Privacy in Libraries

Last week, a scandal broke out when it was revealed that Adobe is collecting user data from its Adobe Digital Editions software, including versions used in libraries, and sending the data unencrypted back to its servers.

Specifically, according to The Digital Reader blog, Adobe is “gathering data on the ebooks that have been opened, which pages were read, and in what order. All of this data, including the title, publisher, and other metadata for the book is being sent to Adobe’s server in clear text.”

Andromeda Yelton writes about ethical implications for libraries on her blog.

Barbara Fister warns that “librarians who have ebook collections need to inform their patrons right now that if they are using the latest Adobe Digital Editions software, their reading history, including ebooks they didn't borrow from the library, belongs to Adobe and anyone else who's watching.”

More information:

Wie Adobe die Zukunft von DRM sieht

La liseuse d'Adobe enregistre ce que lisent ses utilisateurs

How does your library protect the privacy of its users?

Eric Stroshane gave a presentation entitled “Defense Against the Digital Dark Arts” during Choose Privacy Week earlier this year. According to the ALA, he discussed “how online surveillance works, give practical tips on improving privacy on public computers and provide a better understanding of current legal threats to digital privacy and online anonymity.”

Stroshane’s slides are available online in this Prezi below or as a PowerPoint presentation (including his notes).