Hat-tip Carrie Preston!

This article introduces and applies the concept of “physical-equivalent privacy” to evaluate the appropriateness of data collection about library patrons’ use of library-provided e-resources. It posits that as a matter of service equity, any data collection practice that causes e-resource users to enjoy less information privacy than users of an information-equivalent print resource is to be avoided. Analysis is grounded in real-world e-resource-related phenomena: secure (HTTPS) library websites and catalogs, the Adobe Digital Editions data-leak incident of 2014, and use of web trackers on e-resource websites. Implications of physical-equivalent privacy for the SeamlessAccess single-sign-on proposal will be discussed.

Read more:

Salo, D. (2021). Physical-equivalent privacy. The Serials Librarian. doi:10.1080/0361526X.2021.1875962. http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1793/81297