Last updated: [06 10 2025]
1. Who we are
- AustraliaWeb (https://australiaweb.net) publishes practical travel and accessibility guides for Australia.
- Contact: Use our Contact page
2. What this policy covers
- How we collect, use, disclose, and protect your personal information when you use our website.
- This policy does not cover third‑party sites we link to (for example, Aussieloo, tourism boards, transport agencies, or map providers). Check their privacy policies separately.
3. Information we collect
- Information you provide: Messages sent via our contact form (name, email, subject, message, and any information you include).
- Usage data: Pages viewed, links clicked, time on site, device/browser info, and general location (city/region) via analytics cookies or similar.
- Cookies and similar technologies: Used for basic site functionality and analytics.
- Optional newsletter data: If you subscribe to updates (name, email). Only collected if you use our signup form.
4. How we use your information
- To respond to enquiries and provide support.
- To publish and improve content, fix issues, and understand site usage.
- To send optional updates you’ve subscribed to (you can unsubscribe anytime).
- To protect our site from spam, abuse, or security threats.
5. Legal bases (if you are in the EU/UK)
- Consent: Newsletters, non‑essential cookies.
- Legitimate interests: Running and improving our site, responding to enquiries.
- Legal obligation: Where we must keep records or respond to lawful requests.
6. Sharing your information
- We do not sell your personal information.
- Service providers: Hosting, analytics, anti‑spam/form tools, and email services that process data on our behalf under agreements.
- Legal: If required by law, to protect rights, safety, or prevent fraud.
7. Cookies and analytics
We use cookies for:
- Essential site features (e.g., remembering preferences).
- Analytics to understand which pages are helpful.
Managing cookies:
- You can control cookies via your browser settings.
- If you use a consent banner, non‑essential cookies will only run after consent.
Third parties may set their own cookies when you follow links off‑site (e.g., Aussieloo, map embeds, YouTube/Vimeo, social platforms).
8. Data retention
- Contact form messages: Kept for as long as needed to respond and for record‑keeping, then securely deleted or anonymised.
- Analytics data: Retained according to our analytics provider’s default or as configured to a limited window where possible.
- Newsletter data: Kept until you unsubscribe or we close the mailing list.
9. Data location and security
- Our website is hosted in [hosting region/country]. Data may be processed in other locations by our providers.
- We use reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect your data. No method is 100% secure, but we work to minimise risk.
10. Your rights
- Depending on your location, you may have rights to access, correct, delete, or restrict processing of your personal information, and to withdraw consent.
- To exercise rights, contact us. We may need to verify your identity.
11. Children
- Our site is for general audiences and families, but we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 16 without parental consent.
- If you believe a child has provided personal information, contact us to delete it.
12. Third‑party links and tools
- We link to external resources (e.g., Aussieloo, government sites, transport agencies). Their data practices are separate from ours.
- If we embed maps, videos, or social posts, those services may collect usage data under their own policies.
13. Changes to this policy
- We may update this policy from time to time. The latest version will always be on this page with the “Last updated” date.
14. How to contact us
- Use our Contact page
- If you email us directly, only include the information needed for your query. Do not send sensitive information.
Listing claims
When you claim a listing on australiaweb.net we collect your name, role, email, optional phone, and anything you write to help us check your claim. We also keep a one-way scrambled (hashed) version of your IP address to stop abuse, and a log of claim actions (for example “code sent” or “owner removed”). We don’t collect ID documents. We use this only to check and manage the claim, and to contact you about it. Codes are stored scrambled and expire after 30 minutes.
If you report a wrong owner, we keep your name, email and reason to look into it. Rejected or withdrawn claims and closed reports are deleted after 12 months; unfinished claim attempts after 30 days. Approved claims are kept while you manage the listing. To see, correct or delete your claim information, use our contact page.