RE: Administration Sets Forth a Limited View on Privacy

["Hamaker, Chuck" <cahamake@email.uncc.edu>]

There is now much more than circulation data in libraries that could be
used to identify what individual users are looking at.

Are logs from virtual reference sessions, as an example, wiped of
identifying information regularly-??  an example of library information
beyond circulation records that could conceivably be requested.

The question of regular cleaning of logs of public computers is another.

Password requests another possiblity(individuals who wanted passwords to a
specific database) which many libraries provide automatically once users
are verified.

And key logging software. 

Chuck

-----Original Message-----
From: Samuel Trosow
To: liblicense-l@lists.yale.edu
Sent: 3/7/04 8:04 AM
Subject: Re: Administration Sets Forth a Limited View on Privacy

Chuck is absolutely right about this concern. It's good you raised it
because like medical records, there is no explicit federal provision
safeguarding the privacy of library patron records. Much attention has
lately been focused on what effect section 215 of the Patriot Act would
have on patron privacy.  But even without this provision (the government
claims it hasn't been used, and there are also efforts underway to
amend/repeal it)the confidentiality of these records is a cause for
concern in light of the over-reaching attitude and practices of the
federal government.

Samuel Trosow
University of Western Ontario