LISNews: Librarian News

Princeton\'s open season on prospective Yale students was apparently
done using only the students \"Social Security numbers and birth dates.\"
The Boston Globe reports that according to Princeton\'s spokesperson, their
director of admissions acknowledged \"at least one \"unauthorized transmission\"
to the Yale Web site.\" He has been given a paid vacation while the offending
school conducts \"\"an aggressive investigation.\"\" In addition to admission
status, financial aid application information and personal and academic
preferences were accessible via the poorly secured logons.
-Hermit
:-( Privacy
20020726
\"Yale
accuses Princeton of Web prying:  Admissions
data at issue; dean placed on leave.\"  -By Mary
Leonard -Boston/Globe

Rather than use
software to block legal websites (because of concerns of a lawsuit), a
Florida county commission is considering using software costing between
$5,000 - $20,000 a month to spy on patrons websurfing via their library
card to find out if patrons visit any \"known pornographic site.\"
-Hermit
:-(
\"Board
won’t end porn access at library: Commission considers monitoring
software.\" -By Pamela Smith Hayford -News-Press.com

SiliconValley.com Has An Editorial by Dan Gillmore that says the businesses building the next generation of digital services are indifferent, if not hostile, to everything but their immediate bottom lines. I\'d say you can easily add some businesses providing services like databases, opacs and ejournals to this list. He also says legislative agendas frequently run counter to public wishes that conflict with business demands.Our rights, and money, are being legislated away.

Not 100% library related, but, The NYTimes has a Scary Story on the information people can get off of your drivers license. A bar owner found that he could build a database of personal information, providing an intimate perspective on his clientele that can be useful in marketing.

A good story for to answer the ol\' question \"Why do we worry about patron privacy?\"

\"You swipe the license, and all of a sudden someone\'s whole life as we know it pops up in front of you,\" said Paul Barclay, the bar\'s owner. \"It\'s almost voyeuristic.\"