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Fremont Public Library is committed to protecting the privacy of our staff, donors, customers, and other contacts. The Library does not collect any personally identifiable information about any visitors to our website or users of the app. When you register for a program or sign in to your Library account, that information is stored by the secure software we use to provide those services. Any statistics from this software do not contain personally identifiable information.
This confidentiality extends to information sought or received, and materials consulted, borrowed, acquired, and includes database search records, circulation records, interlibrary loan records, and other personally identifiable uses of Library materials, facilities, or services.
Library account information is secured in the Library’s Online Catalog, which requires patrons to enter their unique username or library card number and password each time they want to access their account information.
The Library abides by the federal Privacy Act of 1974, the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and the Library Records Confidentiality Act (75 ILCS 70).
Fremont Public Library is not responsible for the privacy practices of other sites, which may be different from the privacy practices described in the Library’s Privacy Policy. We encourage you to become familiar with privacy practices of other sites you visit, including those of databases to which the Library subscribes or sites that the Library links to from its website or app.
Personally identifying information that you provide via e-mails or web forms will be used only for such purposes as to send information or provide Library services to you, to update your account information, or to respond to your questions or comments.
If you provide contact information, the Library may contact you to clarify your comment or question, or to learn about your level of customer satisfaction with Library services.
Email notifications of overdues are sent to patrons who have signed up for emails and/or text alerts in the Library’s catalog. To unsubscribe to notifications about account information, the patron must change their Account settings in the Library’s online catalog.
Emails about important Library alerts and weekly eNews may also go to these same email addresses. Patrons are able to unsubscribe to these emails at the bottom of every email that is sent. Patrons who wish to receive recommendations of books may voluntarily subscribe via the Library’s website, and unsubscribing is available at any time.
Any credit card information you provide for fines and fees or services is secured by the banking service collecting the information and used only for that intended purpose. The Library does not store credit card information on its servers.
When registering for online programs, a valid email address is required to receive the address of the online program through programs such as Zoom. These addresses are not used by the Library in any way, but may be stored through third party applications. Please refer to those sites’ privacy policies for more information.
Emails provided for regular program information are used by the event software to send reminders and are visible to the Library staff for alerts or cancellation purposes. These emails may also be added to the Library’s list of emails for sharing of Library information. They are never sold or shared to a third party.
Any emails provided to Library databases are stored by the database and may or may not be accessible by Library staff. Please refer to the databases’ privacy policy for more information.
The Library stores the paper applications of Library Card registrations in a secured location and until disposal is authorized according to the Library’s Document Disposal Policy. The electronic information that is stored for a users’ account may be kept for up to one year past the account’s expiration date or longer if the account has bills assigned.
A user’s personal information, including address, telephone number and the specific titles long overdue on an account, may be shared with a collection agency in order to facilitate return of the Library’s materials.
The Library uses stored online information to help the Library make our site and app more useful to visitors and to learn about the number of visitors to our site and the types of technology our visitors use. The data that is collected is not connected to your personal information or identity. Standard analytics that are collected may show how you accessed the Library’s website, including:
The referring website (whether from another site, from a general search or direct input)
IP address (an IP address is a number that is automatically assigned to a computer whenever it is surfing the Web; it displays general location)
The date and time of access to the Library’s site
Which pages were visited and for how long
Whether the person was using a mobile or desktop browser
When the Library’s app is downloaded, a hired third party collects the analytical data and passes along to the Library the number of users who have downloaded the app and whether it is the Android or Apple version of the app. Any information that is put into the app, such as Library Card number, is used solely for the convenience of the patron and is not stored or shared in any way by the Library outside of the Library’s secured catalog system.
Patrons who ask for information on their own account may receive this information as long as they are able to satisfactorily confirm their identity with their Library card and/or photo ID. Information about specific materials or information will not be shared over the phone from the automated calling system, nor will the Library share said information over the phone without verifying the identity of the caller.
(75 ILCS 70) Library Records Confidentiality Act.
(75 ILCS 70/1) (from Ch. 81, par. 1201)
Sec. 1. (a) The registration and circulation records of a library are confidential information. No person shall publish or make any information contained in such records available to the public unless:
(1) required to do so under a court order; or
(2) the information is requested by a sworn law enforcement officer who represents that it is impractical to secure a court order as a result of an emergency where the law enforcement officer has probable cause to believe that there is an imminent danger of physical harm. The information requested must be limited to identifying a suspect, witness, or victim of a crime. The information requested without a court order may not include the disclosure of registration or circulation records that would indicate materials borrowed, resources reviewed, or services used at the library. If requested to do so by the library, the requesting law enforcement officer must sign a form acknowledging the receipt of the information. A library providing the information may seek subsequent judicial review to assess compliance with this Section.
This subsection shall not alter any right to challenge the use or dissemination of patron information that is otherwise permitted by law.
(b) This Section does not prevent a library from publishing or making available to the public reasonable statistical reports regarding library registration and book circulation where those reports are presented so that no individual is identified therein.
(b-5) Nothing in this Section shall be construed as a privacy violation or a breach of confidentiality if a library provides information to a law enforcement officer under item (2) of subsection (a).
(c) For the purpose of this Section, (i) "Library" means any public library or library of an educational, historical or eleemosynary institution, organization or society; (ii) "registration records" includes any information a library requires a person to provide in order for that person to become eligible to borrow books and other materials and (iii) "circulation records" includes all information identifying the individual borrowing particular books or materials.
(Source: P.A. 95-40, eff. 1-1-08.)
