privacy education in libraries

Cat with teacups
From Kittens and cats : a first reader / by Eulalie Osgood Grover (1911)

47th chat, December 7 2015: privacy education in libraries
11am Pacific / noon Mountain / 1pm Central  / 2pm Eastern

Moderated by @InfAgit
Storify (pdf, html) by @violetbfox

This discussion will be about ways we teach ourselves, our colleagues, and our patrons about privacy issues (with a focus on digital privacy) in their various manifestations in libraries – including internet communications, in-house tools vs third-party platforms, professional rhetoric about a commitment to privacy versus real-world practicalities. How do we grapple with the contradictions? How do we learn and teach about it all?

Suggested readings:

  • Who Are You Empowering? (Hugh Rundle, In the Library with the Lead Pipe)
    http://www.inthelibrarywiththeleadpipe.org/2014/who-are-you-empowering/
    Analyzes some trends and rhetoric around technology in librarians and reflects on the limitations of “choosing” privacy. “If librarians are serious about empowering citizens and protecting their privacy, we need to provide them not just with the motivation but also the means to protect their own privacy and empower.”
  • Educators’ Toolbox for Security Trainers (Gus Andrews)
    http://gandre.ws/blog/blog/2014/01/01/educators-toolbox-for-security-trainers/
    Mental models, how to engage learners, and more.
  • The Nine Circles of Surveillance Hell: An Institutional View of Information Flows and Information Threats in Libraries (Seeta Peña Gangadharan and Bonnie Tijerina, LACUNY Institute 2015)
    http://academicworks.cuny.edu/lacuny_conf_2015/9/
    A short slide deck summing up the technological (and otherwise) intermediaries affecting privacy and confidentiality in libraries, along with suggested institutional solutions, including patron education and professional development.

Discussion questions:

  • Q1. How do you define privacy, in and outside of the library? #critlib
  • Q2. How do you teach yourself about privacy? #critlib
  • Q3. How do you share information and skills related to privacy with your colleagues? #critlib
  • Q4. How do you teach specific topics (e.g. passwords, safe browsing, social media privacy) to your library’s users? #critlib
  • Q5. How do you balance ideals of commitment to privacy with real-world practicalities? #critlib

Additional readings:

What is privacy?

Tech and tactics in libraries

Heaps of additional reading