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Privacy Commissioner’s determination on Bunnings’ use of facial recognition technology

The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner recently decided that Bunnings breached Australian privacy laws by using facial recognition technology to identify people causing problems in their stores. The focus of its determination was about whether privacy laws permitted the use of FRT in such circumstances.

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Unfair contract terms: a year in review

The Australian Consumer Law (ACL) and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) provides protections to consumers and small businesses against unfair contract terms (UCT Regime). In November last year, there were significant changes to the UCT Regime, so…what have we learnt?

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Sign here, smile there: the legal side of influencer agreements

Social media influencers have transformed the way brands engage with consumers. As we discussed previously, this influence has created legal responsibilities that brands must understand and navigate when engaging influencers. For brands using influencers, well-documented influencer agreements are essential.

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Domain Name Disputes: the Wild West of the Internet

In the vast expanse of the internet, domain names are like digital storefronts, essential for businesses and individuals to stake their claim online. However, amidst the plethora of legitimate domain registrations, a darker practice known as cybersquatting lurks. This phenomenon occurs when individuals register domain names in bad faith, aiming to profit from the reputation of established trade marks or businesses.

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Countdown to change: preparing your business for changes to the unfair contract terms regime

Australia currently provides protections, via the Australian Consumer Law (ACL) and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission Act 2001 (Cth) (ASIC Act), against unfair contract terms (Unfair Contract Terms Regime). The Unfair Contract Terms Regime applies to consumer contracts and small business contracts that are considered standard form contracts.

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Don’t get swept up in ACCC’s influencer crackdown.

Each year, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) announces its Compliance and Enforcement Priorities. In 2022-23, one of its priorities was to identify deceptive marketing practices across the digital economy. On 27 January 2023, the ACCC announced that it will be starting a sweep to identify misleading testimonials and endorsements by social media influencers. This comes as members of…

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Beware of the phish when you surf – recent changes to privacy laws

We’ve all heard about it – personal information being leaked into the public domain or perhaps sold to third parties without knowledge or consent. Whilst these occurrences can be catastrophic, we seem to have developed a ‘breach fatigue’ or desensitization as data breaches become more of ‘the norm’. Protecting your personal information is not as simple as having a 12-character…

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Garden leave: it’s not a walk in the park

Garden leave may sound relaxing, but the circumstances which call for it are most certainly not.Garden leave typically occurs: when an employee is directed by an employer to take paid leave or to undertake special duties; or during the notice period following termination or resignation. Employees are...

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SMS: Scam Message Service?

Have you recently received a text that didn’t seem right? Maybe it looked like one of these: 'Your package is on its way: get it as soon as possible! Click this link!' 'Hello, I've seen this video of you on the internet! Click here to see!' 'Hi, do you need a part time job? Click this link!' If that's a yes...

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Key ACCC priorities for 2022

In early March 2022, Rod Sims handed down the ACCC's 2022/2023 Compliance and Enforcement Priorities. Some issues and industries of concern include manipulative digital advertising techniques, exclusive arrangements that impact competition and false 'green' credentials.

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