Library computer authentication

There is an interesting article (subscription required) in the 25 June issue of the Chronicle of Higher Education. Entitled, "To use that library computer, please identify yourself," the article addresses the tension in college libraries between unfettered access to the Internet and the need to protect against criminal use of networks. The problem is that if you can track who spread a virus or hacked into a payroll system from a public access computer in a college library, you are also likely to be able to track what that person was reading.

One librarian quoted in the article noted that a local sandwich shop had open computers and asked, "If you can get it [anonymous and open web surfing] at Schlotzsky's, shouldn't you be able to get it at the library?"

ARL also published a SPEC Kit on "Library Public Access Workstation Authentication" last October. The executive summary is available here.

As the Chronicle article notes, librarians have traditionally been strong advocates of information freedom and the right to read anonymously. It is unclear if the growing use of authentication is a step away from that traditional position. I would hope that any library that institutes authentication has also made sure that its patron confidentiality policies are current and enforced.

Comments

[Eli]

Morgan of ExplodedLibrary.info wrote a post on the subject of what electronic resources were available at college library for affiliated versus non-affiliated users. His focus was more on how unaffiliated users were impeded from accessing full-text databases by the use of authentication [article from Scientific American]. A slightly different, but definitely related tack on what you're talking about above.