Who this policy applies to
This policy covers personal information collected by Asset Finance Help, an Australian information publisher and lead introduction service operating at assetfinancehelp.com.au. References to "we", "us" and "our" mean Asset Finance Help.
It applies to information we collect through this website, by email, or by any other means. It does not cover the privacy practices of brokers, lenders or other third parties we may introduce you to - they will have their own privacy policies that you should read separately.
What personal information we collect
The personal information we collect depends on how you interact with us. It may include:
- Identity information: your name.
- Contact information: email address, phone number and (occasionally) postal address.
- Enquiry content: the text of your enquiry, including any business details, asset details, finance amounts, timing and circumstances you choose to share.
- Business identifiers: where you provide them - ABN, business name, trading structure, time in business.
- Communications: the content and metadata of emails between us.
- Technical information: IP address, browser type, device type, referring page and pages viewed on our site, collected via analytics.
We do not collect government identifiers (such as TFN), credit information, health information or other sensitive information (as defined in the Privacy Act) through this site. If you submit such information unsolicited via the enquiry form, we will delete it.
How we collect personal information
- Directly from you - when you complete an enquiry form, email us, or otherwise interact with our editorial team.
- Automatically - through our analytics provider (Plausible), which collects aggregated usage data via privacy-respecting, cookieless tracking.
- From your device - your browser sends standard information (IP, user agent, referrer) when you load a page; this is used to serve the site and to detect abuse.
We do not buy or rent personal information from third parties.
Why we collect personal information
We collect personal information to:
- Respond to your enquiry and answer your questions.
- Introduce you to an accredited broker partner where you have consented to be introduced.
- Provide and improve our content and our service.
- Detect, prevent and respond to abuse, fraud, security incidents and misuse of the site.
- Comply with our legal obligations and respond to lawful requests.
We rely on your consent (given by submitting an enquiry, ticking a consent box, or otherwise expressly agreeing) for direct use of your contact details to respond to you and, where applicable, to refer you.
Who we disclose personal information to
We may disclose your personal information to:
- An accredited broker partner - only when you have submitted an enquiry asking for an introduction or otherwise consented to a referral. The disclosure will include the information needed for the broker to contact you and assess your needs (name, contact details, your enquiry content).
- Our service providers - third parties that help us run the site and respond to enquiries. Current key providers include:
- Know Your Market (KYM) - receives and processes enquiry form submissions and routes them for response and (where you have consented) introduction to an accredited broker partner.
- Plausible Analytics - aggregated, cookieless website analytics (data processed in the European Union).
- Our domain, hosting and email infrastructure providers.
- Professional advisers - accountants, auditors, lawyers and insurers - where reasonably necessary and on a confidential basis.
- Government, regulators or law enforcement - where required or authorised by Australian law (for example, a lawful production notice, court order, or ASIC, ACCC, OAIC or AFP request).
- A successor entity - if we transfer our business or assets, your information may transfer with it; you will be notified if so.
We do not sell your personal information. We do not disclose it for the third party's own marketing or profiling purposes.
Overseas disclosure
Some of our service providers may operate outside Australia or process data in overseas data centres:
- Know Your Market (KYM) - enquiry intake processor; data may be processed in data centres outside Australia depending on KYM's infrastructure.
- Plausible Analytics - European Union.
Where personal information is disclosed overseas, we take reasonable steps to ensure the recipient handles it consistently with the Australian Privacy Principles. By submitting personal information to us, you consent to disclosure to these recipients in those jurisdictions for the purposes set out in this policy.
How we store and secure personal information
We hold personal information in electronic form, primarily in:
- Our email and customer enquiry inboxes (hosted by reputable email infrastructure providers with at-rest encryption).
- Our service providers' systems for the purposes set out above.
We use reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect personal information from misuse, interference, loss, unauthorised access, modification or disclosure. These include access controls, encryption in transit (HTTPS), encryption at rest with our providers where available, and limiting access to team members who need it.
No method of internet transmission or electronic storage is completely secure. While we work to protect your information, we cannot guarantee absolute security.
How long we retain personal information
- Enquiry details: retained for up to 24 months after your last contact with us, to manage follow-ups and respond to subsequent queries from you. We will delete sooner on request unless we are required to retain longer.
- Email correspondence: retained for the same period unless retention longer is required by law.
- Analytics data: retained in aggregated, non-identifying form indefinitely.
- Records required by law: retained for the period the law requires (for example, tax records).
When personal information is no longer needed for any of the purposes above, we delete or de-identify it.
Cookies and tracking
This site does not set advertising cookies. We do not run cross-site advertising tracking, retargeting pixels or third-party tracking scripts.
We use Plausible Analytics, which is a cookieless, privacy-respecting analytics product. It collects aggregated usage data (pages viewed, country-level location, browser and device type, referrer) without setting cookies, without using device fingerprinting, and without identifying individual visitors.
Your browser may set strictly necessary cookies (for example, to remember a session); these are first-party and used only for the site's operation.
Your rights
Under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Australian Privacy Principles, you have rights including:
- Access: request a copy of the personal information we hold about you.
- Correction: ask us to correct information that is inaccurate, out of date, incomplete, irrelevant or misleading.
- Deletion: ask us to delete information we no longer need for the purposes it was collected (subject to our legal obligations to retain certain records).
- Withdraw consent: tell us to stop using your information for purposes you previously consented to.
- Anonymity or pseudonymity: deal with us anonymously or under a pseudonym where it is lawful and practicable (note: we may not be able to respond to a substantive enquiry without contact details).
- Complain: raise a privacy complaint with us, and escalate to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) if unresolved.
To exercise any of these rights, email support@assetfinancehelp.com.au. We may need to verify your identity before acting on a request. We aim to acknowledge requests within one business day and respond substantively within 30 days.
Marketing
We do not run general marketing campaigns. We will not add you to a marketing list as a result of submitting an enquiry. If you opt in to follow-ups about a specific question, you can opt out at any time by replying "unsubscribe" to any email from us, or by emailing support@assetfinancehelp.com.au.
Children
This site is intended for Australian business users and is not directed at children. We do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under 18. If you believe a minor has provided personal information through the site, please contact us and we will delete it.
Notifiable data breaches
If we become aware of unauthorised access to, or unauthorised disclosure of, personal information we hold, and the breach is likely to result in serious harm, we will assess the incident and - where required by the Notifiable Data Breaches (NDB) scheme under Part IIIC of the Privacy Act - notify affected individuals and the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner as soon as practicable.
Changes to this policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. The current version is always available at assetfinancehelp.com.au/privacy-policy. Material changes will be flagged with an updated "Effective date" at the top of the page. Continued use of the site after a change indicates acceptance of the updated policy.
Privacy complaints
If you believe we have breached the Privacy Act or the Australian Privacy Principles, please email support@assetfinancehelp.com.au with the subject line "Privacy Complaint" and a description of the issue. We will acknowledge within one business day and respond substantively within 30 days.
If you are not satisfied with our response, you can raise the complaint with the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner:
- Website: oaic.gov.au
- Phone: 1300 363 992
- Post: GPO Box 5288, Sydney NSW 2001
Contact us about privacy
For any privacy enquiry, request or complaint, please contact:
- Email: support@assetfinancehelp.com.au (subject line: "Privacy")
Privacy enquiries
Use this form for any privacy enquiry, access request, correction, deletion or complaint. We acknowledge within one business day and respond substantively within 30 days.