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Information privacy and website security

Information privacy

The State Library of Queensland (State Library) is subject to privacy legislation which applies to the Queensland public sector — the Information Privacy Act 2009 (the Information Privacy Act). The Information Privacy Act contains a number of privacy principles that set out how agencies must handle personal information.

Further information on the Queensland Government's information privacy scheme can be accessed through the Office of the Information Commissioner.

If you have any questions about privacy practices at State Library, please contact us on +61 7 3842 9052, or by email to rti@slq.qld.gov.au.

What do we mean by 'personal information'?

'Personal information' refers to any information from which an individual's identity is apparent or can reasonably be ascertained.

The definition of ‘personal information’ used within the Information Privacy Act (section 12) is ‘personal information is information or an opinion, including information or an opinion forming part of a database, whether true or not, and whether recorded in a material form or not, about an individual whose identity is apparent, or can reasonably be ascertained, from the information or opinion’.

Privacy and State Library membership

State Library collects your personal information to enable us to provide you with a range of services, including some only available to Queensland residents. We may not be able to provide services to you if we cannot confirm your eligibility. For example, we may not be able to lend collection items, provide access to eresources governed by licence agreements, or contact you.

To offer our services, we may need to store StateLibrary membership data offshore and we may share your information with companies based outside Australia. These suppliers are only permitted to use the data for contractually-agreed purposes and must handle data in a confidential and secure manner in accordance with Queensland privacy legislation (Information Privacy Act 2009).

See Your information for details on what personal information we collect and why.

See Identity Management Principles for information on the use and management of your personal information.

Privacy and camera surveillance

Camera surveillance, managed by Arts Queensland, operates at State Library to ensure public safety and for the investigation and prosecution of criminal offences. 

Personal information collected by surveillance camera systems is handled in accordance with the Information Privacy Principles (IPPs) contained in the Information Privacy Act 2009 (Qld). Surveillance footage will only be accessed by persons authorised to do so.  Should an incident occur, footage may be provided to the Queensland Police Service for law enforcement purposes.  Your information will not be given to any other person or agency unless authorised or required by law. 

Website security

This is a website of the State of Queensland, acting through State Library of Queensland. . Where this website transmits information, there are secure protocols in place and information is encrypted and transmitted securely during sign on for securely transmitting information across the internet. Visitors to our website are advised that there can be some risks with transmitting personal information in this way.

We understand and appreciate that users of this website are concerned about their privacy and the confidentiality of any personal information they provide to us.

We are committed to respecting the privacy of our website users and, as a general rule, we do not collect personal information about you when you visit our site. You are able to visit our site without revealing any of your personal information.

Website visit data

State Library uses Google Analytics (including display advertising features) on our website to gather anonymous information about visitors to our website. When you visit our web pages, your browser automatically sends anonymous information to Google. Examples of the information sent include the web address of the page that you're visiting, your IP address and demographic information. Google may also use cookies.

We use this data to analyse the pages that are visited, to improve your experience and make sure our website is useful.

You can read more about how Google uses data. You can choose not to allow Google to collect your information by opting out of Google Analytics or specifically opting out of Google Analytics display advertiser features.

When you look at this website, our server makes a record of your visit and logs the following information for statistical purposes only:

  • the IP (Internet Protocol) address from which you accessed our website
  • the name of the top level domain from which you accessed the internet (for example, .gov, .com, .edu, .net, .org, .au etc)
  • the type of browser and operating system you use
  • whether you have accessed the site using a mobile device
  • the type and speed of internet connection used to access the site
  • the date and time you accessed the site
  • the pages you have accessed 
  • the documents you have downloaded
  • the screen settings with which you viewed the site
  • the previous internet address from which you arrived at this site

The above information is gathered, in aggregate, solely for the purposes of creating summary statistics which allow us to assess the number of visitors to the different sections of our site and to help make our site more useful for users of our website.

Cookies

Some parts of our website use cookies to provide a customised user experience when you visit again, by remembering your preferences and settings. Aggregate, non-personal information from cookies is also used by our web services staff to analyse usage patterns for our website. Information from cookies will not be used to identify you. However, if you prefer not to use cookies when visiting our site, you can set your internet browser to block cookies.

No attempt is or will be made to identify users or their browsing activities except, in the event of an investigation, where a law enforcement agency may exercise a warrant to inspect activity logs.

Social media

This website interfaces with social media services such as Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter and others. If you choose to 'like' or 'share' information from this website through these services, you should review the privacy policy of that service. If you use a social media service, the interfaces may allow it to connect your visits to this website and elsewhere on the internet with personal information.

When you communicate with us through social media or third parties (e.g. apps on your smart phone), your personal information may be collected from that communication (e.g. via Facebook Pixel). We assume that you have informed yourself of the ways in which such sites or applications can collect and disclose your personal information, and that you otherwise consent to the collection, use and disclosure of your personal information by such sites or applications (including disclosure to, and collection by, State Library). Check your settings with the relevant social media provider if you wish to opt out of this data collection.

Email, online subscriptions and web feedback

As a Queensland Government website, email correspondence sent to this site will be treated as a public record and will be retained as required by the Public Records Act 2002 and other relevant regulations.

Email messages may be monitored by our website support staff for system troubleshooting and maintenance purposes.

Your name and address details will not be added to a mailing list unless you so choose, and we will not disclose these details to third parties without your consent unless required by law. If you have chosen to place your details on one or more of our email subscription lists, you can opt out of further contact with us by following the instructions to unsubscribe in our emails, or by emailing Info@slq.qld.gov.au.

Access to your information

Under the Information Privacy Act, you are entitled to access any personal information that State Library holds about you, and to ask us to update personal information we hold about you. See Your information for details on the information State Library may have about you.

To access, review and/or amend your personal information, please contact us by phone +61 7 3842 9052 or by email to rti@slq.qld.gov.au . There is no fee to access or update your own personal information, but please note that in order to access your personal information, you will be required to provide proof of your identity.

If you wish to make a formal application to access and/or amend your personal information under the Information Privacy Act, you can download the appropriate application form and submit your application via post, fax, email or in person (contact details below)

Postal address
Privacy Contact Officer
c/- Executive Director, Corporate Governance and Operations
State Library of Queensland
PO Box 3488
South Brisbane Q 4101
AUSTRALIA

Email
rti@slq.qld.gov.au

In person Deliver to level 1 reception desk
Mark as confidential and for the attention of Executive Director, Corporate Governance and Operations

Approved by Vicki McDonald, State Librarian and CEO
18 July 2023

Information Privacy Access Application [PDF 141 kb]

Information Privacy Access Application

PDF · 145 KB

Information Privacy Personal Information Amendment Application [PDF 91 kb]

Information Privacy Personal Information Amendment Application

PDF · 93 KB

External websites

This site contains links to other websites. State Library is not responsible for the privacy or security practices or the content of any external websites.

The materials presented on this website are distributed by the State of Queensland, acting through the State Library of Queensland, as an information source only. The full Website Disclaimer is available for viewing.