Outback Travel Australia (OTA) is committed to protecting the personal information of the people who read it. This policy explains what we collect, why, who we share it with and what you can ask us to do about it. We handle personal information in line with the Australian Privacy Principles under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth).
Last updated: 19 October 2026
The short version
- You can read anything on this site without telling us who you are.
- Our 4WD tools record what was asked of them, not who asked. There is no name, email or account attached to a search.
- We only ever get your name or email address because you typed it into a form and pressed a button.
- We never pass your details to a commercial partner unless you have ticked a box asking us to, and we tell you exactly what would be passed before you tick it.
- We do not sell, rent or trade your personal information. We never have.
What we collect when you just read the site
Like any website, our server and our analytics record technical information about visits: the pages viewed, the date and time, the type of browser and device, the approximate region derived from your network address, and the site you arrived from. We use this to understand which articles and tools people find useful.
We do not try to work out who you are from this information, and we do not combine it with your name or email address if you have given us one elsewhere.
What our 4WD tools record
The 4WD matcher, the payload calculator and the model pages record what readers ask of them so we can improve them and understand what people are shopping for. For each use we store things like the vehicle or figures checked, the trailer weight, the number of people and the amount of gear entered, the postcode if you chose to give one, and which vehicles the tool returned.
These records carry no name, email address, phone number or account. They are not linked to you, and we cannot work backwards from one to a person. Within a single browsing session the tools share a short random code so that using two tools in a row reads as one visit rather than two strangers; that code is held only in your browser tab and is gone when you close it.
We publish and may share summaries drawn from these records — for example, how many readers checking a particular vehicle were over its legal limit. Those summaries are counts. They never contain anything that identifies a person.
What we collect when you give it to us
You can ask us to email you a copy of your payload calculation. If you do, we collect your email address, and your name and phone number if you choose to provide them, together with the figures from that calculation.
We use that information to:
- send you the report you asked for;
- send you our newsletter, only if you ticked the box asking for it; and
- pass your details to a GVM upgrade partner, only if you ticked the separate box asking us to.
Those are three separate decisions and we treat them separately. Asking for your report does not put you on our mailing list, and joining our mailing list does not send your details to anyone else.
If you subscribe to our newsletter from elsewhere on the site, we collect your email address for that purpose.
Sharing your details with a GVM upgrade partner
If — and only if — you tick the box asking us to, we will pass your name, email address, phone number, postcode and the figures from your calculation to one GVM upgrade specialist so they can contact you about options for your vehicle. We will not pass anything else, and we will not pass your details to anyone else.
That partner is an independent business and handles your information under its own privacy policy, not ours. If you want to know who it is before you tick the box, email contact@outbacktravelaustralia.com.au and we will tell you.
You can change your mind at any time by emailing us. We will stop passing your details on, although we cannot undo a disclosure already made.
Who else handles your information
We use third-party services to run the site and send email. The ones that may handle personal information are:
| Service | What it handles | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Our web host | The site and its database | Australia |
| EmailOctopus | Newsletter subscribers and sending | United Kingdom and United States |
| Google Analytics and Google Tag Manager | Site usage statistics | United States |
| Google AdSense | The advertising shown on the site | United States |
Some of these are outside Australia, which means your information may be stored or processed overseas. We choose providers that commit to protecting it, but laws in other countries differ from Australian law.
Cookies and advertising
This site uses cookies and similar technologies. Some are needed to make the site work. Others are set by Google Analytics so we can see which pages are read, and by Google AdSense, which serves the advertising on this site. Those advertising cookies may be used to decide which ads you are shown, here and on other sites.
You can block or delete cookies in your browser settings. Parts of the site may not work properly if you do. You can opt out of personalised Google advertising at google.com/settings/ads.
Affiliate and commercial links
Some links on this site are affiliate links, and we may earn a commission if you buy through them, at no extra cost to you. Where we send you to another business we may add a tag to the link so that business knows the visit came from us. That tag identifies Outback Travel Australia, not you. Our editorial judgement is our own and is not for sale.
How long we keep things
| What | How long |
|---|---|
| Tool usage records (anonymous) | 24 months |
| Your details from a report request | 12 months, unless you are a newsletter subscriber |
| Newsletter subscription | Until you unsubscribe |
Security
We take reasonable steps to protect the information we hold, and access to it is restricted to people who need it. No transmission over the internet is completely secure, so anything you send us is sent at your own risk. If you would rather not send something by email, contact us and we will find another way.
Getting a copy, correcting it, or having it deleted
You can ask us what personal information we hold about you, ask us to correct it, or ask us to delete it. Email us at contact@outbacktravelaustralia.com.au and we will act on it — ordinarily within 30 days.
If you ask us to delete your details, we delete them. Nothing is kept in another system to identify you later.
Unsubscribing
Every marketing email we send has an unsubscribe link, and it works. You can also email us and we will remove you.
Complaints
If you think we have mishandled your personal information, email us first and we will look into it. If you are not satisfied with our response, you can complain to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner at oaic.gov.au or on 1300 363 992.
Contact
Outback Travel Australia
contact@outbacktravelaustralia.com.au
Changes to this policy
We will update this page when what we do changes. The date at the top shows when it was last revised.
