Individuals at risk of fraud when their identity documents are stolen or breached will be better protected and supported under new laws passed by NSW Parliament overnight.
The Identity Protection and Recovery Bill legislates the role of ID Support NSW in addressing data breaches, identity theft and fraud mitigation, and ensuring the safety and security of individuals' identities.
The Bill also enables the NSW Government to establish a new fraud check service that will help ensure victims of identity crimes can be contacted to flag suspicious activity before any harm is done.
The Compromised Identity Register will allow government agencies and accredited organisations to check whether ID details have been compromised or stolen, stopping criminals using people's information to apply for grants or credit.
ID Support will add documents to the Register it knows or suspects are compromised, and notify the affected individual and issuing authority, to help prevent fraud and scams.
The legislation also means organisations experiencing a data breach can share relevant information with ID Support, alerting compromised individuals quickly and reducing their risk of harm.
Work is underway to build the Register, with the system expected to go live next year.
In 2024-25 ID Support provided assistance and information to more than 75,000 customers, helping people directly affected by identity misuse and data compromises.
According to ScamWatch, Australians reported losing more than $2 billion to scams last year, with more than 67,000 scams reported in NSW alone.
The new laws are a key action under the NSW Digital Strategy which aims to build secure, reliable and inclusive digital services and enhance cyber resilience and public trust.
Minister for Customer Service and Digital Government Jihad Dib said:
"These new laws allow us to offer a lifeline to individuals caught up in a data breach. They highlight the importance the Minns Labor Government places on protecting people from identity theft and scams.
"Under the legislation, ID Support NSW can provide swift assistance to public and private entities when data breaches occur.
"Once operational, the Compromised Identity Register will act as a crucial safeguard, helping prevent stolen information from falling into the hands of criminals and better protecting people's data following a breach."
