If not delivered return to PO Box 7820 Canberra BC ACT 2610
11 September 2020
Our reference: LEX 58206
Mr Keith Owen
Right to Know
Only by email: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx
Dear Mr Owen
Your Freedom of Information Request
I refer to your request to Services Australia dated 30 August 2020, for access under the
Freedom of Information Act 1982 (the
FOI Act) to the following documents:
'I seek access to the following documents in relation to the Department obtaining
information about customers from social media websites:
1/ All policy documents related to this practice.
2/ All instruction or procedure documents related to this practice.
3/ All instructions from senior employees to subordinate staff related to this practice.
4/ Information on how the data obtained is stored and how it is used.
5/ Any guidelines to staff instructing them to use undercover or alias identities to join
Social Media groups not open to the general public in order to gain access to
information about the Department's customers.
6/ Any guidelines to staff including the Department's Legal Services to legal firms and
solicitors acting on behalf of the Department to obtain information from Social Media
groups that are closed to the General Public.
7/ Any guidelines to Departmental staff concerning the disclosure to customers about
the collection of information from private Social Media Groups about them.
I have recently become aware of the practice of the Department in obtaining
information from PRIVATE SOCIAL MEDIA GROUPS about the Department's
Customers for use in litigation. This would of course appear to be at odds with Privacy
Legislation and hence attracts a particularly high level of public interest. We have
evidence that this has occurred so there is no point in denying the practice exists on
this occasion (note previous refused request along the same lines).’
Currently your request does not sufficiently identify the documents you require. Specifically,
parts 1, 3 and 6 of your FOI request are unclear and do not provide enough information to
allow Services Australia to locate the documents you are seeking.
As your request did not provide a contact telephone number, Services Australia is now
formally consulting with you under section 24AB of the FOI Act.
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This letter is giving you an opportunity to provide us with further information about the
documents you need. Providing this additional information will assist Services Australia in
processing your request.
If you decide not to provide further information or revise your request, I will have to refuse
your freedom of information (
FOI) request as a 'practical refusal reason' exists. For a more
detailed explanation of what this means, including some suggestions on what to consider
when revising your request, please see
Attachment A.
How to send us a 'revised request'
Before I make a final decision on your request, you can submit a revised request.
Within the next 14 days (consultation period) you must do one of the following, in writing:
withdraw the request;
make a revised request; or
tell us that you do not want to revise your request.
If you do not contact us during the consultation period, we will assume you do not want to
continue with your request. See
Attachment A for relevant sections of the FOI Act.
If you decide to make a revised request you should be specific about what documents you
actually want. This could help Services Australia find the documents.
We have 30 days to give you a decision about your request, however the time taken to
consult with you now is not included in this 30 day time period.
Contact officer
I am the contact officer for your request. During the consultation period you are welcome to
ask for my help in revising your request. You can contact me:
in writing to the address at the top of this letter; or
via email to xxx.xxxxx.xxxx@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx.
Note: When you contact us please quote the reference number
FOI LEX 58206.
Your response will be expected by
25 September 2020. If no response is received your
request will be taken to be withdrawn.
Further assistance
If you have any questions please email xxx.xxxxx.xxxx@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx.
Yours sincerely
Don
Authorised FOI Decision Maker
Freedom of Information Team
Employment Law and FOI Branch | Legal Services Division
Services Australia
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Attachment A
What I took into account
You requested access under the
Freedom of Information Act 1982 (the
FOI Act) to the
following documents:
'I seek access to the following documents in relation to the Department obtaining
information about customers from social media websites:
1/ All policy documents related to this practice.
2/ All instruction or procedure documents related to this practice.
3/ All instructions from senior employees to subordinate staff related to this practice.
4/ Information on how the data obtained is stored and how it is used.
5/ Any guidelines to staff instructing them to use undercover or alias identities to join
Social Media groups not open to the general public in order to gain access to
information about the Department's customers.
6/ Any guidelines to staff including the Department's Legal Services to legal firms and
solicitors acting on behalf of the Department to obtain information from Social Media
groups that are closed to the General Public.
7/ Any guidelines to Departmental staff concerning the disclosure to customers about
the collection of information from private Social Media Groups about them.
I have recently become aware of the practice of the Department in obtaining
information from PRIVATE SOCIAL MEDIA GROUPS about the Department's
Customers for use in litigation. This would of course appear to be at odds with Privacy
Legislation and hence attracts a particularly high level of public interest. We have
evidence that this has occurred so there is no point in denying the practice exists on
this occasion (note previous refused request along the same lines).’
As your request currently stands, I am unable to identify some of the documents falling within
the scope of your request, and am therefore unable to process your request.
With regard to part 1, it is unclear what you mean when you use the term ‘policy’. The
Department of Social Services (
DSS) has policy responsibility for Commonwealth
Government programs relating to Families and Children, Housing Support, Seniors,
Communities and Vulnerable People, Disability and Carers, Women’s Safety and Mental
Health.
DSS publishes a number of policy documents that may assist you. They are publicly
available at: https://guides.dss.gov.au/. You may like to withdraw part 1 of your request if
these publicly available policy guides meet the scope of this part of your request.
Alternatively, noting that Services Australia delivers government payments and services on
behalf of the Commonwealth, whereas DSS has policy responsibility, please confirm what
you mean by the term “policy”.
With regard to part 3 of your request, the terms ‘senior employees’ and ‘subordinate staff’
require further clarification to enable Services Australia to locate the documents you require.
In particular, it is unclear whether your reference to senior staff was meant to refer to Senior
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Executive Staff of the Australian Public Service, or whether it was simply meant to refer to
staff within Services Australia that have staff supervisory responsibilities. Can you please
clarify you use of the term ‘senior employees’.
For example, you may wish to revise part 3 of your request to:
all instructions from Senior Executive Staff (
SES) related to this practice.
I am also seeking clarification from you in relation to part 6 of your request. The relevant
Services Australia business area has advised that part 6 of your request is unclear as they
are uncertain of the meaning of the term ‘… including the Department’s Legal Services to
legal firms and solicitors acting on behalf of the Department…’ They are also uncertain of the
meaning of the term ‘…obtaining information from Social Media groups that are closed to the
General Public…’ Consequently, the business area has requested you provide further detail
and clarification regarding the documents you require.
If you do not revise, I intend to refuse your FOI request as a 'practical refusal reason' exists
under sections 24AA(1)(b) and 24 of the FOI Act. Under the FOI Act, the practical refusal
reason is that your request does not satisfy the requirements in section 15(2)(b)
(identification of documents).
Other assistance
Noting that part 6 of your request appears to be in relation to litigation, when revising the
scope of your request, in order to try and avoid the request being too large to process, you
may wish to reduce the scope by asking for instructions or guidelines from specific business
areas, such as the SES officer with responsibility for Services Australia’s Litigation and
Information Release Branch.
Relevant sections of the Freedom of Information Act 1982
Section 24AA(1)(b) of the FOI Act provides that a practical refusal reason exists in relation to
a request for a document if the request does not satisfy the requirement in section 15(2)(b) of
the FOI Act.
Section 15(2)(b) of the FOI Act provides that a request must provide such information as is
reasonably necessary to enable Services Australia to identify the documents that are being
requested.
Section 24AB(6) says that the applicant must, before the end of the consultation period, do
one of the following, by written notice to Services Australia or Minister:
withdraw the request,
make a revised request, or
indicate that the applicant does not wish to revise the request.
Section 24AB(7) of the FOI Act provides that the request is taken to have been withdrawn at
the end of the consultation period if:
the applicant does not consult the contact person during the consultation period in
accordance with the notice, or
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the applicant does not do one of the things mentioned in subsection (6) before the
end of the consultation period.
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