Date: July 13
Time: 9am-12pm
Today, I continued staffing the reference desk. Sharon and I continued our discussion of internet privacy tools, including the possibility of installing TorBrowser as an option on all Clevnet computers. To avoid confusion, Google Chrome would still serve as patrons’ primary browser, but this would give patrons without Internet access at home the same opportunities to utilize Tor. Alison Macrina specifically mentioned domestic violence survivors when discussing Tor users. Libraries could help these users by providing access to this tool. Consortium-wide implementation would ensure buy-in and consistency across all of Clevnet. Clevnet system administrators would not be suspicious of Tor usage if all libraries provided access to it.
There are, of course, challenges to providing access to Tor. The Kilton Public Library in Lebanon, NH faced challenges from local police and the Department of Homeland Security when they began using excess bandwidth for a Tor relay node. The boards of all the Clevnet libraries would need to agree and support such a program, which may be more difficult in small communities such as Perry.