Sources

Queensland Invasion of Privacy Act 1971

Law. Placed at Queensland. Read 30 Sep 2026; 3 provisions cited by the planner.

What does Queensland Invasion of Privacy Act 1971 require?

Qld IPA s 43(1)Do not use a listening device on a private conversation unless you are a party to it

A person must not use a listening device to overhear, record, monitor or listen to a private conversation unless the person is a party to it (s 43(2)(a)), which includes someone acting with the express or implied consent of one of the speakers (s 42(2)(b)). An employer or its staff may therefore record conversations they take part in, or that a participant consents to, but may not use devices to listen to or record employees' or others' private conversations without a participant's consent. Other exceptions: unintentional hearing by telephone, authorised customs and Commonwealth security officers, police and others authorised by an Act, and government network radios activated by public safety communications centres in duress or safety situations. Penalty: on indictment, 40 penalty units or 2 years' imprisonment; executive officers of a corporation may also be liable (s 49A).

What a reviewer asks to see: Register of audio-capable devices in Queensland workplaces and vehicles (CCTV with microphones, meeting recorders, in-cab cameras), showing each records only conversations with a consenting participant; Policy that staff record conversations only when they are a party or have a participant's consent, with the consent noted; Decision record on audio monitoring in shared spaces where no participant consents

Where monitoring plans usually fall short: CCTV with audio recording staff conversations in break rooms; Security staff using listening devices on conversations they are not part of; Assuming workplace notice alone makes audio recording lawful

Source: Queensland Invasion of Privacy Act 1971, read 30 Sep 2026

Qld IPA s 45(1)A party who records a private conversation must not publish the recording except as s 45(2) allows

A person who was a party to a private conversation and used a listening device to record, overhear, monitor or listen to it must not communicate or publish to anyone else a record of it made by the device, or a statement prepared from such a record, unless the communication or publication is to another party or with the express or implied consent of all other parties who spoke or were spoken to; is made in legal proceedings (civil or criminal, before any court, tribunal or person taking evidence); is no more than reasonably necessary in the public interest, in performing a duty, or to protect the person's lawful interests; is to a person with, or reasonably believed to have, an interest making it reasonable; or is by an authorised officer under s 43(2)(c) or (d). Penalty: on indictment, 40 penalty units or 2 years' imprisonment.

What a reviewer asks to see: Rule on sharing recordings of meetings and calls made by staff, requiring all other speakers' consent or a documented s 45(2) ground; Disclosure log for recordings shared outside the participants, stating the ground relied on

Where monitoring plans usually fall short: Recorded meeting shared with people outside it without the other speakers' consent; Recording of a customer call posted or forwarded without a lawful-interest or duty basis

Source: Queensland Invasion of Privacy Act 1971, read 30 Sep 2026

Qld IPA s 44(1)Do not communicate or publish a private conversation obtained through outside the Act use of a listening device

A person must not communicate or publish to anyone a private conversation, or a report of its substance, meaning or purport, that has come to the person's knowledge directly or indirectly through a listening device used in breach of s 43. It is permitted to communicate it to a party or with the express or implied consent of a party, or in proceedings for an offence against Part 4, and a person who also learned of it lawfully is not barred. Penalty: on indictment, 40 penalty units or 2 years' imprisonment.

What a reviewer asks to see: Procedure checking how any recording offered as evidence was made before it is shared; Record of recordings withheld because they were made by a non-party without consent

Where monitoring plans usually fall short: Covert recording made by a non-party circulated within the organisation

Source: Queensland Invasion of Privacy Act 1971, read 30 Sep 2026

Open the full text on compliance.theartofservice.com

See the specimen plan run Plan your own list