Privacy and the library patron: an ongoing ethical challenge Seeta Peña Gangadharan Department of Media and Communications, London School of Economics and Political Science

1. PRIVACY AND THE LIBRARY PATRON:
AN ONGOING ETHICAL CHALLENGE
Dr. Seeta Peña Gangadharan
London School of Economics
April10, 2018
Plenary Session at the Annual conference of the UKSG, Glasgow, Scotland

2. Library Patron
Early 20th century: A relatively simple flow of patron information.
“It is the librarian’s obligation to treat as confidential any private information
obtained through contact with library patrons.” (American Library Assn., 1939)

3. Library Patron
Internet
Third Party
Vendors
Early 21st century: A more complex flow of patron information.

4. Acquisi'ons
Barcoded
devices (tablets,
MiFi)
Cataloging
Chat desk
Circula'on
Copiers Discovery layer
Ebooks
Furniture
Hard drives
Informa'on
aggregators/
databases
Internet service
Library website,
other Web
proper'es
Link resolvers
Kiosks (prin'ng,
fines)
Network traffic
management
tools
OPAC
Privacy screens
Publisher
websites
Repositories
Room design
Routers
Scanners
Security
cameras
Serials
Servers
Usbs
Web analy'cs
Web filters
Wifi scanning

5. Acquisi'ons
2. LIBRARIANS’ PRIVACY KNOWLEDGE

6. Acquisi'ons
Survey results: Data Privacy Project
Question Ans. U* T**
Using public library Wi-Fi means your behavior is
anonymous
It is safe to use the same password for multiple user
accounts, as long as it contains a few different letters,
numbers, or symbols.
When a website has a privacy policy, it means the site
will not share my information with other websites and
companies without my permission.
During a web-browsing session in private or incognito
mode, cookies cannot communicate information about
your browsing behavior to third parties.
F
F
F
F
69
62
42
**
92
87
60
34
* = Untrained, before professional development program began
** = Trained population

7. Acquisi'ons
Staff
knowledge
Institutional
changes
Patron
education
3. LITERACY: ONE PART OF THE PUZZLE

8. Context: Data Privacy Project
Patron Profiles for Privacy
Risk Assessments
Tools for Assessing
Vendor’s Cybersecurity

9. Acquisi'ons Acquisi'ons
Context
Profssnl
Legal
Tech
Social
Other
Model Contracts
Network Design
Procurement Guidelines
Privacy Impact Assessments
Patron Education
Professional Education
Professional Development
Privacy/data protection
Software Choices
Terms of Service
Transparency Guidelines
Solutions

10. Acquisi'ons
American Library Association. (2002, June 19). Privacy: An Interpretation of the Library Privacy Bill of Rights. Retrieved
from http://www.ala.org/advocacy/intfreedom/librarybill/interpretations/privacy
Becker, S., Crandall, M.D., Fisher, K.E., Blakewood, R., Kinney, B., and Russell-Sauvé, C. (2010). Opportunity for all: How
the American public benefits from internet access at U.S. libraries. (IMLS-2010-RES-01). Institute of Museum and
Library Services: Washington, DC. Retrieved March 20, 2016, from
http://www.imls.gov/assets/1/AssetManager/OpportunityForAll.pdf
Brooklyn Public Library [website]. (n.d.) Retrieved April 9, 2018 from http://www.bklynlibrary.org.
Clark, L. and Archer, K. (2015, December). After access: Libraries & digital empowerment. American Library Association:
Washington, DC. Retrieved March 20, 2016, from
http://www.ala.org/advocacy/sites/ala.org.advocacy/files/content/
ALA%20DI%20After%20Access_final_12%2017%2015.pdf
Data Privacy Project. (2016). Retrieved March 20, 2016, from http://www.dataprivacyproject.org.
Gangadharan, S.P. (2017). Library privacy in practice: System change and challenges. I/S 13, 1. Retrieved April 9, 2018
from http://moritzlaw.osu.edu/students/groups/is/files/2017/08/Gangadharan.pdf.
Morrone, M. & Witt, S. (2013). Digital inclusion, learning, and access at the public library. Urban Library Journal 19(1):
1-10. Retrieved April 9, 2018, from http://academicworks.cuny.edu/ulj/vol19/iss1/8.
Mosman Library. (2013). Entrance to the National Digital Library of Korea/Dibrary. Retrieved April 9, 2018 from
www.flickr.com/photos/mosmanlibrary/4978470684/sizes/l/in/photostream.
Nissenbaum, H. F. (2010). Privacy in context: Technology, policy, and the integrity of social life. Stanford, CA: Stanford
Law Books.
Sharpe, S. (2008). A timeline of events in the history of libraries. Presented at the Foundations in Library and Information
Science. Retrieved from http://www.slideshare.net/sharpe3/a-timeline-of-events-in-the-history-of-libraries
Zickuhr, K., Rainie, L. and Purcell, K. (2013, January). Library services in the digital age. Pew Internet & American Life
Project: Washington, DC. Retrieved March 20, 2016 from
http://libraries.pewinternet.org/2013/01/22/library-services/.
REFERENCES