Currently, there are around 80 Acts at both the State and Federal level which regulate document retention and destruction. The various regimes are not codified, some are industry specific and some are catch-all legislation. Privacy has become a top business priority for organisations all over the globe as new and expanding compliance regulations push for improved consumer data protection.
At the same time, legislation is becoming stricter and safe record storage and destruction requirements are becoming increasingly stringent. The responsibility is on Australian businesses to remain on top of legislation’s. Unfortunately, claiming ignorance around not knowing specific legislative or privacy practices is not enough.
In general, all these legislative requirements are for businesses to take reasonable steps to protect information from misuse and loss through unauthorised access, modification or disclosure.
To ensure your overall business commitment to document storage, businesses need to take steps to ensure every person across your business model understands the importance of data retention and document storage. Any discrepancy can create an inconsistent result for the storage of your information. Training all of your staff comprehensively can alleviate any issues you have with holes in the systematic procedure.
After all, staying compliant will ensure that all records are properly maintained, according to industry standards, whilst at the same time decreasing the chances of a security breach, expensive court cases and reputational damage.
No matter what sector you are involved in, outsourcing your document management to a recognised and comprehensive information management service can significantly assist in adhering to your legally binding requirements.
in the record keeping and consistently monitor and evolve our systems and facilities to accommodate updates to legislative and regulatory requirements.
