Privacy, Security and Government Websites
Information Today, Vol. 21, No. 2, p. 15, February 2004
3 Pages Posted: 15 Jul 2010
Date Written: February 1, 2004
Abstract
In my day job as a law librarian, the Web has become a wonderful tool for accessing legal information, government documents and public records that had not previously been available to our patrons. Even the largest academic law library could only access a small fraction of that thing we call “the law”. Materials from federal agencies, state governments and foreign countries were previously available in limited locations, if at all. And, it’s not just legal information. Researchers of all stripes are able to access a vast array of non-copyrighted material from government and non-government websites.
While there is still a wealth of content available, privacy, security and political considerations are leading to the removal of a number of government resources from the Internet. Like many areas of the law, these actions are proving frustrating to some and pleasing to others.
Keywords: public records, document removal, privacy rights, security, political concerns, government resources, state Websites, Internet, practical obscurity, First Amendment, access to information, computerized access, electronic access, citizens rights
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