Privacy and Confidentiality Policy

PRIVACY AND CONFIDENTIALITY POLICY

The terms ‘privacy’ and ‘confidentiality’ are commonly used interchangeably. However, they are related but not identical concepts. Privacy refers to the right to control access to one self, and includes physical privacy such as ensuring curtains are closed during physical examinations. Privacy may also relate to information about oneself, and information privacy laws regulate the handling of personal information through enforceable privacy principles. Confidentiality relates to information only. The legal duty of confidentiality obliges all team members of PGCS despite of authority whatsoever he/she holds to protect their clients against inappropriate disclosure of personal or commercial information.

The Precise Global Certification Services Pvt. Ltd (PGCS) Code of Ethics requires all staff
to maintain a client’s confidentiality.

Exceptions to this must be taken very seriously. They may include where there is a serious risk to the client or another person, where required by law . . . or where there are overwhelming societal interests.

The Code also requires confidentiality to be maintained, although it makes some exception ‘where there is a serious risk to the client or another person, where required by law, where part of approved resources, or where there are overwhelming societal interests’.

It is important to maintain privacy and confidentiality because:

clients are concerned about their business related practices
Clients want to know that they can choose who has access to information about them.

The Privacy Act contains ten National Privacy Principles governing minimum privacy standards for handling personal information, including:

the need to gain consent for the collection of information
what to tell individuals when information is collected
what to consider before passing information on to others
the details that should be included in a service provider’s Privacy Policy
securing and storing information
Providing individuals with a right to access their records.

Some National Privacy Principles state that professionals must meet certain obligations, while other National Privacy Principles require that they ‘take reasonable steps’ to meet stated obligations. While the different layers of federal, state and territory laws and regulations do, in some instances, complicate privacy obligations, in most cases the privacy protections required by Commonwealth and state or territory privacy laws are similar.

CONFIDENTIALITY DECLARATIONS

All staff, Sub Contractors, CEOs and Committee Members will be required to agree to PGCS confidentiality policy and sign a confidentiality agreement. Sub-contractors will also sign an agreement which also contains the responsibility to maintain confidentiality.