Introduction
Lyrasis (“Company” or “We“) is a nonprofit organization that operates The Palace Project (“App”) to provide access to digital library materials for public libraries, schools, and other institutions across the United States. We do not operate the App for commercial purposes, and we never sell personal information. This Privacy Policy applies nationwide and explains how we collect, use, protect, and disclose information in accordance with applicable federal and state data-privacy laws and best practices, including those protecting students and minors.
This policy DOES NOT apply to information that:
- We collect offline or on any other Company apps or websites, including websites you may access through this App.
- You provide to or is collected by any third party.
Our websites and apps, and these other third parties have their own privacy policies, which we encourage you to read before providing information on or through them.
Please read this policy carefully to understand our policies and practices regarding your information and how we will treat it. If you do not agree with our policies and practices, do not download, register with, or use this App. By downloading, registering with, or using this App, you agree to this privacy policy. This policy may change from time to time. Your continued use of this App after we revise this policy means you accept those changes, so please check the policy periodically for updates.
Information We Collect and How We Collect It
We collect information from and about users of our App:
- Directly from you when you provide it to us.
- Automatically when you use the App.
- Lyrasis collects only the limited information necessary to enable access to library resources, maintain functionality, and provide technical support. We do not collect or store names, demographic data, educational records, or any content created by users.
Information You Provide to Us
When you download, register with, or use this App, we may ask you provide information:
- By which you may be personally identified, such as name, postal address, email address, or any other identifier by which you may be contacted online or offline (“personal information“), solely to the extent that you opt-in for a virtual library card.
- That is about you but individually does not identify you, such as about your physical location, if location services are enabled on your device.
- This information includes:
- Information that you provide by filling in forms in the App, such as your library barcode and PIN. This includes information provided at the time of registering to use the App. We may also ask you for information when you report a problem with the App.
- Records and copies of your correspondence (including your email address), if you contact us.
Automatic Information Collection
When you download, access, and use the App, it may use technology to automatically collect:
- Usage Details. When you access and use the App, we may automatically collect certain details of your access to and use of the App, including traffic data, location data, logs, and other communication data and the resources that you access and use on or through the App, on a purely aggregated basis and not specific to you.
- Device Information. We may collect information about your mobile device and internet connection, including the device’s unique device identifier, IP address, operating system, browser type, and mobile network information.
- Location Information. This App collects real-time information about the location of your device, solely to the extent that you allow such location services and only once to determine your local libraries.
- IP addresses are processed to identify and prevent unauthorized access, detect abuse, and generate aggregated usage metrics. Lyrasis does not use IP addresses to create user profiles or track browsing activity across services, and IP data are retained only for a limited period necessary for these operational purposes.
If you do not want us to collect this information do not download the App or delete it from your device.
How We Use Your Information
We use information that we collect about you or that you provide to us, including any personal information, to:
- Provide you with the App and its contents, and any other information, products or services that you request from us.
- Fulfill any other purpose for which you provide it.
- Carry out our obligations and enforce our rights arising from any contracts entered into between you and us.
- Notify you when App updates are available, and of changes to any products or services we offer or provide though it.
The usage information we collect helps us to improve our App and to deliver a better and more personalized experience by enabling us to:
- Estimate our audience size and usage patterns.
- Store information about your preferences, allowing us to customize our App according to your individual interests.
- Speed up your searches.
We use location information we collect to provide you location-relevant services via our App.
Lyrasis does not sell, share, or use information for advertising, marketing, or profiling. Information, including IP logs, is used exclusively to operate and improve the App, ensure security, and troubleshoot technical issues.
Disclosure of Your Information
We may disclose aggregated, non-identifiable information without restriction.
All third-party service providers engaged by Lyrasis (for example, cloud-hosting or security vendors) are bound by written agreements requiring them to protect data in a manner consistent with this Policy and to use it only for the limited purpose of supporting the App.
In addition, we may disclose personal information that we collect or you provide solely to the extent that you opt-in for a virtual library card:
- To our subsidiaries and affiliates.
- To contractors, service providers, and other third parties we use to support our company or our App.
- To a buyer or other successor in the event of a merger, divestiture, restructuring, reorganization, dissolution, or other sale or transfer of some or all of Lyrasis’ assets, whether as a going concern or as part of bankruptcy, liquidation, or similar proceeding, in which personal information held by Lyrasis about our App users is among the assets transferred.
- To fulfill the purpose for which you provide it.
- For any other purpose disclosed by us when you provide the information.
- With your consent.
- To comply with any court order, law, or legal process, including to respond to any government or regulatory request.
- To enforce our rights arising from any contracts entered into between you and us, including the App EULA.
- If we believe disclosure is necessary or appropriate to protect the rights, property, or safety of Lyrasis, our customers or others.
Your Choices About Our Collection, Use, and Disclosure of Your Information
We strive to provide you with choices regarding the personal information you provide to us. This section describes mechanisms we provide for you to control certain uses and disclosures of over your information.
- Tracking Technologies. You can set your browser to refuse all or some browser cookies, or to alert you when cookies are being sent. If you disable or refuse cookies or block the use of other tracking technologies, some parts of the App may then be inaccessible or not function properly.
- Location Information. You can choose whether or not to allow the App to collect and use real-time information about your device’s location through the device’s privacy settings. If you block the use of location information, some parts of the App may become inaccessible or not function properly.
- Because the App collects only minimal operational data, most users do not need to take additional steps to limit collection. Parents or guardians of students who access the App through a school may submit privacy or deletion requests through that institution, which will coordinate with Lyrasis.
Accessing and Correcting Your Personal Information
You may also send us an email at privacy@thepalaceproject.org to request access to, correct, or delete any personal information that you have provided to us. We cannot delete your personal information except by also deleting your user account. We may not accommodate a request to change information if we believe the change would violate any law or legal requirement or cause the information to be incorrect.
Children’s and Student Privacy
The App may be used by children under 13 through their schools or libraries. Lyrasis is a nonprofit organization and therefore is not a “commercial operator” under the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) or a “business” under state consumer-privacy laws. Nevertheless, we voluntarily follow COPPA’s core principles and comply with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and similar student-data privacy requirements when providing services to educational institutions.
Lyrasis supports the commitments outlined in the Student Privacy Pledge (studentprivacypledge.org) to promote responsible use of student information and uphold high standards for data security and transparency.
We encourage parents, guardians, and educators to discuss online safety and responsible use of technology with children. Additional resources on protecting children’s privacy online are available at ftc.gov/kidsprivacy.
Please note that your library or school may maintain its own privacy policy governing its handling of user or student information. This Policy applies only to information collected or processed by LYRASIS through The Palace Project.
Requests to access, correct, or delete student information must come from the student’s school or library, which will verify the requester’s identity and relationship before forwarding the request to LYRASIS.
After termination or deactivation of a library or school account, LYRASIS may retain limited, non-personal data for backup or audit purposes for a commercially reasonable period. All student data associated with the institution will be deleted or anonymized promptly in accordance with this Policy.
Your California Privacy Rights
If you are a California resident, California law may provide you with additional rights regarding our use of your personal information.
California’s “Shine the Light” law (Civil Code Section § 1798.83) permits users of our App that are California residents to request certain information regarding our disclosure of personal information to third parties for their direct marketing purposes. To make such a request, please send an email to privacy@thepalaceproject.org.
Data Security
We have implemented measures designed to secure your personal information from accidental loss and from unauthorized access, use, alteration, and disclosure.
The safety and security of your information also depends on you. Where we have given you (or where you have chosen) a password for access to certain parts of our App, you are responsible for keeping this password confidential. We ask you not to share your password with anyone.
Unfortunately, the transmission of information via the internet and mobile platforms is not completely secure. Although we do our best to protect your personal information, we cannot guarantee the security of your personal information transmitted through our App. Any transmission of personal information is at your own risk. We are not responsible for circumvention of any privacy settings or security measures we provide.
In the unlikely event of a confirmed data-security incident affecting personal information, Lyrasis will notify affected partner institutions without undue delay, and in any event within seventy-two (72) hours of confirmation.
Data Retention and Deletion
Lyrasis retains information only as long as needed to provide the App or as required by law.
When an account is closed or an institution requests deletion, Lyrasis permanently deletes or anonymizes related data within ninety (90) days.
Temporary system logs, including IP addresses, are automatically purged or anonymized in accordance with our standard retention policies or sooner after they are no longer needed for security or diagnostic purposes.
Changes to Our Privacy Policy
We may update our privacy policy from time to time. If we make material changes to how we treat our users’ personal information, we will post the new privacy policy on this page with a notice that the privacy policy has been updated.
The date the privacy policy was last revised is identified at the top of the page. You are responsible for periodically visiting this privacy policy to check for any changes.
Contact Information
To ask questions or comment about this privacy policy and our privacy practices, contact us at:
For schools or libraries operating under data-privacy agreements, please include “Institutional Privacy Inquiry” in the subject line.
Last modified: November 2025