Problem:
You have secured a competitive internship with a start-up technology firm which develops innovative solutions for companies entering the Metaverse (the next generation of online social interaction). The technological solutions developed include the conversion of cash into 'cryptocurrency', the implementation of 'blockchains' and the transformation of profile photos into 3D 'metaverse characters'.
For the first month of your internship, you have been assigned to work with a team that is performing risk and compliance assessments for the firm's latest 'metaverse character' software: Avatar Creator 3.0. Your supervisor, Aanya, has just emailed you the following urgent task:
Dear Intern, To fulfil our 2022 risk assessment strategy, our team is required to investigate whether all aspects of WS' new software - Avatar Creator 3.0 - comply with Australian laws and regulations. Since you are currently studying law at university, we would like you to tackle some preliminary questions concerning the legal and regulatory context of this software.
To better regulate online platforms, and the nature of the software they utilise, the Federal Government has recently introduced the Online Platforms (Privacy and Security) Regulation 2021 (Cth) ('Regulation')*. It is our understanding that this Regulation was not enacted by the Federal Parliament. Rather, it is a set of rules made by a regulator called the Australian Data Privacy Commissioner ('ADPC')*. To provide insight into this practice:
(a) Explain the role that regulatory bodies, such as the ADPC, play within the executive arm of government;
(b) Outline the circumstances in which the executive arm of government is permitted to make law; and
(c) Discuss whether the practice of executive law-making presents a challenge to the notion of representative democracy.