NDAs and Privacy Ethics in Libraries and Archives
Posted January 26, 2026 by Laura Kiely
Something we talk about in a variety of courses here at Simmons is how we as librarians and archivists maintain the privacy of our patrons. I am a big advocate for individual privacy, and while I recognize the need for some internal usage data, the overall privacy of users is paramount for the maintenance of continued trust from the public. The ALA has the official statement on privacy here: https://www.ala.org/advocacy/intfreedom/librarybill/interpretations/privacy.
What I am interested in discussing today is the presence of NDAs in libraries and archives, two of which I have encountered recently at work! I will not disclose where or what about (for obvious reason), nor will I discuss the specific wording of these NDAs, this is instead a reflection upon how privacy works in libraries and archives. All of the ideas expressed here are my own opinions and do not reflect the positions of the places I work.
I have found that, in general, the laws and ethical limits on sharing information about libraries extends mainly to the patrons of the library. Public libraries cannot disclose what their patrons checked out, nor should they disclose anything about their patrons as individuals. Often, when public libraries are using patron data to support their claims for more funding or specific grants, they will point to demographic data and usage data that is anonymized. The same goes for academic libraries. In general, patron data is what is protected, as the point of these libraries (and archives) is to make visible and available the information in the library, but to protect the people who access this information.
In one of the non-disclosure situations I have encountered, the NDA was put in place to protect the archival collection before it was processed. This is part of the general code of ethics for archivists, where we close (temporarily or permanently) sections of a collection in order to protect individual privacy. For example, FERPA regulations limit a university’s ability to disclose information about any individual students, and thus student papers, course schedules, or other student records tend to be closed for 70+ years after the creation of the document as a way of ensuring their privacy. This also means that the archivists cannot, in writing or verbally, inform anyone of the student records. I was surprised when I was informed that working on a specific collection would require a NDA because I believe privacy and non-disclosure to be part of the work of an archivist already. However, the collection could include legally or personally sensitive information, and I understand that the donors are covering their bases.
Legal enforcement of ethical standards is often done on a case-by-case basis, and it is up to the individual archivist to determine how comfortable they are accepting a collection that comes with a non-disclosure requirement. I did not select this collection, as I am in a lower level position, so I am trusting my supervisors in their selection of the collection and the importance of a NDA. In the future when I am in that sort of supervisory role, I hope to be as communicative and supportive to my employees as my supervisors have been throughout this process. Always read every word of an NDA!
Corporate libraries tend to be fairly limited in disclosure overall, as they are private institutions, and often have private funding, thus no need to publicly disclose much of anything. Patron records, if they exist, are closely guarded, but unlike public and academic libraries, the content of the corporate library or archive are also often protected. At my current place of employment, there isn’t a limitation on disclosing the contents of the library, but the NDA is in place to protect the intellectual property of the company. I come into contact with new ideas, intellectual property, and other protected information regularly, and cannot and will not disclose it, both because of my NDA and my ethical framework as a librarian and archivist. Conversations, patrons, the books they check out, and the information I encounter at work are all private, and the NDA is in place to enforce that privacy. Competitors are a real risk in this area, thus keeping a legal protection in place to prevent all employees from disclosing information is standard. I felt comfortable signing this NDA because I did not feel it went outside the bounds of library ethics, nor did it restrict my ability to do my work well.
Library ethics and nondisclosure agreements tend to go hand in hand, where one has interpersonal ramifications (including employment status) and one has legal ramifications. As librarians and archivists, we have a duty to maintain the privacy of our patrons and balance privacy and access in our collections, and the NDA can be a guide for what sort of disclosure in collections is allowed. NDAs can introduce difficult limitations, especially in archives, so always remember to read every word of an agreement before signing!