Another PL Banning Social Software

From Jason, in my LIS753 Class:

Here’s an article I came across on this topic.

Lexington County Library Bans Social Networking Sites –
http://www.thestate.com/154/story/304545.html

It’s from TheState.com, South Carolina. They include an online poll asking readers if they think such social software should be banned. As of this morning (3/29) of 101 votes, 52 votes for yes and 49 for no.

Here’s part of the article:

The primary reason for the decision was research that shows social networking sites can make computer systems vulnerable to viruses, said Dan MacNeill, executive director of the Lexington County Public Library.

“This is security for our network system, our computers.”

The library hasn’t encountered such problems, but library officials said they want to be proactive.

“We knew it was going to be a problem for some folks … and it was not done without a tremendous amount of thought, and a tremendous amount of research,” said David Fellows, chairman of the Lexington County Library Board and owner of a computer business.

Greenville County and some libraries in North Carolina also have restricted the use of social networking sites, said Sam Hastings, director of the University of South Carolina’s School of Library and Information science.

“It is a legitimate concern,” Hastings said.

Viruses? Viruses?

I just voted. This will be interesting to watch.