The Privacy Commissioner has found that scraping data to target vulnerable people by Master Wealth Control Pty Ltd (DG Institute) and Property Lovers Pty Ltd was unlawful and interfered with the privacy of individuals.
The findings relate to how the companies collected personal information from court lists and databases for inclusion in their weekly leads lists, and whose personal information they subsequently disclosed to participants through those leads lists.
The companies were found to have failed to collect the personal information by fair means, take reasonable steps to notify individuals whose information was collected, and to ensure that the information it collected was accurate and up to date.
Both companies have been linked to Ms Dominique Grubisa and provided similar training courses to members of the public with a focus on property investment. Paying participants of the companies’ Elite Mentoring Program were encouraged to find ‘distressed properties’ in circumstances where a property owner might be incentivised to sell their property below market value as result of divorce, bankruptcy or a deceased estate
While the companies did remove the names from their lead lists of some prospective property owners in distressed situations for ‘privacy’, they continued to provide instructions and guidance to participants of the program on how to re-identify individuals.
“I am of the view that the respondent did not collect the personal information of individuals by fair means,” Privacy Commissioner Carly Kind said.
Specifically, the respondent collected individuals’ personal information contrary to the terms and conditions of the third parties’ websites and databases and in circumstances where those individuals had no knowledge or awareness of the collection. Further, those individuals were in or perceived to be in vulnerable positions and could not have reasonably expected the respondent to collect their personal information.
“The OAIC is an advocate of the next round of privacy reforms including a test of ‘fair and reasonable’ data use,” Commissioner Kind said. “Such reforms would cover many of the practices canvassed in this determination.”
Commissioner Kind has ordered that both companies immediately cease unfairly collecting personal information of individuals from third parties, destroy their leads lists within 30 days, provide the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner with evidence of the action it has taken to address the issues raised, and update their privacy policies. Property Lovers is also required to publish a written apology.
- View the determination on AustLII: Commissioner Initiated Investigation into Master Wealth Control Pty Ltd t/a DG Institute (Privacy) [2024] AICmr 243 (18 November 2024)
- View the determination on AustLII: Commissioner Initiated Investigation into Property Lovers Pty Ltd (Privacy) [2024] AICmr 249 (22 November 2024)
