Privacy Policy
Australian Vietnamese Women’s Association (AVWA) is committed to providing quality services to you and this policy outlines our ongoing obligations to you in respect of how we manage your Personal Information.
By using our services or our website you consent to the collection, use, disclosure and transfer of your personal information as set out in this Privacy Policy.
We have adopted the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs) contained in the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) (the Privacy Act). The APPs govern the way in which we collect, use, disclose, store, secure and dispose of your Personal Information.
A copy of the Australian Privacy Principles may be obtained from the website of The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner at https://www.oaic.gov.au/privacy/australian-privacy-principles
What is Personal Information and why do we collect it?
Personal Information is information or an opinion that identifies an individual. Examples of Personal Information we collect include: names, addresses, email addresses, phone and facsimile numbers.
This Personal Information is obtained in many ways including interviews, correspondence, by telephone and facsimile, by email, via our website www.avwa.org.au and avwa.legaltechhelper.com.au, from our Microsoft Azure, from media and publications, from other publicly available sources, from cookies and from third parties. We don’t guarantee website links or policy of authorised third parties.
If you use our website, certain information may be collected regarding how you use our website. This includes Internet identifiers. For example, IP addresses and the geographical location of your ISP data centre.
We collect your Personal Information for the primary purpose of providing our services to you, providing information to our clients and marketing. We may also use your Personal Information for secondary purposes closely related to the primary purpose, in circumstances where you would reasonably expect such use or disclosure. You may unsubscribe from our mailing/marketing lists at any time by contacting us in writing.
When we collect Personal Information we will, where appropriate and where possible, explain to you why we are collecting the information and how we plan to use it.
Sensitive Information
Sensitive information is defined in the Privacy Act to include information or opinion about such things as an individual's racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, membership of a political association, religious or philosophical beliefs, membership of a trade union or other professional body, criminal record or health information.
Sensitive information will be used by us only:
- For the primary purpose for which it was obtained
- For a secondary purpose that is directly related to the primary purpose
- With your consent; or where required or authorised by
Third Parties
Where reasonable and practicable to do so, we will collect your Personal Information only from you. However, in some circumstances we may be provided with information by third parties. In such a case we will take reasonable steps to ensure that you are made aware of the information provided to us by the third party.
How do we use and disclose personal information?
Purposes for which we may collect, use or disclose your personal information include:
- to provide our services. This includes giving you advice, information, resources, or referrals to other organisations. This also includes incidental uses and disclosures that occur as part of the standard operation of our organisation;
- to communicate with you. For example, to respond to your enquiries, questions, requests and complaints relating to our services;
- to assess applications for work and volunteer positions at AVWA; and
- complying with applicable laws. We may use or disclose your personal information when complying with our legal and regulatory obligations;
If you do not provide us with the required personal information, we may not be able to give you access to our services or assistance.
We may also use your personal information in an anonymised, aggregated or de-identified form. For example:
- for anonymous case studies. Our staff may compile anonymous case studies based on the experience of our clients. These are used to help explain our services and highlight the needs of our clients;
- to conduct research based on our Pathways to Wellbeing web application. Usage analytics are collected about users of the Pathways to Wellbeing web application. For example, the number of users, and the areas of law or mental health services viewed. This information helps us to identify information and services that are in high demand and apply for additional funding; and
- to comply with out funding agreements. We are required to provide some de-identified information to funding agencies. We do not provide funding agencies with identifying information, such as your name or address.
- to identify trends and changes in the demographics of people accessing our services. We may use and disclose de-identified information to help us understand and communicate the demographics of people requesting information and our services.
Who do we share your personal information with?
We may share your personal information with employees, volunteers, contractors or service providers for the purpose of providing our services.
Certain third parties may access your personal information. These include:
- third parties who enable us to provide our services. For example, IT systems administrators, process servers, couriers, electronic network administrators and professional advisors (e.g. accountants and solicitors); and
- government bodies, regulatory agencies, law enforcement or exchange bodies or courts. We only do this where we are required to do so by applicable law or regulation or at their request.
Where do we store your personal information?
We, including our service providers, may hold electronic records of your personal information using cloud technology, by other electronic means, or in paper form. All of the electronic personal information we hold is hosted on servers located in Australia. However, in the course of using cookies and web-analytics on our website, some information may be held or processed outside Australia, including the USA and the European Union. It is not practicable for us to specify in advance the location of every service provider or user who we deal with.
Disclosure of Personal Information
Your Personal Information may be disclosed in a number of circumstances including the following:
- Third parties where you consent to the use or disclosure; and
- Where required or authorised by law
Security of Personal Information
Your Personal Information is stored in a manner that reasonably protects it from misuse and loss and from unauthorized access, modification or disclosure.
When your Personal Information is no longer needed for the purpose for which it was obtained, we will take reasonable steps to destroy or permanently de-identify your Personal Information. However, most of the Personal Information is or will be stored in client files which will be kept by us for a minimum of 7 years.
Access to your Personal Information
You may access the Personal Information we hold about you and to update and/or correct it, subject to certain exceptions. If you wish to access your Personal Information, please contact us in writing.
AVWA will not charge any fee for your access request, but may charge an administrative fee for providing a copy of your Personal Information.
In order to protect your Personal Information we may require identification from you before releasing the requested information.
How do we use cookies?
We may from time to time use cookies or other trackers on our website (Trackers). Trackers allow us to access and store information or resources on a user’s device when they interact with our website. One type of Tracker is a cookie, which is a very small file which a website uses to identify you when you come back to the website and to store details about your use of the website.
Our website uses Google Analytics to analyse web traffic coming to our website. If you do not agree to the use of Trackers on our website, please disable them by following the instructions for your browser or device, or by using the automated disabling tool where available.
Our Pathways to Wellbeing web application uses Matomo Analytics cookies for research purposes. These analytics will capture information, such as the number of users, and the areas of law and mental health services viewed. Our Pathways to Wellbeing web application uses session cookies, which is a cookie that only exists in temporary memory while you navigate our Pathways to Wellbeing web application. Session cookies expire or are deleted when you close the web browser.
Maintaining the Quality of your Personal Information
It is an to us that your Personal Information is up to date. We will take reasonable steps to make sure that your Personal Information is accurate, complete and up-to-date. If you find that the information we have is not up to date or is inaccurate, please advise us as soon as practicable so we can update our records and ensure we can continue to provide quality services to you.
Policy Updates
This Policy may change from time to time and is available on our website.
Privacy Policy Complaints and Enquiries
If you have any queries or complaints about our Privacy Policy please contact us at:
Address: 30-32 Lennox Street, Richmond, VIC 3121
Email: info@avwa.org.au
Phone: 9428 9078
The Privacy Policy was last updated on the 12th February 2024.
