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E.Tel Communications Pty Ltd ( ABN 84 075 084 329 ) takes the protection of your privacy and personal information seriously.
In order for us to supply telecommunications products, services and related benefits to you, we need to collect, use, store and disclose certain personal information. This Privacy Policy explains how we handle personal information in accordance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth), the Australian Privacy Principles (“APPs”), and applicable telecommunications laws, regulations and industry codes.
As a provider of telecommunications services in Australia, E.Tel may also be subject to obligations under telecommunications, fraud prevention, identity verification, lawful interception, emergency services and law enforcement legislation.
By using our websites, applications or services, or by providing personal information to us, you consent to the collection, use and disclosure of your personal information as described in this Privacy Policy.
You do not have to provide us with personal information. However, if you choose not to provide certain information, we may not be able to provide products or services to you, verify your identity, activate or manage telecommunications services, process payments, provide customer support, assess eligibility for certain products, or otherwise fulfil our operational, legal and regulatory obligations.
Personal Information We Collect
The personal information we collect may include:
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your name, address, date of birth, telephone number, email address and other contact details;
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billing and payment information, including bank account or credit/debit card details;
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credit-related information, including credit history and financial information where the product or service requires assessment of creditworthiness or payment risk;
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identity documents and verification information required for fraud prevention, telecommunications compliance or customer verification purposes;
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telecommunications service information, including mobile numbers, SIM or eSIM identifiers, account history, recharge history, plan details and service usage records;
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information required to facilitate mobile number porting or transfer requests;
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records of communications with us, including customer support enquiries, call recordings, emails, chat logs, complaints and survey responses;
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technical information such as IP addresses, browser type, cookies, login activity, device information and website analytics data;
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information relating to the use of our website, mobile applications or customer portals;
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device-related information including operating system, device model, non-resettable device identifiers, network information and eSIM-related identifiers;
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location-related information where reasonably necessary for telecommunications service delivery, fraud prevention, emergency service obligations or regulatory compliance;
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marketing preferences and communication preferences; and
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any other information reasonably necessary for us to provide our products and services or comply with our legal obligations.
We generally do not collect sensitive information unless reasonably necessary and permitted by law.
From time to time, you may provide us with personal information relating to another person. Where you provide personal information about another individual, you are responsible for ensuring that the individual is aware of this Privacy Policy and consents to the disclosure of their information to us where required.
Why We Collect, Use and Disclose Personal Information
We collect, use and disclose personal information in order to provide telecommunications products, services and related benefits to customers, and for related operational, regulatory and business purposes.
Examples of how we may use personal information include:
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activating and administering telecommunications services;
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processing orders, payments, renewals and refunds;
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identity verification and fraud prevention;
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facilitating mobile number portability and telecommunications regulatory requirements;
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assessing eligibility for products, services or payment arrangements;
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assessing creditworthiness or payment risk where applicable;
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billing and account administration;
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customer support, dispute resolution and complaint handling;
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improving and developing our products, services, websites, applications and customer experience;
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network management, troubleshooting and service quality improvement;
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business planning, analytics and operational reporting;
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informing customers about service interruptions, account matters, security events or product updates;
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cybersecurity, fraud detection and protection of our systems, staff and customers;
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direct marketing where permitted by law;
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seeking professional, legal, financial or technical advice;
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recovering outstanding debts or unpaid amounts;
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disclosing information to debt recovery agencies, credit reporting bodies or payment providers where reasonably necessary;
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complying with applicable laws, regulations, industry codes and lawful requests from regulators, government authorities or law enforcement agencies; and
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any other purpose disclosed at the time information is collected or otherwise authorised or required by law.
As a telecommunications provider, E.Tel may also collect, retain or disclose certain information to comply with obligations under legislation including:
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the Telecommunications Act 1997 (Cth);
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the Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Act 1979 (Cth);
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the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth);
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ACMA requirements and industry codes;
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telecommunications data retention obligations where applicable;
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lawful interception and assistance obligations;
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emergency services obligations; and
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fraud prevention, complaint handling and identity verification obligations.
We do not collect or retain personal information arbitrarily or without a legitimate operational, legal or regulatory purpose.
How We Collect Personal Information
We may collect personal information in a range of ways, including:
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when you provide information directly to us through our websites, applications, customer portals or forms;
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during customer support interactions including telephone calls, emails, live chat, social media messaging or other communications;
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in the course of providing telecommunications products, services or related benefits to you;
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from authorised distributors, channel partners, resellers, commercial partners, or from online platforms on which we maintain a presence or represent our products and services;
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from payment providers, fraud prevention providers, identity verification providers or credit reporting agencies;
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from publicly available sources where permitted by law;
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from our records relating to your use of our products, services, applications or websites;
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through electronic tagging technologies including cookies and similar technologies;
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through analytics, page tracking and website usage technologies;
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through login, authentication and fraud detection systems;
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from telecommunications wholesalers, carriers or network providers;
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where required by law or government authorities, including through identity verification or document verification systems used to confirm customer identity prior to activation of telecommunications services; and
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from third-party compliance or verification providers assisting us in meeting our legal and regulatory obligations.
Where lawful and reasonably necessary, customer support calls and communications may be monitored or recorded for quality assurance, staff training, dispute resolution, fraud prevention and compliance purposes.
Cookies, Analytics and Online Activity
Our websites and applications may use cookies, analytics tools and related technologies to:
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maintain website functionality;
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improve user experience;
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understand website traffic and performance;
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assist with fraud detection and security monitoring;
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personalise content and communications; and
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support advertising and marketing activities.
This information may include IP addresses, browser types, operating systems, referring URLs, pages visited and interaction information.
We may also use analytics and advertising providers including Google Analytics and similar technologies to better understand website usage, improve our services and deliver more relevant content or advertising.
You may adjust your browser settings to disable cookies, however some website functionality may be affected.
Disclosure of Personal Information
We may disclose personal information to:
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telecommunications wholesalers, carriers and network providers;
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payment processors and financial institutions;
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fraud prevention, identity verification and cybersecurity providers;
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credit reporting bodies and debt recovery service providers;
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cloud hosting, IT, software and communications service providers;
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customer support and operational service providers;
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professional advisers including accountants, auditors and legal advisers;
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marketing, analytics and advertising service providers;
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regulatory bodies, law enforcement agencies and government authorities where required or authorised by law, for example to the Integrated Public Number Database (IPND);
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dispute resolution bodies including the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman (“TIO”); and
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other third parties where you have consented or where disclosure is otherwise permitted by law.
Some service providers may store or process information outside Australia. Where this occurs, we take reasonable steps to ensure such providers maintain appropriate privacy and security standards.
E.Tel does not sell personal information containing personally identifiable information to third parties.
However, we may use or disclose aggregated, statistical or de-identified information for operational, analytical, reporting, product development, marketing or business purposes where such information does not allow identification of individuals.
Data Security and Protection
E.Tel takes reasonable technical, organisational and administrative measures to protect personal information from misuse, interference, loss, unauthorised access, modification or disclosure.
Security measures may include:
encryption of data transmitted through our websites, applications and online portals using secure transport technologies;
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storage of information within protected and access-controlled database environments;
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storage of information in paper format in secured locations;
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restricted staff access to systems and customer information based on operational requirements;
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multi-factor authentication and secure authentication processes where appropriate;
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cybersecurity monitoring, intrusion detection and fraud prevention systems;
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secure cloud hosting and infrastructure providers;
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internal policies governing access to and handling of personal information;
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staff confidentiality obligations and privacy awareness training; and
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periodic review of operational and security processes.
Where practical and appropriate, personally identifiable information may be minimised, redacted or excluded from internal operational communications, reporting, analytics, troubleshooting workflows and third-party interactions where full customer identification is not required.
We also take reasonable steps to ensure that third-party service providers handling personal information on our behalf maintain appropriate privacy and security safeguards.
While we take reasonable measures to protect personal information, no method of electronic transmission, storage or cybersecurity protection can guarantee absolute security.
Data Retention
We retain personal information only for as long as reasonably necessary for operational, legal, regulatory, accounting, dispute resolution, fraud prevention and compliance purposes.
Due to telecommunications regulatory obligations, certain records may be retained for minimum periods required by law, including where required for lawful interception, data retention, complaint handling, fraud prevention or law enforcement purposes.
We retain personal information for as long as reasonably necessary for operational, legal, regulatory, accounting, fraud prevention and customer support purposes.
Where practical and appropriate, E.Tel may securely delete, de-identify or anonymise personal information that is no longer required, subject to applicable legal, regulatory and operational retention requirements.
Marketing Communications
We may contact you regarding our products, services, promotions, service updates or related offerings using channels including email, SMS, telephone, social media or digital advertising platforms where permitted by law.
Direct marketing may relate to E.Tel products and services, or products and services offered in conjunction with our commercial partners or related service providers.
You may opt out of marketing communications at any time using unsubscribe functionality or by contacting us directly.
Certain operational or service-related communications may still be sent where necessary for the administration of your account or services.
Overseas Disclosure of Information
Some of our service providers, systems or technology partners may be located outside Australia, including providers involved in cloud hosting, software development, artificial intelligence, customer support, analytics, fraud prevention, payment processing or telecommunications operations.
Where personal information is disclosed overseas, we take reasonable steps to ensure the recipient handles the information in accordance with appropriate privacy and security standards. However, overseas recipients may be subject to different privacy laws and obligations than those applicable in Australia.
By using our services, you acknowledge that overseas disclosure of personal information may occur where reasonably necessary for the operation of our business and services.
Access and Correction
You may request access to personal information we hold about you and request correction of inaccurate or incomplete information.
We will require verification of identity before processing such requests.
In some circumstances, access requests may be declined where permitted by law, including where your identity cannot be verified, where disclosure would impact the privacy of others, prejudice investigations, or otherwise conflict with legal obligations.
We take reasonable steps to ensure personal information is accurate, up-to-date and complete, however we rely on customers to notify us of changes where applicable.
Complaints and Contact Information
If you have concerns about how we handle your personal information, please contact us first so we can attempt to resolve the issue promptly and fairly.
Privacy-related enquiries or complaints may be directed to E.Tel using the contact details available on our website at www.etel.com.au.
We aim to acknowledge and respond to complaints within a reasonable timeframe.
If you are not satisfied with our response, you may contact the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (“OAIC”) or the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman (“TIO”), where applicable.
Office of the Australian Information Commissioner:
Website: www.oaic.gov.au
Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman:
Website: www.tio.com.au
Changes to this Privacy Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our operations, technology, legal obligations or industry requirements.
The latest version of this Privacy Policy will always be available on our website.
Your continued use of our products or services after changes are published constitutes acceptance of the updated Privacy Policy.