Privacy Policy

How We Handle Your Personal Information

Last updated: 17 October 2026

AuditTrace Forensic Accountants (AuditTrace Forensic Accountants, A.B.N. 42 192 066 873) operating under the practice name Rider Accountants & Advisors (“AuditTrace”, “we”, “us”, “our”) is committed to protecting the privacy of the people we deal with. This policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, store and protect personal information in accordance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs).

Because of the nature of forensic accounting work, we also handle information under strict professional confidentiality obligations, including those in APES 110 Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants (including Independence Standards), and in accordance with any court orders, subpoenas or confidentiality undertakings that apply to a matter.

1. The kinds of personal information we collect

Depending on how you deal with us, we may collect:

Contact details, such as your name, organisation, role, email address, phone number and postal address
Enquiry details you provide through our website forms, by email or by phone, including a summary of your matter
Engagement information, such as instructions, correspondence, billing details and identity verification records
Matter records provided to us for analysis, which may include bank statements, financial statements, tax returns, accounting records, trust and company records, and transaction data relating to clients, other parties or third parties
Website usage information, such as your IP address, browser type, pages visited and referring website

Sensitive information

Matters we work on, particularly family law and fraud investigations, may involve sensitive information, such as information about health, criminal records or family circumstances. We only collect sensitive information where it is reasonably necessary for the engagement and you have consented, or where collection is required or authorised by law or a court or tribunal order.

2. How we collect personal information

We collect personal information directly from you where reasonably practicable: when you complete a form on our website, email or call us, engage our services, or provide documents. We may also collect personal information from third parties, including your lawyers, the other parties to a dispute and their representatives, financial institutions, government agencies, courts and tribunals, subpoenaed material, and publicly available sources such as ASIC, land titles and court registries.

If you provide us with personal information about another person, please make sure you are entitled to do so.

3. Why we collect, hold, use and disclose personal information

to respond to enquiries and assess whether we can act, including conflict-of-interest checks
to provide forensic accounting, investigation, litigation support and expert witness services
to prepare reports and give evidence in legal proceedings
to manage our engagements, billing and professional records
to meet our legal, regulatory, professional and insurance obligations
to operate, secure and improve our website

We do not sell personal information, and we do not use matter records for marketing.

4. Who we may disclose personal information to

We may disclose personal information, where appropriate to the purpose for which it was collected, to:

your instructing solicitors, barristers and other professional advisers
courts, tribunals, mediators and other parties to proceedings, where required by the engagement, court rules or orders
other experts, including in joint expert conferences or concurrent evidence
service providers who support our practice, such as IT, cloud storage, email, website hosting and document management providers, under confidentiality obligations
our professional bodies, insurers and auditors, where required
government agencies and regulators, where required or authorised by law

5. Overseas disclosure

Some of the technology service providers we use may store or process data on servers located outside Australia, which may include the United States. Where this occurs, we take reasonable steps to ensure those providers handle personal information in a manner consistent with the APPs. We do not otherwise routinely disclose personal information to overseas recipients.

6. Our website

Enquiry forms

Information submitted through our website forms is sent to us by email and stored securely in our website system so that enquiries are not lost. Please do not include confidential documents or detailed matter information in a website form. We will arrange a secure method for transferring documents after our first conversation.

Cookies and third-party content

Our website uses cookies that are necessary for it to function. Some pages include content from third parties, such as embedded videos (YouTube) and maps (Google Maps), and those providers may set their own cookies and collect information in accordance with their own privacy policies. You can block or delete cookies through your browser settings, although some features may not work as intended.

Links to other websites

Our website may link to third-party websites. We are not responsible for their content or privacy practices.

7. Security and retention

We take reasonable steps to protect personal information from misuse, interference, loss, and unauthorised access, modification or disclosure. These include access controls, secure storage, logging of matter documents on receipt, and confidentiality obligations for our staff and service providers.

We keep engagement and matter records for as long as required by law, professional standards and our insurance obligations, which is generally at least seven years after an engagement ends. When information is no longer needed, we take reasonable steps to destroy or de-identify it, subject to any legal hold or court order.

Data breaches

If a data breach is likely to result in serious harm, we will notify affected individuals and the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) as required under the Notifiable Data Breaches scheme.

8. Accessing and correcting your personal information

You may ask to access, or to correct, personal information we hold about you by contacting us using the details below. We will respond within a reasonable time, generally within 30 days. In some circumstances we may refuse access, for example where giving access would breach a duty of confidentiality to a client, prejudice legal proceedings, or where the information is subject to legal professional privilege or a court order. If we refuse, we will explain why in writing, where it is lawful to do so.

9. Complaints

If you have a concern about how we have handled your personal information, please contact us in writing. We will acknowledge your complaint, investigate it and aim to respond within 30 days.

If you are not satisfied with our response, you may lodge a complaint with the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner at www.oaic.gov.au.

10. Contact us

Privacy Officer
AuditTrace Forensic Accountants
Email: steven@rideraccountants.com.au
Phone: (02) 8957 8454
Post: P.O. Box 281, Marrickville NSW 2204

11. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time. The current version will always be published on this page.