Australian Securities
and Investments Commission
Office address (inc courier deliveries):
Level 5, 100 Market Street,
Sydney NSW 2000
Mail ad dress for Sy dney office:
GPO Box 9827,
Melbourne VIC 3001
Tel: +61 1300 935 075
Fax: +61 1300 729 000
15 January 2024
www.asic.gov.au
NoseyRosey
By email:
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx
Freedom of Information Request No. FOI 296-2024
Notice of Decision
Dear applicant
I refer to your request dated
14 December 2024 under the
Freedom of Information Act 1982
(
FOI Act) in which you seek access to documents in the possession of the Australian Securities
and Investments Commission (
ASIC).
On 18 December 2024, I issued you a section 24AB Practical Refusal Notice on the basis that
the request did not satisfy the requirement in paragraph 15(2)(b) of FOI Act.
On 30 December 2024, you revised the scope of your FOI request.
In accordance with section 24AB(8) of the FOI Act, the time for processing your request is
suspended from the day that you receive this letter, and resumes on the day after ASIC
receives a valid revised request. Therefore, the new due date of your decision is
27 January
2025.
On 30 December 2024, you revised the scope of your request to the following:
•
“Memoranda of understanding (MOUs), service-level agreements (SLAs), or other
documents formalising the sharing of personal information originating from DVA.
Governance Documents
•
Policies, procedures, or guidelines detailing how ASIC accesses, stores, handles, or
uses personal information from DVA.
Privacy and Ethical Deliberations
•
Any privacy impact assessments, internal reviews, or ethical considerations recorded
regarding the receipt, use, or sharing of DVA data.
Purpose and Use
•
Documents such as project proposals, internal reports, or briefings explaining why
DVA client information was accessed or shared, how it was intended to be used, and
the expected outcomes.”
The 30-day statutory time period for processing your request commenced on the day after
the day on which your request was received.
I am the authorised decision-maker for the purposes of section 23 of the FOI Act and this
letter gives notice of my decision.
Decision
My decision is to refuse access to your request on the basis that there are no documents in
scope.
I have taken the following material into account in making my decision:
• the terms of your request;
• details of the searches conducted by ASIC staff;
• the FOI Act, specifically section 24A(1); and
• the Australian Information Commissioner’s FOI Guidelines issued under s 93A of the FOI
Act (FOI Guidelines).
Searches undertaken
Teams with subject matter expertise conducted searches relevant to the terms of your
request. The searches involved the subject matter experts using manual and keyword
searches across the relevant case management systems.
I am of the view that all reasonable steps were undertaken to locate documents that fall
within scope of the current request.
Reasons for my decision
Requests may be refused if documents cannot be found, do not exist or have not been
received
Section 24A(1) of the FOI Act sets out the following:
(1) An agency or Minister may refuse a request for access to a document if:
a. all reasonable steps have been taken to find the document; and
b. the agency or Minister is satisfied that the document:
I.
is in the agency's or Minister's possession but cannot be found; or
II.
does not exist.
I am of view that ASIC has taken all reasonable steps to find documents within the scope of
your current request and I am satisfied that they cannot be found or do not exist.
Review rights
In the event that you are dissatisfied with the decision:
1. You may, within 30 days after the day on which you have been notified of this
decision, apply in writing to ASIC for an internal review of my decision under section
54B of the FOI Act. This review is an independent process conducted by a Senior
Freedom of Information Officer at ASIC. This request should be addressed to me or to
the Senior Manager, Freedom of Information, by email to xxxxxxxxxx@xxxx.xxx.xx.
2. You may within 60 days after the day on which you have been notified of this
decision, apply in writing to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner
(OAIC) for a review of my decision under section 54N of the FOI Act. You may
contact the OAIC by post at GPO Box 5218 Sydney NSW 2001, by email at
xxxxx@xxxx.xxx.xx or by telephone on 1300 363 992.
Right to complain
3. You may lodge a complaint with the OAIC in relation to the conduct of ASIC in the
handling of this request. You may contact the OAIC as set out above
If you have any questions or wish to discuss, please contact me on (02) 9911 2454 or by email
at
xxxxxxx.xxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxx.xxx.xx.
Yours sincerely
Shoumia Nithiananthan
Privacy and Freedom of Information Lawyer
Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC)
