Privacy Policy

Ohio Confidentiality Law, ORC Section 149.432, mandates confidentiality of patron information and borrowing records. These records include any information required to obtain a library card and any information which identifies the library patron borrowing particular books and other material. All Library records relating to an individual’s use of the Library and its resources are confidential. These records may be consulted and used by Library staff in the course of carrying out Library operations, but will not be disclosed to others except upon the request or consent of the Library patron, or pursuant to subpoena, court order or otherwise required by law. An adult individual may consent to waive his or her personal confidentiality rights to his or her borrowing record and patron information.

As a public institution, the Library is legally obligated to comply with the information request requirements of the Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act, commonly known as the USA Patriot Act.

Information We Collect at Registration

The Library only collects the personal information necessary to provide service to the public. The following information is collected for individuals requesting a library card:

• Name
• Address
• Email address (optional)
• Phone number
• Library card number
• Date of Birth
• Driver’s License or State-issued ID number

When you visit the Library's website we collect and store information to measure the number of visitors to different areas of our site to assist us in making our site more useful to you. This information includes:

• The address (IP) of your computer or Internet provider
• The date and time you accessed our site
• The Internet address of the website that referred you to our site

Other information may be collected in the process of providing online collections and services (example: a library barcode number is required to access research databases; name and phone number, etc. may be collected when registering for a Library program).

The Library's website uses cookies to allow you access to certain functions (such as the on-line catalog and electronic resources, etc) within our site. These cookie files do not capture any personal information (such as email address or user passwords). Temporary cookie files are automatically deleted when you close your browser.

As a service to its users, the Washington-Centerville Public Library provides links from its Web site to other sites. The Library is not responsible for the content of these external sites, and the inclusion of a link to any site does not constitute endorsement of that site by the Library or its staff. The Library makes every attempt to select sites that are not partisan, one-sided in view, or highly controversial. The Library cannot be responsible for your privacy when you disclose information to outside websites.

Information we collect is used to reply to requests, send notices, and inform patrons of Library news and events. We would only share information collected with outside parties for these or other library purposes. We will not sell, lease, or otherwise distribute or disclose your email address, phone number, borrower records, or other personal information to outside parties unless required by law, in cases of investigations involving suspected fraud or theft of library materials or equipment, or pursuant to subpoena or court order.

Protecting the privacy of children is especially important to us. Washington-Centerville Public Library does not share a child’s personally identifiable information with third parties and in accordance with the Child Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) does not ask a child under the age of 13 to disclose more personal information than is necessary for them to participate in an online activity. We may ask a child to provide us with information, including but not limited to: first name, last name, and age. This information is stored on a secure server behind a firewall and can be made available to parents upon request. We attempt to minimize exposure of children's personal information when possible by using children's first names and last initials only when promoting events on and off our website. Last names are never published to any Library associated Web site without parental consent.

Due to the ease with which children can divulge personal information on the Internet as well as the possibility of inadvertently bringing up inappropriate sites, we urge parents to supervise their children's use of the Internet. Information collected by the Washington-Centerville Public Library is not shared with any other agency or organization. Any questions or concerns about the Washington-Centerville Public Library’s Privacy Policy or its implementation should be directed to the Support Services Manager, Robin Poffenberger (webmstr@wclibrary.info), 111 W. Spring Valley Rd. Centerville, OH 45458 or call 937-610-4444.