1. Privacy.

As new technology continues to move forward, so do consumer concerns about personal privacy. Whilst many issues are not legal ones by nature, there are many concerns about the ethical use of personal information. While consumer access to the internet's vast store of information has its benefits, private use of the medium invariably results in a fair share of "unscrupulous marketing". Information can be collected in many ways: the purchase of email lists; the collation of purchase and credit card transaction details; and the use of "cookies" on web sites, just to mention a few. There are numerous instances of data being misused. This misuse may take the form of fraudulent credit card transactions (which is more an issue of "security" rather than "privacy"), to tracking internet user activity by Government agencies, to internet and software companies accessing internet-connected computers to determine such things as operating system, installed software, and general hard disk drive contents.

There is no general right to privacy in Australia under common law. It is likely that most ecommerce privacy issues are a matter of ethics rather than legality. The Privacy Act 1988 fulfilled Australia's obligations under international law to:

"…give effect to the right of persons not to be subjected to arbitrary or unlawful interference with their privacy, family, home or correspondence. "

As a result, the Privacy Act protects data collected on members of the general public by Commonwealth Government departments and agencies from disclosure, except in exceptional circumstances. These departments and agencies must comply with 11 principles known as Information Privacy Principles.

Internationally, privacy is actively promoted by the OECD who in 1980 implemented the Guidelines on the Protection of Privacy and Transborder Flows of Personal Data. Within Australia, professional associations such as the Australian Direct Marketing Association and the Australian Marketing Institute actively encourage and promote the privacy of the individual, with particular regard to marketing activities.

To put the minds of visitors to your site at rest, it would be worth considering including a privacy statement that clearly details what uses, if any, you will put information to that is gathered from visitors.

[Useful links...]