Use of social media

The Department of Human Services updates official accounts on the social networking websites YouTube, Facebook and Twitter as an additional way of sharing information with you about government support, services and payments.

The department also monitors issues in social media and responds to customer questions and complaints in a range of online forums and social networking sites. Our policy is to respond to your questions online and correct misinformation. This helps ensure you get accurate information about Australian Government health and social welfare support when using social media.

speechbubble

speechbubble is an online forum where customers, staff and stakeholders can discuss and provide feedback on Department of Human Services' initiatives.

speechbubble will be available online at various times to inform and engage with the public on different initiatives. It is a less formal and more immediate way for the Department of Human Services to consult more directly and widely with the public to develop citizen-centred products and services.

Find out how we've used speechbubble to shape our service commitments.

YouTube, Facebook and Twitter accounts

The Department of Human Services currently operates the following official accounts on YouTube, Facebook and Twitter:

Department of Human Services General Manager and Spokesperson, Hank Jongen

Department of Human Services

Student Update — Department of Human Services support for youth and students

Family Update — Department of Human Services support for families

Centrelink

Department of Human Services National Graduate Program

Social media monitoring and responding

The department monitors issues in social media and responds to customer questions and complaints in a range of online forums and social media sites.

Sites we respond in on a regular basis include Whilrpool, Yahoo Answers, Bub Hub and Essential Baby.

When departmental staff respond in these forums in an official capacity they always identify as Department of Human Services staff. 

What you can expect from us

If you follow us on Twitter ,  'like' our Facebook pages or visit our YouTube channel you can expect short updates with the latest news, information and services from the Department of Human Services.

We update and monitor our official social networking accounts during business hours, Monday to Friday.

All information provided on our social networking accounts and in our responses is general in nature and is subject to change over time. While we endeavour to ensure the information published on our social networking accounts and in our responses is accurate at the time of publication, we advise you to always verify its currency and relevance for your purposes.

Remember, any posts you make on social networking websites like YouTube, Facebook and Twitter are publicly viewable and searchable. Please be aware that what you post may remain online indefinitely and can be found through search engines and online archives.

We ask that you protect your personal privacy and the privacy of others by not posting personal information on the department's social networking accounts. Where possible, we will remove posts that contain personal information.

If you have a question about your personal circumstances, or to make a formal enquiry, comment or to provide feedback to the department, refer to contact us.

Social media policy for Department of Human Services staff

The Department of Human Services has a social media policy to guide and support staff in their use of social media for work, and as private citizens. We've had interest from other government departments in our policy so we've decided to share the policy and video created for staff.

For more information email digital.media@humanservices.gov.au

Policies on our social media accounts

The Department of Human Services has policies that govern all of its social media accounts. View the full policies.