Privacy Policy

In this policy, the Auction Operator, NZX, the Crown, we, our and us mean NZX Limited and/or the Crown (as the context may require).

We may change this policy at any time by posting updated terms on this Website.

This policy sets out how we handle the information we collect about you. If you use our Website, you agree that we may collect, use, transfer, disclose and store your information in accordance with this policy.

If you continue through the registration process and become an Auction Participant for the purposes of this Website, we may collect further information from you and you agree that we may collect, use, transfer, disclose and store your information for additional purposes, in accordance with this policy.

For the purposes of this Website, NZX will collect, use, transfer, disclose and store Personal Information for and on behalf of the Ministry as its agent. NZX will process Personal Information, acting as the Ministry’s agent, for the purposes of 1) acting as Auction Operator, 2) operating the Auction Platform and 3) complying with law.

Who does the Auction Operator collect information about?

We may collect Personal Information about:

  1. Viewers of this website;
  2. Subscribers for further information via this Website;
  3. Applicants;
  4. Auction Participants;
  5. Users; and
  6. Representatives of an Applicant or the Auction Participant who are not yet Users.

Collection of your information

We collect information about you when you use our Website, subscribe to receive information, when you use the Auction Platform, and throughout the Auction process.

We may also collect information about you from third parties when you have authorised this or the information is publicly available.

How is Personal Information collected?

The Auction Operator may collect Personal Information:

  1. directly from the individual (e.g. as part of the User registration process on the Website);
  2. from publicly available materials;
  3. from third parties such as the EPA, the DIA and DVS;
  4. from the Auction Participant or Applicant;
  5. automatically when an individual visits the Website or participates in an Auction and any Auction-related activities.

The information we collect may include:

  • your name, address (postal and email), date of birth, location and telephone number(s);
  • identification information (for example, passport and/or driver’s licence) provided by you as part of the Auction registration process;
  • the date and time you use our Website and the URLs of the pages you visit;
  • the IP address for your computer (your IP address is the identifier for your computer when you are using the internet) and the domain name from which you are accessing the internet; and
  • the operating system and browser your computer uses, and any search engine you are using.

An Auction Participant or User is not required by law to give the Auction Operator any of the Personal Information that may be requested by the Auction Operator. However, if the Auction Participant or User does not provide the Personal Information requested the Auction Operator may not be able to verify an Auction Participant’s identity and as a result the Auction Participant and/or User may not be permitted to participate in an Auction.

Consent on behalf of others

If the information you provide us includes information about another person, you confirm that they have authorised you to provide us that information. This means where an Auction Participant or an Applicant provides the Auction Operator with Personal Information (e.g. about its Users), the Auction Participant or Applicant (as applicable) confirms that it has been authorised by each relevant individual to provide that information to the Auction Operator and has obtained the relevant consent from the individual concerned.

How will the Auction Operator use Personal Information?

Viewers of the Website
Where you subscribe for further information relating to the Auction Platform via the Website, we may use your information for the following purposes:

  • providing you products and services relating to the Auction Platform, and managing our relationship with you;
  • providing you with information about the Auction Platform products and services);
  • conducting market research and statistical analysis; and
  • monitoring and improving the security of our Website, systems and networks.

Auction Participants and Users
In addition to the uses stated above, where you have provided Personal Information for purposes related to the Auctions (including any pre-auction or post-auction activities and as required by law), your Personal Information may be used for additional purposes as set out below.

The Auction Participant for itself and on behalf of its Representatives, and each User, authorises the Auction Operator, the Crown, the EPA and their respective Representatives to Process the Auction Participant’s (and its Representatives) Personal Information for purposes related to an Auction, including any pre-auction and post-auction activity and as required or permitted by Law. Such purposes may include:

  1. verifying an Auction Participant’s and each User’s identity and address, including providing Personal Information to EPA for verification via the Register and to Third Party identity verification service providers (and the service provider may verify such identification information with the document issuer, for example DIA or DVS);
  2. providing Auction services, including relationship management and billing services (including input of data and information to Third Party software products for the purpose of settlement services related to an Auction);
  3. providing information about Auctions (including promotional material and news);
  4. improving and developing the Auction Platform;
  5. conducting market research and statistical analysis, including invitations to user groups; and
  6. monitoring and improving the security of the Website and associated systems and networks.

We may also use your information for any other purpose authorised by you, or as otherwise required or permitted by law.

The Auction Operator agrees that where it Processes Personal Information in relation to an Auction Participant or its Users it will only Process such Personal Information:

  1. where it has the consent of the Auction Participant or its Users;
  2. to perform its services and obligations under the Regulations and these Terms; and
  3. in accordance with its legal obligations.

The Auction Operator may use application programming interfaces (APIs) to enable software to interface with the Website. As a result, information submitted by an Auction Participant via the Website may be accessed through the API by Third Parties for purposes related to an Auction, including the registration process.

Disclosure of your information

We may disclose or transfer your information to the following third parties:

  • anyone that provides us services or undertakes activities that relate to a purpose listed above (including third parties in New Zealand and overseas);
  • other members of the NZX Group, which must handle your information in accordance with this policy;
  • anyone that we need to contact to carry out your instructions (including the recipient of any payment);
  • government agencies and other third parties where required or permitted by law or any court;
  • suitably skilled and qualified service providers engaged by us in the event your use of our Website is causing us technical issues (including an attack on our websites, systems or networks)

We may also disclose your information to anyone you authorise us to disclose that information to.

Storage and security of your information

We may store your information ourselves, or with third parties contracted to hold the information for us in New Zealand and overseas by our service providers (such as those that provide data hosting services for us). We will implement appropriate technical and operational measures to ensure that your information is protected from unauthorised access, use, modification, or disclosure (or other misuse).

We will store and keep your personal information secure in accordance with the Privacy Act 2020.

Your rights to access and correct your information

You can ask us to provide you with the information we hold about you and request corrections to it.

If you are a resident of the European Economic Area (EEA), you may have certain data protection rights in addition to those under the New Zealand Privacy Act 2020. We will Process Personal Information related to this privacy policy as processor in accordance with applicable obligations under the GDPR.

We will take reasonable steps to allow you to correct, amend, delete or limit the use of your Personal Information. If you wish to be informed about what Personal Information we hold about you or if you want it to be amended or removed from our systems, please contact us at auctions@nzx.com.

Cookies

Our Website places cookies on your computer. A "cookie" is a file which allows us to track your log in and registration details as you use our Website. We may use this information to help us identify you and to personalise your experience when you visit our Website (including your log in process).

You can stop cookies being placed on your computer by changing the settings for your internet browser. However, some of our Website’s features may not work without cookies.

Definitions

In this privacy policy, capitalised words have the following meanings:

Act means the Climate Change Response Act 2002.
Applicants means an entity or person holding a Holding Account who seeks access to the Auction Platform as an Auction Participant.
Auction Operator means the operator of the Auction Platform and accompanying websites, as appointed by the Minister of Climate Change. A reference to the Auction Operator means a reference to NZX acting in the capacity as auction operator.
Auction Participant means an Applicant that has received notice from the Auction Operator that the Applicant has been approved and registered as a registered bidder in accordance with the Auction Regulations and the terms and conditions relating to the Auction Platform.
Auction Platform means the New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme auction platform and the accompanying website operated by or on behalf of the Auction Operator.
Crown means the Sovereign in right of New Zealand, and includes all Ministers, all government departments including the Ministry, and all Offices of Parliament, but does not include any Crown entity under the Crown Entities Act 2004 or any state enterprise under the State-Owned Enterprises Act 1986.
DIA means the Department of Internal Affairs.
DVS means the document verification service operated by the DVS Manager (being the Commonwealth of Australia represented by the Attorney-General’s Department and, also includes, in respect of each type of document support by the DVS, the applicable entity whose official record date is matched against for that document and (in the case of Australian’s drivers licence information) Austroads Ltd CAN 136 812 390.
EPA means the Environmental Protection Agency
GDPR means the European Union General Data Protection Regulation, Regulation (EU) 2016/679.
Holding Account has the meaning given to it in the Act.
Ministry means the Sovereign in Right of New Zealand, acting by and through the Secretary for the Environment.
Personal Information has the meaning given to it in the Privacy Act 2020.
Process means any operation or set of operations performed upon Personal Information, whether or not by automatic means, such as collection, recording, organisation, storage, adaptation or alteration, retrieval, consultation, use, disclosure by transmission, dissemination or otherwise making available, alignment or combination, blocking, erasure or destruction. Other grammatical forms of “Process” will be interpreted accordingly.
Representative includes in respect of any person or entity, its employee, agent, officer, independent individual contractor or individual working under the direction of that person or entity, and any subcontractors used by such person or entity.
User means a person who is a Representative of an Auction Participant who is authorised by such Auction Participant to access the Auction Participant’s Auction Platform account, and whose identity has been verified by the Auction Operator.
Website means the website with the homepage whose address is Etsauctions.govt.nz.