Privacy

latest update: 15 July 2025

Privacy Statement

This Privacy Statement explains how we handle personal information for QLife.

In this Privacy Statement, ‘us’, ‘we’ and ‘our’ mean QLife.

We review this statement regularly to keep it up to date with the law, technology and the way we work.

When we change this statement we will put a notice on our website and keep it on for at least 30 days.

See an Easy Read version of this privacy statement HERE.

Personal information

‘Personal information’ means information or an opinion about someone who is identified or is reasonably identifiable.

We will handle personal information openly and honestly. We comply with the Australian Privacy Principles in the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) (Privacy Act) and other privacy laws that apply.

We will protect your privacy when we handle your personal information. For example:

• we will only collect information we need to
• we will not share your personal information unless you consent or we have to by law (see ‘Sharing information’ below)
• we will make sure your information is kept safe and not lost.

QLife staff and volunteers must follow this Privacy Statement.

Sometimes we receive sensitive personal information about service users (for example, sexual orientation, intersex status or health information). This information has a higher level of privacy protection than other personal information.

What information we collect

When you contact our phone or webchat service

We are a private and confidential service. You don’t have to give us any personal information when you contact us by phone or webchat.

We don’t collect or track identifying information like your name, email, IP address or full phone number.

We do ask for some information that won’t identify you. For example, we will ask your postcode, gender or Aboriginal/Torres Strait Islander background. This information helps us support you better and give you suitable referrals. We store this information on our secure servers.

We don't collect or store full phone numbers, and we use an encryption system which hides all but the last four digits of a phone number. This helps us know how many different people try to contact us and when, so we can try and roster enough people on.

We keep QLife webchat scripts for supervision and reporting reasons. If you give us personal information during a webchat, this information is part of the webchat script. We store webchat scripts securely. We won’t use them for any other reason unless the law requires it (see ‘Sharing information’ below).

Beyond our phone and webchat services, when and how we collect personal information

This personal information we collect could include:

• name
• contact details including phone numbers and addresses
• occupation
• age
• health needs
• what supports you need.

We may collect your personal information when you:

• ask for or get a product or service from us
• subscribe to our newsletter
• provide a product or service to us
• communicate with us (e.g. by email, phone or mail).

We will ask if you consent to use your information.

We collect personal information using:

• forms for the referral database
• complaints or feedback forms
• expressions of interest for advisory groups or codesign activities
• face-to-face meetings
• interviews, business cards, general electronic communications and telephone conversations.

We also collect personal information from our social media web pages (e.g. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn).

If you give us sensitive or identifying information about someone else, you must have their consent to give us that information for that purpose

Sharing information

We share aggregated, deidentified data inside QLife and with other organisations to help us operate, plan, report and manage funding.

We will only share your personal information if you consent, or if the law requires us to.

Calls may occasionally be monitored for service learning and development opportunities, but in line with our commitment to anonymity calls are not recorded. QLife staff and volunteers operate on a shared confidentiality model, and information is sometimes shared between different team members to help our service operate effectively.

When the law requires us to share information

If you tell us in a call or webchat about some situations, the law requires us to report them to the relevant authority.

Risk to someone under 18

If you tell us about a risk to someone who is under 18 years old, we must notify the child protection agency in that child’s state.

The peer supporter must tell their manager and together they will report any information they have. You can decide how much detail you want to give us about the issue.

Imminent risk of serious harm

If you tell us about an imminent or serious risk of harm to you or someone else (of any age) we will talk to you about it and the peer supporter will try to work with you to make a plan for safety. If we’re not able to do that with you, the peer supporter may contact emergency services.

We must give these services any information we have (for example, postcode, details about the call, last four digits of phone number). You can choose to consent to share personal information with us so we can get help.

How we store and protect personal information

We do what we reasonably can to protect your personal information from being:

• accessed, shared or changed without permission
• misused
• lost.

To protect your information we will keep our offices secure, and use locked cabinets, firewalls, password access, secure servers and encryption of credit card transactions.

We use Mobile Geeks as our IT subcontractor to ensure our systems and networks are secure.

The personal information you give us is stored on secure IT networks managed by LGBTIQ+ Health Australia.

When we can’t guarantee your privacy

We can’t guarantee the security of information sent electronically or by mail. If you give us personal information over the internet or mail it is at your own risk.

Where we can’t control the security of the information, we can’t accept responsibility if your personal information is:

• misused
• interfered with
• lost
• accessed without permission
• changed
• disclosed.

Please tell us immediately if you suspect this has happened to your personal information, or if there has been any other privacy breach.

Seeing and changing your personal information

You can ask about your personal information at any time. You can look at your personal information and make changes if anything is wrong.

Destroying your personal information

We will destroy your personal information when we no longer need it. You can ask us to destroy or deidentify your personal information.

If your personal information is accessed without your consent

If anything happens to your personal information, we will tell you. We will make sure that your information is safe and we will protect you if your information is accessed.

Questions and complaints

If you have questions about your privacy you can email ask@qlife.org.au.

If you are unhappy with how your privacy has been handled, you can make a complaint.

How to make a privacy complaint

• Email ask@qlife.org.au
• Call LGBTIQ+ Health Australia on 02 7209 6301 between 9am and 5pm Monday to Friday, and ask to speak to someone from the QLife team.

• Write a complaint and post it to:

Suite 2101,

Level 21, 233 Castlereagh Street

Sydney NSW 2000

Make an anonymous complaint on our online complaint form.

You can also make a privacy complaint to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner.