Australia’s privacy law has changed, and some of the changes speak directly to artificial intelligence. For dental practices using AI tools, it helps to be clear about who regulates what, because two different regulators are involved.
Privacy, including how patient information is handled by AI tools, is regulated by the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) under the Privacy Act 1988. Advertising, including marketing content written with AI, is regulated by AHPRA and the Dental Board of Australia under the advertising guidelines.
What has changed in privacy law
The Privacy and Other Legislation Amendment Act 2024 became law in December 2024. It gave the OAIC new enforcement tools, including infringement notices and lower penalty tiers for less serious breaches, and introduced a statutory tort for serious invasions of privacy, which came into effect in June 2025.
From 10 December 2026, organisations that use personal information in automated decisions that could significantly affect individuals will need to explain this in their privacy policies. In October 2024 the OAIC also published guidance on privacy and the use of commercially available AI products, which is the most practical starting point for any practice.
The effect for practices is simple: you cannot use an AI tool in your practice and treat patient privacy as someone else’s problem. You own it.
The penalties are real
Practices hear about the $50 million figure and assume it does not apply to them. For serious or repeated interferences with privacy, the maximum penalty for a company is the greater of $50 million, three times the benefit obtained, or 30 per cent of adjusted turnover. Since December 2024, infringement notices and lower penalty tiers also apply to less serious breaches. More damaging than the money can be the investigation itself, and the loss of patient trust that follows a breach.
The practices most at risk are the ones using AI tools without being able to explain why they use them, how they chose them, or what safeguards are in place.
Where AHPRA fits
AHPRA’s role here is advertising and professional conduct. If you use AI to write website copy, social media posts or patient information, the advertising guidelines still apply, and you remain responsible for what is published. AI generated content needs the same review as anything else that goes out under your name.
Using AI safely
The changes are not a reason to avoid AI altogether. The message is to use AI with safeguards in place. Those safeguards are practical:
That is not restrictive. It is good design.
Where to start
The first step is knowing which tools you already use that involve AI. Many practices do not realise they are using AI at all. Some systems that update patient records, send appointment reminders or flag clinical patterns now use AI behind the scenes.
The second step is asking one question of every tool: where does my patient data go, and who has access to it. If the vendor cannot answer that clearly, think carefully before using it.
The third step is reading the contract. Tools that take privacy seriously will say clearly where data is stored and how it is used. Tools that avoid the topic are tools to be sceptical about.
Building a privacy first culture
Practices that adopt AI well are the ones where privacy is a conversation, not a checkbox. That means front desk staff understand why patient names should never go into free AI tools, and clinicians understand which data matters and why.
Centaur Software has been serving dental practices for 34 years. Their position on AI integration reflects that history: build privacy and security in from the start, rather than retrofitting safeguards onto a system already in use.
Your patients trust you with their health information. The Privacy Act requires you to protect it, and the advertising guidelines require you to stand behind what you publish. Thoughtful AI adoption is how you do both.
Sources
Carolyn S Dean is the Founder and CEO of Trilbii and CEO and Director of My Dental Marketing. An award winning dental marketing strategist, speaker and author, she has worked with more than 500 dental practices across Australia and New Zealand.