Freelancer International Pty Ltd and Australian Information Commissioner

This matter concerned an appeal by Freelancer International Pty Ltd against a decision of the Australian Information Commissioner. The dispute arose from a complaint made by Mr Szczepanski regarding alleged breaches of the National Privacy Principles (NPPs) by Freelancer. The Senior Member of the Tribunal was required to determine whether Freelancer had breached the NPPs in its dealings with Mr Szczepanski.

The legal issues before the Tribunal included whether Freelancer's conduct constituted a breach of the National Privacy Principles, specifically NPP 2.1, and if so, what the appropriate outcome or remedy should be. The Tribunal also had to consider the causal link between any identified breach and any alleged harm or distress suffered by Mr Szczepanski.

The Tribunal found that Freelancer's User Agreement stipulated that the site was a market venue and that users negotiated fees and payments directly through the site's mechanisms. Freelancer reserved the right to suspend withdrawals if it suspected fraudulent activity. Mr Szczepanski had created multiple accounts using aliases and "dummy data," which contravened the User Agreement and triggered Freelancer's intervention. After investigations and Mr Szczepanski's compliance with identity verification, his accounts were reinstated. However, the Tribunal determined that only one breach, an August 2012 disclosure, had occurred and that this disclosure did not cause significant distress or loss to Mr Szczepanski, particularly given his adversarial stance towards Freelancer.

Consequently, the Tribunal set aside the Commissioner's decision. In substitution, it determined that Mr Szczepanski's complaint was substantiated, declaring that Freelancer's August 2012 disclosures constituted an interference with his privacy and that such conduct should not be repeated or continued. The Tribunal further declared that it would be inappropriate to take any further action in the matter.