Is publishing sports results and photos without consent a breach of the Privacy Act?

No. If the sports results and photos are published by a business or sports club, or other organisation, then publishing personal information from a public event (such as a sports game played at a local park) that has been lawfully collected is not a breach of the Privacy Act, if the publication is for a legitimate purpose. Legitimate purpose relates to the organisation’s functions and the reason the information was collected by the organisation.

But principle 3 of the Privacy Act's information privacy principles does require an agency to take steps to ensure that the individual is aware information is being collected and why. This is often achieved with signage, or in the terms and conditions of entry to an event. Once the agency has the information (in this case, photos), it is open to you to ask that it not use or disclose that information. You can ask that an agency delete information it holds about you, though there is no strong obligation in the Act requiring an agency to do this.

However, if an organising body wants to go the extra length to be considerate, it could give participants information in advance about how the photos might be used and allow them to opt out.

If the sports results and photos are published in the news media, the Privacy Act does not apply to any news media organisation in relation to its news activities. Here’s where you can find out more about how to make a privacy complaint about the news media to the relevant media complaints body.

If the sports results and photos are published by a private individual on social media, private individuals are exempted from the Privacy Act for their personal use, unless their actions are highly offensive to a reasonable person.

Individuals should however consider whether they are subject to any conditions or restrictions of entry that may be imposed by the venue or event organiser.