The CORE Library is committed to protecting users' personally-identifiable information. The purpose of this page is to tell you, the user, how your information is utilized.
The CORE Library follows and supports the CGI Electronic Privacy Policy. We also endorse the American Library Association's Library Bill of Rights, which supports access to information and denounces censorship, labeling, and restricting access.
Privacy is essential to the exercise of free speech, free thought, and free association. Lack of privacy and confidentiality chills users' choices, thereby suppressing access to ideas. The possibility of surveillance, whether direct or through access to records of speech, research and exploration, undermines a democratic society. - Privacy: An Interpretation of the Library Bill of Rights
The ALA Code of Ethics and Library Bill of Rights acknowledge the paramount importance of library patron privacy:
"We protect each library user's right to privacy and confidentiality with respect to information sought or received and resources consulted, borrowed, required, or transmitted."
"The American Library Association affirms that rights of privacy are necessary for intellectual freedom and are fundamental to the ethics and practice of librarianship."
To safeguard the confidentiality of library patrons' records, the CORE Library maintains no record of what you have used or accessed in the library.
In order to collect usage statistics, the CORE Library uses a cookie to collect anonymous website traffic data. A cookie is a small text file that is saved by your browser to access the services provided by the CORE Library. This information collected may include the number of times a book or database is accessed, but these records are not linked to your individual user account. In addition, your IP address and browser info is stored in server logs used to generate aggregate anonymized usage statistics. Your IP address and login name are also stored in the LibGuides activity log to facilitate troubleshooting. This information is available to Springshare staff only and is only accessed upon institution request.
The contact forms here at the CORE Library (Ask a Librarian; Help Tickets) collect personal information for the specific purpose of assisting you with your request. These forms are maintained by third-party services such as Springshare, EBSCO, or Zendesk that collect this information to provide you with the service requested. These third parties have access to your personal information only to perform specific tasks on our behalf. These third-party services have their own privacy policies addressing how they use this information.
We do everything we reasonably can to keep your information safe and secure, but please be aware that no method of transmitting information over the information or storing information is completely secure. Accordingly, we cannot guarantee the absolute security of any information.