Greetings, privacy professionals. I’m pleased to share this note will mark my first contribution to the Asia Pacific Dashboard Digest since I took up my post as the IAPP Managing Director for Australia and New Zealand, based in Sydney. In concert with my colleague in Auckland, Daimhin Warner, CIPP/E, I’m looking forward to working with you all in the local privacy community to help define, promote and improve the privacy profession across ANZ.
My timing could not have been better, as privacy is experiencing a tectonic shift in the region on the back of some very public and disruptive data breaches across the ANZ region, while structural reform has moved into high gear with the Australian Privacy Act Review Report 2022 having been presented for public comment and debate. As the deadline for submissions passed, in recent weeks attention turned towards the imminent Privacy Awareness Week 2023 in Australia, 1-7 May, followed by Privacy Week 2023 in New Zealand, 8-14 May.
The IAPP chose to demonstrate its commitment to support and development of the ANZ privacy community by convening a delegate tour to the region to coincide with these respective privacy week activities. The tour, led by IAPP President and CEO, J. Trevor Hughes, CIPP, will bring several leading privacy pros from organizations across the international community to the region to meet with local privacy pros and share perspectives across a rich program of events. The tour will start in Sydney 1 May, and will be supported by Australian Information and Privacy Commissioner Angelene Falk. It will then move to Melbourne 3 May, where Victorian Privacy and Data Protection Deputy Commissioner Rachel Dixon will be appearing. The tour will then continue to Auckland, where the delegation will be supported by New Zealand Privacy Commissioner Michael Webster.
Over the week long program the delegate tour will have the chance to engage directly with hundreds of ANZ privacy pros and other stakeholders, and will be a great opportunity for colleagues to reconnect, network and debate the hot issues of the current cycle in the region. I’m personally looking forward to meeting many members in person and encourage anyone to get in touch and let me know if I can be supportive in any way.
In addition to our own delegate tour, the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner and the NZ Office of the Privacy Commissioner have both presented a full suite of privacy week events the community can participate in. There are both virtual and in-person options detailed on their respective websites. I encourage everyone to take a look and get involved where they see opportunities.
I mentioned the Australian Privacy Act Review Report 2022 recently closed its window for responses and submissions, and the community’s attention now turns to how the Attorney-General’s office and the OAIC will respond to the many varied sources of feedback. The IAPP serves as the forum for these reforms to be discussed and debated among peers, and we will look to support this ongoing conversation while the process plays out. Our KnowledgeNet chapters in most major capital cities across the country are offering programming and events to engage local members and guests for this opportunity.
A note that the IAPP published the infographic At-A-Glance: Privacy and Consumer Trust in Australia. This infographic provides a snapshot of the most meaningful data points around consumer privacy perceptions and trust in Australia.
Finally, I’ll take a moment to remind people to mark their calendars with a placeholder for 28-29 Nov. in Sydney for the IAPP ANZ Summit 2023. This year’s gathering will surely sell out fast given the current privacy reform agenda in Australia. Those in the community from the public sector should begin to prepare early, given their lengthy approval process, and those in the private sector should begin to plan their engagement and sponsorship strategies in order to not miss out. The window for content submissions has closed, however I would welcome any interest from the community to discuss late ideas for submissions and will try to help where I can.
I’m glad to be part of the IAPP community and am looking forward to meeting with and getting to know my APAC colleagues and making new friends into the future.
Warm regards.