Responsibilities under the Telecommunications Act
The Department is responsible for providing policy advice to the Minister on aspects of the 
Telecommunications Act 1997 (the Act). These policy responsibilities include parts eight and 13 to 16 of the Act, covering:
- emergency call services;
- telecommunications privacy;
- law enforcement; and
- national security (including protection of the physical infrastructure).
The primary responsibility for administering these areas of the Act falls to the Australian Communications and Media Authority Authority (ACMA), with the Attorney-General's Department and the Privacy Commissioner responsible for specific issues such as interception and privacy issues respectively.
The Department security responsibilities
The Department has policy responsibility for:
- physical infrastructure in the telecommunications, broadcasting and postal sectors; and
- administering the relevant provisions of the Telecommunications Act including defence and disaster planning; regulation of radiocommunications spectrum and the postal industry. The Department also liaises with Attorney-General's Department on interception issues.
The Department also has responsibility for e-Security policy matters-including cyber security and protection of information infrastructure- as part of its mandate to foster the information economy.
