Public computers, internet and wifi in libraries

When using our computers, loanable tablets, internet or our public wifi you need to observe the following terms and conditions:

• you must not access material which is obscene or violent or which may be offensive to other library users
• use of chat rooms is not permitted
• anyone found abusing the system or behaving in a manner likely to offend other customers or staff will be asked to leave
• in using this service, you are responsible for complying with the law. In particular the law relating to copyright and intellectual property means that you cannot copy any material (this includes music, lyrics, photographs, film clips and drawings) to any device without the necessary permission
• public computers and loanable tablets are set up for general use and you must not tamper with settings or alter the configuration
• access to the public computers and loanable tablets ceases 15 minutes before the library closes

Children and young people aged 8 to 15 years must be library members and have parental permission to use the library computers.

Parents and carers must give permission in person for them to use a library computer for unsupervised access to the internet.  Library staff will record this permission on our customer database. For this reason, children and young people aged 8 to 15 years need to show library staff their own library card each time they want to use a library computer or loanable tablet.

Children under 8 years must be accompanied by a parent or carer when accessing the internet on library computers and loanable tablets.

Our wifi service is not encrypted and as such information sent over the network may be liable to interception by others. Use of this network is entirely at your own risk.

You are responsible for all activities that occur under your username and for keeping your password confidential.

The wifi service may only be used for lawful purposes in accordance with all laws, statutes and regulations in force at that time in the United Kingdom (“Laws”).

You may not use this wifi service to send, receive, store, distribute, transmit, post, upload or download any data or materials which:

• is or promotes any criminal or illegal activity
• is in breach of any third-party copyright and intellectual property rights (including music, lyrics, photographs, films and drawings)
• is defamatory, offensive, abusive, indecent, obscene, or constitutes harassment
• is or may be harmful to minors
• has any fraudulent purpose or intent (including impersonating another person or misrepresenting oneself)

The wifi service may not be used for:

• high volume data transfers (especially sustained transfers)
• hosting or providing hosting facilities for any Web site, server or online service
• sending of unsolicited bulk email, mail-bombing or any other form of bulk electronic communication
• unauthorised access or attempted access to any data, account, system or network (including monitoring, capture, probing, scanning)
• the deliberate spread of any programs containing malware, viruses, worms, trojan horses, corrupted files, hoaxes or any program intended to cause harm or disruption
• reselling of this service

You must agree to these terms to use our facilities.

Buckinghamshire Libraries provide loanable tablets known as Hublets, at various libraries in Buckinghamshire for customers to use while in the library. These loanable tablets should remain inside the library buildings and are subject to the terms outlined in this policy.

View Hublet’s Privacy Policy for further information on data and privacy.

We use software to monitor and filter all use of the internet on public computers and devices. The wifi service usage is also monitored, including the retention of browsing activity.

Buckinghamshire Council reserve the right that if they or a member of staff reasonably suspect that a user has breached this policy to:

• immediately suspend and block access to the service until such a time we are satisfied no breach has occurred
• investigate any complaint or suspected breach including the gathering of information and examination of any data or material on the wifi network or servers
• notify and/or pass on details of any breach to any government, statutory, self-regulatory or law enforcement authority where appropriate

Failure to comply with this policy will result in access to the facilities being withdrawn.

You must agree to these terms to use our facilities.

The public computer, internet and wifi policy next review is scheduled for April 2024.