In 2018 the Australian Government's Protective Security Policy Framework was reviewed and changed to simplify the security classification of information. These changes included consolidating Dissemination Limiting Markers (DLMs) into a single marking of 'Official: Sensitive'. This DLM replaces:
- For Official Use Only (FOUO)
- Sensitive
- Sensitive: Legal
- Sensitive: Personal
The 'Sensitive: Cabinet' DLM has been replaced by a CABINET caveat.
These changes are being grandfathered (PDF 273KB) through to October 2020.
Under the review, a need to continue to further categorise the subject matter of sensitive information was identified. In response the Attorney-General's Department and the National Archives agreed to use terms from the Rights property of the National Archives' Australian Government Recordkeeping Metadata Standard (AGRkMS) for this purpose. These terms describe the content of the information rather than the degree of harm which could result from its unintended release. The use of these terms with official or security classified information is optional.
To support this work, the National Archives revised and extended the available terms from the Rights Type Scheme in the AGRkMS. Changes include the addition of four new terms:
- Commercial
- Cultural
- Legal Privilege
- Legislative secrecy
The former term 'Privacy' has been updated to 'Personal Privacy'.
As a result of the changes to the Protective Security Policy Framework, the National Archives will also be updating properties in its metadata standards, relevant to security classification. Further information will be published as it's available.
Information Management Markers
Three terms from the Rights property of the AGRKMS have been designated as information management markers. These are expected to be used most commonly by agencies, particularly for email correspondence. They largely replace the functionality of the Dissemination Limiting Markers removed from the Protective Security Policy Framework. The terms are:
- Legal privilege
- Legislative secrecy
- Personal privacy