Terms and conditions

Please read these terms and conditions carefully before you decide if this service is right for you.

Definitions

Agreement

When you access, browse and use Child Support Business Online Services you accept these terms and conditions. When you accept them, you also agree that we can email you updates.

Call the Child Support Business Online Services line if you don’t want to get your messages this way.

We may change these terms and conditions. They are effective from 1 October 2018.

Child Support Business Online Services is for:

• employers who provide child support payroll deduction services for their employees
• anyone who pays or gets child support.

We may add or remove services from your online service account.

Emails

Email updates

We may email you about changes to the service, our agency or the child support scheme.

We may also email you surveys to help us improve our services.

After you register, most of your child support messages go to your Child Support Business Online Services account. When you have a new message from us, we’ll email you to let you know.

Unsubscribe from email surveys

To unsubscribe from our email surveys, send an email with ‘unsubscribe’ in the subject line, to webmaster@servicesaustralia.gov.au.

Confirming emails are from us

To help protect your security, we’ll never ask you for the following details by email. Your:

• Child Support Business Online Services password
• other passwords
• personal information
• bank account details.

If you’re asked for these details or you think the email is a scam:

• don’t click on any links
• don’t respond to the sender
• read how to get help with a scam or report it
• call our Scams and identity theft helpdesk.

Privacy and security

Security

We comply with the Australian Government Protective Security Policy Framework on the Attorney-General’s Department website. We make all reasonable efforts to protect our online services from unauthorised access.

You can help protect your account. Always remember that the internet is a public network. There’s a risk that someone can view or modify your transactions. Files you download may contain:

• computer viruses
• disabling codes
• worms
• other devices
• defects.

Employer privacy

For employers that are our customers, we’ll check your organisation's Tax File Number (TFN) against Australian Taxation Office (ATO) systems. We do this to confirm your organisation’s identity.

We may give your contact details to people we contract to deliver services to separated parents. These contractors may ask you to participate in research to help improve our services. You don’t have to participate unless you want to.

For more information, read the Privacy Act 1988 on the Federal Register of Legislation website.

You can read how we collect, use and disclose information in the Child Support Guide. This is available on the Department of Social Services website. For more details, see Chapter 6.3 of the Child Support Guide.

Employee privacy

Federal law requires us to collect certain details about our customers and their family. We do this to maintain the integrity of the child support scheme. We understand these details can be sensitive and we work hard to protect the privacy of all our customers.

We must follow the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner’s Australian Privacy Principles, made under the Privacy Act 1988. They set the standards for our data collection, storage, security, use, disclosure and access.

We also have secrecy provisions in our legislation. These secrecy provisions restrict how information is collected or disclosed. Secrecy provisions can also apply to you.

To read how we collect, use and disclose information, see Chapter 6.3 of the Child Support Guide available on the Department of Social Services website.

These limit the communication of our customers' personal details, including when and who we can release the details to.

IT security

When you use the online service, we’ll collect some information. This helps us learn more about how customers use our services. We’ll collect:

• your IP address
• your top level domain name for example, .com, .gov or .au
• the date and time of your visit to the website
• the pages and documents you access and download
• the previous website you visited
• the type of browser you use.

Passing on employee details

We may also collect, give and confirm details with other government agencies or third parties. We pass on this information to help:

• data match child support details
• gather information, such as income and assets when determining a child support assessment in collecting child support debts
• the Australian Federal Police or a mental health crisis unit in response to a threat
• international agencies that deal with the collection and administration of Australian child support.

Sometimes we also share TFNs with other government agencies such as the ATO. We use TFNs to confirm:

• a customer's identity
• that we have the correct individual as a party to a child support case
• incomes for assessments.

Other government agencies we typically provide details to include:

• ATO
• Administrative Review Tribunal
• Department of Social Services
• Department of Veterans' Affairs
• Department of Home Affairs
• Attorney-General's Department.

We may also share details with other areas within our agency.

We can also provide details to third parties. These might include:

• law enforcement agencies
• Commonwealth investigation or auditing agencies
• road and traffic authorities
• financial institutions
• other employers.

Access

We’ll give you a Child Support Reference Number (CSRN) and password. This will give you access to our services through Child Support Business Online Services.

By using our services you agree to:

• keep your password confidential and secure
• change your password regularly and when we ask you to
• keep your unique CSRN confidential and secure.

We’ll always assume you carried out any online transaction using your CSRN and password.

If you think someone else knows your CSRN or password, please call Child Support Business Online Services line straight away. We’ll give you a new CSRN and password. If you’re calling from outside Australia please call one of our Child Support international lines. Call charges apply.

If we find someone or a program has hacked or is accessing your online account, we’ll:

• limit, restrict or deny access to your online account until the risk is removed
• change your CSRN and password and tell you about the change.

As we have to act quickly, we may do this without letting you know first.

We recommend you don’t access Child Support Business Online Services from shared computers. For example, internet cafes and other public computers. It’s difficult to make sure these computers are free from hacker type programs. These computers may trace or record your personal details.

While using this service, your details will be visible on the computer or device screen. Take care to make sure other people can’t see your personal information.

If you change an instruction or make a transaction using Child Support Business Online Services, we may update our records to reflect this change.

Cookies

Our service creates an encrypted cookie when you sign in. This helps us know you’re authorised to use the service. We only use Cookies while you’re signed in. You may need to allow your computer to store cookies so you can access your account.

Links to other websites

We link to other websites for your information and convenience. We don’t endorse, monitor or control these websites’ information. We aren’t responsible for their content, or your access and use of them.

Disclaimer

We try to make sure the information in Child Support Business Online Services is right. However, we give no warranty or guarantee that the information is:

• exact
• complete
• current
• fit for any use whatsoever.

As a user, you should not rely solely on the information you access through Child Support Business Online Services.

If you’re relying on the information on our website, you should check its relevance and accuracy yourself. Seek appropriate professional advice if you’re still unsure.

We’re always reviewing and updating our website content. We reserve the right to vary any information on our website without notice.

Limit of liability

We, our employees and agents accept no liability for any loss or damage suffered as a result of:

• direct or indirect access to our online services
• use or application of any information you access through our website
• any failure of performance
• information errors, deletions and omissions
• interruptions such as delays in operation or transmission.

We also accept no liability or responsibility for any loss or damage suffered because of:

• computer viruses, disabling codes, worms or other devices or defects
• line system failure
• loss of data
• loss of use related to the website.

We can explain these terms and conditions to you. If you have any questions call the Child Support Business Online Services team.