There has been a significant amount of media coverage about our investigation into Westpac bank disclosing journalist Nicky Hager’s bank account information to Police in 2014. In the course of that reporting, some misconceptions have emerged. Because of the interest in the case, and the potential implications for future practice, we have noted some points of clarification and context below.

A recent data breach involved a deliberate email phishing attack on an organisation. The email looked like it came from the chief executive and requested a copy of the membership list (names and email addresses).

This blog post was reviewed and some links updated in May 2025

Applying for a job can be a nerve-wracking ordeal and, more likely than not, it ends in disappointment. It can be devastating to miss out on that dream job and not knowing why you missed out can be incredibly frustrating.

Reviewed for relevance April 2025.

Mrs Patel was outraged. She’d visited her GP for a follow-up check after her hand surgery, and he’d asked her about her history of depression. She didn’t think she’d had anything of the sort, and decided to ask the receptionist for a copy of all her medical notes to see what else was in there. The young receptionist assured her that the doctor owned the notes so she couldn’t have them. 

Our office is proud of the work we do in the area of dispute resolution. Where it is appropriate, we try and bring complainants and respondents together, in person or by phone, to resolve privacy disputes. Last year, we closed 827 complaint files and of these, nearly half were achieved with a settlement between the parties involved.

Updated by our Guidance team in March 2025.