Privacy statement


Commitment to website privacy and responsible use of information At Westpac, we are committed to ensuring the privacy of your information. We understand as a customer using the Westpac website, how important the privacy of your personal information is to you.

The following statement has been developed in recognition that Internet technologies, and specifically Westpac's application of these, are rapidly evolving. This statement addresses privacy issues relevant to the Westpac website.

Should we change our website privacy statement for any reason, such changes will always be posted to this page. However, if you have any further questions relating to this privacy statement, please do not hesitate to email us.

Information we collect We may gather two types of information about our website users.

1.	personal information, provided voluntarily when you complete an online form or request for service; and

2.	aggregated information collected by our web server or third party systems we subscribe to for site traffic information.

Our web server collects the following types of information:

	the number and location of site visitors (gathered via IP address logs)
	the date and time of visits
	the number of pages viewed
	technical information on browser connections
	traffic patterns
	audit logs of all activity

In normal circumstances, this is anonymous statistical data and no attempt is made to identify users or their individual browsing activities. We use this aggregate data to evaluate our website performance and measure the interest in various areas of our site. In the event of a fraud, dispute, or other extraordinary circumstances, audit logs of Online Banking activity, and IP address information may be analysed for troubleshooting purposes. If we come across a suspicious looking transaction, we will investigate it to ensure there is no breach of security. Occasionally, this may involve one of our staff members contacting you to verify a transaction.

Information disclosure We may release information about you when required to, or permitted by law. We may also disclose information where you have authorised us to, or where disclosure is connected to the purpose for which it was collected - e.g. online applications. You have the right to access and correct this information subject to the provisions of the Privacy Act 1993. We will not however, use your personal information for any purpose that is not related to the products or services we provide to you, or for any purpose for which you would not reasonably expect us to use the information. For example, your information may be used by Westpac and its related companies, to enable us to offer you other products and services that may enhance your relationship with us. It's your decision whether you wish us to provide this service to you. We may share the information we gather in aggregate form e.g. survey or tracking information, with advertisers and other partners. However, we will not sell or disclose personal information about you as an individual to any third party or entity outside Westpac or its related companies for marketing purposes.

Cookies Cookies are small pieces of information which can be stored on your hard drive (persistent cookies) or in memory (session cookies). The cookies we send to your PC cannot read your hard drive or command your computer to perform any action. We use two types of cookies: Persistent cookies - used to identify and provide personalised features such as choosing which page you would like to make your Westpac NZ start page - and for tracking traffic patterns to and from our site. For more information on the tracking we use, refer to the Google Analytics section below. Session cookies - used as an integral part of the identification process for our Online Banking service. This is for security purposes to determine that you are who you say you are and to provide you with your confidential account information during an Online Banking session. No personal information is kept in the cookie and the cookie is not written to your hard drive. When you log out of your Online Banking session the cookie is no longer valid and is discarded when you close your browser.

Google Analytics Westpac uses Google Analytics website measurement software to help measure traffic patterns to, from, and within our public website Note: we do not include this measurement software on any secure site Online Banking screens. The services are used to anonymously aggregate website statistics, such as number of page views, the number of unique visitors, time spent on our site, when visitors browser, and common entry and exit points into and from the website. On occasion, random short surveys may also be used to collect further information about our users– participation in these surveys will be entirely voluntary. All information is aggregated by Google Analytics and provided to us to help us better understand usage of our public website – no individual visitors are identified. Google Analytics is a leader in the Internet industry and their systems have been adopted as an accepted interactive measurement standard amongst major Internet sites. For further information about Google Analytics- click here, and for details of Google Analytics Privacy Policy, click here.

How does Google Analytics work? All our public website pages are coded with a small piece of Google Analytics code that is transparent to you when you read that page. These pieces of code store cookies in your browser (if you have cookies enabled) which contain unique identifiers to allow us to track the number of unique visitors to the website. This information is collected and aggregated by Google Analytics and in no way can you be identified personally and no personal information is stored about you. The Google Analytics code is not included on any of our secure Online Banking screens.

When you provide information When submitting an online form relating to a Westpac product or service, we will request specific personal information such as your name and address, title, existing bank relationship, your email address and a contact phone number. This information is necessary in order for us to action your request, and so that we can contact you if needed on issues relating directly to the product or service. Where confidential information is included in the form, we will use encryption to ensure that the information you send to us across the Internet is secure. As part of our Online Banking registration process, we invite you to provide additional information, namely your email address, marketing email preferences, and a name with which you would like to be greeted during future Online Banking sessions. Providing this information is optional for you, and you can change or remove these details at any time via a permanent link in our Online Banking navigation bar. From time to time, Westpac may collect additional personal information from website users in connection with optional competitions, surveys, or special offers.

Email address If you are a registered customer for Online Banking, we may use your email address to advise you of any upgrades or changes to this service, and if necessary to contact you with important information about any accounts or services you have with us that require your urgent attention. From time to time, we may also use your email address to send promotional messages, surveys, special offers or information about product and services from Westpac that are relevant to you. If you no longer wish to receive these emails then you can indicate this via the Name and email preferences feature within Online Banking.

Security of captured data To prevent unauthorised access, maintain data accuracy and ensure appropriate use of any customer supplied information, we have put in place physical, electronic and managerial processes to protect the information we collect via our website. For example, when capturing customer information through our Online Banking services, it is passed through a secure Westpac server using encryption technology to ensure that this information is protected when being sent over the Internet. Additionally, all stored customer information is protected from unauthorised access through the use of secure passwords, user log-ons and other security procedures.

To know more...

Email us, call in at your local branch, or call us on 0800 400 600 (7am to 11pm, 7 days a week).

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The information appearing on this site is for preliminary and general information only and is not to be relied on as being complete, accurate and up to date, and it is subject to change. Full details of up to date terms and conditions, product information, charges and interest rates are available from any Westpac branch in New Zealand.

You can get a copy of the current disclosure statement for Westpac New Zealand Limited and a copy of the investment statement for any securities for which an investment statement is required from any Westpac branch in New Zealand free of charge. Westpac New Zealand Limited.

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Westpac shall not be responsible for the content of any other site accessed via the Westpac site. Links to other sites are provided for convenience only and do not represent any endorsement by Westpac of products offered by the site owner. Westpac New Zealand Limited.

The information on this page is presented subject to our legal page and any other terms and conditions that Westpac may impose from time to time. It is subject to change without notification.