Libraries fear NSA is targeting their records

The nation’s libraries are backing legislation that would curb the powers of the National Security Agency. Revelations about NSA surveillance have created a “climate of concern” for libraries, which are seeking to defend the freedom to read and research away from the government’s prying eyes. “You need to have some freedom to learn about what you think is important without worrying about whether it ends up in some FBI file,” said Alan Inouye, director of the Office for Information Technology Policy at the American Library Association (ALA).

Government snooping of libraries has a long history. Under the Patriot Act, for example, the FBI has the power to compel libraries to hand over user data. But the activities of the NSA seem to go far beyond traditional police work, reflecting an “almost ravenous hunger” for collecting information, according to Lynne Bradley, director of the ALA’s Office of Government Relations. That’s especially troubling to the ALA, as “libraries are all about metadata,” Inouye said. The records that libraries keep -- when a user logs on to a library computer, what websites they visit, when books are borrowed and returned -- seem to fit the mold of what the NSA is seeking.