Children and young people browse the Internet, interact with websites, and meet online with other users. A website usually cannot identify the age of a user, but may ask that caregivers give consent before children give information about themselves.
More Information
From New Zealand
From the United States (advice may sometimes only apply to the US)
NetSmartz
CyberSmart for Parents
From Canada (advice may sometimes only apply to Canada)
Know the Risks - privacy invasions
6. Theft of personal information and identity theft
Some websites may commit identity theft and fraud by using the information they collect from you. They may imitate the website of a trusted online service such as your bank. They may ask for details of bank and credit card accounts. They may ask for PINs, usernames and passwords. Phishing is the name given to theft of personal information using fake emails or websites. Always double check a link that appears to lead to a trusted website. If in doubt, type the URL directly into your browser, or contact the organisation directly by phone or mail.
More Information
Is it safe to click on a link in an e-mail to the website of my bank?
7. Websites collect information about your browsing habits
A website may not ask you directly for personal information, but may collect data about your browsing habits.
- Your browser sends information as part of its request for a web page. Details sent include the web page you arrive from, the web page you request, the IP address your ISP gives your PC, the name and version of your browser, and the software that runs your PC.
- Web bugs, third party advertising and cookies add to this data.
- Web bugs (in web pages) can track the pages on a website that you request.
- Advertisers can track you if web pages you request contain their advertisements.
- A cookie sent by a website and stored by your web browser can identify the PC and browser in the future.
- Cookies can show if you have visited before.
- Cookies can store personal information e.g. your name, address and other identifying information.
- If you give information that identifies you to a website, a cookie can identify you in the future.
- Bugs, advertisements and cookies can track you across more than one website.
- When searching a website, the search terms you submit are collected.
- Search websites, such as Google, also collect search terms. They may also set cookies and collect data about search results and advertisements clicked on by users.
- Websites may ask that you create an account with a username and password. They may ask that you provide an email address for further contact. A username and password, or an email address may not identify you, but allows the site to recognise you and to track your browsing habits.
A website may share data collected in these ways as marketing data and this data may form part of a detailed personal profile.
More information
Is it safe to subscribe to online news, website updates and other services?
Is it safe to shop online?
8. Tracking and profiling
Tracking collects data about the web pages you visit and the links you click to navigate between pages. Tracking can follow you between websites if pages contain web bugs, third party advertisements, or if your browser is set to accept cookies. Websites have legitimate reasons for some tracking. Websites may use this data to count visits to a page, decide which pages are popular and to make a website accessible. Websites use data from tracking for marketing purposes. However, tracking data may also form part of a personal profile that holds other information about you.
A profile contains many kinds of information about your browsing and other online activity. A profile can include tracking data, details of the advertisements you click and the words you enter into a search engine. It can include details of what you buy online, and the services you access. A profile can include your name, address, financial and other details. Though a profile may not always identify you, personal details when added will create a profile that does.
If a website has a privacy notice, this may state if the website collects information for tracking and profiling. A privacy notice may state if the website shares this information.
More Information
(Please note that links to these US websites may contain advice that applies only to the US.)
US Federal Trade Commission – Online Profiling: a Report to Congress (PDF file)
Privacy and Consumer Profiling
9. Privacy rights in New Zealand
In New Zealand, legislation protects your privacy. Generally, this protection does not apply to non-New Zealand agencies. The Privacy Act is the primary legislation but you may also have rights under the Official Information Act, the Consumer Guarantees Act, and others.
More Information
Privacy Act and other NZ legislation
Office of the Privacy Commissioner homepage