Hi there. In Australia, there are national laws that regulate how organisations obtain and handle individuals’ personal information. These laws are contained in the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and apply to most types of major businesses and organisations, including banks. This means that the Commonwealth Bank is required to comply with the national privacy laws when dealing with customers’ personal information.

Under these laws, you have certain rights. These include the right to know why your personal information is being collected, how it will be used and who it will be disclosed to; the right to ask for access to your personal information; the right to ask for your personal information to be corrected; and the right to make a complaint about an organisation if you think they have mishandled your personal information.

If you believe the Commonwealth Bank has mishandled your personal information by, for example, disclosing it to a third party, you should complain directly to the bank and wait 30 days for them to respond. If you do not receive a response within 30 days or you are dissatisfied with their response, you can lodge your complaint with the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (www.oaic.gov.au).

Complaints to the OAIC must be in writing and can be lodged via the privacy complaint form on their website. Your complaint should describe the problem, any attempt by the bank to address the issue, and copies of any relevant documentation. If your complaint is within the scope of the OAIC’s work, they may investigate your complaint and attempt to reach some kind of resolution.

Note that, currently, the law does not allow you to sue someone directly for a ‘breach of privacy’, in the same way you can sue someone for other legal wrongs, such as negligence or defamation. This means that it is very unlikely that you could commence legal proceedings against the bank on the sole basis that they breached your privacy.

Suggested way forward

Your first step should be to lodge a complaint with the bank. If you are unhappy with their response, you can lodge a formal complaint with the OAIC who may attempt to resolve the issue. If you want further advice on your legal options, you should consider speaking to a lawyer who can advise on the best course of action. By pressing the “Consult a Lawyer” button, LawAdvisor can help you search for experienced lawyers and obtain fee proposals for their services. Costs for legal advice and representation will vary between providers based on experience and the scope of services.