Cameron Abbott, Christien Corns, Rebecca Gill, and Rob Pulham of K&L Gates write:
There is a common misconception that Australian residents enjoy a general “right to privacy”. Many people understandably believe that if they are, for example, eating lunch at a restaurant minding their own business, it would be “unlawful” for someone to take photos of them without their consent, and then publish those photos on the internet.
In fact, despite a range of privacy related legislation, there is no clearly recognised cause of action in Australia for “invasion of privacy”i. Instead, other causes of action such as defamation, trespass and breach of confidence must be considered.
This can be contrasted with the position in Canada, New Zealand and much of Europe, where a stand-alone cause of action for invasion of privacy is available.
Read more on JD Supra.