Privacy and Public Libraries

Last week, I gave a presentation to a group of directors of public libraries in Nova Scotia. Library staff are regularly called upon to consider privacy issues, particularly in connection with public use internet stations. Police regularly ask for information related to who was using a particular terminal at a particular time, often in connection with threats made or other allegedely illegal conduct. In addition, some libraries are contemplating offering reading suggestions based on reader preferences, a form of "data mining".

PIPEDA applies in Nova Scotia and public libraries are not, by and large, engaged in commercial activities. While they were interested in PIPEDA, most of the discussion related to privacy best practices they can adopt to meet the growing expectation of their users. The presentation is available here: Privacy and Public Libraries