Clearly patron data (from Internet use at the library) will be able to be harvested. This will undoubtedly have rippling effects for libraries. There is the obvious; patron’s information will not be secure. But this will now be true for everyone, everywhere and is a larger political issue. What concerns me are other, unintended factors. The most obvious for me is the concept of targeted advertisement. All who are online experience the eerie occurrences of push advertising. Search for information about a lawn mower and suddenly every ad that comes up on your computer screen is for that specific product. This is annoying, but if the push advertising is going to start surfacing from information pulled from what we generally think of as private communications (email versus Google searches), what will that mean for what pops up for our patrons? For those of us who do not filter, will this increase the visibility of inappropriate sites?  Will this allow private concerns to become more public, such as library patron’s health issues?

Another issue is intentional spying. More than once in my library I’ve had a parent or spouse actively try to spy on their child or significant other. I can imagine there have been even more nefarious attempts also, that staff was unaware of.  But since we know this actively occurs, what does this situation and newly revised law mean for the library?

Can a patron seek out our ISP and buy our information? Can a spy linger until a patron is done on a particular computer, and then use that computer to see what ads pop up? Whereas before the ad might reflect the person’s desire for shoes or Amazon book selection, what might it include now?

Further, will we have an economy of scale problem? For example, it is one consideration if an individual’s Internet use is purchased, but if a library’s use is purchased, it could reflect hundreds of people. This could be a convenient one stop shopping database for an entire community.

I am troubled by these thoughts, both privately and professionally. I am equally troubled that I am not sure how much of the public is currently aware of this. I am sure I am not the only librarian with concerns. The question is what can we do about it?

Prior to this law being repealed I posted the information by our public access computers. I will now revise that posting again. But I believe it’s time to start discussing what else we can do.

The post Big Brother Through the Library first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

My library system (Palm Beach County Library System) has two programs scheduled for September called Be Scam Smart. Tasha Carter, Director of the Division of Consumer Services under the Florida Department of Financial Services, will be leading an informative workshop for seniors, their families, and caregivers. The 90-minute workshop is part of Operation S.A.F.E. (Stop Adult Financial Exploitation) and will cover how to spot a scam, outsmart the scam artists, avoid identity theft, and more. Libraries are a valuable resource for patrons on many topics, and assisting senior citizens with keeping their finances and identity safe, is another opportunity for libraries to step up in our communities.

I encourage you to visit the FTC website and order their free folder with six articles and six bookmarks that you can display at your library. The materials are available in English and Spanish. It is possible to order more as needed. Maybe you do not have the time or resources to conduct a program, but you can link your library website (or blog) to the informational video that is also on their page. If your library has conducted a similar program, or you plan to conduct one, please reply in the comments section below with anything you feel is valuable to report to other library professionals. I believe we can all agree that it is unfortunate that rip-off artists exist, but it would also be unfortunate not to take advantage of these free resources to educate our local citizens.

The post Pass It On at Libraries to Help Seniors Avoid Scams first appeared on Public Libraries Online.