"Preserving Patron Privacy in the 21st Century Academic Library"

by Amanda Nichols Hess, Rachelle-Fiori, and Keith Engwall

Image by Orimi Protograph on Unsplash

In this article, the authors argue that modern technology tools bring both ingenuity and difficulties to preserving patron privacy in the library.

• 21st-century technology tools make it difficult to preserve patron privacy (p. 105).

• The article proposes that all libraries should develop a privacy policy or statement to make sure patron privacy and confidentiality is upheld (p. 107).

• Article is a case study of one large Midwestern academic library that did not have a privacy policy and strategies that libraries can take to implement a privacy policy (p. 105).

• Library created a privacy policy taskforce to write a privacy policy statement to be published on the library’s website and affirm the library’s commitment to keep information about patrons private and confidential (p. 106).

• “An added layer to both sides of this issue, though, is that there is no formalized code or legislation that can guide academic libraries' efforts to ensure privacy, regardless of technological developments found that while these issues are discussed in the literature, they are done in only a cursory fashion and there is no real roadmap or established set of best practices for librarians” (p. 106).

1. Based on the reading, what can libraries do to ensure patron policy and create greater transparency about privacy and confidentiality? Are there movements or collaborations in progress towards this transparency?

2. Although 21st century technology tools makes it difficult to preserve patron privacy, what else in the literature suggests that intellectual freedom rights need to be preserved?

Amanda Nichols Hess, Rachelle LaPorte-Fiori, and Keith Engwall. n.d. “Preserving Patron

Patron Privacy in the 21st Century Academic Library.” https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acalib.2014.10.010.