Last updated: 30th April 2024

Genetics Online Privacy Policy

Genetics Online (we, our or us) is committed to protecting the privacy and rights of individuals in relation to their personal information. This document is Genetics Online’s Privacy Policy and applies in respect of the information collected and used by both Genetics Online and our partners. This policy has been developed in accordance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) (Privacy Act). Genetics Online also complies with the Health Privacy Principles as set out in the Health Records Act 2001 (Vic) where applicable.

This Privacy Policy explains how Genetics Online handles personal information relating to individuals with whom Genetics Online interacts, including customers, medical professionals, consultants and contractors (referred to in this policy as you). This Privacy Policy does not apply to our handling of employee information.

1. Personal information and sensitive information

The expression “personal information” means information or an opinion about an identified individual, or an individual who is reasonably identifiable (directly or indirectly). This may include your name, address, telephone number, email address, online identifier (such as an IP address) and your profession or occupation.

Some personal information is also “sensitive information.” Sensitive information has the meaning given by the Privacy Act. Sensitive information is information about your racial or ethnic origin, your political opinion, your political association, your religious beliefs/affiliations, your philosophical beliefs, whether you are a member of a trade or professional association or trade union, your sexual orientation/practices, your criminal record or your health information (including genetic information or biometric information).

“Health information” is a type of both personal and sensitive information. It includes information or an opinion about:

  • a person’s health, a person’s wishes about the future provision of a health service, or a health service provided or to be provided to a person;
  • other personal information collected to provide or in providing a health service to a person;
  • other personal information collected in connection with a person’s donation, or intended donation of body parts or substances, or organs; and
  • genetic information about a person in a form that is, or could be, predictive of the health of the individual or a genetic relative of the individual.

For the purposes of this Privacy Policy, a reference to personal information should be read as including sensitive and health information, unless otherwise specified.

2. What personal information does Genetics Online collect and hold?

We only collect personal information if it is necessary for one or more of our functions or activities. We will store your information on our practice management system (Gentu and Kawaconn). We may collect the following types of personal information:

  • name;
  • date of birth;
  • gender;
  • mailing or street address;
  • email address;
  • telephone or facsimile number;
  • health and medical history or information 
  • information about your dependents or your pregnancy (where reasonably necessary i.e. collection of family history);
  • bank account or credit card details if you are making a payment for our services;
  • Medicare or health fund details; and
  • Any information gathered from requests, feedback or complaints you may make.

Where the personal information is also sensitive information (including health information), we will only collect it with your prior consent.

Sometimes, we may receive personal information which we did not ask for (i.e. unsolicited information). If this occurs, within a reasonable period of time we will determine whether we could have collected the information by seeking it from you. If we determine that we could not have collected that information from you, we will destroy the information or de-identify it where it is lawful to do so.

We may also collect information from time to time that is not personal information because it does not identify you or any other individual. For example, we may collect anonymous answers to surveys or aggregated information about how people use our website and services.

3. How and when does Genetics Online collect personal information?

We collect your personal information directly via telephone, facsimile, email, post or via our website. We may also receive information via an intermediary we have a relationship with such as a doctor, healthcare provider or other service provider.

If we collect your personal information from someone other than you, we will take reasonable steps to ensure that you are or have been made aware of what information has been collected, and the purpose of that collection. When collecting personal information from you, we may collect it in ways including:

  • during conversations between you and our staff (which includes paid employees and volunteers);
  • when you complete documentation (i.e. registration forms);
  • when you participate in the services we provide or other research activities; or
  • through your access and use of our website.

4. For what purposes does Genetics Online collect, hold and use personal information?

We will only collect and/or use your personal information (including health information) to the extent that this is necessary for one or more of the following activities:

  • to provide services to you;
  • to communicate the outcome of the services (including but not limited to the results of any tests undertaken)
  • to verify your identity, respond to your requests or enquiries, or as otherwise directed by you;
  • to provide you with news, information and material in relation to services provided by Genetics Online, if requested by you;
  • to undertake genetic testing with your consent;
  • to undertake general research activities, including surveys and polls and other reasonably related research activities;
  • for Genetic Online’s administrative, employment, planning, service development, quality control and research purposes;
  • to update our records and keep your contact details up to date;
  • to process and respond to any complaint made by you;
  • to comply with any law, rule, regulation, lawful and binding determination, decision or direction of a regulator, or in cooperation with any governmental authority in Australia; and
  • as otherwise as permitted by law.

We only collect such personal information that we need for these primary purposes or for other (secondary) purposes that are related to a primary purpose. If we hold personal information about you that was collected for a particular purpose (i.e. one of the purposes listed above, being the primary purpose), we will not use or disclose the information for another purpose (i.e. a secondary purpose) without your consent, unless you would reasonably expect us to use it for the secondary purpose, or it is required by law.

You have the right to withdraw your consent at any time but it will not affect the lawfulness of processing based on consent before its withdrawal. This withdrawal may also impact on our ability to provide our services to you and may result in us cancelling the request for services.

Consultations and certain genetic tests are billed against Medicare for a rebate. You will be asked to provide your Medicare number as part of the registration process so we can request a rebate if you are eligible.

In relation to the use of your personal information to provide you with information about our programs and activities, you may at any time request us to not provide you with any direct marketing and fundraising communications or publications. We will provide you with a simple means to opt-out of receiving such correspondence from us.

You may elect to opt-out from receiving direct marketing information at any time by contacting us at the contact details below or, in the case of electronic correspondence, by selecting any unsubscribe option.

Contact email: claire@geneticsonline.com.au

In relation to sensitive information, we will not use or disclose this for the purpose of direct marketing unless you have expressly consented.

5. What happens if you do not provide us with the personal information we request?

You have the right to not identify yourself, including the right to not provide us with your personal information.

If you do not provide us with the personal information described above, we may not be able to provide the requested services to you, either to the same standard or at all, and we may not be able to provide you with information about services that you may want, including information about related services.

6. Parental consent

In order to protect the privacy of children, we require parental or guardian consent for all children under the age of 18 for testing purposes and to be able to use their personal information. No sample or information will be handled without this explicit consent. If this consent is not provided, we will promptly remove any personal information provided from our database.

7.  How does Genetics Online securely hold your personal information?

We will take reasonable steps to protect all personal information that we hold from misuse or loss and from unauthorised access, modification or disclosure. Genetics Online has a strict password policy and all file sharing between us and third parties is password protected. We may hold your information in either electronic or hard copy form. Personal information is destroyed or de-identified by us when it is no longer needed for the primary purposes (or any related secondary purposes) set out in this Privacy Policy and the destruction is permitted by law.

Security risks are mitigated through our commitment to de-identifying or destroying any personal information which is no longer required, where possible and permitted by law.

You should be aware when using our website that no data transmission over the Internet can be guaranteed as totally secure. Although we strive to protect such information, we do not warrant the security of any information that you transmit to us over the Internet (including through our website), and you do so at your own risk.

8. Who can Genetics Online disclose your personal information to?

We may provide your personal information (including your health information), to:

  • our staff, which include our paid employees and contractors;
  • our related bodies corporate, partners, affiliates, contractors and consultants who assist us in providing services to us (i.e., genetic testing laboratories) and are required by us to protect your personal information;
  • your care team – including doctors, allied health professionals. These individuals will only be contacted if they referred you to Genetics Online or if you request your results to be shared with these individuals.
  • If any of your family members contact Genetics Online wanting support around genetic screening, we will not disclose your results to them unless you provide written consent.
  • any organisation for any authorised person with your express consent;
  • a person or organisation to whom we are compelled by law, or otherwise permitted by law, to provide your information; or
  • If we refer you to a third-party service provider, that service provider may also collect and store your personal information with your consent. We make no representation or warranties in relation to the privacy practices of any third-party service provider and we are not responsible for their collection, use or disclosure of your personal information. Third-party service providers are responsible for informing you about their own privacy practices.

9. Does Genetics Online disclose personal information to anyone outside Australia?

We may be required, from time to time, to disclose your personal information in countries outside where you are located for performance of the activities detailed in section 4 of this Privacy Policy. When you provide us with your personal information, you consent to such disclosure as reasonably necessary.

Notwithstanding this, we will take reasonable steps to ensure that the receiving person or organisation is subject to a law, binding scheme or binding contract that provides substantially similar protection to the Privacy Act which you can access and enforce.

We will also take reasonable steps to ensure that the overseas recipient protects your privacy in a manner consistent with this Privacy Policy and requirements of the Privacy Act. To the extent that it is reasonable and practical for us to do so, we will use reasonable endeavours to de-identify any personal information prior to overseas disclosure.

10. How can you access and correct your personal information?

You have a right to seek access to, and correction of the personal information we hold about you.

You may request access to any personal information we hold about you at any time by contacting Genetics Online. Where we hold information that you are entitled access to, we will take reasonable steps to provide you with suitable means of accessing it.

There may be instances where we cannot grant you access to the personal information we hold. For example, we may need to refuse access if granting access would interfere with the privacy of others or if it would result in a breach of confidentiality. If that happens, we will give you written reasons for any refusal.

We will take reasonable steps to ensure that any personal information that we have collected is accurate, up-to-date and complete. We will also take reasonable steps to ensure that any personal information we use or disclose is accurate, up-to-date, complete, and relevant having regard to the purpose of the use or disclosure.

If you believe that personal information we hold about you is incorrect, incomplete or inaccurate, then you may request us to amend it. We will consider whether the information requires amendment. If we agree, we will take reasonable steps to correct the information held. In some circumstances where we correct or update a record, we may still require retention of the original record. We then will provide reasons for our decision in writing and add a note to the personal information stating your requested amendment.

11. Third party websites

If we provide links through our website to third-party websites, plug-ins and applications, we are not responsible for the content, privacy policy and practices of the other organisation. You should familiarise yourself with the privacy policies of any such third parties autonomously.

12. What are your rights under current data protection laws?

The following is a summary of your rights given under the General Data Protection Regulation, noting that these rights are subject to certain exceptions:

  • The right to withdraw consent. We rely on your explicit consent to process your personal information. You have the right to withdraw this consent at any time but it will not affect the lawfulness of processing based on consent before its withdrawal. This withdrawal may also impact on our ability to provide services to you.
  • The right to access. You have the right to obtain confirmation as to whether or not we are processing your personal information. If we are, you have the right to request access to what personal information we possess and how we process it. We may reject part or all of your request if responding would adversely affect the rights or freedoms of others.
  • The right to rectification. You have the right to have any inaccurate or incomplete personal information rectified unless the change would adversely affect the rights or freedoms of others.
  • The right to erasure (the ‘right to be forgotten’). You have the right to have your personal information erased if:
    • that data is no longer necessary for the purposes for which it was collected or processed;
    •  that data is based on consent that you have since withdrawn; or
    • you object to the processing of your personal information and there are no overriding legitimate grounds for our processing.
  • The right to data portability. If we process your personal information based on a contract with you based on your consent, or the processing is carried out by automated means, you have the right to request your personal information in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format, and have us directly transfer your personal information to another controller where technically feasible. We may reject part or all of your request if responding would adversely affect the rights or freedoms of others.
  • The right to restriction of processing. You have the right to restrict the processing of your personal information in the following cases:
    • the accuracy of your personal information is contested. We will then restrict the processing for a period to enable us to verify the accuracy;
    • the processing of your personal information is unlawful and you request the restriction of processing opposed to erasure;
    • the personal data is no longer needed for the purposes of processing, but is required by you for the establishment, exercise or defence of legal claims;
    • you object to the processing of your personal information, pending the verification whether the legitimate grounds of our processing override your rights;
  • Notification of erasure, rectification and restriction. We will communicate any requests made by you for the rectification, erasure or restriction of your personal information to each third party we have disclosed your information to, unless this proves impossible or involves disproportionate effort.
  • The right to object to processing. If we process your personal information based on consent, contract or legitimate interest, you have the right to object to our processing at any time and as permitted by applicable law.
  • The right to lodge a complaint. If you believe we have infringed on your privacy rights, please contact us using the details provided below and we will work with you to try and resolve the issue. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with a competent supervisory authority in the Member State of your habitual residence, place of work or place of the alleged infringement.

To request any of your above rights, please contact us using any of the methods provided at the end of this policy.

13. What is the process for complaining about a breach of privacy?

If you believe that your privacy has been breached, please contact Genetics Online (see details in section 15 below) and provide details of the incident so that we can investigate it.

We require any complaint to be made in writing first. We will then endeavour to acknowledge receipt of your complaint within 7 business days. If we are unable to resolve your complaint to your satisfaction, a complaint can also be made to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner.

14. Changes to this Privacy Policy

We reserve the right to change, modify or update this Privacy Policy from time to time by publication of the revised version. Any revision to our Privacy Policy will be published on our website. The revised version shall take effect immediately upon publication.

15. Contacting us 

If you have an enquiries about

  • this Privacy Policy,
  • would like to access or amend the personal information we hold about you or if you
  • Have a complaint regarding the treatment of your privacy
  • Have a complaint about the possible breach of your privacy, please contact us at: claire@geneticsonline.com.au

We will treat your enquiry or complaint confidentially. One of our staff will contact you within a reasonable time after you have made contact with us to discuss your enquiry or complaint and outline options regarding how it may be dealt with. We will aim to ensure that any complaint is resolved in a timely and appropriate manner.

Refund Policy

The refund policy applies to the following purchases; tests or services purchased from Genetics Online.

1. General

  • We offer refunds and replacements in order with the Australian Consumer Law and on the terms and conditions set out in this Refund Policy 
  • Any benefits set out in this policy may apply in addition to the consumers rights under the Australian Consumer Law 
  • Before making this purchase, please read this Policy so you can understand your rights and what you can expect from us if you are not satisfied with your order.

2. Australian Consumer Law

Under the Australian Consumer Law: Our goods and services come with guarantees that cannot be excluded under the Australian Consumer Law. For major failures with the goods you are entitled

  • To cancel the purchase; and 
  • To a refund for the price of goods; and 
  • Compensation for any damage or loss (whether direct or consequential) that was, or reasonably ought to have been foreseen by us.

If the failure with the service does not amount to a major failure you are entitled to a re-supply of the goods with a reasonable time, or to cancel the purchase and be provided with a refund of any price paid.

We offer refunds and replacements in accordance with the Australian Consumer Law.

  • The Australian Consumer Law provides a set of consumer guarantees that protect consumers when they buy products or services. 
  • Under the Australian Consumer Law, we are required to adhere to certain consumer guarantees. If there is any inconsistency between this policy and the Australian Consumer Law, the provisions of the Australian Consumer Law will take precedence. 
  • We are committed to upholding our obligations under the Australian Consumer Law and ensuring that our customers are protected by these guarantees.
  • Further information about the Australian Consumer Law And these Consumer Guarantees is available from the website of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission. 
  • If a product or service which you purchased from us has a major failure (as defined in the Australian Consumer Law) then you may be entitled to a replacement or refund. You may also be entitled for compensation for any reasonably foreseeable loss or damage resulting from that major failure. 
  • If a product or service which you purchased from us has a failure which does not amount to a major failure (as defined by the Australian Consumer Law) then you may still be entitled to have the goods replaced.

3. Cancellation and Change of Mind Policy

In the event that you receive the products and services you have purchased, as stated, but that you simply change your mind, we may, at our discretion, offer you a refund or exchange, provided that:

  • You notify us within 7 days of the purchase date 
  • In case of services, that the services have not already been performed
  • One of the following conditions are satisfied:
    • The product has not been used
    • The product has not been shipped to the Lab

4. Products Damaged During Delivery

In the event that the product you ordered has been damaged during delivery:

  • Please contact us within 3 days of receipt.
  • We will arrange to replace it with an equivalent product, or to refund it, provided that you have contacted us within 3 days from the date of receiving the product.

5. Exceptions

Notwithstanding the other provisions in this policy, we may refuse to provide a replacement or refund for a product or service purchased by you if:

  • You missed the product in a way which caused the problem
  • You knew or were made aware of the problem(s) in the product or service before you purchased it
  • You asked for a service to be done in a certain manner, or you asked for alterations, to a product, against our advice, or you were unclear about what you wanted
  • Any other exceptions that apply under the Australian Consumer Law

6. Shipping cost for Returns

In the event that the product you have purchased fails to meet one or more Consumer guarantees under the Australian Consumer Law, we shall bear any cost of shipping a replacement of the said product (“The Returned Product”) to you.

7. Response time

We aim to process any requests for returns or refunds (if applicable) within 5 business days of receipt.

International users

Our Websites are controlled and operated by Genetics Online. Genetics Online makes no representation that materials in our Websites are appropriate or available for use in all locations worldwide. If you are accessing the Website from outside Australia, you are solely responsible for compliance with any local laws, if and to the extent local laws are applicable. Access to our Websites from jurisdictions where the contents of our Websites are illegal or penalised is prohibited.

If you are a non-Australian user, you acknowledge and agree that Genetics Online may collect and use your information and disclose it to other entities outside your resident jurisdiction. In addition, such information may be stored on servers located outside your resident jurisdiction. Australian law may not provide the degree of protection for information that is available in other countries. By providing us with your information, you acknowledge that you consent to the transfer of such information to Australia or other jurisdictions with different, and in some cases, lower levels of protection for your information. If you do not consent to such transfer, please do not use our Websites.