WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION | Assess effectiveness of ethical sourcing and human rights frameworks
Status
Filed
AGM date
Resolution details
Company ticker
WBC
Lead filer
Resolution ask
Conduct due diligence, audit or risk/impact assessment
ESG theme
- Social
ESG sub-theme
- Digital rights
- Human rights
Type of vote
Shareholder proposal
Filer type
Shareholder
Company sector
Financials
Company HQ country
Australia
Supporting materials
- UNPRI - Westpac Shareholder Resolution 2026.pdf Download
Resolved clause
Shareholders request the Board of Directors commission an independent third-party report assessing how effectively our company implements its ethical sourcing and human rights frameworks concerning technology suppliers.
The information should be published on Westpac’s website by no later than next year’s annual reporting date and omit commercially sensitive information.
The information should be published on Westpac’s website by no later than next year’s annual reporting date and omit commercially sensitive information.
Supporting statement
Westpac has never publicly disclosed its relationship with data analytics and Artificial Intelligence (“AI”) provider, Palantir, however media reports and social media posts by Westpac staff indicate Westpac has used its software since at least 2021. This anecdotally includes bringing Palantir’s software system into the Group’s central data platform for cyber security and control, board-level risk-reporting, AI agents to automate account access compliance checks, and for trade surveillance and risk governance.
Palantir has a history of serious privacy violations [1,2] and is linked to human rights violations in multiple countries [3]. As such, the bank’s relationship with Palantir – and its failure to disclose it – raises serious questions about whether its human rights and ethical sourcing policies for technology vendors protect human rights and our company’s reputation.
Last month, Coles Group, a peer ASX 20 company, announced it will end its Palantir partnership after sustained public concern. This was likely partly due to concern that the rapid growth in public distrust of Palantir in the past year could harm trust in Coles [4].
PALANTIR HAS A HISTORY OF PRIVACY VIOLATIONS
Westpac identifies privacy and data protection as one of 11 salient human rights issues [5] and expects suppliers to ensure appropriate management systems to protect customer information against unauthorised access and misuse [6].
There is widespread doubt over Palantir’s suitability as a reliable and honest custodian of sensitive information. Despite claims that its technology operates in isolated, customer-controlled environments, it has been implicated in multiple privacy violations.
Palantir and its sub-contractors accessed de-identified UK National Health Service (NHS) patient and employee records despite the NHS stating that it “retains total control of its data” [7]. Palantir has also been accused of accessing personal data harvested from Facebook and Medicaid participants without their informed consent [8].
Westpac has not formally confirmed the existence or scope of Palantir's contract, leaving shareholders with limited transparency over whether the associated privacy risks, including access controls, are being appropriately managed. If the scope of the contract includes retail banking, it could expose vast amounts of personal data of about 12 million customers, including sensitive information like biometric data and medical histories [9], to a company with a track record of privacy violations.
Human rights violations, including the right to privacy, are a financially material risk to Westpac. Australian law is clear that contractual assurances no longer function as a proxy for compliance. If a foreign technology vendor mismanaged or misused Westpac staff or customer data, Westpac, not the vendor, faces significant penalties [10]. This includes civil penalties up to 30% of turnover, class action litigation [11], and regulatory action [12].
Westpac has not publicly confirmed whether it conducted a Human Rights Impact Assessment for its use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to identify material risks posed by AI before they were introduced. This is recommended by the Australian Human Rights Commission who created a toolkit with Westpac’s competitor, NAB [13].
As such, shareholders would benefit from an independent assessment of the effectiveness of Westpac’s human rights frameworks, particularly in regard to managing the risks that technology vendors pose to privacy and data protection.
PALANTIR EXPOSES WESTPAC TO HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS
Westpac also identifies “the risk that customers and/or products are connected to areas affected by conflict” as one of 11 salient human rights issues [14].
Westpac manages its human rights commitments with suppliers through the Responsible Sourcing Code of Conduct and Service Provider Playbook [15]. Both set expectations for suppliers, including how they “respect human rights…in their operations, supply chain and other business relationships and address any adverse human rights impacts” [16].
Palantir designs military and surveillance technology implicated in actual or potential human rights violations in multiple countries. It built software for the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency to identify targets for its unlawful detentions, violent raids and mass deportations [17], including by harvesting sensitive medical data [18]. Its software is used by the Israel Defence Force in real-time battlefield data integration for automated decision-making in Gaza [19].
A majority of Palantir’s non-insider shareholders are concerned it does not follow its Human Rights policy and urged it to assess the human rights impact of its products being used in conflict areas [20].
Given the apparent conflict between Westpac’s human rights and responsible sourcing frameworks and its choice of technology vendors, shareholders would benefit from knowing if current policies effectively assess, mitigate and report human rights risks from technology vendors, and whether additional measures are needed.
FOOTNOTES
[1] Good Law Project, “More than 100 Palantir staff have access to NHS systems”, July 2026. https://goodlawproject.org/more-than-100-palantir-staff-have-access-to-nhs-systems/
[2] MSN https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/other/ice-taps-palantir-to-mine-medicaid-data-and-hunt-deportation-targets/ar-AA1V6DVE & The Guardian https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/mar/28/palantir-employee-cambridge-analytica
[3] The Guardian, “Palantir’s tools pose an invisible danger we are just beginning to comprehend”, August 2025. https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/aug/24/palantir-artificial-intelligence-civil-rights
[4] Roy Morgan, “Bunnings is Australia’s most trusted brand; but distrust continues to grow in AI brands like OpenAI and Palantir”, August 24, 2026. https://www.roymorgan.com/findings/10327-risk-monitor-quartely-update-june-2026
[5] Westpac Group Human Rights. https://www.westpac.com.au/about-westpac/sustainability/our-positions-and-perspectives/human-rights/
[6] Westpac Group Supplier Code of Conduct. https://www.westpac.com.au/content/dam/public/wbc/documents/pdf/aw/sustainability/wbc-supplier-code-of-conduct.pdf
[7] Good Law Project, “More than 100 Palantir staff have access to NHS systems”, July 2026. https://goodlawproject.org/more-than-100-palantir-staff-have-access-to-nhs-systems/
[8] MSN https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/other/ice-taps-palantir-to-mine-medicaid-data-and-hunt-deportation-targets/ar-AA1V6DVE & The Guardian https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/mar/28/palantir-employee-cambridge-analytica
[9] Westpac Privacy Statement https://www.westpac.com.au/content/dam/public/wbc/documents/pdf/privacy/wbc-privacy-statement.pdf
[10] OAIC, “Sending personal information overseas”. https://www.oaic.gov.au/privacy/privacy-guidance-for-organisations-and-government-agencies/handling-personal-information/sending-personal-information-overseas
[11] Legal Services Commission South Australia, Statutory tort for serious invasions of privacy. https://lsc.sa.gov.au/handbook/ch34s01s06.php?lscsa_prod%5Bpage%5D=11
[12] Minter Ellison, “Beyond compliance: Real consequences attach to privacy failures”. https://www.minterellison.com/articles/beyond-compliance-real-consequences-attach-to-privac
[13] Australian Human Rights Commission, Artificial intelligence in banking - Human Rights Impact Assessment Tool. https://humanrights.gov.au/resource-hub/by-resource-type/publications/technology-and-human-rights/hria-tool-ai-banking
[14] Westpac Human Rights Position Statement and Action Plan. https://www.westpac.com.au/content/dam/public/wbc/documents/pdf/aw/sustainability/WBC-human-rights-position-statement.pdf
[15] Working with Westpac https://www.westpac.com.au/content/dam/public/wbc/documents/pdf/aw/sustainability/WBG_Supplier_Playbook.pdf & Supplier Code of Conduct https://www.westpac.com.au/content/dam/public/wbc/documents/pdf/aw/sustainability/wbc-supplier-code-of-conduct.pdf
[16] Westpac Supplier Code of Conduct https://www.westpac.com.au/content/dam/public/wbc/documents/pdf/aw/sustainability/wbc-supplier-code-of-conduct.pdf
[17] 404 Media: “ELITE’: The Palantir App ICE Uses to Find Neighborhoods to Raid”. https://www.404media.co/elite-the-palantir-app-ice-uses-to-find-neighborhoods-to-raid/
[18] Associated Press: “Trump administration hands over Medicaid recipients’ personal data, including addresses, to ICE”. https://apnews.com/article/immigration-medicaid-trump-ice-ab9c2267ce596089410387bfcb40eeb7
[19] The United Nations, “From Economy of Occupation to the Economy of Genocide: Report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967” https://www.un.org/unispal/document/a-hrc-59-23-from-economy-of-occupation-to-economy-of-genocide-report-special-rapporteur-francesca-albanese-palestine-2025/
[20] “Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace Urge Palantir to Conduct Human Rights Impact Assessment”, 2026. https://www.csjp.org/news/2026/2/25/pltr
Palantir has a history of serious privacy violations [1,2] and is linked to human rights violations in multiple countries [3]. As such, the bank’s relationship with Palantir – and its failure to disclose it – raises serious questions about whether its human rights and ethical sourcing policies for technology vendors protect human rights and our company’s reputation.
Last month, Coles Group, a peer ASX 20 company, announced it will end its Palantir partnership after sustained public concern. This was likely partly due to concern that the rapid growth in public distrust of Palantir in the past year could harm trust in Coles [4].
PALANTIR HAS A HISTORY OF PRIVACY VIOLATIONS
Westpac identifies privacy and data protection as one of 11 salient human rights issues [5] and expects suppliers to ensure appropriate management systems to protect customer information against unauthorised access and misuse [6].
There is widespread doubt over Palantir’s suitability as a reliable and honest custodian of sensitive information. Despite claims that its technology operates in isolated, customer-controlled environments, it has been implicated in multiple privacy violations.
Palantir and its sub-contractors accessed de-identified UK National Health Service (NHS) patient and employee records despite the NHS stating that it “retains total control of its data” [7]. Palantir has also been accused of accessing personal data harvested from Facebook and Medicaid participants without their informed consent [8].
Westpac has not formally confirmed the existence or scope of Palantir's contract, leaving shareholders with limited transparency over whether the associated privacy risks, including access controls, are being appropriately managed. If the scope of the contract includes retail banking, it could expose vast amounts of personal data of about 12 million customers, including sensitive information like biometric data and medical histories [9], to a company with a track record of privacy violations.
Human rights violations, including the right to privacy, are a financially material risk to Westpac. Australian law is clear that contractual assurances no longer function as a proxy for compliance. If a foreign technology vendor mismanaged or misused Westpac staff or customer data, Westpac, not the vendor, faces significant penalties [10]. This includes civil penalties up to 30% of turnover, class action litigation [11], and regulatory action [12].
Westpac has not publicly confirmed whether it conducted a Human Rights Impact Assessment for its use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to identify material risks posed by AI before they were introduced. This is recommended by the Australian Human Rights Commission who created a toolkit with Westpac’s competitor, NAB [13].
As such, shareholders would benefit from an independent assessment of the effectiveness of Westpac’s human rights frameworks, particularly in regard to managing the risks that technology vendors pose to privacy and data protection.
PALANTIR EXPOSES WESTPAC TO HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS
Westpac also identifies “the risk that customers and/or products are connected to areas affected by conflict” as one of 11 salient human rights issues [14].
Westpac manages its human rights commitments with suppliers through the Responsible Sourcing Code of Conduct and Service Provider Playbook [15]. Both set expectations for suppliers, including how they “respect human rights…in their operations, supply chain and other business relationships and address any adverse human rights impacts” [16].
Palantir designs military and surveillance technology implicated in actual or potential human rights violations in multiple countries. It built software for the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency to identify targets for its unlawful detentions, violent raids and mass deportations [17], including by harvesting sensitive medical data [18]. Its software is used by the Israel Defence Force in real-time battlefield data integration for automated decision-making in Gaza [19].
A majority of Palantir’s non-insider shareholders are concerned it does not follow its Human Rights policy and urged it to assess the human rights impact of its products being used in conflict areas [20].
Given the apparent conflict between Westpac’s human rights and responsible sourcing frameworks and its choice of technology vendors, shareholders would benefit from knowing if current policies effectively assess, mitigate and report human rights risks from technology vendors, and whether additional measures are needed.
FOOTNOTES
[1] Good Law Project, “More than 100 Palantir staff have access to NHS systems”, July 2026. https://goodlawproject.org/more-than-100-palantir-staff-have-access-to-nhs-systems/
[2] MSN https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/other/ice-taps-palantir-to-mine-medicaid-data-and-hunt-deportation-targets/ar-AA1V6DVE & The Guardian https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/mar/28/palantir-employee-cambridge-analytica
[3] The Guardian, “Palantir’s tools pose an invisible danger we are just beginning to comprehend”, August 2025. https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/aug/24/palantir-artificial-intelligence-civil-rights
[4] Roy Morgan, “Bunnings is Australia’s most trusted brand; but distrust continues to grow in AI brands like OpenAI and Palantir”, August 24, 2026. https://www.roymorgan.com/findings/10327-risk-monitor-quartely-update-june-2026
[5] Westpac Group Human Rights. https://www.westpac.com.au/about-westpac/sustainability/our-positions-and-perspectives/human-rights/
[6] Westpac Group Supplier Code of Conduct. https://www.westpac.com.au/content/dam/public/wbc/documents/pdf/aw/sustainability/wbc-supplier-code-of-conduct.pdf
[7] Good Law Project, “More than 100 Palantir staff have access to NHS systems”, July 2026. https://goodlawproject.org/more-than-100-palantir-staff-have-access-to-nhs-systems/
[8] MSN https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/other/ice-taps-palantir-to-mine-medicaid-data-and-hunt-deportation-targets/ar-AA1V6DVE & The Guardian https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/mar/28/palantir-employee-cambridge-analytica
[9] Westpac Privacy Statement https://www.westpac.com.au/content/dam/public/wbc/documents/pdf/privacy/wbc-privacy-statement.pdf
[10] OAIC, “Sending personal information overseas”. https://www.oaic.gov.au/privacy/privacy-guidance-for-organisations-and-government-agencies/handling-personal-information/sending-personal-information-overseas
[11] Legal Services Commission South Australia, Statutory tort for serious invasions of privacy. https://lsc.sa.gov.au/handbook/ch34s01s06.php?lscsa_prod%5Bpage%5D=11
[12] Minter Ellison, “Beyond compliance: Real consequences attach to privacy failures”. https://www.minterellison.com/articles/beyond-compliance-real-consequences-attach-to-privac
[13] Australian Human Rights Commission, Artificial intelligence in banking - Human Rights Impact Assessment Tool. https://humanrights.gov.au/resource-hub/by-resource-type/publications/technology-and-human-rights/hria-tool-ai-banking
[14] Westpac Human Rights Position Statement and Action Plan. https://www.westpac.com.au/content/dam/public/wbc/documents/pdf/aw/sustainability/WBC-human-rights-position-statement.pdf
[15] Working with Westpac https://www.westpac.com.au/content/dam/public/wbc/documents/pdf/aw/sustainability/WBG_Supplier_Playbook.pdf & Supplier Code of Conduct https://www.westpac.com.au/content/dam/public/wbc/documents/pdf/aw/sustainability/wbc-supplier-code-of-conduct.pdf
[16] Westpac Supplier Code of Conduct https://www.westpac.com.au/content/dam/public/wbc/documents/pdf/aw/sustainability/wbc-supplier-code-of-conduct.pdf
[17] 404 Media: “ELITE’: The Palantir App ICE Uses to Find Neighborhoods to Raid”. https://www.404media.co/elite-the-palantir-app-ice-uses-to-find-neighborhoods-to-raid/
[18] Associated Press: “Trump administration hands over Medicaid recipients’ personal data, including addresses, to ICE”. https://apnews.com/article/immigration-medicaid-trump-ice-ab9c2267ce596089410387bfcb40eeb7
[19] The United Nations, “From Economy of Occupation to the Economy of Genocide: Report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967” https://www.un.org/unispal/document/a-hrc-59-23-from-economy-of-occupation-to-economy-of-genocide-report-special-rapporteur-francesca-albanese-palestine-2025/
[20] “Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace Urge Palantir to Conduct Human Rights Impact Assessment”, 2026. https://www.csjp.org/news/2026/2/25/pltr
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