establish a clear legal basis for the collection, use and disclosure of personal information in the event of a disaster or an emergency that might occur inside or outside of the Territory.The Act is consistent with provisions in the state privacy legislation and with provisions in the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) that deal with the collection, use and disclosure of personal information during a declared emergency or disaster.
The Commonwealth statute requires that
- there must be a reasonable belief that the individual is involved in the emergency or disaster
- information must only be collected for a permitted purpose related to the emergency or disaster
- there are limits on the entities that the information can be disclosed to
- these entities (agencies, organisations or persons) must be directly involved in providing specific services, such as repatriation, medical, health, financial or other humanitarian assistance.
