Lipedema World Congress 2027 Logo

DATA

PRIVACY

1. Introduction

The Lipedema World Congress (LWC) is committed to protecting your privacy and handling your personal information responsibly and transparently. This Privacy Policy explains what personal information we collect, why we collect it, how we use and disclose it, and your rights in relation to your data.

We manage personal information in accordance with the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs) under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and, where applicable, the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Where there are differences between these frameworks, we aim to comply with the higher standard.

By using this website and/or registering for the Lipedema World Congress III, you acknowledge that you have read and understood this Privacy Policy.

2. Who we are

The Lipedema World Congress 2027 is organised by Lipoedema Australia Ltd (ABN 95 175 364 198), in partnership with the Lipedema World Alliance and other stakeholders.

Contact details:

For the purposes of the GDPR, the organiser is the data controller for personal information collected through this website and for congress registration.

3. What personal information we collect

We collect personal information that is reasonably necessary for, or directly related to, your participation in the Lipedema World Congress and related activities.

This may include:

  • Identity and contact details: name, title, organisation, email address, phone number, postal address
  • Professional details: profession, specialty, registration number (where relevant for CPD/CME), job role
  • Payment information: credit card details or other payment information processed securely via our payment providers (EventsAirPay, Stripe, PayPal, Klarna)
  • Dietary and accessibility requirements: to cater for your needs at the event
  • Health information (optional and only where necessary): for example, if you disclose a disability or medical condition to request specific accommodations
  • Technical data: IP address, browser type, operating system, pages visited, time and date of access, referring website (collected automatically when you use our website)
  • Communication records: emails, enquiries, and correspondence with the congress team

We do not collect sensitive information (such as health data) unless you voluntarily provide it to request specific services (e.g., accessibility or dietary needs), or where it is otherwise required or authorised by law.

4. How we collect your information

We collect personal information:

  • Directly from you, via:
  • Online registration forms
  • Contact forms on our website
  • Email or phone correspondence
  • Surveys or feedback forms
  • Automatically, when you visit our website, via:
  • Cookies and similar technologies (see Section 9)
  • Server log files (IP address, browser type, access times, etc.)
  • From third parties, only where necessary and permitted by law, such as:
  • Payment processors to confirm transactions
  • Professional or membership bodies (where you register via a partner organisation)

5. Why we collect and use your information

We use your personal information for the following primary purposes:

  • To process your registration for the Lipedema World Congress and related events (e.g., Pre‑Congress, Gala Dinner)
  • To manage your participation, including issuing tickets, providing access to sessions, and arranging catering and accessibility accommodations
  • To communicate with you about the congress (e.g., updates, programme changes, important notices)
  • To process payments and issue receipts or tax invoices
  • To provide CPD/CME documentation and certificates of attendance
  • To improve our website and services, including analysing how visitors use the site (in anonymised or aggregated form where possible)
  • To comply with legal obligations, including tax, consumer, and privacy laws

Where required by law (including under the GDPR), we rely on one or more of the following lawful bases for processing:

  • Performance of a contract (e.g., to deliver the congress services you have registered for)
  • Legitimate interests (e.g., to improve our website and communications, prevent fraud, and ensure event security)
  • Consent (e.g., for optional marketing communications or certain uses of sensitive information)
  • Legal obligation (e.g., tax and financial record‑keeping)

6. How we disclose your information

We may disclose your personal information to:

  • Service providers and contractors who assist us in delivering the congress, such as:
  • Registration and ticketing platforms (EventsAir)
  • Payment processors (Stripe, PayPal, Klarna)
  • Email and marketing platforms (Brevo, Mailchimp)
  • Website hosting and analytics providers (Squarespace, Google Analytics)
  • Venue and catering providers (Crown Conference Centre and related suppliers)
  • Professional bodies, where required for CPD/CME accreditation or verification
  • Government or regulatory authorities, where required or authorised by law (e.g., tax authorities, privacy regulators)
  • Partner organisations, such as the Lipedema World Alliance and Lipoedema Australia, for purposes directly related to the congress

We do not sell your personal information to third parties. We do not disclose your personal information for direct marketing by third parties without your express consent.

Overseas disclosure

Some of our service providers (e.g., cloud hosting, analytics, email platforms) may be located outside Australia, including in the United States and European Union. Where we disclose personal information to overseas recipients, we take reasonable steps to ensure they handle your information in accordance with applicable privacy laws and contractual safeguards (including, where required, Standard Contractual Clauses under the GDPR).

7. Data security

We take reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect your personal information from unauthorised access, loss, misuse, disclosure, or alteration. These measures include:

  • Encryption of data in transit (e.g., SSL/TLS for our website and payment pages)
  • Access controls and authentication for staff and contractors
  • Secure storage of electronic data with reputable cloud providers
  • Regular review of our security practices and vendor arrangements

While we strive to protect your personal information, no method of transmission over the internet or electronic storage is completely secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security, but we will promptly notify you and relevant regulators in the event of a notifiable data breach under the Notifiable Data Breaches scheme (Australia) and, where applicable, under the GDPR.

8. Your rights

Under Australian law (Privacy Act / APPs)

You have the right to:

  • Access the personal information we hold about you
  • Request correction of inaccurate, out‑of‑date, incomplete, irrelevant, or misleading information
  • Request anonymity or pseudonymity where lawful and practicable (e.g., when making an enquiry)
  • Lodge a complaint with us about how we handle your personal information, and to have that complaint investigated

Under the GDPR (for EU/EEA individuals)

If you are in the European Union or European Economic Area, you also have the right to:

  • Rectification of inaccurate personal data
  • Erasure (“right to be forgotten”) in certain circumstances
  • Restriction of processing in certain circumstances
  • Data portability, to receive your data in a structured, commonly used, machine‑readable format and transmit it to another controller
  • Object to processing based on legitimate interests or direct marketing
  • Withdraw consent at any time, where processing is based on consent
  • Lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority in your country of residence

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at info@lwc2027.com. We will respond within a reasonable timeframe (typically 30 days under Australian law; sooner where required by the GDPR). We may need to verify your identity before processing your request.

9. Cookies and website analytics

Cookies

Our website uses cookies to improve user experience, analyse site usage, and support certain functions (e.g., registration, shopping cart). Cookies are small text files stored on your device by your browser.

Types of cookies we use:

  • Essential cookies: required for core website functionality (e.g., secure login, registration)
  • Analytics cookies: help us understand how visitors use our site (e.g., pages viewed, time spent) in anonymised form
  • Preference cookies: remember your settings and preferences (e.g., language, region)

You can control cookies through your browser settings. Most browsers allow you to:

  • View and delete existing cookies
  • Block all or some cookies
  • Set preferences for specific websites

Disabling cookies may limit the functionality of our website, including your ability to register or log in.

Analytics

We use Google Analytics 4 with IP anonymisation to analyse website usage. Information generated by cookies about your use of the site (including your IP address in anonymised form) may be transmitted to and stored by the provider on servers in the United States or other jurisdictions.

You can opt out of Google Analytics tracking by installing the browser add‑on available at: https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout.

10. Automated decision‑making

From 10 December 2026, Australian privacy law requires us to disclose certain uses of automated decision‑making. At this time, the Lipedema World Congress does not use automated systems to make decisions that could reasonably be expected to significantly affect your rights or interests. All key decisions (e.g., registration acceptance, accessibility accommodations) involve human review.

If this changes, we will update this Privacy Policy to describe:

  • The types of personal information used
  • The kinds of decisions made (or assisted) by automated systems
  • How you can seek human review or challenge such decisions

11. Retention of personal information

We retain personal information only for as long as necessary to:

  • Fulfil the purposes described in this Privacy Policy
  • Comply with legal, tax, and accounting requirements
  • Resolve disputes and enforce our agreements

For example, registration and financial records are typically retained for 7 years to meet Australian tax law requirements, after which they are securely destroyed or de‑identified unless a longer retention period is required by law.

12. Children’s privacy

The Lipedema World Congress is a professional and scientific event. Our website and services are not directed to children under the age of 16. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If we become aware that we have inadvertently collected personal information from a child without parental consent, we will take steps to delete it.

13. Changes to this Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technology, legal requirements, or operations. The latest version will always be available on our website at www.lwc2027.com/privacy.

Material changes will be communicated via:

  • A notice on our website
  • Email to registered delegates, where appropriate

We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically.

14. Contact and complaints

If you have any questions, concerns, or complaints about this Privacy Policy or our handling of your personal information, please contact us:

  • Email: info@lwc2027.com
  • Postal address: 30 Broadwater Road, Morayfield, 4506 QLD Australia
  • Attention: Privacy Officer, Lipedema World Congress 2027

We will investigate your complaint and respond within a reasonable timeframe. If you are not satisfied with our response, you may lodge a complaint with:

  • Australia: Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) – www.oaic.gov.au
  • EU/EEA: The data protection authority in your country of residence

15. Specific tools and providers

Below is a summary of key third‑party tools we use.

  • Website platform: EventsAir & Squarespace – hosts our public website and some registration pages
  • Registration & ticketing: EventsAir – processes registrations and issues tickets
  • Payment processors: EventsAirPay, Stripe, PayPal, Klarna – handles credit card and online payments; we do not store full card details
  • Email & marketing: EventsAir, Brevo & Mailchimp – manages congress communications and newsletters
  • Analytics: Google Analytics 4 with IP anonymisation – analyses website usage in anonymised form
  • Forms & spam protection: Google reCAPTCHA – helps prevent automated spam submissions
  • Video & content: YouTube, Vimeo – hosts recorded sessions and promotional videos (where used)
  • Maps: Google Maps – displays venue location on our website

Each provider has its own privacy policy. We encourage you to review these where relevant, particularly if you are concerned about cross‑border data transfers.

Last Updated: 21 September 2026