Integrated Public Number Database (IPND)

The IPND is an industry-wide database that contains information related to all listed and unlisted public telephone numbers in Australia, regardless of the service provider. The IPND came into operation on 1 July 1998 and is maintained by Telstra under the Carrier Licence Conditions (Telstra Corporation Limited) Declaration 1997 (File size: 51Kb).

What information is in the IPND?

The information held in relation to each public telephone number includes:

• the telephone number itself
• name of the customer
• address of the customer
• the name of the carriage service provider (CSP)
• the purpose for which the telephone number is used (for example, government, business, charitable or private).

The IPND also includes information about whether a public telephone number is to be listed or unlisted in telephone directories. Unlisted numbers are flagged and not provided to public number directory producers.

Protection of personal information contained in the IPND

It is the Telecommunications Act 1997 and the Privacy Act 1988 that create the legal obligations for protecting personal information to be complied with by a CSP.

Telecommunications Act 1997 (the Telco Act)

The Telco Act requires carriers, nominated carriage service providers and number database operators to protect the confidentiality of information they hold about communications, carriage services and customers. In certain circumstances information about communications can be disclosed. Examples of the circumstances in which this can occur include:

• law enforcement agencies where it is reasonably necessary for the enforcement of criminal law, enforcement of laws imposing financial penalties, or the protection of public revenue
• calls to emergency service numbers and the performance of carriers in preventing or lessening serious and imminent threats to life or health
• when disclosure takes place with knowledge or consent of the person concerned
• for the production of a telephone directory such as the White Pages ® or the provision of directory assistance services.

The Telco Act makes it an offence for CSPs to disclose or use IPND information for purposes that do not fit with the exceptions (such as the above examples) provided for under the legislation.

The Telco Act was amended in December 2006 to:

• insert a definition of public number directory (PND) into the Act;
• permit access to information in the IPND for a limited number of research purposes considered to be in the public interest, as set out in a legislative instrument;
• give ACMA a gatekeeper role in granting authorisations to access information in the IPND for the publication and maintenance of telephone directories and the conduct of permitted research; and
• introduce criminal offences and penalties for breaching a condition of authorisation and for unauthorised disclosure and use of IPND data.

Further information on the amendments can be found on the page Telecommunications Amendment (Integrated Public Number Database) Act 2006.

Privacy Act 1988 (the Privacy Act)

The Office of the Federal Privacy Commission (OFPC) monitors the arrangements relating to disclosure of information under the Privacy Act.

Amendments to the Privacy Act, which came into effect on 21 December 2001, extended the operation of the Privacy Act to include regulating the handling of personal information by private sector organisations, and to provide the community with additional protection on privacy issues. The legislation also established ten national privacy principles (NPPs), which apply to all corporations. The NPPs provide a framework against which the corporation must make judgements about how best to interact with individuals and protect their privacy. NPP2 sets out the general rule that an organisation must only use or disclose personal information for the primary purpose it was collected. The use of that information for a secondary purpose is not allowed except for a number of limited circumstances. Examples of these circumstances include:

• if the secondary purpose is related to the primary purpose and the consumer would reasonably expect the disclosure; or
• the consent of the consumer has been obtained. The OFPC undertakes investigations to determine NPP compliance of particular corporations in given circumstances.

How the IPND can be accessed and utilised

The access and use of the IPND by industry is governed by an Australian Communications Industry Forum (ACIF) Code of practice. The Code, ACIF C555: Integrated Public Number Database Data Provider, Data User and IPND Manager, deals with the accuracy, storage and disclosure of information held in the IPND. A working group commissioned by ACIF developed the code. It was completed in January 2003 and registered with the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA).

Data users (CSPs and public number directory producers) must register with the IPND Manager to gain access to the IPND data. In accordance with the Act, the IPND can only be used for a number of specific purposes:

• providing directory assistance services;
• providing operator services;
• publishing and maintaining public number directories; and
• to provide location dependent carriage services.

Law enforcement agencies and emergency service organisations may also access IPND information.

The Telco Act provides for civil penalties were there has been a breach of an industry Code (in this case ACIF Code C555).

Additional information

The ACMA has recently issued a discussion paper on regulating customer information held in the IPND. The discussion paper can be accessed on www.acma.gov.au (follow the links to media releases).

Further information on communication and privacy issues can be found on the OFPC website at http://www.privacy.gov.au.

• Document ID: 3864 |
• Last modified: 6 February 2008, 12:26pm