The discuss of privacy problems for the personalized information service of university library

[[abstract]]Abstract At 1999, the Library and Information Technology Association (LITA) advanced the Personalized Information Service (PIS) is the important trend for the future development of library website; which means that the users can filter and search information basis of their request, and let the library system can offer the research subjects or information which appeal to the users forwardly, and move up the using efficiency of the library. However the PIS will cause the privacy problem for the personal information of readers. Because the operation of PIS has to analyze the reader’s personal information such as name, borrowing records etc. After the interview of Chiao Tung University library and Da Yeh University library, the research here has arranged the functions of Personalized Information Service (PIS, which is called My Library in Da Yeh Uni.) of the National Chiao Tung University Library and Da Yeh University Library and in accordance with the R.O.C Computer Process Personal Data Protection Act as well as the original law – The OECD(Organization for Economic Cooperation Development) Guidelines on the Protection of Privacy and Transborder Flow of Personal Data (Collection Limitation Principle, Data Quality Principle, Purpose Specification Principle, Use Limitation Principle, Security Safeguards Principle, Openness Principle, Individual Participation Principle, Accountability Principle). Thus we divide the PIS of university library into six subjects to discuss privacy problems which as blow:1.The obtain of reader’s personal data 2.The use and process of reader’s personal data 3.The accuracy and update of reader’s personal data 4.The security safeguards of reader’s personal data 5.The use and establishment of user profile 6.The privacy policy. The results indicate that the PIS of university library did invade reader’s privacy. Therefore the management of library should enhance the protection of reader’s privacy through the constitution of privacy policy, the reader’s written agreement for acquired data, setting up effective way to solve the controversy of privacy, and reducing data processing by hand, to balance the information with gatherer (library) and giver (reader); and to be the reference for university library when offering personalized information service. Keywords: Personalized Information Service, Privacy, University Library