LISNews: Librarian News

Anonymous Patron writes "Libraries, law officers sometimes clash is from Madison Wisconsin. A majority of states, including Wisconsin, protect patron privacy by requiring a warrant or a court order to access library records. But after passage of the federal USA Patriot Act, which relaxed the rules for information gathering, many librarians across the country became outspoken activists against the law and for the right to privacy."

An Anonymous Patron writes "A couple of interesting computers at work related articles. Don't Click Send! says what some people may not realize is that sending the wrong e-mail to the wrong person can be more than monumentally embarrassing. It can cost you a job, or even a few months in jail. If you're composing an e-mail message that resembles any of the following disasters, just step away from the keyboard and go for a walk to clear your head.
Your Boss Is Watching says Internet account you have at work is not your private space. It's also your boss's space, and your boss's boss's space, and so on up the line. In fact, if you think you have any real privacy on the job, you're laboring under a delusion. Here are some of the more common myths about Net privacy at work."

Anonymous Patron writes "The Privacy Lawyer: RFID May Be Risky Business is an InformationWeek Article by Parry Aftab a cyberspace lawyer, specializing in online privacy and security law. She takes a look at RFID and says as we move closer to the day when individual items by and large will be tagged, companies had better be prepared to have clear policies for how they'll handle data they may collect from consumers.In the rush to adopt RFID, businesses have not paid enough attention to legal and consumer-relations risks. And, until consumers are convinced that the benefits of RFID outweigh their privacy and security concerns, this may be a very serious risk indeed.
Can we say the same thing about libraries?"

Advocates of technologies like radio frequency identification tags say their potentially life-saving benefits far outweigh any Orwellian concerns about privacy. RFID tags sewn into clothing or even embedded under people's skin could curb identity theft, help identify disaster victims and improve medical care, they say.

Critics, however, say such technologies would make it easier for government agencies to track a person's every movement and allow widespread invasion of privacy. Abuse could take countless other forms, including corporations surreptitiously identifying shoppers for relentless sales pitches. Critics also speculate about a day when people's possessions will be tagged, allowing nosy subway riders with the right technology to examine the contents of nearby purses and backpacks.
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