Confidentiality

The following confidentiality policies are in place because of federal laws and university policies.

IMPORTANT: Information about a library user’s records cannot be released to anyone other than that user. No one else may have access to a patron’s records. This includes parents, spouses, children, roommates, departmental staff, classmates, F.B.I. agents, and the police.

Information you may NOT reveal to anyone other than the patron who owns the account:

  • what books someone has checked out

  • when the books are due

  • what bills someone has on his/her account and what they’re for

  • personal information (addresses, phone numbers, etc.)

  • information about carrels and studies (if necessary, we can deliver a message to the carrel or study on behalf of another user)

You CANNOT confirm if a particular person has a certain book checked out.

You CANNOT tell someone that a book is charged out to Interlibrary Loan (ILL). (However, the book can be recalled from ILL)

You may NOT comment on the material a user is checking out, i.e. “That’s a great book.”

Suggested responses when asked to reveal information about a patron's record are:

    • "Because of reasons of confidentiality I cannot give out information about someone else's record."

    • "Let me get my supervisor."

If you are not sure what you are allowed to tell someone, politely refer him/her to a supervisor or connect him/her to the supervisor’s voicemail

The only time information about someone's record can be released is if the person asking is an official proxy. Proxies will always be listed as such under the Proxies/Sponsors node of the patron’s account. Check the patron's account and the proxy's ID before discussing account issues with the proxy.

Information about borrowers and their records should not be discussed away from the Library Service Desk, or with non-LSD staff.

Be careful what you say about a patron's record when working in the department, especially when and where other patrons and staff from other departments can hear you speaking.

What you CAN say to someone else regarding checked-out materials:

  • When an item was checked out

  • When an item is due

  • If the item can be recalled

  • If the item is lost, missing or at the Bindery

Violating the confidentiality policy is grounds for immediate termination.