The Amherst College Library is committed to protecting the privacy of its users. Our policies conform to the Code of Ethics of the American Library Association, which provides this statement of the library community's commitment to privacy:
We protect each library user's right to privacy and confidentiality with respect to information sought or received, and materials consulted, borrowed, acquired or transmitted.
Personally identifiable information may be stored in conjunction with loan operations, personalization features of the Five College library catalog, or other services. Please note that the library may be obligated to release such information to federal law enforcement agents in response to a search warrant or subpoena issued in accordance with the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, 50 USC 1861, as amended by the USA PATRIOT Act (Public Law 107-56). That law prohibits library staff from informing you that such a request has been received.
The Amherst College Library is equally committed to protecting the privacy of the users of our electronic resources. While data about system and resource use is gathered for administrative purposes, the use of that information conforms to the precepts of confidentiality outlined in the Code of Ethics statement. Data gathered varies according to the resource and the method of connection to it. The resulting logs contain information used to analyze use of resources, troubleshooting problems, and improving services.
Our commitment to user privacy extends to our agreements with online content providers and includes support for the International Coalition of Library Consortia (ICOLC) Privacy Guidelines for Electronic Resource Providers. When using the services of an external provider, the privacy policies of that provider will apply.