Privacy Policy
Introduction
Skills Connect is committed to protecting your privacy and ensuring the confidentiality and security of your personal information. This Privacy Policy outlines how we collect, use, disclose, store, and handle your personal information in accordance with the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs) under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and other relevant Australian legislation.
By accessing our website, using our services, or providing your information to us, you consent to the practices described in this policy.
If you do not agree with the terms of this Privacy Policy, please do not use our website or services.
The Information We Collect
We collect information that is reasonably necessary for our business functions and to provide our services to you. The types of information we collect include:
Personal Information You Provide
This is information you voluntarily give to us through forms, correspondence, phone calls, or in person. It may include:
Identity Data: Your full name, date of birth, gender, and photographic identification (e.g., driver’s licence, passport).
Contact Data: Your residential and postal address, email address, and telephone number.
Financial Data: Your payment information (e.g., credit/debit card details, bank account details) for processing transactions. Note: we use secure third-party payment processors and do not store full credit card details on our servers.
Background Data: Your educational history, qualifications, employment history, resumes/CVs, references, and details of your skills and experience necessary for the Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) assessment process.
Sensitive Information: We may also collect sensitive information, which is a subset of personal information afforded a higher level of protection. This includes:
Professional or trade association memberships.
Nationality or country of birth (for identification verification).
We will only collect sensitive information with your consent, or where required or authorised by law.
Information Collected Automatically
When you interact with our website, we may automatically collect:
Technical Data: Your IP address, browser type and version, time zone setting, browser plug-in types, operating system, and platform.
Usage Data: Information about how you use our website, including the full URL clickstream to, through, and from our site (including date and time), pages you viewed, page response times, download errors, and length of visits to certain pages.
This data is collected via cookies and similar technologies. You can manage your cookie preferences through your browser settings.
How We Use Your Information
We use your personal information for the primary purpose for which it was collected, for related secondary purposes within your reasonable expectations, with your consent, or as required by law. These purposes include:
To provide, operate, and maintain our RPL and related services.
To assess your skills, experience, and qualifications against nationally recognised units of competency.
To process and complete transactions, including issuing invoices and receipts.
To communicate with you, including sending administrative information (e.g., service updates, security alerts, and support messages), and responding to your inquiries.
For internal record keeping, administrative purposes, and quality assurance.
To improve, personalise, and expand our website and services (e.g., by analysing usage trends).
To comply with our legal and regulatory obligations, including those relating to Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) under the National Vocational Education and Training Regulator Act 2011 (Cth), where applicable.
To protect our rights, property, or safety, and that of our users or others, including for the purposes of fraud prevention.
Disclosure of Your Information
We may disclose your personal information to third parties only in the following circumstances:
Service Providers: We engage trusted third parties to perform functions and provide services to us (“Data Processors”), such as IT and system administration services, payment processing, document verification services, and professional advisors (e.g., lawyers, accountants). These third parties are contractually obligated to handle your information confidentially and in accordance with the APPs.
Assessors and Verifiers: To independent qualified assessors and industry experts for the purpose of evaluating your RPL application.
Government and Regulatory Bodies: Where required by law, to Australian government departments, agencies, or regulatory bodies (e.g., the Australian Skills Quality Authority (ASQA), the Australian Taxation Office (ATO)), or to comply with a subpoena, court order, or other legal process.
Successors in Title: In the event of a merger, acquisition, restructuring, or sale of assets, your information may be transferred to the new entity under the terms of this Privacy Policy.
With Your Consent: For any other purpose for which you have provided your express consent.
We will not sell, rent, or trade your personal information to third parties for marketing purposes.
International Transfers
We primarily store and process your personal information in Australia. However, some of our third-party service providers (e.g., cloud storage providers) may be based overseas. In such cases, we will take reasonable steps to ensure that any overseas recipient does not breach the APPs in relation to your information. This may include ensuring the country has comparable privacy protections or by entering into a contractual agreement with the recipient.
Your Rights and Choices
Under the Privacy Act, you have several rights regarding your personal information, including the right to:
Access: Request access to the personal information we hold about you.
Correction: Request that we correct any inaccurate, out-of-date, incomplete, irrelevant, or misleading personal information we hold about you.
Anonymity: Where lawful and practicable, you have the option to deal with us anonymously or by using a pseudonym.
To exercise any of these rights, please contact our Privacy Officer using the details in the “Contact Us” section below. We will respond to your request within a reasonable period and will not charge you for making such a request, though we may charge a reasonable fee for providing access if the cost is high.
Data Security
We implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your personal information from misuse, interference, loss, and unauthorised access, modification, or disclosure. These measures include:
Secure servers and networks with encryption and firewalls.
Secure document storage and disposal procedures.
Limiting access to personal information to employees and contractors on a need-to-know basis.
Regular reviews of our information collection, storage, and processing practices.
While we strive to protect your information, no method of electronic transmission or storage is 100% secure. We cannot guarantee the absolute security of your data.
Data Retention
We will only retain your personal information for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes for which it was collected, to comply with our legal obligations (e.g., under Australian taxation law or as required by our registering body, we are required to retain assessment records for specific periods), and to resolve disputes and enforce our agreements.
Changes to This Privacy Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technology, legal requirements, or for other reasons. The updated version will be posted on our website with an updated “Last Updated” date. We encourage you to review this policy periodically to stay informed.
Contact Us
If you have any questions, concerns, or complaints about this Privacy Policy or how we handle your personal information, please contact our designated Privacy Officer:
Skills Connect
Email: admin@skillsconnect.au (Please use “Privacy Enquiry” in the subject line)
Phone: +61 488 805 955
Post: 440 Twelfth Ave, Rossmore, NSW 2179
We will investigate and respond to your complaint within a reasonable timeframe.
