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Privacy Policy

About this policy

This is the privacy policy of The Carbon Farming Foundation Ltd (ABN 67 645 498 004, AFS Representative No.001298535) (‘CFF’, ‘we’ or ‘us’). This privacy policy (‘policy’) applies to all information collected by us, including via any of our websites at the domains carbonfarming.org.au, news.carbonfarming.org.au, carbonscout.online, and carbonscout.com.au (‘website’).

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The purpose of this policy is to ensure that any individual who provides personal information to CFF is protected under Australian law in accordance with the Australian Privacy Principles (‘APPs’) in the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) (‘Privacy Act’) and any other relevant laws. Words defined in the Privacy Act have the same meaning when used in this policy.

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Personal information

When we refer to personal information, we mean information from which your identity is reasonably apparent. 

 

Our services are not directed at individuals under the age of 16 and we do not knowingly collect personal information from such individuals. If we become aware that a person under the age of 16 has provided us with personal information, we will take steps to delete or de-identify such information.

 

The kinds of personal information we collect about you will depend on how you interact with us:

  • If you email us: your name, email address and any other information contained within your email.

  • If you register on our website: your name, email address, address and phone number.

  • If you place an order on our website: your name, email address, billing address and phone number.

  • If you mail us: your name, mailing address and any other information you provide in the letter.

  • If you call us: your name, phone number and any other information you provide us.

  • If you contact us via social media: your name, social media account username, date of birth, occupation, address or any other information publicly available on your account or that you may choose to provide us.

  • When you use our website: We collect general site traffic data for the purpose of site maintenance and improvement and understanding which and how often certain pages are viewed. While this data is generally anonymous, we may collect your IP address, approximate geographic location and data sent to us by your web browser, such as your operating system. Please refer to the ‘Advertising and tracking’ and ‘Cookies’ sections below for further information.

 

Where it is lawful and practicable to do so, you may remain anonymous in your dealings with us. However, if you remain anonymous, we may not be able to provide our services to you.

 

If you provide the personal information of another person in any correspondence with us, you warrant that that person has consented to the collection of their personal information for the reasons it is being collected.

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Sensitive information 

Sensitive information is any information about a person’s racial or ethnic origin, political opinion, membership of a political association, religious beliefs or affiliations, philosophical beliefs, membership of a professional or trade association, membership of a trade union, sexual preferences or practices, criminal record or health information. 

 

We will not ask you to disclose sensitive information to us. If sensitive information is disclosed to us, we will take reasonable steps to de-identify the data or destroy it where we can. 

How we collect personal information  

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We collect personal information in a variety of ways. We mainly collect information from you when you knowingly provide it to us including via signing up to our newsletter or contact us on our website. We may also collect personal information about you from your representatives, including your spouse, business partner or professional adviser (where it is reasonable and practical to do so).

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Information collected from third parties  

We may also collect information about you from other parties such as credit reporting agencies and identification verification services. 

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Processing payments 

We use an external payment processor, Stripe (or any substitute third party payment service). Stripe provides a secure platform to collect and process your credit card or payment details. We do not collect, store or hold your payment information, and any payment information you provide is subject to Stripe’s privacy policy and terms of use. 

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Registering for our events 

We will not use or disclose personal information about you for direct marketing purposes. We may use or disclose personal information to invite you to events or participate in activities conducted by us. If you subscribe to our newsletter or create an account on our website, you will have consented to receiving invitations to events or activities. 

 

If you do not wish to receive any invitations to events or activities from us, please click on the ‘unsubscribe’ link in any email we send you and you will be removed from future invitations to events or activities. If you wish to know the source of the information being used, you may contact us via the Contact Us page on our website or using one of the methods set out below. We will respond to your request as soon as practicable. 

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Advertising and tracking 

When you view our advertisements or links on a Third Party website, that third party may use ‘cookies’ and in some cases ‘web beacons’ to collect information on you such as: 

  • the server your computer is logged onto; 

  • your browser type; 

  • the date and time of your visit; 

  • and the performance of their marketing efforts. 

 

When you access our website after viewing one of our advertisements or links on a Third Party website, the third party may collect information on how you utilise our website (e.g., which pages you view) and whether you complete an online order or have subscribed to our newsletter. 

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Cookies 

We use ‘cookies’ to provide you with better and more customised service and with a more effective website. When you access our website, you consent to our use of cookies as described in this policy and our website Terms of Use. 

 

A ‘cookie’ is a small text file placed on your computer by our web page server. A cookie can later be retrieved by our webpage servers. Cookies are frequently used on websites, and you can choose if and how a cookie will be accepted by configuring your preferences and options in your internet browser. 

 

We use cookies for different purposes such as: 

  • to allocate a unique number to your internet browsers;

  • to customise our website for you; 

  • for statistical purposes; 

  • to identify you if you have accessed a Third Party website; and 

  • for security purposes. 

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Security of information 

We take all reasonable steps to protect the information in our systems from misuse, interference, loss, and any unauthorised access, modification or disclosure. If we no longer require your information, and we are legally permitted to, we will take all reasonable steps to destroy or de-identify the information. 

 

We take reasonable steps to preserve the security of cookie and personal information in accordance with this policy. If your browser is suitably configured, it will advise you whether the information you are sending us will be secure (encrypted) or not secure (unencrypted). 

 

Do we disclose your personal information? 

In the course of conducting our business we may provide your personal information to: 

  • our related companies; 

  • employees, contractors and subcontractors; 

  • your representatives; 

  • government and regulatory authorities;  

  • our professional advisers, including our lawyers, auditors and accountants; and 

  • Our Licensee relating to our Australian Financial Services authorisations. The Carbon Farming Foundation is a Corporate Authorised Representative (AFS Representative No.001298535) of True Oak Investments Ltd (ABN 81 002 558 956, AFSL 238184). 

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We may disclose your personal information to third parties: 

  • to meet the purpose for which it was submitted; 

  • if we have your consent to do so or otherwise when we are authorised by law; 

  • if we are required by law to disclose the information.  

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We may disclose your personal information to our third party service providers when we engage them to undertake works as part of our services to our clients, including those who provide us with: 

  • mailing services including our newsletter; 

  • billing and debt recovery functions; 

  • marketing functions; and 

  • website, data management and technology services.

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Overseas recipients  

We only use Australian software service providers. To the best of our knowledge, all of your personal information is stored on Australian servers and will not be disclosed or transferred to any overseas entities or other countries. 

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Updating your personal information 

It is important to us that the personal information we hold about you is accurate and up to date. During the course of our relationship with you we may ask you to inform us if any of your personal information has changed. 

 

If you wish to make any changes to your personal information, you can do so by contacting us via the Contact Us page on our website or by using one of the methods set out below. We will generally rely on you to ensure the information we hold about you is accurate or complete. 

 

We will correct your personal information at the time of your request if appropriate. Otherwise, we will provide an initial response to you within seven days of receiving your request. Where reasonable, and after our investigation, we will provide you with details about whether we have corrected the personal information within 30 days. 

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Access and correction to your personal information 

We will provide you with access to the personal information we hold about you. You may request access to any of the personal information we hold about you at any time. We may charge an administrative fee for our costs of retrieving and supplying the information to you. 

 

Depending on the type of request that you make we may respond to your request immediately, otherwise we usually respond to you within seven days of receiving your request. We may need to contact other entities to properly investigate your request. 

 

There may be situations where we are not required to provide you with access to your personal information, for example, where the information is stored on another entity’s server and we do not have access to it, if the information relates to existing or anticipated legal proceedings, if your request is vexatious or if the information is commercially sensitive. 

 

An explanation will be provided to you if we deny you access to the personal information we hold about you. If we refuse to correct personal information, we will provide you with our reasons for not correcting the information.  

 

We may require you to provide proof of or verify your identity if you want to access or correct your personal information that we hold. This verification of identity may occur over the phone, by email, video call or in person. 

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When you contact us 

We must be certain of your identity before we can discuss specific account details with you. If you contact us to discuss your account, you must be able to prove your identity. This ensures that we are able to protect your personal information by only giving it to you or someone who can prove that they are lawfully authorised to act on your behalf. 

 

If you have a general enquiry that does not involve discussing your personal information, you do not have to provide identification. In these situations, you will be able to deal with us without identifying yourself. 

 

Complaints 

We are committed to the protection of your privacy and personal information. For more detailed information about complaints please see our Complaints Handling Policy on our website. Complaints you may have about your personal information can be lodged with us by using the contact details below.  

 

Website: www.carbonfarming.org.au   

Call: (08) 6835 1140, Monday to Friday, 9:00am–5:00pm (AWST) 

Email: feedback@carbonfarming.org.au

Write to: 

Complaints Officer 

43B Town View Terrace 

Margaret River WA 6285 

 

We will acknowledge your complaint within one business day of its receipt. We will investigate the matter internally and attempt to resolve any complaints within 10 working days. If resolution is not possible within this timeframe, we will contact you to discuss the matter further. A written response will be made as soon as possible and within 30 calendar days of receiving your complaint. 

 

If you are not satisfied with CFF’s handling of your complaint or any decision, or if you do not receive a response from CFF within the relevant timeframe, you may have the right to have your complaint heard, free of charge, by the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA), an external dispute resolution service established by the Government. 

 

If we have not had an opportunity to resolve your complaint first, AFCA may ask us to work with you to investigate and respond to your complaint before they commence their process. You are encouraged to pursue internal dispute resolution before making a complaint to AFCA. 

 

AFCA’s contact details are:  

Call: 1800 931 678 (free call) 

Email: info@afca.org.au      

Write to: 

Australian Financial Complaints Authority 

GPO Box 3 

Melbourne VIC 3001 

Website: www.afca.org.au     

 

Please note: Time limits may apply to complain to AFCA so you should act promptly or otherwise consult the AFCA website to find out if or when the time limit relevant to your circumstances expires. 

 

You may also have the right under the Privacy Act to make a complaint to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC). 

 

Attention: Director of Compliance (Investigations)  

Office of the Australian Information Commissioner 

Post: GPO Box 5218 Sydney NSW 2001 

Telephone: 1300 363 992 

Email: enquiries@oaic.gov.au 

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Changes to this policy 

This policy is subject to change over time without prior notice. We may amend this policy by updating this posting. The current version at the time we collect or use your personal information is the version that will apply. 

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Copies of this policy 

You can ask us to provide you with a copy of this policy, including a hard copy, by contacting us using the contact details above.

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Last updated: 8 September 2023

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