Privacy

This privacy policy explains

• Your privacy and confidentiality rights
• The steps Schaumburg Township District Library takes to respect and protect your privacy when you use Library resources
• How we handle personally identifiable information we collect from our patrons.

The Library has measures in place to protect patron privacy and confidentiality. In setting these policies, the Library tries to strike a balance between your privacy and your convenience. Third-party services provided through the Library have other terms and policies that affect the privacy of your personally identifiable information. Library records are not made available to any agency of state, federal, or local government without a subpoena, warrant, court order or other legal document requiring us to do so. Library patrons who have questions, concerns, or complaints regarding the Library’s handling of their privacy and confidentiality rights should contact our Executive Director.

Your Right to Privacy

Schaumburg Township District Library is committed to protecting your privacy by keeping personally identifiable information confidential. Our commitment to your privacy has deep roots in the law and in the ethics and practices of librarianship. The Library holds true to the values of the American Library Association affirming that, “Privacy is essential to the exercise of free speech, free thought, and free association.”

State law protects your Library records from disclosure if a member of the public or the media requests them. Library records include any written or electronic record used to identify a customer. This includes, but is not limited to, your borrowing history, name, address, telephone number, or email address. At the Library, we do everything we can to protect your privacy, however there are times when we may be required by law to provide this information. Library records may be subject to disclosure to law enforcement officials under provisions of state law, USA PATRIOT Act or civil lawsuit. Library staff may be forbidden from reporting to you that your records have been requested or obtained under provisions of the USA PATRIOT Act.

Please ask the Executive Director if you have questions about this policy and/or your rights to privacy in the Library.

What information do we collect?

The Library strives to collect the least amount of personally identifiable information we can. We avoid creating unnecessary records. We do not engage in practices that might place your information on public view without consent. You may choose to submit your personal information in order to use some Library services, and this information is kept confidential. We will not sell, license, or disclose it to any third party except those working under contract or as required by law.

We may collect the following personal information to access Library services:

• Name
• Address
• Telephone number
• Email address
• Date of birth
• Photo (at time of Library card registration)
• Library barcode number
• Items currently checked out
• Requested and canceled holds
• Interlibrary loans
• Overdue items (until returned)
• Sign-up information for Library programs and room usage

The Library does not keep a record of your checkout history beyond operational requirements. Once you return an item it is removed from your account. You may choose to turn on the checkout history feature in your online account to keep a log of items you check out. Third-party vendors may keep a record of electronic material you borrowed or viewed within their respective platforms.

The Library uses data analytics software to discover demographic trends and better understand how patrons use our collections and services. For example, we may combine program sign-up lists and Library account data to evaluate the age groups of patrons most interested in a particular type of program.

We use Google Analytics to collect data about the use of our website. We use this information to make improvements to our website and to track trends. Your personal information is not tracked. Whenever possible, we will not track customers who have enabled the Do Not Track option in their browsers. Our website collects the following data:

• Browser type
• Anonymized internet address
• Operating system type
• Web address of the page from which you linked to our site
• Device
• Network service provider
• Interaction data

Any personal information given in email messages, chat sessions, web forms, in-person or telephone reference, or other communications is only used for the purpose for which you submitted it.

Any payment information provided to the Library (such as for payment of program fees, or print/fax/copy fees) is only used for the purpose for which you submitted it. Our payment systems may retain your name, email address, transaction amount, date and time of transaction, type of service purchased and partial credit card numbers. We will never store your entire credit card number, security code or PIN. We comply with all PCI-DSS standards.
 
Who has access to my information?

All Library customer records are confidential. Library records may only be disclosed to:

• Library staff performing job duties
• Cardholders, upon proof of identity
• Parents or guardians of minor children
• Authorities, under court order or subpoena

We respect the privacy of all Library patrons, no matter their age. Parents, guardians or caretakers of a child under age 18 who wish to obtain access to a child’s Library records, including the number or titles of materials checked out or overdue, must provide the child’s Library card or card number.

Our Website and Public Computers

HTTPS

The Library’s website (SchaumburgLibrary.org), event website (Schaumburg.libnet.info), and catalog (catalog.SchaumburgLibrary.org) are encrypted with HTTPS. All communications between your browser and the Library website are private. Your online Library account is also encrypted.

Cookies

A cookie is a small file sent to the browser by a website each time that site is visited. Cookies are stored on your computer and can transmit personal information. Cookies are used to remember information about your preferences on the pages you visit.

You can refuse to accept cookies, disable cookies and remove cookies from your hard drive. However, this may result in a lack of access to some Library services. Our Library servers use cookies to verify that a person is an authorized user. This allows you access to licensed third-party vendors and to customize webpages to your preferences. Cookies obey the privacy settings that you have chosen in your browser. We will not share cookie information with external third parties.

Data & Network Security

The Library uses software programs that monitor network traffic to identify unauthorized attempts to upload or change information, or otherwise cause damage. No other attempts are made to identify individual patrons or their usage habits. In order to provide easy access to the internet on personal devices, our WiFi network is not encrypted; we urge you to exercise caution and ensure an HTTPS connection when transmitting sensitive information (such as bank passwords) while on public WiFi.

Public Computers & Connected Devices

The Library does not keep a record of your activities on any Library computer or laptop. Any record of browsing history and activities are removed when you log out. The next user cannot see any of your information.

All personally identifiable information is purged immediately upon the end of your public computer reservation. For statistical purposes, an anonymous log is created that includes only the computer terminal number, reservation time and duration of the session.

Connected devices borrowed from the Library (such as mobile hotspots or eReaders) do not retain any information about you or your browsing history.

Email Services

The Library uses email addresses to respond to the emails we receive, to confirm program registrations, to solicit program feedback and to promote Library services. You may opt out of marketing communications by clicking the “opt out” link in emails from us. The Library also sends account notices to customers who have given us their email addresses for that purpose. You may opt out of email account notices by contacting us and requesting a change to your notification preferences.

Using Third-Party Vendors

The Library enters into agreements with third parties to provide online services, digital collections, streaming media content and more. When using some of these services, you may also connect with social networks and other users.

Third-party vendors may collect and share your information, including:

• Personally identifiable information you knowingly provide. This includes: when you register for the site, provide feedback and suggestions, request information or create shared content.
• Other information that could be used to identify you. This includes: your Internet Address (IP Address), search history, location-based data and device information.
• Non-personally identifiable information. This includes: your ad views, analytics, browser information (type and language), cookie data, date/time of your request, demographic data, hardware/software type, interaction data, serving domains, page views and the web page you visited immediately prior to visiting the site.
• Other data as described in the vendor’s privacy policy and terms of use.

For more information on these services and the types of data that is collected and shared, refer to the terms of use and privacy policies of each specific vendor. You may choose not to use these third-party vendors if you do not accept their terms of use and privacy policies. Please read them carefully.

We make reasonable efforts to ensure the Library’s contracts, licenses and offsite computer service arrangements reflect our policies and legal obligations concerning customer privacy and confidentiality. Our contracts address restrictions on the use, aggregation, sharing and sale of information, particularly about minors.

The Library expects vendors to:

• Follow all privacy-related items in the vendor contract and licensing agreements.
• Conform to Library privacy policies.
• Provide a product which complies with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act.
• Refrain from collecting or sharing additional information about customers, other than is needed for delivery of the Library services provided.
• Have a publicly posted privacy policy.
• Use secure protocols for connecting to and using the service provided.

Library customers must understand when using remote or third-party vendor sites that there are limits to the privacy protection the Library can provide.

We do everything we can to ensure your card number and PIN are protected when authenticating with third-party resources. In some instances, the connection between the Library and a third party is not fully encrypted. While it is unlikely that anyone would intercept your credentials, it may be possible when you use the third-party resources listed here. We urge all our third-party vendors to support full encryption of Library card login credentials.

The Library also suggests links to external websites that are not under contract. You are not required to
give these sites your Library card or any other personally identifiable information in order to use their
services.

What surveillance is used at the Library?

Library Video Surveillance

All Library locations have security cameras that may record activities within and outside of the Library. Video recordings will be retained by the Library Executive Director in accordance with the Local Records Act. Video recordings may be subject to release if permitted by Illinois law, subject to any confidentiality protections.

How do we handle law enforcement requests?

Only the Executive Director and/or their designee is authorized to receive and respond to requests from law enforcement officers and any such response will be subject to compliance with applicable laws. The Executive Director may seek advice from legal counsel prior to responding to a request from law enforcement officers.

Questions, Concerns, or Complaints

If you have questions, concerns or complaints regarding the Library’s handling of your privacy and
confidentiality rights, please contact our Executive Director.

Approved by the Schaumburg Township District Library Board of Trustees, November 16, 2020.

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