How we secure your data and tips to keep your personal information safe

Like all businesses that hold people’s personal information, Vision Super has a responsibility to protect the privacy and integrity of all the data we hold on behalf of our members. As you probably know, there have been several high-profile cyber security incidents at well-known Australian businesses, which have resulted in personal information being obtained by hacking groups and published on the dark web. So we want to highlight some of the measures Vision Super has in place to protect your data and provide some best-practice cyber security tips that may help you more generally.

What we do to protect you

Training

We have implemented a comprehensive suite of security protections designed to keep your information safe, which are independently assessed on an annual basis and reviewed by our Board. Combined with these controls, staff are given regular training on cyber security, including their responsibilities around data protection, in line with the Commonwealth Privacy Act 1988 (Privacy Act).

While our staff are trained in the importance of confidentiality and maintaining the security of your information, we restrict access to member records to those who need it to manage your account. Before staff can access member accounts, they must be authorised and appropriately trained. We also mask sensitive personal information wherever possible.

Website and app

Along with these safeguards, you may have noticed enhanced security on our website and the Vision Super mobile app. The app now uses multi-factor authentication, which adds an additional layer of security compared with just using a username and password, and is one of the most effective ways to protect against unauthorised access to your valuable information and your money.

Both Vision Super’s public website and your secure online account are protected by internet protocols that secure communications and any data transfer between your web browser and our websites. We have also introduced a new file upload form that provides a secure way to share forms and documents with us electronically.

Our offices

At Vision Super, we have a strict clean desk policy. This means any files that contain member or employer data must be locked in cabinets/drawers when an employee is not actively working on them, including during lunch and other breaks.

We also conduct regular outbound calling to help our members, but we will always try to send a text beforehand to let you know that we’re about to call, or alternatively, to call us. If you get a call from us that you weren’t expecting or is outside of our contact centre operating times of 8:30am and 5pm EST, then feel free to hang up politely and give us a call back yourself – we won’t be offended!

Remember: we will never ask for your username or password to your online account. If someone calls, messages or emails you asking for either of these, it’s not us! Cyber threats do change over time, and we will continue to evolve our cyber security strategy and controls in line with global and regulatory best practices to protect the data you provide to us.

Tips to protect yourself

While we take our data protection responsibilities very seriously, we are only part of the overall approach to good cyber security practices. We need your help as well – so here are a few tips to help you protect yourself more widely:

• Think before you click – hackers will often send what are known as phishing emails, where they are trying to steal your login details. These messages can be quite convincing but always check the sender’s address and the format of the email. Never enter your login details from a link you have clicked – go directly to the website from your browser instead. If it feels wrong, it usually is!
• Use pass phrases rather than passwords – a strong pass phrase is much better protection than a single word password. Using something like “my dog stinks again” and replacing certain characters with capitals or symbols (for example, MyD0g$t!nk$Aga1N) will help prevent your password from being compromised. You could also use a password manager that will generate and remember complex passwords for you
• Use multi-factor authentication – while sometimes it can be frustrating, multi-factor authentication provides one of the best defences available against your credentials being compromised. As with our app, do turn it on and use it across all your online platforms if available.

For more information about our approach to data security and privacy, visit www.visionsuper.com.au/privacy-policy.