Confidentiality of Patron Records and USA PATRIOT Act

Cullom-Davis Library endorses the Code of Ethics of the American Library Association, which includes, "We protect each library user's right to privacy and confidentiality with respect to information sought or received."

We abide by the Illinois Library Records Confidentiality Act (P.A. 83-179), which ensures the privacy of a library patron's records.

  • The library staff and student workers shall protect all patron records, including but not limited to patron registration, online activities and transactions in circulation, interlibrary loan, document delivery and reference.
  • We shall not give a patron’s records to anyone outside of Cullom-Davis Library and its resource-sharing partners without a subpoena, search warrant or court order. 
  • The library may be obligated to release patron records to law enforcement agents in response to a subpoena, search warrant or court order issued per the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (50 U.S.C. 1861), as amended by the USA PATRIOT Act (Public Law 107-56). That law may prohibit the library from informing patrons that we received such a request.