McFarlin LibAnswers

Summary of Policy

The McFarlin Library at the University of Tulsa is a staunch defender of intellectual freedom, patron privacy, and responsible use of patron data. McFarlin Library complies with minimum legal requirements to protect information about the resources and library use of patrons, but strives to protect patron information further, aiming to meet American Library Association, industry standards, and European Union General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) standards for all patrons. McFarlin Library will not release information about your library utilization except to authorized parties and will take additional steps to protect your data from internal and external usage. 

Your Right to Privacy

Privacy is essential to intellectual freedom, free speech, and academic discourse. "Privacy" is broadly defined as the right to be left alone, or freedom from interference or intrusion. In a library setting, this translates to privacy to utilize the library to research topics of your choosing without fear of your research topics, resources utilized, or presence in the library being reported except to authorized parties for legitimate reasons. 

By utilizing our website, attending library programs, participating in library instruction or research sessions, accessing our electronic resources or physical materials, visiting McFarlin Library, or paying for an individual library membership, you agree to our privacy policy. By consenting to this policy, you authorize McFarlin Library to contact you utilizing the contact information we have on file regarding overdue materials or in response to library inquiries. However, in accordance with Oklahoma State law and our own commitment to patron privacy, information about materials you check out and information that you access in library resources is confidential. 

The McFarlin Library Patron Privacy Policy may change over time. Please refer back to this specific section of our website to see the most recent version of our policy.

To see the complete Patron Privacy Policy, please visit the McFarlin Library website by clicking on the link above.