DLF Working Group on Privacy and Ethics in Technology
About
The Digital Library Federation’s Privacy and Ethics in Technology Working Group (PET) affirms that privacy is a human right and collective good fundamental to the health of scholarship, creativity, personal agency, and democracy.
Privacy is essential to equity. All residents of a free society need privacy while seeking information, communicating with others, and developing ideas. This is especially true for marginalized groups, who are disproportionately affected by data exploitation. DLF PET advocates for ethical technologies and practices that respect and empower patrons both in library spaces and beyond.
History
The Privacy and Ethics in Technology Working Group (formerly know as the Technologies of Surveillance, or ToS, Working Group) was formed at the end of the 2017 DLF Forum by Yasmeen Shorish and Shea Swauger. This group came out of the Surveyance or Surveillance? Working Lunch at the Forum and is dedicated to challenging our relationships with data collection technologies. Libraries are increasingly investing in systems that can track and correlate user behavior.
Goals/Objectives
- Examine the methods and ethical implications of these technologies and seek to establish guidelines for how to challenge and avoid intrusive technologies wherever we encounter them in our profession
Leadership
- Andrew Boyles Petersen, co-convener
- Paige Walker, co-convener
Get Involved
Meetings
DLF PET meets monthly on the third Wednesday – Check group communications or the DLF Community Calendar for the most up-to-date schedule.
