Commonwealth Numbered Acts

TELECOMMUNICATIONS ACT 1991 No. 98 of 1991 - SECT 88

88. (1) A person who is an employee of a carrier must not disclose or use any
fact or document that:

   (a)  relates to:

   (i)  the contents or substance of a communication that has been carried by
        the carrier or a
        communication in the course of telecommunications carriage; or

   (ii) telecommunications services supplied, or intended to be supplied, to
        another person by the carrier; or

   (iii) the affairs or personal particulars (including any unlisted telephone
        number or any address) of another person; and

   (b)  comes to the person's knowledge, or into the person's possession,
        because the person is an employee of the carrier. Penalty:
        Imprisonment for 2 years.

(2) A person who has been an employee of a carrier must not disclose or use
any fact or document that:

   (a)  relates to a matter mentioned in paragraph (1) (a); and

   (b)  came to the person's knowledge, or into the person's possession,
        because the person was an employee of the carrier. Penalty:
        Imprisonment for 2 years.

(3) This section does not prohibit a disclosure by a person of a fact or
document:

   (a)  if the disclosure is made in the performance of the person's duties as
        an employee of the carrier; or

   (b)  if the disclosure is made as a witness summoned to give evidence or to
        produce documents; or

   (c)  if the disclosure is made:

   (i)  to an officer or employee of the Australian Security Intelligence
        Organization authorised in writing by the Director-General of Security
        to receive the disclosure; and

   (ii) in connection with the performance by the Organization of its
        functions; or

   (d)  if:

   (i)  the fact or document came to the person's knowledge, or into the
        person's possession, because of a call to the emergency number 000;
        and

   (ii) the disclosure is made to a member of a police force or fire service
        or of an ambulance service to which the call was connected; or

   (e)  if the fact or document relates to the affairs or personal particulars
        (including any unlisted telephone number or any address) of another
        person and:

   (i)  the other person is reasonably likely to have been aware or made aware
        that information of that kind is usually disclosed in the
        circumstances concerned; or

   (ii) the other person has consented to the disclosure in the circumstances
        concerned; or

   (iii) the person who makes the disclosure believes on reasonable grounds
        that the disclosure is necessary to prevent or lessen a serious and
        imminent threat to the life or health of a person; or

   (f)  if the disclosure is required or authorised by or under law; or

   (g)  if the disclosure is reasonably necessary for the enforcement of the
        criminal law or of a law imposing a pecuniary penalty, or for the
        protection of the public revenue; or

   (h)  if:

   (i)  the person who made the disclosure is an employee of the carrier; and

   (ii) the disclosure is made to, or to an employee of, another carrier or a
        supplier of an eligible service; and

   (iii) the fact or document relates to:

                (A)  the operation or maintenance of a telecommunications
                     network or facility operated by the other carrier or the
                     supplier; or

                (B)  the supply of services by the other carrier or the
                     supplier by means of a telecommunications network or
                     facility; and

   (iv) the disclosure is made for the purpose of the carrying on by the other
        carrier or the supplier of its business relating to the supply of
        services by means of a telecommunications network or facility operated
        by the other carrier or the supplier; or

   (i)  if:

   (i)  the person who made the disclosure is an employee of the carrier; and

   (ii) the disclosure is made to, or to an employee of, another carrier or a
        supplier of an eligible service; and

   (iii) the fact or document relates to:

                (A)  the operation or maintenance of a telecommunications
                     network or facility operated by the first-mentioned
                     carrier; or

                (B)  the supply of services by the first-mentioned carrier by
                     means of a telecommunications network or facility; and

   (iv) the disclosure is made for the purpose of the carrying on by the other
        carrier or the supplier of its business relating to the supply of
        services by means of a telecommunications network or facility operated
        by the first-mentioned carrier; or

   (j)  if the disclosure is reasonably necessary for the purpose of the
        preservation of human life at sea; or

   (k)  if the disclosure:

   (i)  relates to the location of a vessel at sea; and

   (ii) is made for maritime communications purposes; or

   (l)  if:

   (i)  the person who made the disclosure is or has been an employee of the
        carrier; and

   (ii) the disclosure is made to, or to a member of the staff of, AUSTEL; and

   (iii) the fact or document may assist AUSTEL in the performance of any of
        its functions or the exercise of any of its powers under this Act or
        any other law of the Commonwealth; or

   (m)  if the disclosure is made in prescribed circumstances.

(4) This section does not prohibit a use by a person of a fact or document:

   (a)  if the use is made for the purposes of or in connection with a
        disclosure of the fact or document by the person, being a disclosure
        to which subsection (3) applies; or

   (b)  if the use is made in the performance of the person's duties as an
        employee of the carrier; or

   (c)  if the fact or document relates to the affairs or personal particulars
        (including any unlisted telephone number or any address) of another
        person and:

   (i)  the other person is reasonably likely to have been aware or made aware
        that information of that kind is usually used in the circumstances
        concerned; or

   (ii) the other person has consented to the use in the circumstances
        concerned; or

   (iii) the person who makes the use believes on reasonable grounds that the
        use is necessary to prevent or lessen a serious and imminent threat to
        the life or health of a person; or

   (d)  if the use is required or authorised by or under law; or

   (e)  if the use is reasonably necessary for the enforcement of the criminal
        law or of a law imposing a pecuniary penalty, or for the protection of
        the public revenue; or

   (f)  if:

   (i)  the person who made the use is an employee of the carrier; and

   (ii) the fact or document relates to:

                (A)  the operation or maintenance of a telecommunications
                     network or facility operated by another carrier or by a
                     supplier of an eligible service; or

                (B)  the supply of services by another carrier, or by the
                     supplier of an eligible service, by means of a
                     telecommunications network or facility; and

   (iii) the use is made for the purpose of the carrying on by the other
        carrier or the supplier of its business relating to the supply of
        services by means of a telecommunications network or facility operated
        by the other carrier or the supplier; or

   (g)  if:

   (i)  the person who made the use is an employee of the carrier; and

   (ii) the fact or document relates to:

                (A)  the operation or maintenance of a telecommunications
                     network or facility operated by the carrier; or

                (B)  the supply of services by the carrier by means of a
                     telecommunications network or facility; and

   (iii) the use is made for the purpose of the carrying on by another
        carrier, or by a supplier of an eligible service, of its business
        relating to the supply of services by means of a
        telecommunications network or facility operated by the first-mentioned
        carrier; or

   (h)  if the use is reasonably necessary for the purpose of the preservation
        of human life at sea; or

   (i)  if the use:

   (i)  relates to the location of a vessel at sea; and

   (ii) is made for maritime communications purposes; or

   (j)  if the use is made in prescribed circumstances.

(5) In this section:
``communication in the course of telecommunications carriage" means a
communication that is being carried by a carrier, and includes a communication
that has been collected or received by a carrier for carriage by it but has
not been delivered by it; '' NAME="employee"> ``employee", in relation to a
carrier or a supplier of an eligible service, includes:

   (a)  a person who performs services for or on behalf of the carrier or
        supplier; and

   (b)  an employee of such a person. ''PRE>