Public Interest Disclosure

The Public Interest Disclosure Act 2013 (PID Act) promotes integrity and accountability in the Commonwealth public sector by:

facilitating public officials (and former public officials) to disclose suspected wrongdoings within the public sector;
providing a framework to investigate suspected wrongdoing; and
protecting disclosers from reprisals and legal action for making a disclosure.

The Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security oversees the operation of the Public Interest Disclosure (PID) scheme for the Office of National Intelligence.

ONI is committed to maintaining and upholding its integrity and ethical working environment, and will thoroughly investigate all PIDs to uphold these values. ONI encourages and supports the reporting of suspected or probable illegal conduct or other wrongdoing under the PID Act.

The definition of disclosable conduct is set out in section 29 of the PID Act. Conduct which may be the subject of a PID includes, but is not limited to:
- a contravention of the law
- corruption
- perverting the course of justice
- maladministration
- an abuse of public trust
- falsifying scientific research
- wastage of public money, or
- conduct that is a danger to health, safety or the environment.
Disclosures are about matters where investigation and correction is in the public interest. This does not include disagreements with government policy or expenditure.

There is no time limit on the making of a PID. It can be about conduct that occurred at any time, including before the PID Act commenced. It can also relate to conduct about agencies that have ceased to exist, or about the conduct of a person who has since ceased to be a public official. However, if the age of the information disclosed would make an investigation impracticable, the principal officer or the delegate may decide not to investigate the PID.
If you make a disclosure, you will:
- not be subject to any civil, criminal or administrative liability for making a disclosure, unless a designated publication restriction is contravened without reasonable excuse or the disclosure is knowingly false or misleading
- have no contractual or other remedy enforced or sanction imposed on you on the basis of making the disclosure
- have absolute privilege for the purposes of defamation proceedings in respect of the public interest disclosure
- not have a contract to which you are a party terminated on the basis of the disclosure
- have your identity protected.
There are no specific requirements for the type of information public officials needs to provide when making a disclosure. However, providing the following information should be considered:
- name and contact details (unless the public official wish to remain anonymous)
- the nature of the wrongdoing
- who they think committed the wrongdoing
- when and where the wrongdoing occurred
- any relevant events surrounding the wrongdoing
- if the public official did anything in response to the wrongdoing
- whether any others knew about the wrongdoing, and if so, whether they have allowed it to continue
- whether the public official believes their information is a PID under the PID Act (noting that the public official does not have to describe it that way for it to be treated as a PID), and
- if the public official is concerned about possible reprisal as a result of making a disclosure.
- clear and factual
- as far as possible, avoid speculation, personal attacks and emotive language
- contain supporting evidence where that is available to the discloser, and
- where possible, identify any witnesses to the disclosable conduct.

Please use the following form to contact an Office of National Intelligence Authorised Officer under the PID scheme:

Are you making an anonymous Public Interest Disclosure?

Yes

Disclosers are not required to identify themselves and may remain anonymous. Remaining anonymous means a discloser does not reveal their identity to anyone at any stage, including to the authorised officer or supervisor or manager who receives the disclosure. Additionally, the PID Act requires ONI to keep a discloser’s identity confidential, subject to limited exceptions.

While ONI will act on anonymous PIDs wherever possible, a discloser may want to consider identifying themselves to an authorised officer as:

it may be difficult to protect the discloser from reprisal if ONI does not know the discloser’s identity; and
it may be difficult for the PID to be investigated if the discloser cannot be contacted for further information or assistance. An investigator has the discretion not to investigate, or not to investigate further, if the discloser does not provide their name and contact details or is unable to give the investigator further information or assistance if needed.

A person who initially makes an anonymous disclosure can identify themselves at a later stage.

A discloser may use a pseudonym during the PID process.

Your details
(ONI will make every reasonable effort to protect the identity of any public official who makes a disclosure under the PID Act)

First name

Surname

Postal address

Phone number

Email address

Nature and background of the disclosure

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Further advice on making a public interest disclosure is available from the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security(Opens in a new tab/window) and the Commonwealth Ombudsman(Opens in a new tab/window).

Disclosures can also be made in writing to the following postal address:

Attention: PID Authorised Officer
Locked Bag 6310
Kingston ACT 2604

If you need to disclose classified information, please contact an Office of National Intelligence Authorised Officer first so that appropriate steps can be taken to enable you to make a disclosure without breaching security procedures.

Help safeguard Australia and shape the future of intelligence.