Australia: Closed consultation on Civil Law Reforms to Combat Doxxing

On 28 March 2024, the Attorney General's Department closed its public consultation on privacy reforms to combat doxxing. Doxxing is the term used to describe the intentional online exposure of an individual’s identity, private information or personal details without their consent. This includes de-anonymizing, which involves disclosing the identity of an individual who was previously anonymous, targeting doxxing, where specific information about an individual is disclosed, facilitating their contact or location, and de-legitimizing doxxing, representing unveiling sensitive or intimate information about an individual, potentially tarnishing their credibility or reputation. The Attorney General's Department is proposing to enhance privacy protections for individuals by introducing new provisions which would address the practice of doxxing. The new provisions include a statutory tort for serious invasions of privacy, which would allow individuals to seek remedies through the courts if they have fallen victim to doxxing, new or strengthened individual rights to access, object, erase, correct, and de‑index their personal information.