All libraries will be closed Friday, March 29th and Sunday, March 31st for our Spring Holiday.

Privacy and Terms

The Privacy Policy outlines the types of information Richmond Public Library gathers on visitors to our website and our patrons, as well as some of the steps we take to safeguard that information.

Information Collected When You Visit the Website

  • We do not collect personal information about visitors to the website unless the visitor chooses to provide that information.
  • We collect limited, non-personally identifying information browsers make available automatically whenever someone visits a website. This information includes the internet address of the computer or network; the date, time, and page visited; the browser and operating system; and the referring page (the last webpage visited before clicking on a link to the Library’s website).
  • We use the aggregated information from all visitors to measure server performance, analyze user traffic patterns, and improve the content of our website.
  • We track keywords that are entered into the search engine to measure interest in specific topics, but that information is not linked to a specific visitor.
  • Some online services require patrons to register for an account, which requires entry of some personal information in order to create the account (typically name, email address, and a password for account access). For certain services, such as online fee payment services, it may be necessary to provide credit card or other payment information which may be stored temporarily in encrypted form on secure servers but not within the Library or the City. All online credit card transactions are handled by third party Software as a Service (SaaS) providers.

Information Collected at Richmond Public Library

In order to issue a library card, we collect and store your name, address, phone number, email address, date of birth, and other uniquely identifying information for the purpose of tracking usage of Library materials. Your library card does not expire; however, you can ask us to delete your account if the record is clear of any checkouts or fees. Understand that any third-party accounts you created using your library card as authentication (for instance, Hoopla, Overdrive, etc.) will not work.

We do not sell, share, or distribute any of your information to any of our partners. Your information is protected and secured. We retain it so that we are able to provide proper stewardship of public library materials per the Code of the City of Richmond.

Cookies

We use “cookies” when providing online services. This information is used to improve the quality of services and not to track any personal information. The use of cookies is a standard practice among Internet websites and most Internet web browsers may be customized to reject cookies, to only accept or reject cookies by user intervention, or to delete cookies. However, some features may not function properly without cookies.

SAAS (Software as a Service) Providers

The following is a list of some of the SaaS that we use.
Google Analytics
Google Translate
Google Maps
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram
YouTube
LibraryAware
Envisionware
SirsiDynix
RecordedBooks
Overdrive
Hoopla

Site Security

We do not publicly disclose our procedures for the security of web assets. We utilize industry best practices to monitor network traffic to identify unauthorized attempts to access information or to otherwise cause damage to the website. We will take all appropriate security measures to prevent unauthorized access, alteration, or destruction of data, including prosecution to the full extent of the law of any persons found breaking the law as it relates to computer security.

Copyright

All materials on this web site are copyright protected by the Richmond Public Library, including but not limited to all design, HTML code, text, and images, unless otherwise expressly stated. All rights reserved.

Link Selection

As a resource for our users, Richmond Public Library maintains a variety of pages that list links to other Web sites. These lists include topics such as Art, Computer, Education, Employment, Government and other areas of general interest to library patrons and staff. These lists are intended to be representative but not an exhaustive catalog of the Internet. They are intended to be useful but we do not guarantee authority.
We attempt to feature links to sites which in our judgment will have interest and/or value for those who visit the Richmond Public Library Web Site and use our lists. Recognizing that some valuable services are available exclusively from commercial sites (e.g., Web search tools, database vendor information, etc.), links to selected commercial sites are included to provide access to useful, free, informational resources. However, under no circumstances do we endorse commercial services or link to a site that is primarily fee-based. Links are selected based on: (a) the quality of the information found at the site; (b) the relevance of this information to the Richmond Public Library Mission; and (c) the organization sponsoring the site.

All links being considered for addition to or removal from existing and new Richmond Public Library pages should be proposed to the Richmond Public Library Automation Department for consideration. Links may be nominated by anyone and should include a brief statement describing the value and content of the link. Similarly, any Richmond Public Library staff member may propose removal of an existing link. All additions and removals are subject to comment and discussion among the Automation and Administrative Departments. Decisions are reached by team consensus.

Linking Guidelines

The Richmond Public Library encourages other sites to link to its pages, provided that any such link does not connote an endorsement by or affiliation with the Richmond Public Library.  The link caption and its context must accurately represent the content and source (Richmond Public Library) of the linked page(s).

Due to the dynamic nature of the Richmond Public Library’s web site and the possibility of updates and changes to its pages,  it may be best to link to the Richmond Public Library site at the home page (rvalibrary.org).

  1. Please do not present Richmond Public Library  pages or content as your own,  incorporate any content from this site into your site (e.g., by in-lining or framing or in any other manner) or alter the appearance of the Richmond Public Library  pages.
  2. Please contact: cyberlibrarian@richmondgov.com to advise us that you are linking to these pages. Also include the URL of your page that contains the link. Richmond Public Library reserves the right to revoke its consent to the link(s) at any time at its sole discretion.
  3. If you want to republish in electronic or other form the major part of any textual content on Richmond Public Library pages, please contact: cyberlibrarian@richmondgov.com  to request a written release first. A link to the Richmond Public Library web site must be placed with any hypertext republication of major textual content from the Richmond Public Library page(s).
  4. In accord with existing copyright laws, excerpts from any textual content on Richmond Public Library pages may be quoted freely, providing that full and proper attribution is given, including the Richmond Public Library URL, which is: rvalibrary.org
  5. If you wish to reproduce or use an image from the Richmond Public Library’s web site for publication in electronic or any other form, you must obtain written permission from the Richmond Public Library in advance; a reproduction fee may be charged. Some of the images contained in this site are privately owned and licensed for Richmond Public Library use only.  For more information, please contact : cyberlibrarian@richmondgov.com