Latest news with #MauriceBlackburn
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Yahoo
Common neighbour problem plaguing Aussie houses: 'No right'
Welcome to legal column, where lawyers Alison and Jillian Barrett from Maurice Blackburn tackle problems everyday Aussies face — whether it be consumer, property, or money matters impacting relationships or work. This week an Aussie is concerned their neighbour has built too close to their house and ruined their privacy. Question I live in Sydney and have an issue with my neighbour. Well, more that a house was built right behind us and they are high enough that they can see right over our fence and through our whole house. I hated it so much we ended up putting up a higher fence. But if they look out their upstairs window they can still see my entire backyard and into the back rooms of my house. Is there anything I can do about it? Was there something I should have done before it was built. I never considered it, and now it makes me feel our family has completely lost our privacy. RELATED Warning for working from home Aussies over common practice Little-known cryptocurrency detail that could impact millions: 'Lost forever' Centrelink act costing 'hardworking' taxpayers Answer Privacy is essential to feeling safe in your own home and it is important to understand your legal rights and the steps you can take to protect your family. Right to privacy In NSW, there is no explicit right to privacy that prevents neighbours from looking into your property. The law would not consider that your neighbour's windows or balconies looking directly into your home or yard (also known as 'mere overlooking') is unlawful. The law generally does not consider it a nuisance unless the behaviour is excessive or unreasonable. Nuisance If your neighbour's actions are causing a significant disturbance, it might be considered a nuisance. Nuisance is when someone does something that interferes with your use and enjoyment of your property. The interference must be substantial and unreasonable. Occasional or minor intrusions likely wouldn't meet the threshold. The first step would be to talk to your neighbour about the issue. They may not be aware of your concerns and might be willing to take steps to reduce the impact on you. If this doesn't resolve the issue and the visual intrusion is significant, you can take legal action to bring a civil claim of private nuisance, seeking a remedy such as an injunction to stop the behaviour. If you wish to do this, you can start by speaking to a community legal centre for advice. Criminal offences There are various offences under the Crimes Act that relate to 'peeping or prying'. However, these acts are only a crime if your neighbour was intending on observing you doing a private act, as opposed to being able to see your home purely because of the layout of your homes. If at any time you consider their conduct feels excessive or targeted, you should make a complaint to the police. Local council regulations Before a house is built during the development application stage, there are usually local council regulations, building codes and planning permissions that need to be followed. These documents often include guidelines around building height, setbacks, and privacy protections —such as requiring high windows to be frosted or mandating privacy screens on balconies. If you believe the new house does not comply with these guidelines, you might be able to lodge a complaint with your local council or NSW Fair Trading. However, the best time to act would have been during the development application stage, where you could have lodged an objection based on privacy concerns. Now that the house is built, your focus needs to shift to practical solutions like screening, planting hedges, and even negotiating with your neighbour for mutual privacy improvements. This legal information is general in nature and should not be regarded as specific legal advice. If you need legal advice, you should consult a in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data
1News
6 days ago
- Business
- 1News
Qantas gains ruling over data hack hitting dark web
Qantas has sought to limit the spread of personal information of almost 6 million customers on the internet and the dark web after a sizeable data hack. The airline says it has obtained an interim injunction "to prevent the stolen data from being accessed, viewed, released, used, transmitted or published by anyone, including by any third parties". Meanwhile, law firm Maurice Blackburn said on Friday it has lodged a complaint with the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) on behalf of affected Qantas customers. Legal experts suggest the incident could lead to a class action against the carrier after compensation claims were made against Optus and Medibank following major data breaches in 2022. Qantas has emphasised that even though the personal details of 5.7 million customers were compromised via a hack in one of its offshore call centres, no credit card details, personal financial information or passport details have been accessed. ADVERTISEMENT "We want to do all we can to protect our customers' personal information and believe this [injunction] was an important next course of action," the airline said on Thursday. The names, email addresses and frequent flyer details of four million customers were exposed. The remaining 1.7 million customers had more data taken, including their names, email addresses, dates of birth, phone numbers, personal or business addresses, gender and meal preferences. New Zealand-based customers who have accounts with the airline are among those affected. (Source: 1News) A statement of claim lodged in the NSW Supreme Court on Wednesday identified the defendant as "persons unknown". It defined them as any person or entity that carried out or aided in the cyber hack and that "communicated payment details" to the plaintiff Qantas. The carrier previously said a possible cybercriminal had contacted it about the data breach but it confirmed in the claim that no ransom has been paid. ADVERTISEMENT The airline demanded the defendant also "take all steps to immediately remove all and any of the impacted dataset ... from all accessible internet locations". It also included any publication on the "dark web". Australian Federal Police investigators were also probing the breach.
News.com.au
6 days ago
- Business
- News.com.au
Class action alleges Qantas ‘failed' to protect personal information in wake of major data breach
Qantas failed to protect passengers' personal information, according to a law firm seeking potential compensation from the airline after a major data breach. Maurice Blackburn Lawyers have lodged a complaint with the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC), alleging the airline 'failed to take reasonable steps to protect personal information' and therefore interfered with privacy under the privacy act. The details of nearly six million Qantas customers were potentially compromised in the data breach of one of the airline's call centres on June 30, including addresses, phone numbers, meal preferences, and Frequent Flyer details. Qantas has confirmed there is no evidence of any personal data being released, nor credit card or passport details or personal financial information accessed. 'Register with us' Maurice Blackburn principal lawyer Elizabeth O'Shea confirmed an official complaint had been lodged against the airline, encouraging those affected in the breach to register with the firm to receive updates about potential compensation. 'While we await a response and potential action from the OAIC in relation to Qantas failing to adequately protect the personal information of its customers, we would encourage Qantas customers who were impacted by the breach to register with us to receive updates about the representative complaint and compensation which may be sought on your behalf,' Ms O'Shea said in a statement. 'It is early days in what we are learning about the mass data breach, but if you're one of the millions of people that have had your personal information compromised, you're eligible to register with us and we will keep you informed as the matter progresses.' A Qantas spokeswoman said the company remained focused on supporting customers. 'Qantas understands that a complaint has been lodged by Maurice Blackburn on behalf of some affected customers in relation to our recent cyber incident,' the spokeswoman said. 'Our focus continues to be on supporting our customers and providing ongoing access to specialist identity protection advice and resources.' Qantas have moved to prevent the stolen data from being accessed, viewed, released, used, transmitted or published by anyone, including third parties, following the granting of an interim injunction in the NSW Supreme Court. The airline also filed a statement of claim against anyone who carried out, participated or assisted in stealing of the data, communicated payment demands to Qantas, or posted some or all of the stolen data online. The defendant, and any third parties, were prevented by the court from publishing the stolen data online, transmitting or disclosing it to any other person, using and viewing any of the data except for the purpose of gaining legal advice, and promoting or publishing any links where the data may be downloaded without the written consent of Qantas. They were also ordered to take all reasonable steps to remove the data from the internet, including any 'dark web' locations.
SBS Australia
6 days ago
- SBS Australia
NITV Radio NEWS 18/07/2025
Law firm Maurice Blackburn alleges Quantas breached the Privacy Act, because it failed to protect customers. Two teenagers were charged with the murder of 57 year old Zdravko during a failed break-in on the Sunshine Coast. A former Quarry worker has been committed to stand trial for the alleged murder of an Indigenous woman in Cape York mor than a decade ago. That and more on NITV Radio.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Compensation sought for millions of Qantas customers hit in major cyber data breach
A fresh bid has been launched to seek compensation on behalf of the millions of Qantas customers whose data was exposed in a major data breach. Nearly six million customers had their personal information compromised by the breach on June 30. Maurice Blackburn has lodged a complaint with the Office of the Australian Commissioner (OAIC) on behalf of impacted individuals. It alleges that Qantas failed to take reasonable steps to protect personal information. The Qantas hack occurred in Manila at one of the airline's call centres, with a cyber criminal gaining access to a third party customer servicing platform. The data of 5.7 million customers was on that system. RELATED Major Qantas update after 6 million customer details stolen in cyber attack Coles and Costco grocery price comparison 'shocks' Aussie mum Aussie tradie loses $110,000 house deposit due to small detail Maurice Blackburn principal lawyer Elizabeth O'Shea said the official complaint was lodged late yesterday with the OAIC, the authority charged with taking action over breaches of the Privacy Act. 'While we await a response and potential action from the OAIC in relation to Qantas failing to adequately protect the personal information of its customers, we would encourage Qantas customers who were impacted by the breach to register with us to receive updates about the representative complaint and compensation which may be sought on your behalf,' she said. 'It is early days in what we are learning about the mass data breach, but if you're one of the millions of people that have had your personal information compromised, you're eligible to register with us and we will keep you informed as the matter progresses.' O'Shea noted that registration was free and non-binding. Qantas gets court order to prevent release of hacked data It comes as Qantas obtained an interim injunction in the NSW Supreme Court to try and stop the publication of the stolen data. 'We want to do all we can to protect our customers' personal information and believe this was an important next course of action,' Qantas said in a statement. There is no evidence that any personal data stolen from Qantas has been released, but Qantas said it was actively monitoring the situation with the support of cyber security experts. The injunction means that in the event cyber criminals do post details on the dark web, others won't be able to repost or publish the details. Qantas previously revealed that of the 5.7 million customers impacted by the breach, 4 million customers had their name, email and frequent flyer details impacted. Of the remaining 1.7 million, about 1.3 million had residential and business addresses, 1.1 million had date of birth, 900,000 had phone numbers, 400,000 their gender, and 10,000 their meal preferences impacted. No credit card details, personal financial information or passport details were stored in the system. Customers have been advised to remain vigilant to scams and report them to in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data
