Independent project. Not affiliated with MECCA Brands. Submissions and public comments are not findings.

Australian legal and publication policy

What we check before we publish

This policy explains the legal risks we look for and the editorial checks we require. It is not legal advice, a guarantee that a publication is lawful or a waiver of anyone's rights.

What a disclaimer cannot do

Calling something an allegation does not make it safe to publish

Defamation risk depends on the meaning conveyed, who is identifiable, the evidence, serious harm, jurisdiction and whether a defence can be proved from the reporting conduct. Removing a name or adding a disclaimer does not automatically make a publication lawful.

That is why we treat each submission as a confidential research lead. Consent, anonymity and an evidence tag do not, by themselves, authorise publication.

Before substantive claims are published

Checks we do not skip

Define the proposed meaning

Identify every person or organisation who may be identifiable and record the factual meanings a reasonable audience could take from the words, headline, images, editing and omissions.

Build a proposition-level evidence record

Match every material factual proposition to first-hand knowledge, records or other reliable support. Repetition is logged but does not by itself establish truth.

Separate fact, allegation and opinion

State verified facts as facts only when the evidence supports that treatment. Attribute allegations clearly. Label opinion and identify the material on which it is based.

Test source independence

Check whether apparently separate accounts rely on the same incident, person, public post, group discussion or copied wording before counting them as independent.

Assess public interest and necessity

Record why publication serves a legitimate public interest, why each identifying detail is necessary and whether the same purpose can be achieved with less reputational or privacy harm.

Offer a meaningful right of reply

Give a person or organisation facing substantive criticism enough information to understand and answer it, a reasonable opportunity to respond and fair representation of the substance of the response.

Complete independent review

High-risk material is reviewed for accuracy, context, source safety, privacy, fairness, consent and legal risk. Serious allegations are not published solely because they were submitted.

Correct and preserve

Preserve the evidence, consent and decision record supporting publication. Correct material factual errors promptly and explain significant changes.

Defamation in Australia

Public interest is not a permission slip

Serious harm and identification

Australian states and territories have substantially uniform defamation statutes, but jurisdiction and transitional differences matter. Serious harm is an element of the cause of action in the amended model provisions. The threshold does not make a weakly sourced publication safe.

A person can be identifiable without being named. Role, location, timing, images, quotations or contextual clues can be enough when readers can connect the material to them.

Defences require evidence

Potential defences may include substantial truth, contextual truth, publication concerning an issue of public interest, qualified privilege, honest opinion and fair reporting of proceedings of public concern. Each has distinct requirements.

Public-interest assessment can consider the seriousness of the meaning, separation of allegation from proven fact, source integrity, verification and whether the subject's response was sought and represented fairly.

Companies and named people

Many larger for-profit corporations cannot sue in defamation under the uniform statutes, but that does not remove publication risk. Identifiable individuals may sue, some corporations qualify as excluded corporations and other claims or remedies may apply.

Any proposal to name a manager, employee, contributor or other individual in connection with serious criticism requires necessity, strong evidence, right of reply, privacy review and Australian media-law advice.

Concerns notices and corrections

Australian defamation procedure includes formal concerns-notice and offer-to-make-amends processes. Complaints must be preserved, assessed promptly and escalated for legal advice. Corrections should be proportionate, visible and not quietly rewritten where the change is material.

Before you contribute

What this project cannot promise you

Whistleblower protection

Inside MECCA is not claiming to be an eligible recipient under the Corporations Act. Protection depends on the discloser, subject matter, recipient and statutory steps. Personal work-related grievances may be excluded in some circumstances.

External disclosures

Corporations Act protection for public-interest or emergency disclosure to a journalist or parliamentarian has strict preconditions, including an earlier qualifying disclosure to ASIC or APRA and written notice. The statutory journalist definition may not cover this project. Contributors should not rely on this pathway without independent legal advice.

Confidentiality and privilege

The project restricts contributor identity, but cannot promise absolute secrecy, legal professional privilege or immunity from a valid legal demand, security incident or re-identification from surrounding facts.

Recordings and documents

Surveillance, recording, confidentiality and communication laws vary by state and territory. Do not secretly record, access, remove or send material unless you are legally entitled to do so. Possessing a document does not automatically authorise publication.

Privacy and personal information

Collect less, keep identities separate and be honest about the limits

Privacy Act coverage

Whether the Privacy Act applies to this project depends on facts including organisational status, turnover and statutory exceptions. The project does not assume an exemption or claim coverage without advice. It voluntarily uses practices modelled on the Australian Privacy Principles.

Sensitive information

Workplace accounts may include health, disability, racial or ethnic origin, union membership and other sensitive information. The form requests express consent for what a contributor chooses to provide and instructs contributors to minimise third-party details.

Security and retention

Access is restricted and retention periods are published. Information no longer needed should be securely destroyed or de-identified, subject to documented legal or editorial preservation needs. De-identification reduces but does not eliminate re-identification risk.

Operator disclosure

Inside MECCA is operated personally by me, the project lead. No separate incorporated company, association, trust, charity, newsroom, union or other legal entity operates the project.

What is collected and why

The research questionnaire records answers, identity preference, contact and consent choices, an optional email address, submission time, a private reference and a browser user-agent string. Information is used for assessment, coding, verification and contact only as selected. It is not sold or used for commercial marketing.

Storage and providers

Questionnaire submissions are stored in a restricted Supabase database. Where email delivery is available, Resend sends a copy to the restricted submission inbox. Hosting infrastructure processes requests in transit and providers may process information outside Australia. These descriptions must be updated if the technical configuration changes.

Requests and publication boundary

A contributor may use their private reference to request correction, an end to contact, withdrawal or deletion. Practical or legal limits, including backups, a legal hold or separately authorised published material, will be explained. Submission is never permission to quote, publish or identify a contributor.

Privacy contact: contact@insidemecca.net. Do not send additional sensitive information in the first email.

Email and secure channels

Emails are now received through a Google Workspace account. This remains an ordinary contact channel and is not represented as end-to-end encrypted, legally privileged or risk-free.

No Signal or SecureDrop channel is currently published. Before sending highly sensitive records, contact the project first and review the Source Safety guide.

Detailed contributor data notice

The questionnaire publishes the current collection fields, provider details, access limits, retention schedule and contributor-request process. Read the contributor data notice and form.

Serious invasions of privacy

Schedule 2 of the Privacy Act establishes a statutory tort for serious invasions of privacy, including serious intentional or reckless intrusion upon seclusion or misuse of information where a reasonable expectation of privacy exists. Public-interest balancing and any exemption require case-specific legal analysis.

Official legal sources

Use the current law, not a summary alone

These sources were reviewed on 11 August 2026. Laws and guidance change, and the version that applies to a particular event or publication may be different.

Concerns, replies and corrections

Tell us if proposed or published material is wrong or unfair

Identify the material, explain your concern, provide supporting information and tell us whether you are asking for a response, correction, clarification or removal.

We assess requests promptly. Relevant records may still need to be preserved for legal, editorial or safety reasons.

Submit a legal concern or reply

Important

Before naming an individual, publishing a serious allegation, sending a detailed right-of-reply letter or releasing documentary material, the project should obtain confidential advice from an Australian media lawyer. Cross-border material requires advice for every material publication jurisdiction.