Policies: Privacy

The National Gallery of Victoria is committed to protecting user privacy. We understand that visitors and users of this website are concerned about their privacy and the confidentiality and security of any information that is provided. The information we collect from you depends on how and why you access the website. If you visit the website to browse, read or download information, our system may record information about the visit such as the number of pages visited and the duration of the visit so we can evaluate site usage to make improvements. However the NGV website will not know who you are.

When you email the National Gallery of Victoria:

• We will record your e-mail address if necessary for the provision of a service to you such as the information you requested
• We will only use your e-mail address for the purposes for which you provided it
• Your e-mail address will not be added to a mailing list unless you have specifically requested this (for the purposes of receiving update materials)
• We will not disclose it without your consent

If you choose to undertake the web transactions described below, the NGV will attempt to identify some of your personal details.

• If you buy something from NGV Shop over the web and use a credit card to pay for your purchase, the NGV discloses the credit card details you provided to the financial institution providing your payment service and gives your address to the company that delivers the goods you bought
• If you subscribe to NGV Members and pay for your subscription by using a credit card the NGV discloses the credit card details you provided to the financial institution that provides your payment service
• If you request information be sent to you about the NGV or its programs, exhibitions and events, the NGV will use personal information such as your name and address

In addition, NGV is required to permit a law enforcement agency exercising a warrant to inspect it's website logs as part of an investigation.

Security of transactions on this website

The NGV recognises that there are risks associated with transmitting information across the Internet and has implemented procedures to maximise security where transactions are undertaken on the NGV Shop or NGV members sections of the website. In these areas information such as your credit details are secure while being transmitted through the Internet because the NGV uses Secure Socket Layer (SSL) encrypted web pages to protect the information. The NGV does not store your credit card details on our Internet server.

The use of Clickstream Data, Cookies and Web Beacons on this site

Clickstream Data is information about the path that a user takes while using the web. The NGV collects clickstream data to measure and evaluate this site use for internal reporting and as a basis for making ongoing site improvements for users. To do this the NGV collects the following information for every mouse click:

Remote_Host: The IP address of the visitor

Path_Info: The web page they are visiting

HTTP_User_Agent: The operating system of the visitor

Date: Date and time visited

Page: The Page_id visited

HTTP_Referer: When did they enter, and from where did they come?

The NGV does not record specific user details such as the names and addresses of users.

A cookie is a packet of information sent by a server to a World Wide Web browser and then sent back by the browser each time it accesses that server. Cookies are used on this Web site to remember visitors within a session to facilitate transaction functions. They are automatically deleted an hour after you leave this site. The following services on this site depend on cookies:

NGV Shop: www.ngv.vic.gov.au/shop/
The shopping cart utilises cookies to maintain your product selections and perform the online payment function.

NGV Members: www.ngv.vic.gov.au/ngvmembers/
NGV Artbeat: www.ngv.vic.gov.au/artbeat/
Joining or renewing a subscription utilises cookies to facilitate the online payment process.

Detecting and preventing cookies

Many web surfers object to having files, like cookies, placed onto their hard drive without their permission. There are various things you can do to avoid cookies if you do not trust them, these include:

• Setting the browser cookie file to be Read Only. Whether you can do this or not may depend on what sort of Operating System (OS) or browser you are using. But if you can do this then the cookies will only last for as long as your browser is running.
• Setting up your computer to delete the cookies file whenever you start your browser.
• Many browsers allow you to set them up so that you are notified when a cookie is to be written to your computer. However there may be instances where there are so many cookies that it becomes annoying to reject them all.
• Installing a software product which will reject or manage cookies for you, these include Cookie Crusher, Cookie Pal and Cookie Cruncher. You can perform an internet search to find them.

Disabling the cookies will impact on your ability to undertake the cookie related services listed above.

Web beacons are a means of determining who accessed a certain web page and when he or she did so. Web beacons are not used on this website and no third party collects information from this website.

Detecting and preventing Web beacons

A Web beacon can be detected by viewing the source code of a Web page and looking for any IMG tags that load from a different server than the rest of the site.

Turning off the browser's cookies will prevent Web beacons from tracking the user's activity. The Web beacon will still account for an anonymous visit, but the user's unique information will not be recorded.

Linking to Other Sites

This website privacy statement does not extend beyond the NGV website. When linking to other sites you should familiarise yourself with their website privacy statements.

How to contact the NGV to enquire about a website privacy issue

If you wish to enquire about the use of your personal information contact privacy@ngv.vic.gov.au

How to gain access to your personal information

The NGV will provide you with access to personal information acquired or presented about you on the NGV website for the purpose of verification and correction. Victoria's Information Privacy Act requires you to use the processes established by the Freedom of Information Act 1982 to access personal information.  

Freedom of Information

Freedom of information requests should be made in writing, describing the documents requested. An application fee of $21 is required and other charges may apply to Freedom of Information requests. Charges other than the application fee may be waived if the request is a routine request or for access to a document related to the applicant's personal affairs. The application fee can be reduced or waived if the applicant would be caused hardship because he/she had to pay the fee.  

Requests should be forwarded to the Head of Corporate Office, NGV PO Box 7259, Melbourne VIC 8004 AUSTRALIA.