This privacy notice applies to the REC Registry (including the STC clearing house and other online portals, facilities and forms accessed through the REC Registry). It explains how the Clean Energy Regulator (CER) collects and uses personal information collected through your use of the REC Registry.
The collection of personal information is authorised by the Renewable Energy (Electricity) Act 2000 (the REE Act), the Renewable Energy (Electricity) Regulations 2001 and the Clean Energy Regulator Act 2011.
'Personal information' is defined in the Privacy Act 1988 to mean any information or an opinion about an identified individual, or an individual who is reasonably identifiable:
(a) whether the information or opinion is true or not, and
(b) whether the information or opinion is recorded in a material form or not.
Purpose of collection and use of your information
Personal Information collected in relation to your use of the REC Registry will be used for the purposes of the REE Act, including assessing and processing applications, requests or transactions made by you, auditing compliance, maintaining accurate registers, enforcement of relevant laws and regulations and for related purposes, which may include website management and training. We cannot process an application, request or transaction you make through the REC Registry if we do not collect your personal information where necessary.
Information collected
The CER collects personal information you provide through your use of, and interaction with, the REC Registry, including its online forms and electronic transaction facilities. Information collected includes:
- Information required under law to complete an application, transaction or request through the REC Registry
- Information which may be used to verify your identity including with third parties as part of any proof of identity check (including for future user authentication)
- Contact details to enable us to contact you in connection with your use of the REC Registry
- Banking details which you provide to enable us to facilitate payments, for example, for transactions made in the STC clearing house by you.
The REC Registry website is managed by AusRegistry International and also collects personal information provided by users. Website users who read or download information have the following personal information recorded for statistical purposes:
- The pages accessed
- Documents up- and downloaded
- Search terms used
- Date and time of any requests made
- Previous visited site (HTTP Referrer)
- Operating system and Browser used (for example Windows and Internet Explorer)
AusRegistry International and the CER may identify website users or their browsing activities for the purposes of administering the REC Registry, and in the unlikely event of an investigation, where a law enforcement agency has exercised a warrant.
Cookies
Cookies are pieces of information that a website can transfer to a computer when it accesses information on that site. Cookies can make websites easier to use by storing information about a user’s preferences on a particular website. This information may remain on the computer after the browser is closed.
The CER does not collect personal information about users that do not log onto this website.
This website uses session cookies to allow users who have logged in access to the parts of the website that they have been granted permission to use. When a browser is closed the session cookie is destroyed.
Some pages on this site may use cookies to collect anonymous traffic data. This data does not collect personally identifiable information.
Handling and protection of your information
All information you provide through your use of the REC Registry will be handled in accordance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth).
The Clean Energy Regulator’s Privacy Policy contains information about the agency’s procedures for handling personal information including how a person can access their personal information held by the agency, and how to seek correction of such information. The Privacy Policy also contains information about how to complain about a breach of the Australian Privacy Principles. The Clean Energy Regulator’s Privacy Policy can be found at www.cleanenergyregulator.gov.au.
The Clean Energy Regulator and authorised staff are only able to disclose information collected through your use of the REC Registry in accordance with the Renewable Energy (Electricity) Act 2000, the CER Act, the Privacy Act 1988, or as otherwise required by law.
Part 3 of the Clean Energy Regulator Act 2011 prevents disclosure of relevant information except in circumstances set out in that Part. The circumstances in which such information may be disclosed include:
- Disclosure to other agencies, persons or organisations to enable the verification of information contained in the application;
- Disclosure to the Secretary or authorised officer of a Department for the purpose of administering a program or collecting statistics relating to greenhouse gas emissions, energy consumption or energy production;
- Disclosure to certain agencies, bodies or persons where the Regulator is satisfied that disclosure will enable or assist those agencies, bodies or persons to perform or exercise their functions or powers, including the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission and the Commissioner of Taxation; and
- Disclosure for the purposes of law enforcement.
These websites are protected by 128 bit encryption as are the data transactions with us as part of any proof of identity process.
Any questions regarding the privacy of personal information collected through your use of the REC Registry should be directed to:
Clean Energy Regulator Privacy Contact Officer
Clean Energy Regulator
GPO Box 621
CANBERRA ACT 2601
Phone: 02 6159 3556
Email: CER–Privacy@cleanenergyregulator.gov.au