Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

This Privacy Policy explains how SOCii PTY LTD (“SOCii”, “we”, “us”, or “our”) collects, uses, discloses, and protects personal information in connection with the website located at https://www.socii.au (“the Site”).

SOCii is committed to protecting your privacy and handling your personal information responsibly. This policy is written in compliance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs). While SOCii may not be legally required to comply with the APPs in all circumstances (based on annual turnover thresholds), we voluntarily adopt these standards as a matter of principle.

2. Scope of this policy

This Privacy Policy applies only to the Site at https://www.socii.au. SOCii also operates the following sub-applications, each of which has its own privacy policy:

• A-GIC (Australian General Independent Census) at census.socii.au
• AIM-HR (Australian Independent Model for Housing Reform) at housing.socii.au

When you navigate from the Site to A-GIC or AIM-HR, you leave the Site and become subject to the privacy policy of the respective platform. We encourage you to review those policies independently.

3. Information we collect

The Site is primarily informational and does not require you to create an account, submit personal details, or provide identifying information in order to browse its content.

However, the following types of information may be collected automatically when you visit the Site:

3.1 Technical and usage data

• IP address (which may be anonymised or truncated before storage)
• Browser type and version
• Operating system
• Referring URL (the page you visited before arriving at the Site)
• Pages viewed on the Site and time spent on each page
• Date and time of visit
• Screen resolution and device type

This data is collected for the purpose of understanding how visitors use the Site, improving its design and performance, and ensuring the security and availability of the Site.

3.2 Contact information

If you contact SOCii through any contact mechanism provided on the Site (such as an email address), we will collect the personal information you voluntarily provide, including your name, email address, and the content of your message.

3.3 Anonymous monitoring and performance data

To maintain the reliability and performance of the Site, we use third-party monitoring and observability services that collect anonymous, non-personal technical data. No names, email addresses, or other identifying information are collected or stored by these systems.

Datadog Real User Monitoring (RUM) runs in your browser when you visit the Site. It may collect:

• Page views, page load times, and other performance metrics (e.g. Core Web Vitals)
• Anonymous session identifiers (used only to group events within a single visit, not to identify you across visits or sites)
• Browser type, device type, and similar technical attributes
• Error and crash information (e.g. JavaScript errors), without personal data
• Optionally, session replays of a sample of visits to help us improve usability; form inputs and sensitive fields are masked and not recorded

OpenTelemetry and Datadog APM (Application Performance Monitoring) run on our servers. They collect:

• Request traces (e.g. which pages or APIs were requested, response times, and success or failure)
• Server-side performance metrics and error logs
• Infrastructure metrics (e.g. server resource usage) where the Site is deployed in our own environment

This data is used only to operate, secure, and improve the Site. It is not used for advertising, profiling, or identifying individuals. Data is transmitted to Datadog Inc. (and may be processed in the United States or other jurisdictions where Datadog operates). Datadog’s handling of data is governed by their privacy policy and data processing terms.

4. Cookies and local storage

The Site may use the following technologies:

4.1 Essential cookies

These are cookies that are strictly necessary for the operation of the Site, such as session management and security tokens. They do not track you across other websites and cannot be opted out of.

4.2 Analytics cookies

We may use privacy-focused audience analytics tools (such as Plausible Analytics, Fathom, or similar) to understand how visitors use the Site. These tools are configured to:

• Not use persistent cookies where possible
• Not track users across websites
• Anonymise or truncate IP addresses
• Not collect personally identifiable information

SOCii does not use Google Analytics, Facebook Pixel, or any advertising tracking technology on the Site.

4.3 Monitoring and performance cookies

Our monitoring provider (Datadog) may set cookies or use local storage to assign an anonymous session or device identifier for performance and error monitoring (see section 3.3). These identifiers are not used to identify you personally or to track you across other websites. You can limit or block such cookies via your browser settings; doing so may not affect your use of the Site, but we may receive less detailed performance data.

4.4 Local storage

The Site may use browser local storage to remember your preferences (such as light/dark mode setting). This data remains on your device and is not transmitted to our servers.

5. How we use your information

Information collected through the Site is used solely for the following purposes:

• Operating, maintaining, and improving the Site
• Understanding how visitors interact with the Site (aggregate analytics)
• Monitoring site performance, reliability, and errors via anonymous telemetry (Datadog and OpenTelemetry), as described in section 3.3
• Responding to enquiries you send to us
• Ensuring the security and integrity of the Site
• Complying with applicable legal obligations

We do not use your information for advertising, profiling, automated decision-making, or any purpose unrelated to the operation of the Site and SOCii’s not-for-profit mission.

6. Interaction with SOCii sub-applications

The Site itself does not share personal information with A-GIC (census.socii.au) or AIM-HR (housing.socii.au). These are separate applications hosted on separate subdomains, and each manages its own data independently.

However, because all three domains (www.socii.au, census.socii.au, housing.socii.au) are operated by SOCii PTY LTD, certain technical information (such as authentication state, if applicable) may in future be shared across subdomains using secure, consent-based mechanisms. If and when this occurs, we will update this policy and clearly inform you before any cross-subdomain data sharing takes effect.

7. Data retention

We retain personal information only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes for which it was collected:

• Analytics data: Aggregate analytics data is retained for up to 24 months. IP addresses, where collected, are anonymised or deleted within 30 days.
• Contact enquiries: Information provided through contact messages is retained for as long as necessary to respond to and resolve your enquiry, and for a reasonable period afterward for record-keeping purposes.
• Monitoring and performance data: Anonymous data collected by Datadog (RUM, APM) and OpenTelemetry is retained by Datadog according to their data retention policy (typically 15 months for traces and metrics, unless a shorter period is configured). We do not retain this data on our own systems beyond what is necessary for real-time analysis.
• Local storage: Data stored in your browser (such as theme preferences) is retained until you clear your browser data. We do not access or control this data on your device.

8. Disclosure of information

SOCii PTY LTD does not sell, rent, or trade your personal information. We may disclose personal information only in the following circumstances:

• Where required or authorised by Australian law (including in response to a lawful subpoena, court order, or regulatory request)
• To trusted service providers who assist in operating the Site (such as hosting providers and our monitoring provider Datadog, for anonymous performance and reliability data as described in section 3.3), subject to appropriate confidentiality and data processing agreements
• To protect the rights, property, or safety of SOCii PTY LTD, its users, or the public

We do not transfer personal information outside of Australia unless necessary for the operation of the Site (for example, if our hosting infrastructure is located in a jurisdiction outside Australia). Anonymous monitoring and performance data described in section 3.3 is transmitted to Datadog Inc., which may process it in the United States or other jurisdictions where Datadog operates. This data does not identify you. Where we use overseas providers for any personal information, we take reasonable steps to ensure that the recipient handles it in accordance with the APPs.

9. Your rights

Under Australian privacy law, you have the right to:

• Access the personal information we hold about you
• Request correction of any inaccurate or outdated personal information
• Request deletion of your personal information, where it is no longer needed for the purpose for which it was collected
• Complain to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) if you believe your privacy has been breached

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the details provided at the end of this policy. We will respond to your request within 30 days.

10. Security

We take reasonable steps to protect personal information from misuse, interference, loss, unauthorised access, modification, or disclosure. These measures include:

• HTTPS encryption for all Site traffic
• Secure server infrastructure with access controls
• Regular security reviews and updates
• Minimisation of data collection

No method of electronic transmission or storage is completely secure. While we strive to protect your information, we cannot guarantee absolute security.

11. Children’s privacy

The Site is not directed at children under the age of 16. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe that a child has provided personal information to us, please contact us and we will take steps to delete that information.

12. Changes to this policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technologies, or legal requirements. Changes will be posted on this page with an updated “Last updated” date. We encourage you to review this policy periodically.

13. Contact us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, wish to exercise your privacy rights, or want to make a complaint, please contact us via email or our support page:

If you are not satisfied with our response, you may contact the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC):