Resources

Educate yourself on how libraries can protect the privacy of online users.

Librarians and library workers can be the privacy experts in their communities.

Tools to Protect User Privacy: Technologies and practices users can employ to protect their online privacy.
Guidelines & Checklists for Libraries: Privacy guidelines, checklists, and other resources to assist librarians, libraries, schools and vendors develop best practices for online privacy.
Sample Policies & Documents: Samples of privacy policies and other documents to give you ideas on how to get started.
HTTPS & Let’s Encrypt: Resources on using HTTPS and Let’s Encrypt on library websites and servers.
Students & Minors: Selected resources on students’ and minors’ privacy including federal laws, scholarly articles, standards and principles, news and viewpoints, and legislative outlook.
Presentations & Webinars: Recent presentations and webinars on privacy and libraries.
Privacy Training & Education for Librarians: Privacy curricula and training resources on privacy and libraries.

Programs

Check out the Programs section of this website for information about hosting events and activities to raise awareness and engage library users on privacy issues.

Librarians as Information Fiduciaries? Part Two Becky Yoose
Welcome back to our series on information fiduciaries and libraries! We introduced the concept of information fiduciaries in Part One. In this series entry, we will focus on libraries as possible information fiduciaries.
Libraries as Information Fiduciaries? Part One Becky Yoose
The Resolution on the Misuse of Behavioral Data Surveillance in Libraries, recently passed at ALA Midwinter, calls for libraries and vendors to reject behavioral data surveillance of patrons. While we are familiar with the concept of data surveillance, the last item in the resolution contains something that some in the library world are not as familiar with – information fiduciaries.
The Conflict of Access and Privacy in the Right to Be Forgotten Virginia Dressler
Privacy and access are two important elements in librarianship that we hold dear- Both concepts are prominent in ALA’s Code of Ethics, but what happens when access and privacy collide?
Adventures of an eResources Librarian – Thinking About and Teaching Privacy Every Day, Part One Stacy Tomaszewski
A big part of the job of an Electronic Resources Librarian in a public library is guiding users through how to use our resources – that includes helping them take control of their own privacy.
Overview of two new ALA privacy-related resolutions Virginia Dressler
Overview of newly passed ALA resolutions, “Resolution on the Surveillance of Library Users Through Behavioral Tracking” and “Resolution in Opposition to Facial Recognition Software in Libraries”