Privacy

Come Talk Security And Privacy At ALA Annual!

LITA Preconferences: Friday, June 24, 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm

Digital Privacy and Security: Keeping You And Your Library Safe and Secure In A Post-Snowden World

Orlando Convention Center, 
Presenters: Blake Carver, LYRASIS and Jessamyn West, Library Technologist at Open Library

Learn strategies on how to make you, your librarians and your patrons more secure & private in a world of ubiquitous digital surveillance and criminal hacking. We’ll teach tools that keep your data safe inside of the library and out — how to secure your library network environment, website, and public PCs, as well as tools and tips you can teach to patrons in computer classes and one-on-one tech sessions. We’ll tackle security myths, passwords, tracking, malware, and more, covering a range of tools from basic to advanced, making this session ideal for any library staff. 
 

From LITA Highlights at 2016 ALA Annual Conference | Library Information Technology Association (LITA)

February 11, 2016 by American Library Association Libraries Privacy

Congress Starts to Get Serious About Online Privacy

Congress could soon vote on a bill that would require law enforcement agencies to get a search warrant from a judge to obtain emails, photographs and other documents Americans have stored online. This important legislation would update the law to reflect how people use the Internet today.

Under the Electronic Communications Privacy Act of 1986, government agents need a warrant if they want access to email stored on the servers of companies like Google and Yahoo, but only if the messages are less than 180 days old. For older messages and other digital files, law enforcement officials can issue subpoenas to technology companies without going to a judge.

From Congress Starts to Get Serious About Online Privacy – The New York Times

February 10, 2016 by Google Internet Legal Issues Privacy Yahoo

Free Webinar: Introduction to IT Security for Libraries and Librarians

We all know we should use good passwords, keep everything updated and follow other basic precautions online. Understanding the reasons behind these rules is critical to help us convince ourselves and others that the extra work is indeed worth it. Who are the bad guys? What are tools are they using? What are they after? Where are they working? How are they doing it? Why are we all targets? We’ll talk about how to stay safe at the library and at home.

Join Blake Carver, Systems Administrator At LYRASIS to learn strategies for IT security. We’ll talk ways to keep your precious data safe inside the library and out — securing your network, website, and PCs, and tools you can teach to patrons in computer classes. We’ll tackle security myths, passwords, tracking, malware, and more, covering a range of tools and techniques, making this session ideal for any library staff.

From Introduction to IT Security for Libraries and Librarians

February 8, 2016 by Internet IT Security in Libraries Librarians Libraries Privacy Technology

IT Security & Privacy Preconference At ALA Annual

LIT1: Digital Privacy and Security: Keeping You And Your Library Safe and Secure In A Post-Snowden World
Friday, June 24, 2016, 1:00PM – 4:00PM
Join Blake Carver from LYRASIS and Alison Macrina from the Library Freedom Project to learn strategies on how to make you, your librarians and your patrons more secure & private in a world of ubiquitous digital surveillance and criminal hacking. We’ll teach tools that keep your data safe inside of the library and out — how to secure your library network environment, website, and public PCs, as well as tools and tips you can teach to patrons in computer classes and one-on-one tech sessions. We’ll tackle security myths, passwords, tracking, malware, and more, covering a range of tools from basic to advanced, making this session ideal for any library staff. 

From Ticketed Events | ALAAC16

January 22, 2016 by American Library Association Internet IT Security in Libraries Libraries Privacy Technology

The state of privacy in America | Pew Research Center

After the June 2013 leaks by government contractor Edward Snowden about National Security Agency surveillance of Americans’ online and phone communications, Pew Research Center began an in-depth exploration of people’s views and behaviors related to privacy. Our recent report about how Americans think about privacy and sharing personal information was a capstone of this two-and-a-half-year effort that examined how people viewed not only government surveillance but also commercial transactions involving the capture of personal information.

Here are some of the key findings that emerged from this work:

From The state of privacy in America | Pew Research Center

January 21, 2016 by Internet Privacy

You are not what you read: librarians purge user data to protect privacy

Interlibrary loans, said Alison Macrina, founder and director of the Library Freedom Project, form an ad-hoc record of departures from regular patterns of lending – the kind of thing that often interests intelligence and law enforcement analysts.

“It seems like it’s a more interesting data trail,” said Macrina. “It’s a book you wanted so bad that you went to special lengths to get it, and we know how intelligence agencies pay attention to breaks in patterns.” Macrina hadn’t heard about the CUNY Graduate Center initiative, but said it was a relief to her. “It’s taken a little too long but I’m really glad to see it’s happening somewhere.”

From You are not what you read: librarians purge user data to protect privacy | US news | The Guardian

January 14, 2016 by Legal Issues Librarians Libraries Privacy

NISO Releases a Set of Principles to Address Privacy of User Data in Library, Content-Provider, and Software-Supplier Systems

The National Information Standards Organization (NISO) has published a set of consensus principles for the library, content-provider and software-provider communities to address privacy issues related to the use of library and library-related systems.  This set of principles developed over the past 8 months focus on balancing the expectations library users have regarding their intellectual freedoms and their privacy with the operational needs of systems providers. 
 
The NISO Privacy Principles, available at http://www.niso.org/topics/tl/patron_privacy/, set forth a core set of guidelines by which libraries, systems providers and publishers can foster respect for patron privacy throughout their operations.  The Principles outline at a high level basic concepts and areas which need to be addressed to support a greater understanding for and respect of privacy-related concerns in systems development, deployment, and user interactions.  The twelve principles covered in the document address the following topics: Shared Privacy Responsibilities; Transparency and Facilitating Privacy Awareness; Security; Data Collection and Use; Anonymization; Options and Informed Consent; Sharing Data with Others; Notification of Privacy Policies and Practices; Supporting Anonymous Use; Access to One’s Own User Data; Continuous Improvement and Accountability.
 
The Preamble of the Principles notes that, “Certain personal data are often required in order for digital systems to deliver information, particularly subscribed content. Additionally, user activity data can provide useful insights on how to improve collections and services. However, the gathering, storage, and use of these data must respect the trust users place in libraries and their partners. There are ways to address these operational needs while also respecting the user’s rights and expectations of privacy.”
 
“Working collaboratively through a set of open meetings and discussion forums, a team of librarians, publishers and systems providers crafted these principles,” said Todd Carpenter, NISO’s Executive Director.  “This fact distinguishes this effort from other privacy-related efforts in our community.  By working together to deeply grasp the foundational nature of respect for patron privacy among suppliers as well as to understand the operational needs and product development process among the library community, the team was able to come to a nuanced understanding of the related issues.  This joint effort allowed for the creation of a balanced set of principles, which achieve the common goal of providing the best possible user experience built from its core with respect for privacy.”
 
Organizations and individuals are encouraged to provide public comments on the NISO Privacy Principles, as well as register their support for the principles, on the NISO website.  Additional work in the coming year is envisioned to make these high-level principles operational for publishers, content-providers and software suppliers.
 
This project was generously supported by a grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. More information about the project, including presentations, recordings of the virtual and in-person meetings, and other background information may be found at www.niso.org/topics/tl/privacy.

From NISO Press Release

December 14, 2015 by Librarians Libraries Privacy

The Birth And Death Of Privacy: 3,000 Years of History Told Through 46 Images

Privacy, as we understand it, is only about 150 years old.
Humans do have an instinctual desire for privacy. However, for 3,000 years, cultures have nearly always prioritized convenience and wealth over privacy.
Section II will show how cutting edge health technology will force people to choose between an early, costly death and a world without any semblance of privacy. Given historical trends, the most likely outcome is that we will forgo privacy and return to our traditional, transparent existence.

From The Birth And Death Of Privacy: 3,000 Years of History Told Through 46 Images — The Ferenstein Wire — Medium

November 26, 2015 by Privacy

LISNews Archives