Privacy policy
Pre-launch draft. Operator identity, contact details, supplier arrangements and legal review must be completed before accepting public submissions.
Last updated 17 October 2026.
About this policy
This policy explains how openAddress collects, uses, shares and protects personal information, in line with the Australian Privacy Principles in the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth). It applies to advertisers, buyers and anyone who contacts us. The operator’s legal name and contact address will be added before launch.
What we collect
From advertisers: your name, email address, phone number (required for agents, optional for owners), agency name if any, the property’s address and details, any rental information you give us (whether it is tenanted, weekly rent and lease end date), photographs, your description of the property, and a record of the consents you gave. From buyers: your name, email address, message and optional phone number when you send an enquiry. From anyone who contacts us: your name, email address, message and reason for contacting us. We may also keep private notes when we review a listing, such as why it was approved or rejected.
We also collect limited technical information. Our bot-protection provider checks your connection when you submit a form, and we keep a one-way scrambled version of your IP address, which cannot be turned back into the address, to limit repeated submissions. We count property views using a random anonymous ID stored in your browser. It is not linked to your name or contact details, and we use the counts to understand how the website is used.
What becomes public
Approved property information, photographs, rental details you provide, the advertiser’s display name and agency (if applicable) become public. The property’s street address and map location are shown publicly on the listing. Advertiser email addresses and phone numbers are never published. If you tick the optional promotion permission on the listing form, we may also feature your property’s photographs and details in videos on our YouTube channel and in posts on our social media accounts, including affiliated accounts. You can withdraw that permission through the contact form at any time before the video or post is published. Photographs are optimised in your browser before they are uploaded, and location data embedded in photos is not kept, but please avoid including people, number plates or other personal details in photographs.
How we use information
We use information to review and publish listings, check that advertisers are authorised, relay buyer enquiries, answer messages and reports, keep the website secure and prevent abuse, meet our legal obligations, and understand and improve how the website works. We send emails only to do these things, for example to tell an advertiser that a listing was approved or rejected (including the reason) or to deliver an enquiry. We do not send marketing emails and we do not sell personal information.
Who we share it with
An enquiry is shared with the advertiser of that property, including the buyer’s name, email address, message and optional phone number, so they can reply. Because advertisers may then hold your details, they are responsible for handling them lawfully. Do not include sensitive personal or financial information in an enquiry.
Hosting, storage, email, mapping and bot-protection providers process information to deliver their services. The proposed providers are Cloudflare, Supabase, Resend and Geoapify, and Google Analytics if you allow analytics. Loading maps also sends connection information to the map provider. We may also disclose information where the law requires it, to protect our rights or users’ safety, or to report suspected unlawful activity.
Overseas processing
These providers may store or process information outside Australia, including in the United States and other countries. We take reasonable steps to make sure they handle information in a way that is consistent with the Australian Privacy Principles. Final locations and contractual protections must be reviewed before launch.
Optional analytics
With your permission, Google Analytics measures page visits, property views, suburb searches and referral sources, and may set its own cookies. We do not send names, email addresses, phone numbers or message text as analytics events. Advertising features are disabled. You can change your choice below. Essential local storage remembers that choice and, on listing pages, your anonymous visitor ID. We do not set advertising cookies.
Security
We use access controls, encrypted connections and private storage for photographs and contact details, and we limit who can see private records to authorised operators and service providers. No online service is completely secure. If a data breach is likely to cause serious harm, we will notify affected people and the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner as the law requires.
How long we keep information
We propose deleting rejected submissions and unused uploads after 30 days, enquiries and reports after 90 days unless required to resolve a dispute, and withdrawn listing contact records after 90 days. Backups may retain deleted data temporarily. Retention and backup procedures must be activated and confirmed at launch.
Children
openAddress is intended for adults. We do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under 18.
Access, correction and complaints
You can ask to see the personal information we hold about you, to correct it, or to have it deleted, and you can make a privacy complaint, by using our contact form and choosing “Privacy request”. We may need to verify your identity first, and we will respond within a reasonable time. If you are not satisfied with our response, you can contact the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner at oaic.gov.au.
Changes to this policy
We may update this policy from time to time. The current version is always published here with its date.