Can the fact that debt is being collected be disclosed under Australian Consumer Law and Fair Trading Act 2012 section 45(j)
<p>The Act states:
&quot;disclosing or threatening to disclose debt
information, without the consent of the
debtor, to any other person who does not
have a clear and legitimate interest in the
information;
Example
Disclosing debt information when contacting a person
who is not the debtor while attempting to locate or
identify the debtor&quot;</p>
<p>So if I attempt to call a debtors old work place can I disclose that I am searching for him because I am collecting a debt without further information or should I say that I am prohibited by disclosing my reason for making contact with the individual by  the Australian Consumer Law and Fair Trading Act 2012 section 45(j) - (which is pretty much saying that I believe that he is a debtor).</p>

<p>The Australian government has put out a document entitled <a href="https://asic.gov.au/regulatory-resources/find-a-document/regulatory-guides/rg-96-debt-collection-guideline-for-collectors-and-creditors" rel="nofollow noreferrer">RG 96 Debt Collection Guideline</a>.  It makes it clear that they consider it forbidden to disclose that you are collecting a debt.  They even forbid disclosures that would allow a third party to <em>infer</em> that you are collecting a debt. Part 2, Section 1(b):</p>
<blockquote>
<p>If you consider it necessary to divulge your identity as a debt collector before being sure that you
are dealing with the debtor (for example, if requested by the person you are dealing with), then
you may do so <strong>if that would not have the effect of divulging that the debtor has a debt</strong>. Particular
care should be taken when speaking to a person at a debtor’s workplace or when using a medium
that may be shared with others (e.g. social media, landline telephones etc).</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Section 8:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Telling any third party the reason for trying to find the debtor will also disclose
personal information about the debtor.</p>
</blockquote>
<blockquote>
<p>Caution should be exercised when leaving messages for the debtor that may be seen or accessed
by third parties, for example:
Business cards or other documentation should not be left for the debtor in any open manner
that would allow a third party to infer the nature of your interest in contacting the debtor. Voicemail messages should be phrased so as to avoid a third party inferring the nature of your
interest in contacting the debtor. At no stage should contact be made with a debtor’s social media account that would
compromise the debtor’s privacy, for example, placing a message for the debtor in a way that
would allow anyone other than the debtor to view it.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>So to your questions:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>So if I attempt to call a debtors old work place can I disclose that I am searching for him because I am collecting a debt without further information</p>
</blockquote>
<p>No, you cannot not say that.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>or should I say that I am prohibited by disclosing my reason for making contact with the individual by the Australian Consumer Law and Fair Trading Act 2012 section 45(j)</p>
</blockquote>
<p>You should not say that either, as it would allow the former employer to infer the nature of your interest in contacting the debtor.</p>

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