Safe Data | Safe FamiliesPassword Mania (available in English and Spanish) is a card game designed to teach youth about creating strong passwords. We include an instruction manual as well as downloadable files with the cards. Pre-printed decks may also be available (use our contact page to request them).
Recommended Age: 8+
Creating a Library Privacy Policy by Focusing on Patron Interactions
ABSTRACT As sensitive transactions continue to move online, public libraries are becoming a critical resource to patrons without access to the internet. This paper shares insights on how library staff negotiate privacy risks when working with patrons handling sensitive and private information. Based on findings from an analysis of library policies on technology use, as well as focus groups and participatory design sessions with library staff from around the United States, we categorize primary risks patrons face when using library computers to complete information tasks requiring submission of sensitive information, as well as how library staff navigate the tensions between their professional values and privacy concerns. We conclude the paper with a discussion of how these findings are informing our development of a framework that library staff can use to navigate privacy risks patrons face.
Full paper link.
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Creating a Privacy Policy Framework for Libraries With Librarians
Libraries have become an important point of online access for many low-income families who use library resources to perform a range of activities from online shopping to job applications (Powell et al., 2010). Many of these online transactions involve entering sensitive personal information like social security numbers. Because of this, protecting patrons’ personal information on public library computers is critical. Librarians, therefore, must have a strong understanding of the risks patrons face when sharing personal information and be able to communicate these risks to patrons.
In this study, we build on our previous findings of librarians as information intermediaries that identify privacy and security challenges library staff face when assisting patrons. In many cases, patrons may have unreasonable expectations regarding librarians’ knowledge of various types of online transactions and the devices, or assume that librarians are able to complete online forms on their behalf. Patrons are often more focused on completing the task at hand–and having the librarian help them complete it–than learning the skills to be able to complete similar future tasks on their own.
A primary goal of this larger project is to develop resources that help librarians and patrons navigate online privacy and security concerns at the library. Our previous research has revealed the need for library staff to have clear policies to refer to when assisting patrons with online activities that involve sensitive information. Therefore, we are developing a policy framework to guide libraries in creating or updating their own policies on how library staff should approach privacy and security issues.
To develop the privacy framework, we utilized a cooperative inquiry method to ideate and iterate the privacy framework with library staff through the use of participatory design (PD) techniques such as sticky noting and big paper approach (Druin, 1999, 2005; Guha et. al., 2005). The process of PD allowed us to develop this framework organically, taking into account the varied experiences and opinions of library staff, whose patrons come from a variety of demographics and have different information needs.
The resulting privacy policy framework was developed iteratively with library staff through participatory design sessions between March and June 2019. Our library policy framework provides high-level guidelines for what a public library policy should cover, while simultaneously allowing specific libraries the flexibility to adapt the policy to fit the specific needs of their patrons.
References
Druin, A. (1999). Cooperative inquiry: Developing new technologies for children with children. In CHI ’99: Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, pp. 592-599.
Druin, A. (2005). What children can teach us: Developing digital libraries for children. Library Quarterly, 75(1), 20-41.
Guha M, Druin A, Chipman G, et al (2005).Working with young children as technology design partners. Communications of the ACM 48(1): 39-42.
Powell, A., Bryne, A., & Dailey, D. (2010). The Essential Internet: Digital Exclusion in Low-Income American Communities. Policy & Internet, 2(2), 159–190.
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Leveraging Funds of Knowledge to Manage Privacy Practices in Families
ABSTRACT Information and communication technologies play a critical role at home, school, and work for people of all ages. At the same time, use of these technologies can present challenges to privacy and security. In this study, we apply the concept of funds of knowledge to understand how families develop knowledge and skills around using technology and protecting personal information. Funds of knowledge explains how people gain knowledge and highlights how learning happens in a variety of environments beyond the classroom. Through interviews with 52 families living in economically disadvantaged communities in the United States, we develop a typology of privacy funds of knowledge in families. We also explore how privacy funds of knowledge inform families’ privacy practices. We conclude the paper by identifying how these findings inform the development of resources for families to further enhance their digital practices.
Full paper link.
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Our paper based on family interview has been accepted by CSCW 2019!
“I Knew It Was Too Good To Be True”: The Challenges Economically Disadvantaged Users Face in Assessing Trustworthiness, Avoiding Scams, and Developing Self-Efficacy Online
Abstract
In the U.S., consumers increasingly turn to the internet and mobile apps to complete essential personal transactions, ranging from financial payments to job applications. This shift to digital transactions can create challenges for those without reliable home internet connections or with limited digital literacy by requiring them to submit sensitive information on public computers or on unfamiliar websites. Using interviews with 52 families from high-poverty communities in the mid-Atlantic region of the U.S., we explore the compounding privacy and security challenges that economically disadvantaged individuals face when navigating online services. We describe the real, perceived, and unknown risks they face as they navigate online transactions with limited technical skills, as well as the strategies and heuristics they employ to minimize these risks. The findings highlight a complex relationship between participants’ negative experiences and their general mistrust of sharing data through online channels. We also describe a range of strategies participants use to try and protect their personal information. Based on these findings, we offer design recommendations to inform the creation of educational resources that we will develop in the next phase of this project.
Our paper has been accepted by iConference 2018, Sheffield, UK!
Our paper with the title Librarians as Information Intermediaries: Navigating Tensions Between Being Helpful and Being Liable has been accepted by iConference 2018 at Sheffield, UK. As conference proceeding, it will be published in Lecture Notes in Computer Science.
Safe Data | Safe Families Project Awarded the 2016 IMLS Research Grant
Grant LG-81-16-0154-16
The University of Maryland, partnering with the Maryland State Department of Education’s Division of Library Development & Services (DLDS), the American Library Association’s Center for the Future of Libraries (CFL), and CASA de Maryland, will identify privacy and security challenges librarians and families of low socioeconomic status face using internet and communication technologies. After conducting an evaluation of the challenges facing librarians, families of low socioeconomic status, and information intermediaries within families such as the children and young adults who serve as information brokers, the partners will develop a suite of educational and professional development resources for librarians and families to enhance privacy-related digital skills and to minimize risks to the security of individuals’ personal information. Up to 50 local families and 40 librarians will participate in the study while data, research reports, and resources will be made accessible to the broader field through a project website, webinars, conference presentations, stakeholder talks, and social media.
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